[WSIS CS-Plenary] About the UN document system, and lessons for information diffusion

[Hervé Le Crosnier]

Georg C. F. Greve a écrit :
>  rp> The ODS can be accessed at http://documents.un.org.

> I just tried this and had problems actually getting to the documents,
> others have reported similar problems with non-IE browsers on Windows
> and Macintosh. It appears the site is running on Microsoft and is
> using Microsoft-only functions for Javascript.
> 
> Could someone else please confirm whether this effect also exists for
> them or whether this is some odd freak-incident that I have been
> seeing?


	Hello,

	I've also try the UN doc system.

	To me it don't work either...

	This answer is not a technical one
	(though i give technical advice), but rather
	a short insight on the way we have to deal
	with information in the information society.


	The UN site seems intersting... but what a poor realisation.
	Ugly style... and more : it don't work.

	Why ?

	Why do they use such a complicated system only to
	return back the id of the document we need ?
	At the end of this mail is the javascript code they use...
	it's not useful, but i think it will work with my Mozilla
	on Linux... So the problem is not that one.

	Where's the problem... that's a good question. Not only
	a geek one. What are the criterions such a rich and
	powerful body as UN use to assess an information system ?

	It works on the developer computer, so it have to work
	for everyone ?

	So many times international recognized standards are not in
	use... and more, standard of practice and programming skills
	are not used by developpers of international and wide-world
	information systems.

	It's a long way to have head of administrative
	structures to survey their own systems, and to be sure
	they work for anyone (from the visually-impaired to the users
	of others systems). They don't have the skills... OK,
	that's not their job. But they have to hire good analysts,
	to provide system-control check lists, have independant
	watchers (never ask the developper to test his own system...).

	That's really "information society". As we go to give more and
	more power to system wide coders, we have to define new
	skills and practices for assessing those systems. And that's a
	new kind of "governance", and may be of "government".

	Free software, as it give the ability to learn and share
	skills, and the capacity for any nation to develop it's
	own computer science economy, are a good tool for this
	new conception of responsability of public providers of
	information to ensure that any users can get access and
	have satisfaction with the systems they propose to the public.

Hervé Le Crosnier

PS : here is the javascript code... the problem is not there, but
	merely in the retunr asp programm...

	My two cents technical advice :
	Give away Front page, use any front-end
	to the UN database, publish the API to
	access the database (or any other data
	collected system to use)... and in a minute
	tens of programmers will add access to the
	UN documents in their own systems !!!

	Freeing the public national or international
	documents is not a question of publishing them,
	but of organising the acccess for any "publisher"
	(private or cooperative, or even other national
	or international bodies) to integrate those documents
	in their services.

	Look at the way commercial systems as Amazon
	offer that kind of API, and the massive use
	all over very different kind of web prducers.

	Look at the success of RSS,...

	Yes building information societies is also a
	problem of opening access to digital documents.
	And we need to teach those who are in charge of
	deciding that it's not a "technical" problem they
	have to give to a technical staff, but it's also
	a political problem they have to deal with.

	"Code is Law" as say Larry Lessig.

--------------------------------------
<script language="javascript">
function Perform(action_name) {
	var form = document.forms[0];
	form.lastevent.value=action_name;
	form.submit();
	return true;
}

function ViewDoc(index) {
	var form = document.forms[0];
	form.doc2view.value=index;
	form.submit();
	return Perform("results.view");
}

function Perform1(language){
	var form = document.forms[0];
	form.langchoice.value=language;
	form.submit();
	return Perform('results.lang');
}
</script>