Traditional economic development approaches may not meet the need of high tech companies seeking a trained workforce and Internet-ready office space. Skilled workforce is becoming a necessity to participate in the Information Economy, from entry level to college graduates. Internet ready office space is now critical to economic development efforts. The Information Economy is focused on growing new businesses from the ground up rather than on relocating existing companies. Communities must invest in infrastructure to ensure competitive service and high- speed access.
Every community is unique and every community has different needs and challenges.
The work of the community network is to listen to the community, work collaboratively to identify needs, and to provide the technology expertise and services infrastructure to apply technology creatively to help solve community problems. The following information is provided to spark your insight and creativity. It is important to distinguish between access services and information services. Information services are what you do on the Internet after you have obtained access. Typical services include email, the World Wide Web, mailing lists and related systems.