Information distribution and the world wide web

Distribution of information within any organization is a complex task; making sure that the right information is available to the right people at the right time involves considerable organization, administrative overhead and cost. This is true of any organization. However, it is particularly applicable to an organization such as Alcatel Alsthom which spans multiple countries, time zones and functional boundaries. Information distribution is highly selective; some information is relevant to all whilst some is targeted for a group of users, and some limited to individuals. Electronic information distribution is the key to managing complexity and reducing cost, particularly as the majority of information within an organization is created digitally using a computer. Alcanet International, which manages and operates ALCANEL, the corporate private network linking the companies of the group world wide, offers a spectrum of services to support information distribution. These range from systems which ''push'' or send information to one or more users, to systems that enable users to ''pull'' or retrieve information (Figure 1).