The Second Southern African Online Information Meeting
| Pages | 231-232 |
| Date | 01 April 1993 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/eb045236 |
| Published date | 01 April 1993 |
| Author | Neville Spicer |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Library & information science |
Guest Editorial
The Second Southern
African Online
Information Meeting
Neville Spicer
Chairman,
South
African Online
User Group
Two years ago, in my introduction to the First Southern Afri-
can Online Information Meeting, I said how thrilled I was to
see so many delegates. For the Second Southern African On-
line Information Meeting, held on 2-4 June 1993 in Pretoria,
we had more delegates, more speakers and more exhibitors.
Therefore I was particularly pleased again with the response
to this event, especially considering the interesting and diffi-
cult times in which, as the politicians would say, we find our-
selves. I would prefer to believe — and hope — that at least
in our own areas of interest we can retain some influence on
our current position.
Again we modelled our Meeting on the International On-
line Information Meeting held each December in London. We
chose electronic distribution of information as the overall
theme for the Meeting. Short (a maximum of twenty minutes)
and concise papers, based on practical experience or applica-
tions of information technology, were selected on the follow-
ing
topics:
hypermedia and multimedia; CDROM; electronic
publishing; network services and gateways; user interfaces;
and online searching and software. We were delighted that
Roger Summit, recognised worldwide as the pioneer of the
online information industry, was able to accept our invitation
to open the Meeting with a keynote address.
The growth in the size of the Meeting mentioned above
resulted in the extension of
the
formal sessions to include the
morning of the second
day.
This growth is largely a reflection
of the growth and acceptance of CDROM as a means of
dis-
tributing information. This morning session was devoted en-
tirely to this distribution medium. The keynote speaker for
this session was Geoffrey Stoneman of SilverPlatter Informa-
tion Limited.
Satellite events on the second and third days included
training courses on overseas online systems (Data-Star, DIA-
LOG, materials information and patents information) and lo-
cal online systems (InfoAccess and the Worldnet Gateway),
and seminars on European Community Information; its Im-
portance
to
South Africa and
on
Machine-Aided Indexing and
Thesaurus Management Software. An exhibition, which at-
tracted exhibitors from Europe and the USA, ran for the three
days.
By general consensus, our Second Online Information
Meeting was
a
huge success and a major event in the informa-
tion industry in Southern Africa. Unsolicited comments sent
in writing to the organising committee include: 'a stimulating
experience', 'enabled me to gain invaluable knowledge', 'the
informal contacts ... are extremely useful', 'the papers were
interesting and covered a useful variety of topics', and 'thank
you ... for an excellent conference.'
I will not attempt to summarise the many and varied ideas
presented during the Meeting. Rather I will highlight (and
occasionally comment on) a few themes which emerged from
the discussions:
• the trend to ever-increasing quantities of published
information continues;
• information is being published and distributed by an
increasing number of methods (online, CDROM,
hypertext, hypermedia);
• more development is needed on the organisation of
information. Some of the newer methods of distribution
have perhaps suffered by being technology-driven.
There certainly seems to be scope for input from our
accumulated expertise in more traditional information
management areas, such as indexing;
• as noted two years ago, there is no shortage of
technology. In working with online information, we
have networks (even networks of networks) resulting in
access to vast amounts of information. Perhaps,
however;
• we need to reflect that all this technology is really only
a
tool.
We
need to use all the tools we have in an
appropriate manner; our business is to find the right
information and then deliver it in the most
cost-effective manner to fulfil an information need.
• attempts to develop systems to attract the elusive
end-users (with their focus on search results — and the
cost of those results) need to be encouraged;
• opportunities exist for improving the way in which
information is presented to the client. A cognitive
approach to the design of the interface between the vast
information resources and the specific (and usually
small amount of) information needed by an individual
client is perhaps one key method of attracting end-users
to online systems;
• one of the ways to use the available information
technology creatively and appropriately is to provide
more personalised, tailor-made information products
and services;
• and finally, as I often have to remind
myself,
we are in
Africa. Many of our potential clients have neither
access to computer terminals nor data communications.
The Electronic Library, Vol.
11,
No. 4/5, August/October 1993 231
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