I have been asked to speak about user networking needs at
the UKERNA Janet User Support conference next week.
(UKERNA supports JANET, the UK component of the Internet
network.) My audience will be those providing support for
network users in UK computing services.
Naturally, I have my own views about what users need,
including easier access, navigational help (i.e. help in
finding useful servers), faster access, stability, help in
locating and identifying authoritative sites. But since
this provides a rare opportunity to address computing
professionals on the needs of historians and humanists, I
thought I would throw the discussion open.
What do you think? Do you think the Internet has great
potential for those in history and the humanities, or are
you one of the skeptics, and why? What do you think is
the single-most important user requirement on the
Internet? Possible answers might be in the areas of
training/support, searchers/browsers/tools, resources,
etc. What (if any) information server is the most useful
for your own work, and why?
I look forward to reading your views.
Yours,
Donald Spaeth
Dr Donald Spaeth
Lecturer in Historical Computing
School of History and Archaeology
University of Glasgow
Glasgow G12 8QQ
United Kingdom
dspaeth@dish.gla.ac.uk