International LIMS-10 Conference
LIMS-10 Emphasizes Constant Change
Certainly the most visible change to the papers, workshops, and break-out
sessions at the 1996 Tenth International LIMS Conference (LIMS-10) was the
emphasis on Internet/Intranet capabilities. Just a couple of years ago the
idea of open systems was exciting. Then the concept of the enterprise-wide
network took hold. Now the explosion of the World Wide Web is opening up
entirely new possibilities for managing lab data.
Even so, while a web browser interface is super cool, the process of selecting
and using a LIMS is still the same. Attending papers, talking to vendors,
and testing products to stay current on the less flamboyant LIMS details
are still required.
Held in Pittsburgh, PA, from June 3-6, 1996, LIMS-10 also gained momentum,
with more vendor participation and the highest pre-conference short course
attendance ever. Conference Chairman Richard Mahaffey pointed out that the
conference program was designed for every type of LIMS user. "We continue
to see a mixture of novices and experienced users at the LIMS Conferences,
which means there continues to be a growing market for LIMS," he stated.
Numerous Events
The conference was organized around a number of events, including papers,
break-out sessions, and workshops as well as the pre-conference short courses
and LIMS exhibits. Jeff Miller, Program Chairman, was responsible for organizing
this year's program. "We strove to set up different avenues for attendees
to explore, and tried to include a variety of topics to provide a balanced
LIMS picture," he explained. "There were parallel break-out sessions
of papers by end-users and workshops by vendors so that conference attendees
could pick what they wanted."
A list of the abstracts was posted in the Elsevier web site under http://www.elsevier.nl/section/chemical/laim/limsconf.htm.
Several of the papers will be published in the LIMS/Letter over the next
couple of issues. Topics ranged from technology advances to data warehousing
to validation.
LIMS vendors from Australia, Belgium, and Canada as well as the US were
on hand, including several new faces. The most excitement was generated
by the variety of Internet/Intranet interfaces as well as wireless computing
capabilities. But there were numerous upgrades to a variety of systems,
several new features, and lots of enhanced functionality across the floor.
Many robust systems just keep getting better.
But there's a price. Many of these enhancements follow the tradition of
the Internet whereby products are historically free, While the LIMS aren't
free, several enhancements come with the product at no extra charge. As
a result, when comparing the increasing robustness of some systems against
others, the writing is on the wall: vendors must rise to the challenge of
constant change.
The next International LIMS Conference will be held in The Hague, The Netherlands,
June 3-5, 1997.
Article reprinted from the LIMS/Letter, Volume
II, Issue III, July 1996
The LIMS Conference is organized by the non-profit LIMS
Institute and run by volunteers. Proceeds from the conferences go toward
subsequent conferences and to support science and technology education.
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