Executive Guide To Speech Driven Computer Systems

A new generation of speech-driven personal computer systems promises to transform the business use of Information Technology. This is not merely a matter of discarding the keyboard, but of rethinking business processes to take advantage of the increased productivity that speech-driven systems can bring. Malcolm McPherson is one of the pioneers of this fast-moving field, and has been personally involved in the development of systems that have met business needs across many industrial sectors.

Recent and well-publicised disasters have highlighted the fact that organisations of all kinds - from healthcare to aerospace - are critically dependent on Information Technology systems. The prevention of catastrophic I.T. failure is now an essential part of management. In this thought-provoking guide for executives and managers Richard Ennals argues that the critical factor is not technology, but people and communication.

Masters Theses in the Pure and Applied Sciences was first conceived, published, and disseminated by the Center for Information and Numerical Data Analysis and Synthesis (CINDAS) * at Purdue University in 1 957, starting its coverage of theses with the academic year 1955. Beginning with Volume 13, the printing and dissemination phases of the activity were transferred to University Microfilms/Xerox of Ann Arbor, Michigan, with the thought that such an arrangement would be more beneficial to the academic and general scientific and technical community. After five years of this joint undertaking we had concluded that it was in the interest of all con cerned if the printing and distribution of the volumes were handled by an interna tional publishing house to assure improved service and broader dissemination. Hence, starting with Volume 18, Masters Theses in the Pure and Applied Sciences has been disseminated on a worldwide basis by Plenum Publishing Cor poration of New York, and in the same year the coverage was broadened to include Canadian universities. All back issues can also be ordered from Plenum. We have reported in Volume 32 (thesis year 1987) a total of 12,483 theses titles from 22 Canadian and 176 United States universities. We are sure that this broader base for these titles reported will greatly enhance the value of this important annual reference work. While Volume 32 reports theses submitted in 1987, on occasion, certain univer sities do report theses submitted in previous years but not reported at the time.