1The Editor’s Column Why e-Service Journal?

To use a Dickensian turn of phrase, these are the best of times and these are the worst of times for the Web. These are the best of times because the potential of the Web is just starting to emerge and the future holds a lot of promise. These are the worst of times if you are in the dot-com business and are simply trying to survive. In the midst of this tumultuous and chaotic period, why launch a new journal? This is the question we have tried to address in this editorial. The noted scholar, Wilse B. Webb (1976) stated, “You should be able to disbe-lieve, be dissatis¤ed with, or deny the knowledge that you have... Valued research seems to grow from dissatisfaction with the way things are, rather than agreeable perpet-uation of present ways of proceeding. ” It is this sense of creative dissatisfaction that fuels many new research ventures, and this journal is no exception. Established outlets—including journals, conferences and proceedings—provide a valuable service to the research community in their efforts to disseminate knowledge. However, over time, these institutions, much like the humans that created them, tend to become set in their ways. When such rigidity sets in, knowledge creation takes on