Introduction

This issue of Electronic School is about "critical mass," defined by Merriam-Webster as "the size, number, or amount large enough to produce a particular result." In the technology marketplace, the concept can refer to how use of a new technology grows only slowly until it reaches a certain critical point, at which time interest accelerates until the technology reshapes the market.

That's what happened in the 1980s, when Microsoft's DOS conquered and transformed the general marketplace for personal computers and when the Apple II computer swept into the public schools. In the 1990s, Microsoft's Windows operating system has crossed a similar threshold, and CD-ROM technology seems poised to do the same.

We're predicting that the next piece of software to achieve critical mass will be Mosaic--a "graphical browser" that makes the Internet inviting and easy-to-use for ordinary people. Invented and distributed freely on the Internet by the University of Illinois' National Center for Supercomputing Applications, Mosaic is being downloaded at the rate of 1,600 copies per day. And commercial versions of the product are proliferating, too.

You will meet Mosaic and its successors firsthand in this issue's two lead articles, "Mosaic Makes The Internet Accessible" by B.J. Novitski and "Mosaic For The Masses" by Lars Kongshem. You'll also find several pages of listings of Internet resources for educators-- that you can tap today.

Critical mass might also be at the heart of technology "infusion" in an individual school or district. Convince, inform, and train enough of a district's personnel about technology, say school technology advocates, and technology use will catch fire, different applications will enrich one another, and funders will flock. Articles in this issue offer plenty of sparks and kindling to help ignite such a fire, starting with an exhilarating vision of the potential of virtual reality in education by technology pioneer Jaron Lanier. And ready for immediate use in your arts curriculum is writer Maggie Hill's report on the many ways in which technology can add new dimensions to the arts in schools.

You'll also find lessons from a school-funding expert on coping with donations of high-tech equipment and the insights of a leading architect who has experience in designing schools for technology. Rounding out the issue is a good selection of case studies in which we showcase examples of schools that have put technology to a specific--and successful--use.

As you might have noticed, we've stepped up the frequency of Electronic School from our traditional annual level. That's in response to continuing growth in interest among our readers. Until the next issue arrives, you can sustain that momentum by taking part in activities sponsored by NSBA's Institute for the Transfer of Technology to Education. Among them:

• The Network Spring Meeting: Board Planning and Policy Setting for Technology, March 31-April 1, in San Francisco, preceding the NSBA annual conference;
  

• A technology-oriented site visit to Community Consolidated School District #59, April 27-29, in Arlington Heights, Ill.; and
  

• Technology & Schools: A Briefing for Decision Makers, May 10-12, in Indianapolis.
  

Thomas A. Shannon
Executive Publisher

Don E. Blom
Publisher