Information management in an enterprise-wide networked environment

Management of information to ensure that it is current and available when and where needed in appropriate combinations is a challenging problem in information management. Enterprise-wide computer networks have contributed greatly to the solution of this problem. However, systematic methodologies are lacking for integrating information based on the context and need, and the creation and maintenance of distributed databases in which interesting and useful relationships are identified, encoded, and maintained to keep pace with the rapid changes across the entire enterprise. In this paper, we outline the conceptual background of our research concerned with the semantics and timeliness of information, and the development and use of interfaces that depend on the context. A framework to help analyze and integrate information for specific sets of tasks and functions in a timely manner, and present in a form most suitable for the task at hand is under development. A prototype for the information system is being built.