Mutual Aid in Cyberspace!
By: Jerry Smith, General Manager
INTER CONSULTING SYSTEMS
Home of the Internet: "Emergency Grapevine"
http://www.wionline.com/ics

It’s only proper that I introduce myself to my reading audience. I started my emergency services career in 1961 with the Los Angeles City Fire Department. Unfortunately, I was forced to leave as a Fire Captain with a job connected disability in 1975. A year or so later, I was appointed to a sedentary, non-firefighting staff position with the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services, Fire-Rescue Division. For the next eleven years; I served as field OES Assistant Chief in disaster prone Southern California, where I worked very closely with the fire-rescue service in mutual aid disaster planning, coordination and management. In 1987, I retired for the second time and started a consulting firm. Since then, I have written and self published 3 technical and 1 self-help books for the fire-rescue service. I’ve conducted educational seminars for the International Fire Chiefs Association and Western Fire Chiefs Association annual conferences in 1995. I served as script writer and executive producer of a mutual aid video titled: The California Fire-Rescue Service Mutual Aid System. Oh yes, I have written recent editorial contributions about mutual aid for 9-1-1 Magazine and the American Fire Journal. Now that you have some idea about who I am, I would like to get to know you? Well anyway, here we go in my first article for the Fire Report Newsletter.

What is Mutual Aid in Cyberspace? A simple definition could read: A network of computer systems interconnected around the world to direct, manage and share information through an organized hookup called the Internet. A timely communications link that invites an exchange of vital experience, crucial information and qualified idea’s in the exploration of common goals. In this dynamic electronic setting, a worldwide discussion and exchange forum is made available to the emergency services family around the world. Mr. Sky Dayton, founder of Earthlink said: (The Internet has become the most incredible communications medium the world has ever seen, but it’s only useful to the degree that we understand it and make it work for us.) This astute analogy sets the discussion focus for this not-so-expert story. For you computer system technicians don’t expect to get aroused in this reading, and, please don’t go to sleep; I need your expert input on the technical stuff later on.

Which brings into question; the purpose of this article? I see this Mutual Aid in Cyberspace column and others to follow as a discussion platform for the lay person Internet user who wishes to share their experience and perception of the Internet with me. You can join me by e-mailing your concise thoughts, and I will share your thinking in the next article. So beat the mad rush and be the very first to contact me at: jerryfire@earthlink.net.

Before I go farther with this heart pounding testimony, I have to share a few of my pet peeves about some web sites. What’s the purpose of being on the Internet when all you provide is a telephone number or a postal address? I go to a web site and how am I supposed to communicate with you with some biting question? Is this your protection against spamming? It’s rather apparent to me that someone doesn’t want the responsibility of answering e-mail. For those that do, I send e-mail to your web site, and I never hear back from the person I left a message for. Does this mean they received my mail or they don’t think it warrants a response or could it be; I’m not important enough to receive a response? I’m confused and very sensitive. For the graphic artist webmaster out there, you may get more visitors, if you cut down on the visual theater. Don’t forget; most of us web surfer’s are impatient and fidgety while waiting for downloading of graphic after graphic. And, we can’t help it, our attention spans are very short, it’s just the nature of our upbringing in the fast moving world we live in.

Now that we have the cynical stuff out of the way, let’s get down to business at hand and talk about what makes a good web site. Meaning, what attracts a Cyberspace surfer to lay anchor at your web site and sign your guest book with energetic testimony, most of it very positive. Stop! This where you come in, I want to hear from you successful webmasters on what you think is the key to web site success and prosperity? By the way, I know I’m not the only one on the Internet with pet peeves about the web, let’s hear what you have to say. You can also share with me what you would like to see more of in this inspiring column. For you English majors, I don’t want to hear about my questionable writing skills, this is the best it ever gets. All for now my Internet friends, see you next time!

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Please make note of new email address for the
FireReport Newsletter
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