What sort of audience could ECHET96 reach?
A. Well over two thousand different computers “visited” the ECHET96 conference (we can only count computers, not people, but we assume that it is likely that more than one person uses each computer), and around 280 people registered for the e-mail discussions. The more popular papers were accessed over 500 times each, from all over the world. Indeed, the geographical distribution of both papers and readers was far wider than one normally finds at a “physical” conference. One of the most popular features was the up to date “keyword” search (the conference is re-indexed every weak, to include e-mail discussions etc), although “rotatable” molecule were also frequently accessed. In addition, authors could request individual access statistics for their own paper, and if they wish, cite these in support of any case they wish to make. Facilities such as these are unique to electronic conferences, and more will be added in the future.
