Internet Items
Parliament Online - A comprehensive overhaul of Parliament's web-based, public information services is underway. The project has two components - the development of an all-of-Parliament website and an Electronic Committee pilot. The former will amalgamate the current Parliamentary website and that of the Office of the Clerk to provide a single interface to all Parliamentary services for the public. The projected launch date is January 2006.
The Electronic Committee project, designed to replace dozens of paper-based official documents with online versions, will:
- provide each of the 14 select committees with its own page, with sub-pages beneath;
- enable select committee submissions to be accepted electronically (at present 20 hard copies are required); and
- enable all select committee submissions to be published online, along with the summaries prepared by officials (this service has been in a limited test mode for the past few months).
The notable exception to the modernisation programme is the publication online of new Bills by the Parliamentary Council Office, which has encountered major problems with its new online publishing system. That service was to be launched last year, but is now not likely before the end of next year and will possibly drift into 2007.
Bank Fees Calculator - www.consumer.org.nz - Consumers' Institute has launched a bank fee calculator on its website, Consumer Online. This allows customers to enter the number of different types of transactions they do in a month and then shows the different fees charged. The service covers all the main day-to-day transactions from all the banks.
Education Portal. - http://www.edcentre.govt.nz/education/sector.portal - A coalition of interest groups has launched a new web site, designed as a portal to all things educational. edCentre, which pulls together information from 28 web sites, is divided into six areas of interest for parents, students, educators, governance (those organisations which govern the education sector, such as the Education Review Office), researchers and communities. Apart from community groups, the contributing organisations were Career Services rapuara, ERO, the Ministry of Education, the National Library, NZQA, NZ Teachers Council and TEC.
Demographic Trends released - www.stats.govt.nz - Demographic Trends 2004 contains the latest statistics on NZ's population and related topics. It includes commentaries, diagrams and tables on the major demographic indicators of the NZ population. Topics covered include population change and structure, fertility, marriage, divorce, mortality, external migration, subnational population estimates, induced abortions, and national and subnational demographic projections.
Best Photojournalism of 2004 - www.nppa.org/competitions/best_of_still_photojournalism/2004/ - The Best of Photojournalism 2004, is both a contest and an archive of the best still photography published in the news media in 2004. The photos are organised into some 30 categories according to subject, format, or technology. The site also offers sections on editing, web sites, and TV. The site doesn't focus only on the winners; visitors can view all the entries, even those from 2002 and 2003. Note: some of the images can be disturbing, so discretion is advised.
Charles and Ray Eames, Designers and Communicators - http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/eames/eameshome.html - Charles and wife Ray may be best known for their simple, cheap, and comfortable chair designs, but chairs are only a tiny part of their output. This site ties in to the Library of Congress exhibit of the amazing range of material they created. The Eames did most of their work after World War II (although their designs also contributed to the US war effort) and their look and feel very much remind the modern viewer of the 1950s. They are responsible for a large number of the designs and products we take for granted today.
Contemporary Design - http://www.mocoloco.com/ - MoCo Loco is a "stunning virtual gateway to contemporary design and architecture" says "Netsurfer Digest". Each entry expands on its own page with enlarged photos and contact and web site information. Other features include directories of stores and galleries, an architecture section, and a listing of great design books. Archives go back to September 2003 - the site is updated monthly.
Abridged Philosophers - http://www.btinternet.com/~glynhughes/squashed/ - "Netsufer Digest" calls the site "a gem". The site's individual pages are each devoted to a work of a noted philosopher. The big names are all here, from Plato to Sir Karl Popper.
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