ACS

Australian Computer Society

President's Report to Council

September 1997 - V1.1 7 September 1997

Please note the web version of this document at URL: http://www.tomw.net.au/twcl97b.htm includes hypertext links to more detailed information about the topics mentioned.

I last reported in February 1997 for the first Council meeting of the year. In the months since then, I have chaired the usual ACS Management Committee meetings and moderated the ACS Council mailing list. It has been pleasing for an Internet enthusiasts, such as myself, to see how the ACS has adopted this way of on-line working.

For 1997 I proposed to concentrate on two priorities: industry development; and on-line working. Lets see how well I did.

Media

There were the usual daily queries from the press, organisations and the government. The ACS issued 26 media releases, roughtly divided into: industry development issues (13), professional (6) and social issues (4):

Industry Development

  1. 05-09-97 ACS Details IT Outsourcing Problems to Senate Committee
  2. 27-08-97 ACS Gives Cautious Welcome to IPAC Report
  3. 25-08-97 ACS Demands Urgent Response to Goldsworthy Report
  4. 18-02-97 ACS Delivers Strategic Vision for Australian IT
  5. 03-03-97 ACS Backs Australian R&D
  6. 04-03-97 ACS Supports Calls for Federal Government Vision for Industry
  7. 12-03-97 ACS Renews Calls for IT Vision in Wake of New Research
  8. 23-03-97 ACS Slams Federal Attitude to IT Funding
  9. 25-03-97 IT Venture Capital at Risk Says ACS
  10. 13-04-97 ACS Applauds Tasmanian Government’s Initiatives
  11. 18-04-97 ACS Seeks Input for Australian IT Research Strategy
  12. 16-05-97 ACS to Hypothesise Federal IT Outsourcing Plans
  13. 04-07-97 ACS Welcomes Northern Territory’s New Technology Portfolio
  14. 11-07-97 ACS Urges Caution on Whole of Government IT Outsourcing
  15. 25-07-97 ACS Welcomes and Endorses Mortimer Report
  16. 08-08-97 Fund IT Research, ACS Tells PM

Professional issues

  1. 04-03-97 ACS Attracts World Experts for Requirements Process Seminars
  2. 16-03-97 Australia Takes Stronger Role Within SEARCC
  3. 21-03-97 ACS Elects Honorary Life Members and Fellows
  4. 31-03-97 US Navy to Demonstrate On-Board Systems to Web Warriors
  5. 18-04-97 ACS Questions ACCC Attack on Professions
  6. 14-07-97 ACS Calls for Greater Cooperation on Year 2000

Social issues

  1. 08-04-97 Keep Infrastructure Costs Low, Says ACS
  2. 05-05-97 Don’t Censor the Internet, Says ACS
  3. 16-05-97 ACS Welcomes IFIP Position on Cryptography
  4. 29-06-97 Wake Up to ‘Net Benefits, ACS Tells Legislators
Our two vice-presidents took a more prominent public profile during this period and achieved a significantly higher public profile for the ACS.

Visits and Talks

One of my goals was to visit all ACS Branches, during my terms as President and I just about achieved it. Some notable event were:

One More Branch to Visit

There is one branch I have yet to visit, one which I believe no ACS President has ever been to: the overseas branch. Later in the year I propose to hold an event via the Internet for overseas and remote members. This would build on the pioneering work done by ACS Remote.

Conclusion

In my "Request for support for election as ACS President or Vice-President", 11 September 1995, I wrote:
ACS members have spent too long in closed rooms telling each other how professional they are. IT is now of interest to the whole community. It is time to go out to the IT profession, other organisations, Government, and the general community to demonstrate how professional we are.

I hope over the last two years I have achieved at least part of that.

Tom Worthington MACS
President
7 September 1997

G.P.O. Box 446, Canberra A.C.T. 2601, Australia
Telephone: (06) 247 4830, Fax: (06) 249 6419, E-mail: tom.worthington@tomw.net.au
http://www.tomw.net.au/


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