Developments in European information issues: Networks and relays – Services – Products, December 1999

CORDIS

The European Community R&D Information Service CORDIS at http://www.cordis.lu/ has been expanding rapidly and work has been going on for some time to development a simpler way to navigate the wealth of information. At the beginning of November comments were invited on the new prototype site. Users through their feedback had the opportunity to influence the design. The new version will be launched shortly. Though it may yet undergo some changes initial indications are that the interface will be much improved with a simpler, less cluttered approach.

OEIL

The Legislative Observatory or OEIL database has developed considerably over the course of 1999. It is updated daily and charts the steps of the legislative procedure through detailed records which include the dates of stages, key document references (some with links), summaries of the main developments and forecasts of future stages. In August the third version was released with new functionality and additional content. Despite some teething difficulties with missing data on the public version, new search software ConText gives improved search options and an advanced search feature allows the combination of several criteria making this an even more useful resource. Helpfully there is now a download option for procedural files. The main search screen for the latest version can be found at http://wwwdb.europarl.eu.int/dors/oeil/en/search.shtm/. If you need to track what is happening to a proposal this is a key source to try. Another good feature is the pre-prepared searches where selected topics of continuing current interest are listed and are regularly updated as changes take place. Amongst others, topics covered include Enlargement and Agenda 2000: Monetary Union, euro and the Central Bank; and Employment.