Nowadays one is hard pressed to think of an NIH office or program that doesn't use the web to inform researchers, doctors, patients, and public who make up their audiences. Though the ICDs expect to see printing costs fall, few have seen a major savings yet. It's too soon to see a cost savings. Most ICDs are at an early stage in terms of having their information available on the web. What's clear is that the web is helping the institutes reach target audiences more effectively.
People appreciate getting the information right away.
Sometimes they've just received a diagnosis or are coming out of surgery, and the fact sheets help them put their condition in perspective. Often the information allays their fears. The main page hosts the NIH search engine, which allows visitors to search the 50,000 documents that make up NIH Webspace. Conference planners inform participants about the program, registration, and abstract and poster deadlines via the web. Organizers of the International Conference on Protein Folding and Design last April attribute part of the meeting's success to its regularly updated web site.