publisher’s corner
DOI: 10.1145/1409360.1409362 Scott E. Delman
Well within
our sights now
is a magazine
that can truly
be considered
the most
important
scholarly
publication
in the field of
computing.
Looking Back
and forward
2008 has been a year of incredible change
for Communications of the ACM. Starting
with the 50th anniversary issue in January
in which it was first announced that the

magazine would undergo a major revi-

talization to the realization of this goal

with the debut of the July issue with a

dramatically expanded editorial scope

and completely new look. Behind the

scenes there has been a team of the

most dedicated and talented staff

and volunteers any publisher could

ever hope to work with and a renewed

sense of optimism about what is pos-

sible for the Association’s flagship

publication.

Well within our sights now is a

magazine that can truly be consid-

ered the most important scholarly

publication in the field of computing

that is fast attracting the interest of

practitioners and industry technolo-

gists as well as researchers and edu-

cators, and a source of high-quality

in-depth news for the entire comput-

ing and IT industries. Now more

than ever in the recent past, Commu-

nications is attracting readers new to

the magazine and longtime readers

whose interest had lapsed but have

now returned and are enjoying each

new issue.

Getting to this point has not been

easy. The past year has been at times

tumultuous and filled with uncer-

tainty, as roles and responsibilities

have changed, new members have

been added to the team, and several

have left for other pursuits. Change

is never easy and it takes a special or-

ganization to manage it well, starting

with a clear vision for what needs to

be accomplished and a drive to keep

working toward that vision. The pub-

lication that exists today is not perfect

and our job is not done, but we are on

the right path and what we hear on a

daily basis from you, our readership,

helps to keep us focused and moving

in the right direction.

The next year will be filled with

even more challenges and opportu-

nities. For the first time, ACM will

launch a true destination Web site for

its flagship publication. This site will

among many other features include

daily news for the computing com-

munity, Web 2.0 functionality such as

the ability to comment on all articles

published in the magazine, smart

technology that will serve up related

content based on user preferences,

and an improved user experience for

job seekers and employers looking to

connect with each other. The site will

serve as an important complement to

the print magazine, but will in many

ways exceed the magazine’s print

limitations. Ultimately, it is our goal

to provide you with a complete expe-

rience that serves your information

needs and gives you even more value

for your hard-earned membership

dollars than ever before.

Thank you for all of the feedback

you have given in 2008 to make Com-

munications of the ACM what it is to-

day and please continue to offer your

ideas and contributions to help make

the magazine even better in 2009.