Framing the Picture - Standards for Imaging Systems

Technologies are developing rapidly, particularly in the area of networked communication and the capture and distribution of images. Things we only dreamed about 18 months ago are a reality today. The World Wide Web (WWW) is making the 'virtual museum' almost palpable. However, the more we struggle to evaluate and implement imaging technology, the more aware we become of how little we know about visual information and how people use it, and the more friable technological solutions to these issues become. Developing standards in an environment of constant change could certainly be described as a Sisyphean exercise. The normal life-cycle for the development and acceptance of a standard often far exceeds a generation of technology. We are almost guaranteed obsolescence by the time we reach consensus. But without the development of a common agenda, we risk the creation of disparate and incompatible systems which are not positioned to take advantage of the full potential of developing network communications technologies.