|
|
 |
|
|
|
I. EU projects
|
 |
|
The area in
which networking via Internet has gained enormous significance is in EU
projects. These transnational research projects are supported by the
European Union in the course of different programmes, the most
important of which is the Sixth Framework Programme for Research and
Technological Development.
The European Union supports transnational projects due to two major
reasons: On the one hand, the collaboration of organizations of
different European countries is intended to contribute to the reduction
of linguistic and cultural barriers and to strengthen relationships
across national boundaries (political, peace-assuring aspect). On the
other hand, the EU aims at becoming the most competitive and most
dynamic, knowledge-based enconomic area worldwide (economic aspect).
As a result, the increase of innovative ability is essential.
Subsequently, institutes, companies, NGOs etc. join forces Europe-wide
due to support from the EU in order to do research and make use of the
results together. Without the possibilities offered by the Internet
relating to communication and availability of information, these kinds
of projects would be unthinkable.
There is not much to say about the significance of email in this
context. The sending of electronic mail is by far the most used method
of communication in the Internet. However, the email is not the answer
to all problems and has serveral disadvantages. In case of
decentralized projects, the email is not sufficient for the
co-operation between several partners. Communication and information
management become plainly inefficient
(see chapter  IV.a. "E-mail").
On the occasion of EU projects, the use of Internet platforms needs to
be considered upon application. The importance of Internet platforms
for project co-operation and communication is increasing.
Internet platforms usually incorporate a variety of functionalities
(e.g. document management, discussion forums, chat etc.; see chapter  IV.b. "Internet platforms")
which give the possibility to complete different tasks centrally via a
common infrastructure. Basically, Internet platforms act as a central
information pool, a communication infrastructure and a website (see
chapter IV.b. "Internet platforms").
You can download the complete article here:
"Communication goes Europe - new paths in the web" (PDF, 624kB)
|
|
|
|
|
