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Climbing Aboardby Richard F. Walters |
When we started scheduling features for the 1993 M Computing, we felt that internationalization of the language would be the primary focus of M Technology for the next several years. Wanting to capitalize on the anticipated trend, we spotlighted international concerns for our first issue this year. This made sense to us since the MUMPS Development Committee (MDC) was nearing completion of many key components to language changes required for use by non-English languages. It seemed likely that these features would be incorporated into the next standard revision now under discussion and due for canvassing shortly.
Also, remember the news broadcast to our own organization at the 1992 Annual Meeting? The Gartner Group Consulting Services' report to us pointed to a burgeoning worldwide market and projected growth rates far beyond North America's opportunities. In fact, outside our boundaries, M will double its influence and will exceed the domestic income perhaps as early as 1994. Hence our role as newsbreaker: we believed that the timing was right to tell the M community that some good activities are already afoot in the international marketplace and, perhaps more importantly, to chronicle steps that even now facilitate internationalization of our computer technology.
When I accepted the position of executive editor, I naively assumed that all one need do to fill the technical pages of our magazine pertinent to our selected topic was to put out the words "International Commerce." But, the technical papers did not flood the office. Consequently, it was an edifying experience to meet with Marsha Ogden, our managing editor, and to find that expectations and deliveries often do not match.
We had some articles ready for the issue, and some others that were likely to be submitted. The breadth and impact I had hoped for, however, was not complete. Phoning, faxing, and cajoling won out. Our contents page mirrors the efforts and results of our loyal authors.
I have learned, also, that the process of modifying the language will take longer than we had anticipated. The MDC wants to make certain that this important step -- modification -- is "done right the first time," and this means more meetings, more draft documents, and a natural vendor reluctance to proceed immediately to implementation when modification proposals are still being fine-tuned.
In any event, we did get this issue put together, with a rich variety of topics bearing on internationalization. It is a tribute to the M community that this "second-half" effort paid off. I thank, in particular, Winfried Gerum, Dirk Steenken, Paulo Roberto Baratta, and Ichiro Wakai for their burning of the midnight oil, faxing, phoning, and thereby submitting their articles in record time. We are of course also very grateful to other authors whose contributions add to the technical content of this issue: Aviva Furman and Thomas Munnecke have written a stimulating article on usability testing; Dayna Aronson and Dick Landis contributed an article on networking models; and David Schulz has brought us up-to-date on the networking environment in a financial setting. The resulting tapestry of global viewpoints and stories on using and testing M effectively introduces the richness of international activities. These articles will help usher in the reality that the Gartner Group forecasted just this past summer.
You may notice something new about our journal: the name has changed, and, reflecting the new format and contents, we are starting with a new volume series, beginning with volume 1, number 1 for this issue. This step is a direct expression of our confidence in the solid quality of the journal as it now appears.
The process of putting together a journal, as they say, has been a learning experience. Through my share of phoning and faxing, I learned that it takes consistency, constancy, and persistence to keep a quality product on track and on time. Now a wiser editor, I am approaching the second issue with more of a head start than the first. I am once again aware of how cooperative this community is when the need exists. We have said that we are looking for new material and new authors as we continue on our road to excellence so ably initiated by the work of Ruth Dayhoff, M.D., and Thomas Salander. At the same time, I extend thanks to each author for your contributions to date, and know that we will be looking for more of the same substance in the future.
Let us hear from you.
Richard F. Walters, Ph.D., begins his tenure as executive editor with this issue. He is a professor of computer science at the University of California at Davis, and has been a member of the M community for more than twenty years. He is past chair of the MUMPS Development Committee and past chair of MUMPS Users' Group.