Information infrastructure of research, development, higher education, libraries and public collections in Hungary: results and prospects

Abstract

The role infrastructure is emphasized, followed by preparations for an upgrading of information infrastructure in R&D and higher education fields in Hungary, and for more substantial intematronal relations in the information area. These trends have provided the background for the initiation of the Information Infrastructure Development project in 1986-87. This detailed overview presents a historical description of the first years of IID, the challenges, the preliminary results, services and applications. The status at the end of 1994 is described. The present situation in wide-area data communication, the backbone IP network of academic institutes of Hungary, the regional and interdisciplinary information centres connected to the network, central services, electronic mail and database search services is reported. Special attention is devoted to quantitative and qualitative aspects of user communities and network usage as well as to issues concerning education and continuous maintenance of the awareness levél of users. International relatbns and cooperative forums are alsó included in the presentation. Following this review of the past and present, future plans and prospects are outlined. A description of the National Information Infrastructure Development project as a continuation of IID at a higher levél for the period 1995-1997 is given. Objectives, further development opportunities of operation, application, and user services, as well as improvement and extension of network technologies and the services they offer and other perspectives of the NIID project are discussed. Resource requirements, investment recovery, and expected direct or indirect profits of the project are evaluated. Finally, the national importance, the necessary conditions and the realization feasibility of the NIID project are considered.