Better means of imposing order on the WWW will be needed for it to increase its usefulness. Even users who know that the Web contains a particular document can spend hours trying to find it. Those wishing to use the WWW face technical barriers. Although Web browsers configuring all the software necessary to connect to the Web can be complex and difficult. Thus, even in corporate settings with existing connections to the Internet, relatively few users have access to the Web from desktop computers.
Cost is another barrier for many public health practitioners.
Although access to the WWW is much cheaper than it was only a few years ago, it still requires a personal computer, modem, and monthly payments to an Internet service provider, which puts the WWW beyond the reach of many public health workers. The WWW raises social issues as well. Browsing the WWW is interesting and often entertaining, but it can be an enormous waste of time. The WWW presents the potential for misuse as well. We could provide only highly aggregated data, which would lessen the chance for misuse, but this would also severely lessen the value of the data to public health practitioners.