Last year the INTECOL Board decided to increase the services it provides for members. As a first step in this process it decided to invest in a new and improved web site which is now ready. This web site will allow each member to have his/her own web pages and digital space up to 30MB for his/her own use under INTECOL. It will further allow pages for group activities such as special interest groups within ecological science, soon. The Board is keen to encourage more special interest groups to rival the activities of our most successful Wetlands Working Group. The web site will also allow a facility for fledgling national ecological societies in countries where they are either newly formed or about to be formed and currently have no web-based activity. The facility of the new web site is called as the INTECOL's ECO-BLOG which we hope will encourage discussion of current and important ecological issues worldwide.

The Board very much hopes that all members and supporters of INTECOL will help to make this web facility a great success. We hope that you will encourage other ecologists to join INTECOL and thereby make use of the newly upgraded web site at http://www.intecol.net. Individual membership has been free for several years now, and the Board hopes to be able to continue this into the future for some time at least, depending on the success of other fund raising activities. New members will be joining a truly international society with individual members in over 70 different countries, with well over 20 associated national societies, and a Board composed at any one time from a broad range of countries (currently twelve).

In order for you to have a glimpse of the sample personal web site, I encourage you to visit at http://www.intecol.net/member/?id=kimeuns, the sample personal web site of Professor Eun-Shik Kim, the Secretary General and Webmaster of INTECOL. In order for you, as a member of INTECOL, to make your own web site, the first step you are suggested to take is to "Update" your membership information at the Update Window, located at the upper left corner of the main page at www.intecol.net, with your ID and Password. If you successfully input your ID and Pass, the window changes by showing the BLINKING "Update!" button. By clicking the "Update!" button, you are prompted to the update page at http://www.intecol.net/pages/s002_05.php?mode=edit. At the Update page, please update your information. Recently, as the format of the Update page has been changed significantly, you are strongly suggested to update and provide your information as specific as possible in the boxes provided at the page.

At the update page, in order for you to create your own web site under INTECOL, you are suggested to check the small square box on the right side of "Personal homepage use". By checking the box, you will be allowed to get access to your own web site. If you want to share your personal web site, which already exists, and link it to INTECOL web site, instead, you are suggested to check the small square box on the right side of "Another Homepage use" and provide the URL of your personal web site in the box located at right. By checking the box and providing the URL, your personal web site will automatically be linked to the page of "Members' Web Sites" under INTECOL web site. After your selection and checking one of the two boxes, the linkage is being made as soon as you click "Submit" button located at the bottom of the Update page and it will prompt you to the main page of INTECOL web site, again.

By clicking "My Web Site" button at the main page, you can initially visit your own web site. From the new page, by clicking the "Admin" button, you can initiate editing your own web site as you want. If you want to see a diverse array of the other members' web sites under INTECOL, please click "Members' Web Sites" button, which will let you have the opportunity to explore many of them and allow you to communicate with many other members. Of course, those of you who are not members of INTECOL yet and want to experience all the facilities that the INTECOL'S ECO-BLOG provides with should be admitted as the members by INTECOL, first.

As ever the Board would be very interested to hear your views. These should be addressed initially to Eun-Shik who will contact you for further details by e-mail, soon. The Board is greatly indebted to him for much excellent work in developing the new web site, and we offer him our warmest congratulations on its launch.