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ICEIS'99 - Announcement and Call for Papers.
1st International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems
27 - 30 March, 1999  Setubal, PORTUGAL.
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Dear colleague,

We would like to draw your attention to a scientific conference we
believe is of interest to you and your group. Bellow you can find a
complete description of the event. If you have any comment or question
to make, please feel free to contact us.

SCOPE
The International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems (ICEIS)
aims at becoming a major point of contact between research scientists,
engineers and practitioners on the area of business applications of
information systems. Four simultaneous tracks will be held, covering all
different aspects related to enterprise computing, including database
applications, artificial intelligence applications, decision support
systems, systems analysis and specification, software engineering,
methodologies to address information and knowledge sharing issues and
Internet/Intranet computing. The main purpose of the conference is to
address real world problems and practical solutions, based on the use of
information systems Preferentially, the articles should present new
ideas on how to solve management and decision problems using information
technologies. Articles describing innovative architectures of decision
support systems, database search engines, artificial intelligence
techniques, distributed computing, etc. are also welcomed.
The criteria for article acceptance will be scientific quality,
originality and relevance to the conference objectives. There will be
both oral and poster sessions and all the accepted articles will be
published in the conference proceedings.
The conference will include special sessions for case-study and
commercial presentations.
Each track will contain tutorials on specific subjects and will open
with a plenary session. Researchers interested in submitting articles to
these sessions should contact the secretariat.

TOPIC AREAS / CONFERENCE TRACKS
1. Database Technology and its Applications
2. Artificial Intelligence and Decision Support Systems
3. Systems Analysis and Specification
4. Internet and Intranet Computing

Each of these topic areas is expanded below. Papers should address one
or more of the listed topics, although authors should not feel limited
by them. Unlisted but related topics are also allowed.

AREA 1: Database Technology and its Applications
 Architecture and Methodology
 Relational Databases
 Object-Oriented Database Systems
 Database Management
 Distributed Database Applications
 Performance Analysis of Distributed Database Systems
 Enterprise-Wide Client/Server Architecture
 Database Security
 Query Processing and Optimisation
 Graphical User Interfaces
 Data Warehouses
 Data Mining
 Data Structures for Information Classification
 Multimedia Database Applications
 Databases and Programming
 Database Languages
AREA 2: Artificial Intelligence and Decision Support Systems
 Industrial and Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence and
Expert Systems:
 Applications of Fuzzy Logic
 Applications of Neural Networks
 Natural Language Interfaces to Intelligent Systems
 Intelligent User Interfaces and customised agents
 Applications of Artificial Intelligence to Robotics and Vision Systems
 Applications of Pattern Recognition
 Applications of Genetic Algorithms
 Intelligent Databases
 Artificial Intelligence Programming Languages (Prolog, LISP, others)
 Agent-Oriented Programming
 Intelligent Agents
 Distributed Artificial Intelligence Applications
 Testbeds and Development Environments
 Intelligent Tutoring Systems
AREA 3: Systems Analysis and Specification
 Systems Engineering Methodologies
  Systems Specification and Analysis
 Information Engineering Methodologies
 Object-Oriented Methodologies
 Design and Programming Methodologies
 Computer Semiotics
 Requirements Analysis
 Software Maintenance
 CASE
 UML (Unified Modelling Language)
 Object-Oriented Software Development and CASE Tools
 Object Oriented Systems Analysis
 Project Management
 Risk Management
 Modelling Formalisms and Languages
 Analysis and Modelling of Distributed Systems
 Application Programming Interfaces
 Application Software Porting and Conversion
 Systems Integration: Modelling Concepts and Information Integration
Tools
 Organisational Issues on Systems Integration
 Legacy Systems Integration
 Re-engineering
AREA 4: Internet and Intranet Computing
 Internet Communication Protocols
 Network Implementation Choices
 Corporate Networks and Tunnelling
 Virtual Private Networks
 Software Tools for Internet Computing
 Intranet / Web Programming
 Multimedia Applications on the Internet
 Virtual Reality
 Databases and the Internet
 Internet/Intranet Distributed Computing
 Critical Systems across Internet / Intranet
 Intranets Implementation and Management
 Real World Case Studies of Web technologies
 Internet Client/Server Applications
 Intranet in Internal Business Transactions
 Programming Languages for Internet and Intranet Computing
 Object Orientation in Internet Computing
 Support for Heterogeneous Information Systems
 Object Request Broker Paradigm Applications
 Electronic Commerce and Internet Business Applications
 Security, Freedom of Information and Privacy
 Advanced Interfaces
 Internet Agents
 Multi-Agent Systems

INVITED SPEAKERS
Invited speakers, experts in their fields, either from academia or from
industry, belonging to internationally recognised institutions, will
present key lectures at the opening of each conference track. At the
moment it is already confirmed the presence of Professor Mark Fox,
Professor Ronald Stamper and Professor Tom Green.


CASE-STUDY SESSIONS
Business consulting companies, hardware and software manufacturers and
business companies in general are invited to submit case studies,
regarding their own Information Technology problems and solutions. For
this purpose, ICEIS will have a track of case-study sessions and company
presentation sessions. The attendance to these sessions is free for all
the conference participants. All case studies should be submitted by
email to the ICEIS secretariat. A number of invited case-study sessions
is already scheduled.

TUTORIALS
Any person interested in organising a tutorial should contact the
Secretariat before November 1, 1998. Proposals for half-day tutorials
(approx. 3 hours) should include the topic and scope of the tutorial,
the background knowledge expected of the participants, and a resume of
the instructor(s).

