Internet Broadcasts a Valuable Resource for Engineers

Electronic News, Sept 13, 1999 by Robert Edelman

San Diego

With electronics vendors introducing multiple products per week, it has become increasingly difficult for design engineers to stay abreast of market and product developments.

Engineers now have to select from more than 200,000 device manufacturers, with over 2.5 million part numbers to be managed. And to add to the quandary, more than 1,000 part numbers are used per product. Coupled with industry design cycles of merely 90 to 120 days, these facts emphasize the need for an easily accessible resource for electronics industry professionals to gather and to disseminate recent product and market information has become paramount.

Once viewed by engineering managers as a threat to productivity, the Web now serves as an efficient and cost-effective resource for engineers and other professionals to bring clarity to an increasingly complex marketplace. As a broadcast medium, the Web is capable of providing engineers around the globe with easy, up-to-the-minute access to expertise that can immediately impact their careers and design projects by providing access to industry information and to educational opportunities.

Many Internet broadcasts feature streaming video of an industry expert discussing topics such as the intricacies and applications of a new design element. The video can be augmented with detailed engineering diagrams, PowerPoint presentations, application drawings and any other information that will help engineers increase productivity while providing access to the most current information. In addition, event presenters can leverage an abundance of chat and whiteboarding tools available on the market today, providing a way for engineers to share experiences with their peers, or to ask questions of the presenter.

The value of Internet broadcasts rests in their inherent ability to deliver important information at nominal costs and in real time. Moreover, the information can be sent directly to the desktops of engineers located in every corner of the globe. Webcasts can involve as few as one or two attendees, or as many as thousands. (Differences in audience size do not necessarily impact the cost or delivery of an Internet broadcast.) All it takes is Internet access and a minimally configured PC to equip an engineer to receive an Internet broadcast. Attendance is secured by logging onto a specified Internet address.

ENEN.com (Education News and Entertainment Network), an Internet broadcasting firm based in San Diego, specifically focuses its Web casting services on the needs of the electronics industry. Since its founding in 1995, more than 200,000 individuals -- most of them engineers -- have attended Internet-based events hosted by ENEN.com. The company's flagship service NetSeminar incorporates live multimedia broadcasts with interactive video, audio and chat technologies to create informative and stimulating presentations at a fraction of the costs associated with conducting traditional in-person meetings and presentations. ENEN.com also archives events in order to allow attendees to go back and view the broadcasts as many times as necessary or at a later date when the information might be more applicable.

Texas Instruments Inc., Fujitsu Ltd. and Advanced Micro Devices Inc. are just a few of the leading companies that have produced Internet broadcasts through ENEN.com. These firms place a high value on the ability to use the Internet as a way to communicate more effectively with teams of widespread engineers or with customers or prospects that require educational support as part of the design process.

In an age when business travel truly has become counterproductive, Internet broadcasts bring live seminars to those engineers who would not otherwise be able to attend such educational forums in person. This translates into cost and time savings for both the engineer and the employer. Most importantly, it results in the engineer gaining valuable design insight that can potentially make a project more successful.

Robert Edelman is the founder of ENEN.com, the Education News and Entertainment Network, a subsidiary of Marshall Industries and serves as Marshall's vice president of Internet.