Approved-By:  Public-Access Computer Systems Forum <LIBPACS@UHUPVM1.BITNET>
Newsgroups: bit.listserv.pacs-l
Date:         Thu, 16 Apr 1992 10:45:19 CDT
From:         ADMIN@nircp1.trl.oz.au
Subject:      Listing current projects

----------------------------Original message----------------------------
This posting is to introduce the National Information Resource Centre
of the Australian and Overseas Telecommunications Corporation, the
major provider of telecommunications services in Australia.

The National Information Resource Centre, which forms part of the
Telecommunications Research Laboratories of the AOTC, supplies a
wide range of information products and services to the 80,000
employees of the Corporation located across the Australian continent.

Given the need for this wide spread user community to have access to
accurate, up to date information in the increasingly competitive
environment in which we operate, we must rely heavily on
sophisticated information handling and communication systems.

If we are to continue to make the most effective and efficient use of
new developments in information handling technology, we must
establish and maintain contacts with other organisations sharing
similar goals. The electronic networks offer a first rate opportunity to
achieve this aim.

It seems to us that it would be very useful for INTERNET users to be
able to identify quickly and easily other people and/or organisations
working on similar projects in areas of specific interest, such as the
application of hypertext to information systems, expert systems in
information handling, and so on.

We here at the National Information Resource Centre are particularly
interested in development of methods of valuing information, and last
year arranged the funding of a research project in this area, in
collaboration with the Australian Council of Library and Information
Services, and the Centre for International Research on
Communications and Telecommunications Technology. The result
was the report by Dr. Marianne Broadbent and Hans Lofgren, entitled
'Priorities, Performance and Benefits', (currently available from
Learned Information Ltd.), which looks at methods which can be used
to help identify and estimate the benefit of services provided by
libraries and information units.

If people are prepared to let us know of work they are currently doing
in this or related areas, or projects which they are aware of being
undertaken by other people, we would be happy to collate the details
and post the results to the PACS-L list. We would undertake to
maintain and update the file, and post an updated listing say twice a
year.

If this one works, maybe we could consider expanding the coverage to
other areas such as those mentioned above. Better still, maybe other
users might like to volunteer to start similar registers, each dealing
with a specific area of interest.
D.Richards                                      d.richards@trl.oz.au
Information Access Manager                        fax: (03) 562 8660
National Information Resource Centre.          phone: (03) 253 6131
Australian and Overseas Telecommunications Corporation.
Comments: Gated by NETNEWS@AUVM.AMERICAN.EDU