That Was the Year That Was
The phenomenal growth of the Internet and its attendant technologies has been well documented, but, as 1996 draws to a close it's worth noting how far this new medium has come in the past 12 months.
Consider the statistics: A recently released study by the Commerce Net and NielsenMedia (http://www.commerce.net/work/pilot/nielsen_96/) found that as of March 1996, 24 percent of the population had Internet access--an increase of 50 percent in just six months. Most forecasts suggest growth of Internet access by adults will continue at that rate or better. One recent report found 97 percent of college students already have some kind of Internet access.
More users mean more online content. Or maybe it's the other way around. Anyway, according to WebCrawler, one of the many "spiders" crawling around the Internet to create searchable databases, the Internet is home to more than 145,000 Web servers--the computers that house websites. That compares with just under 70,000 at the end of 1995 (see http://webcrawler.com/WebCrawler/Facts/Size.html).
At the end of September, nearly 612,000 domain names (such as "shrm.org") had been recorded, up 38 percent from 14 months earlier. AltaVista, the largest database of web pages, now contains over 30 million web pages and tracks over 14,000 newsgroups.
Internet technology also made significant strides in 1996. Both Microsoft and Netscape rolled out multiple generations of their web browsers. The new versions represent vast improvements over their predecessors, providing, among other things, better support for Java "applets." The real impact of Java technology is expected in coming years, when this "platformless" programming language is expected to usher in a new generation of remote computing.
Advances in data compression and streaming made it possible for audio and video to broadcast via the Internet, and live-time communication is becoming a major emphasis in online development. Meanwhile, interoffice communication has been enhanced with the development of the intranets, which adapt the technology of the World Wide Web and apply it to smaller entities, such as workplaces.
Netscape Communication estimates that half of its web server sales go to corporate intranet use. HR offices view intranet development both as a blessing--automating certain administrative and communication tasks--and a potential curse. Is this a harbinger of an era when HR practitioners are replaced by a computers?
Undoubtedly, the answer will be "no." But, given how quickly Internet and intranet technology has evolved in the last 12 months--and how far it will zoom in the coming years--HR offices should resolve to develop strategies for making the best use of these new applications in 1997.
Consultants Confab
As a story in the October HRMagazine (/hrmagazine/1096cov.asp) noted, a growing number of HR professionals are striking out on their own as consultants and independent contractors. In recognition of this, the Society for Human Resource Management established the HR Consultants Forum earlier this year, to enhance consultants' professional development. The Forum's home page is now available online (/consultants/). Features include a list of professional opportunities, culled from SHRM's Job Openings home page; a directory of Forum members; a library of consulting-related articles; and links to useful Internet resources.
The most useful of those resources is the Consultant's Resource Center from Dun and Bradstreet's Expert Marketplace (http://expert-market.com/consultant/). Independent contracting expert Herman Holtz answers questions on business and marketing strategies. An online bookstore and an article on insurance considerations help round out this site, which requires free registration for access.
Another useful resource is the misc.business.consulting newsgroup. This moderated Usenet forum is features a lively mix of questions, answers and the occasional horror story from consultants in a variety of professions.
Ever wondered what it's like to practice HR in a land where summer is winter and kangaroos roam free? The Australian Human Resources Institute's home page (http://www.ahri.com.au) features information produced by the largest HR organization in Australia.
The site also includes highlighted articles from the group's magazine, HR Monthly. The Hot Topics provides analysis of the top HR issues in Australia, particularly useful for U.S.-based firms that do business in the Land Down Under.
Why is this time of year is so stressful? Maybe it's the strain of year-end budget reviews, or perhaps the gnawing realization that certain New Year's resolutions will never be met. A better question is: How do you survive it?
Check out the Center For Social Epidemiology's Job Stress Network page (http://www.serve.net/cse/). Online articles explore such issues as the relationship between workplace-based stress and heart disease and suggest prevention strategies. The Stress Online Support website, from the U.K., includes detailed analysis of the cause and effect of workplace stress (http://www.stress-o-s.org.uk/stressatwork/).
If you need proof that you are not the only feeling stressed, check The Dale Carnegie Training Institute's online workplace stress survey (http://www.dale-carnegie.com/stress.html), along with results from previous studies.
From the E-Mailbag
A member who used SHRM Online to research a college paper writes: "I want to use an article from the SHRM website. Is there a correct way to cite material from the Internet in a bibliography or footnote?"
Current editions of most leading academic stylebooks--many of which were written before the Internet become a viable research resource--don't address this question. Janice Walker of the University of South Florida's English department has devised a style-sheet of "MLA-Style Citations of Electronic Sources" (http://www.cas.usf.edu/english/walker/mla.html), endorsed by the Alliance for Computers & Writing.
When citing a document found on the World Wide Web, Walker suggests the following: "Give the author's name (if known), the full title of the work in quotation marks, the title of the complete work if applicable in italics, the full http address, and the date of visit." For example, if you wanted to site a document from the HR Cyberspace home page:
Frost, Mike. "20 Essential Internet Sites for HR
Professionals." SHRM Online. /cyberspace/
top20.html (Dec. 1, 1996).
Have a question about the Internet? Write Mike Frost at frost@shrm.org.
Just Browsing
We've lost the will to fight crowds at stores during the holiday season. That's why we opted to do our shopping from the comfort of our workstation--after hours, of course.
Among the cyberstores we liked best: Amazon.com's online bookstore (http://www.amazon.com), boasts a catalog of 1 million titles, most of them discounted. CD Now (http://cdnow.com) has an expansive collection of recorded music. For friends whose tastebuds have been deadened by years of fire-eating, we consulted Hot, Hot, Hot (http://www.hot.presence.com), featuring hundreds of sauces and salsas. We also spent time and money at JC Penney's online catalog (http://www.jcpenney.com).
All of these sites offer secured online transactions, but "security" is a relative concept. Although few documented cases of credit card theft on the Internet exist, consumers are wary of sending their numbers out into cyberspace. As an alterantive, most online shopping services offer toll-free numbers for placing orders. Or, you can always join the crowds at the mall.
Mike Frost is manager of Online Services at SHRM. His e-mail is frost@shrm.org.
