IEEE Computer Society Launches Consolidated Web 2.0 Portal

Group looking to ‘invigorate tech publishing.’

By Joanna Pettas
05/08/2008

The IEEE Computer Society has launched a Web site that consolidates resources from its 14 technical magazines and incorporates Web 2.0 features such as video blogs, podcasts and Webinars.

The site, called Computing Now, is intended to invigorate the technical publishing arena, according to Dejan Milojicic, a society member and editor of the site. Milojicic hopes the site will help create a two-way communication between authors and the IEEE community as well as a vibrant knowledge-sharing environment for all—“a Wikipedia for computer science services.”

Computing Now, which is still in its beta version, will feature free print and original online content from the Computer Society’s peer-reviewed magazines—including its flagship Computer magazine—as well as “expert recommendations on other paid Computer Society content that we think will interest our readers,” Computer Society senior manager of editorial services Crystal Shif wrote in an e-mail to FOLIO:. “We believe that free online content…will go far in demonstrating to both new and existing customers what we have to offer and provide opportunities for the community to provide feedback.”

While each individual magazine will retain its own Web site, this initiative brings the content together in a central portal “to build a brand new, and much larger, community,” wrote Shif. “Once we broke out of our siloed way of thinking, the synergies among our magazines quickly became apparent…many of our magazines were approaching similar topics from different perspectives.”

Registered users will be able to comment on blog posts and contribute content such as book reviews. In the future, users will have access to more magazine articles and departments and will receive discounts on single-article sales. The site will feature daily, weekly and monthly updates, as well as discounts on featured magazine subscriptions.