EXHIBITION
The conference site will have an area for company stands, where a number
of companies will present themselves and their products. Companies
interested in presenting their products, showing documentation about
them or demonstrating some application, are invited to contact the
secretariat and make a reservation for a booth located at the conference
site (sizes 3x3 sq.meter and multiples are available). Due to the
limited number of stands available (approximately 30) it is recommended
to make early reservations. In addition, there is a 50% discount in
space prices for reservations made before September 30, 1998. Prices and
available spaces will be provided by the ICEIS secretariat.

LOCATION
The conference will be held in Setubal, a city 50-km south of Lisbon..
Setubal and its surroundings are a major touristic site, in Portugal,
where the visitor can find anything from ancient historical areas, in
Palmela, to pleasurable beaches and modern golf courses, in Troia.
Another interesting region in Portugal - Algarve - is less than two
hours away from the conference site.

SUBMISSION OF ABSTRACTS
Authors should submit a 1000 to 1500 word extended abstract, by email
(attached file in an accepted format - see below) and surface mail (5
printed copies) to the conference secretariat (see address below),
before November 6, 1998. Abstracts received after the deadline may be
returned unopened. The program committee will review all abstracts, and
authors will be notified of acceptance, by email, before December 15,
1998. Each abstract should clearly indicate the nature of its
technical/scientific contribution, and the problems, domains or
environments to which it is applicable. Authors must also indicate the
topic area to which the abstract is submitted.

- Format of the extended abstract:
Submitted abstracts must be printed on 8 1/2" x 11" or A4 paper, using
12 point type. Each page should have no more than 38 lines. Each
extended abstract should have an additional title page with the
following information: (i) Title of the paper, (ii) Authors names,
affiliations, addresses and emails, (iii) Keywords (maximum three
sub-topic areas) - these will be used to focus reviewing and ultimately
to structure the technical program.
For email submission, the only accepted formats are Postscript or PDF.

- Multiple submission:
If a paper has been submitted to other conferences it may also be
submitted to ICEIS as long as (1) it is not published or presented at
other conferences, (2) the author clearly indicates on the paper the
other places where it has been submitted, and (3) the author notifies
the program-chair if he/she submits the paper to other conferences
during the ICEIS review process.

PROCEEDINGS AND BOOK PUBLICATION
All accepted papers whose authors confirm participation at the
conference will be published in the ICEIS proceedings. Proceedings will
be published both in paper and CD-ROM format. A number of papers will be
selected for possible publication in book.

CAMERA-READY FULL PAPER SUBMISSION
After abstract acceptance, authors must submit a full paper, in a
camera-ready format which will be specified later. Full papers can only
be scheduled for the conference program and published in the conference
proceedings if at least one of the authors makes an early registration,
i.e. before January 1, 1999. Extended abstracts that are accepted for
poster sessions may also be included in the conference proceedings,
without the need of additional information, as long as at least one of
the authors registers to the conference before January 1, 1999.

BEST STUDENT PAPER AWARD
An award of US$1,000 (one thousand US dollars) will be given to the best
paper presented by a student (graduate, M.Sc or Ph.D). The organising
committee will decide, based on the feedback provided by the program
committee. To qualify for the best student paper award, the student,
besides being one of the authors, must present the paper at the
conference site.

LOCAL ARRANGEMENTS
Inquiries concerning hotel reservation and touristic aspects can be
directed to the ICEIS secretariat. A local specialised travel agency
will make all arrangements. A shuttle will provide connection from the
Lisboa international airport to the hotel in Setubal, for all
participants that make reservations through this travel agency. Local
touristic circuits, for accompaniments are also made available through
the agency.
The conference site will be approximately 5 km away from the town
centre, therefore free transportation between a number of hotels and the
conference site will be provided by the conference organisation, during
the conference days.
Coffee breaks and lunch meals will be provided at the conference site,
for conference participants. If necessary, you may contact the ICEIS'99
travel agency using the
e-mail:rdd09704@mail.telepac.pt

IMPORTANT DATES
Extended abstract submission: November 6, 1998. Extended deadline
Acceptance notification: December 15, 1998.
Early registration deadline: January 1, 1999.
Full paper camera-ready version: January 20, 1999.
Event date: March 27-30, 1999.

For internal purposes, we would be most grateful if you could let us
know your response to the following questions by replying this e-mail,
placing your answer in the subject field:

1- Answer "Y", if you intend to submit and present a paper at the
conference.

2- Answer "A", if you plan to attend to the conference without
submitting an article.
3- Answer "N", if you do not want to attend to the conference.

Thank you for your answer,

Looking forward to meet you in Setubal,

    (ICEIS 99 Secretariat)


ICEIS'99 SECRETARIAT
This conference is organised by the School of Technology of the
Polytechnic Institute of Setubal. Any inquiries should be addressed to
the secretariat below, preferably by email.
ICEIS Secretariat
Escola Superior de Tecnologia / IPS
Rua Vale Chaves - Estefanilha, 2910 Setubal
PORTUGAL
Tel.: +351 65 79 00 00
Fax: +351 65 721 869
Email: iceis@est.ips.pt

Web sites:
 http://www.est.ips.pt/iceis
 http://laseeb.ist.utl.pt/iceis (available by October 12)
 http://www.setubalnarede.pt/   (only in Portuguese)

ICEIS'99 - International Conference on Enterprise Information Systems