Editor's Notes
And Now for Something Different— But
Not Completely!
by David Hoffman
Did you note the change when you saw the cover of this first 2004 issue? As
I noted in our last issue, we've been reworking MultiMedia Schools,
including making an unobtrusive but significant name change. We're now MultiMedia & Internet@Schools,
or MMIS for short.
What's with the name change? Well, along with a fresh look, we wanted a fresh
name for 2004 to go along with the fresh content. After considerable discussion,
we concluded that "multimedia" remained both a relevant and current term, based
particularly on how often it is still invoked as technology-integrating teachers,
media specialists, and school technologists—not to mention vendors—describe
their projects, programs, and other initiatives. So it needed to stay. But
we also wanted to acknowledge the Internet as a ubiquitous presence in just
about everything that is covered here. As the media and technology specialists'
guide to electronic tools and resources for K-12, this magazine needed
to "say" both multimedia and Internet.
And there's one more reason we chose to expand the name. MultiMedia & Internet@Schools publisher
Information Today, Inc. is producing—and I am helping to plan—two
conferences for school media and technology specialists this year: Internet@Schools
East, in Washington, D.C., in March [see page 36 or go to http://www.infotoday.com/Internet@Schools],
and Internet@Schools West, in Monterey, California, in November. The shared
name telegraphs the connection between the magazine and the conferences; all
three aim to keep you current in the use of technology in the service of learning.
Through the internal changes you'll see in MMIS, we want most of all
to renew and clarify our editorial focus on Internet- and technology-based products,
services, and resources. The features, columns, news, and reviews are now
organized into three sections: Internet@Schools, Technology@Schools, and Products@Schools.
You will notice some of our regular writers have refocused their columns.
Check out Trevor Shaw's new "Learning Unleashed!" column and Rob Reilly's new "Integrating
Technology" column, both in the Technology@Schools section.
We've added "Pipeline" columnist Stephen Abram to look ahead at significant
trends and technologies that are "in the pipeline." There will also be a regular
feature in each issue entitled "A Look At...," which will focus on a particular
technology product or service category. This month, the look is at digital
cameras.
There are a couple of other new features as well, including an occasional "Op-Ed" piece
up front, and a "Spotlight" product focus in the Products@Schools section.
All in all, we think MMIS is a good mix of tried and true plus new—something
different, but not completely different. We hope you agree!
 David Hoffman, Editor
hoffmand@infotoday.com
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