Overview

The overall methodology that is used to achieve WISTCIS project objectives is based on demonstration, dissemination and implementation of new methods of work based on telematics applications developed by the EC major telematics programmes (TAP and IST) for goal oriented team work of interested EU and the CIS partners. At the same time, actual implementation by WISTCIS of the new methods of work drastically enhances the knowledge and abilities of the CIS research, environmental, educational and business communities. Practical implementation of WISTCIS project methodology is based on the system of Information Dissemination Centres (IDCs) that are being deployed in the CIS countries starting from the first year of WISTCIS project. The results achieved by the EC DG XIII TAP project "Support for Telematics Application Cooperation with the Commonwealth of Independent States" (STACCIS) in 1996-99 provide an efficient base for the IDCs development.

Seven WISTCIS IDCs are being established in Yerevan, Armenia, at ARMINCO Global Telecommunications Company; in Baku, Azerbaijan, at Baku Scientific and Training Centre (BSTC); in Minsk, Belarus, at Information Technologies Centre of National Academy of Sciences of Belarus; in Tbilisi, Georgia, at Informatics Department of Government of Georgia/Business Communication Centre (BCC); in Kishinev, Moldova, at RENAM Association/Centre of Information Technologies of Academy of Sciences of Moldova (CIT ASM); in Moscow, Russia, at Centre of Geophysical Data Studies and Telematics Applications of Institute of Physics of the Earth of Russian Academy of Sciences (CGDS IPE RAS); in Kiev, Ukraine, at National Technical University of Ukraine "Kiev Polytechnical Institute" (NTUU "KPI")/Institute of Applied System Analysis. All the listed organizations in the CIS countries have four years long experience of work on the EC DG XIII projects in close collaboration with EDNES.

Each of the IDCs will have:
local area network (LAN) with high capacity Internet connection;
a comprehensive regularly updated library of books and CD-ROMs;
demonstration software library; help desk on computer networking problems;
services to provide telematics documentation and demonstration software;
Web-site with mirrors at high-speed connection Web-servers in Moscow and Europe;
facilities to organize WISTCIS demonstration workshops.

Moscow WISTCIS IDC has a 100 MBps Internet connection. Moscow IDC Web-server will mirror the Web-sites of other IDCs that will have lower speed connections. WISTCIS Web-sites will be also mirrored at high-speed connection Web-server in Germany.

The workplan of WISTCIS project consists of six workpackages, which are closely interconnected:

The methodology is defined by the following major project actions:

1. Further development of the existing system of IDCs, deployed by the EC DG XIII in the seven CIS countries (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Russia and Ukraine) in the framework of STACCIS project and their smooth deployment into WISTCIS IDCs. The IDCs system ensures the "physical base" for WISTCIS project, its smooth functioning in 2000-2003 and its continuity with STACCIS project, that was developed in the CIS countries in 1996-1999. On the base of IDCs each of the participating CIS countries will develop a WISTCIS focal point capable to participate efficiently in real team work with EU partners using all methods and techniques provided by Information Society.

2. Elaboration of WISTCIS Technology Watch Web-sites that will present the opportunities of collaborative browsing for EU-CIS collaboration, and adaptation of the collaborative browsing technique for the potential CIS market;

3. Development of WISTCIS main Web-site that will contain information on the participating CIS countries, lists of telematics organizations in the CIS countries, the CIS market studies information, training courses, schemes of computer networks, etc.;

4. Development of training courses for Russian speaking CIS audience devoted to structure, functions, requirements, methods of work, etc., of the EC, DGs and IST in particular, with the emphasis to opportunities that IST opens for new telematics methods of work for joint EU-CIS teams;

5. Organization of WISTCIS conferences and demonstration workshops in the participating CIS countries. The workshops targets on two main goals. The first is to start education and training of the CIS telematics community targeting on opportunities that IST opens for them in the field of new methods of team work with EU partners.The second goal is to demonstrate, disseminate and implement the new methods of work for EU-CIS collaboration. Collaborative browsing toolkit developed by TAP CoBrow (RE 1003) and CoBrow/D (RE 4003) projects adapted for Russian speaking users will be widely introduced at the workshops. WISTCIS kick-off and outlook conferences will present to the CIS telematics community IST results building a bridge to the new tendencies of the European telematics activities.