Growth is a fascinating phenomenon to observe. One can be happy to see a new house go up across the street because maybe one’s own home will rise in value. The downside might be the loss of the view afforded by the trees that are now gone. More generally, concerns arise from sprawl—unregulated or unbalanced growth.

At Computing Reviews during this past year, we have been so very pleased that we are meeting basic goals, if bringing more material to you is the measure of that. I predicted a year ago that we would publish over 1,400 reviews the following year. Indeed, in 2003, we published 1,665 reviews; of those, about 37 percent were for books, while the remaining 63 percent comprised journal articles or other material. The increase in the latter group reflects fuller development of the data in ACM’s Guide to Computing Literature, and also better coordination of our respective systems.

We welcomed new Category Editors: Dr. Fabrizio Sebastiani (CNR, Italy) who oversees the database/information systems area, and also Prof. Sumanta Pattanaik (University of Central Florida) who works with the computer graphics area. All the editors have made important contributions toward balancing our coverage growth by recommending additional journals.

Prof. Dina Q. Goldin (University of Connecticut), our Information Director, is leading the development of a new feature called “Hot Topics in CR.” We have challenged ourselves to make this an element of growth that is more qualitative than quantitative. With these essays, we will strive to put readers in touch with some of the most active areas of computing research and development, while emphasizing clarity and comprehensibility.

I would like to say thanks to our readers and reviewers for all of their feedback, especially that related to the new look of the web site. And to those who have been following CR over the years, you will be seeing the cover quotes on display at last on the web.

A reviewer wrote recently that the book she reviewed [1] was something that “grows with you.” That describes our intent in CR as well.

Carol Hutchins

Editor in Chief

Reference

[1] Kasdorf, W. (Ed.) The Columbia Guide to Digital Publishing, Columbia University Press, New York, NY, 2003 (p. 87).