And today s users have changed, she noted. They are often ignorant about information science research and have little inclination to conduct new research. According to Ojala, we are now in the fourth generation of online information. In the Interactive era, users gained significant control over searches and were able to find answers to questions by iteration. The third generation was the Dynamic era, featuring multiple searches, many channels, and constant changes in the definitions of fundamental concepts.
Information visualization is a product of the Dynamic era.
Answers to many queries now involve data analysis, fuzzy logic, and close-to concepts. Online information has now entered the mainstream and is valuable, Ojala asserted. Agent software is beginning to figure out how people think. We will ultimately see search engines that will understand why questions are asked as well as what and how they are asked. Wagner on the Future Dan Wagner, CEO of The Dialog Corporation, closed the first day with a keynote address on the future of the information industry.