June 16, 2003

Professor Philip Willis
Department of Computer Science
University of Bath
Bath BA2 7AY
UK

Dear colleague, dear member of the Eurographics Association,

In the usual way, Eurographics has a new Chair every two years. I am greatly honoured to take on this role for the period 2003-2004. Hans-Peter Seidel and Roberto Scopigno have kindly agreed to be my vice chairs and I am looking forward to working with them, for the benefit of all our members. Eurographics is an organization closer to my heart than any other, partly because it is independent and wholly concentrated on computer graphics and allied subjects. However, the main reason is that it consists of splendid volunteers, many of whom I have come to admire and respect in equal proportion. Being in EG is quite simply a wonderful way to meet the best and friendliest people in the world!

Much of our recent success is due to our thriving executive team but I have to draw attention to one in particular, our outgoing chair Pere Brunet. Pere has left EG in a very healthy state and has inspired us all to new heights. He continues to serve the Association through chairing the Promotions Board and I know you will all join me in this public thank you for all he has done.

My first letter is a little later than intended because there has been a major change happening which I wanted to announce to you. Our web site has grown a little mossy with age. Charles Wüthrich and the Online Board team, working closely with our colleagues at Braunschweig (where the server is located) have made some very substantial changes in the way it is structured and the material presented there. These changes now allow us to announce the first phase of the upgrade. This will go live very shortly, at our usual address of www.eg.org. Over the coming months, we will be completing the update so that the entire site has a consistent look. We hope you will find it much easier to obtain information about our wide and growing range of activities, as well as details such as how other organisations can work with EG. For the transition period, some pages will be in the old style but will gradually be revised. We hope you will find the new site attractive and also easier to use.

This year's EG Conference will be in Granada; next year it will be in Grenoble; the year after that we expect to be in Dublin. Eurographics takes you to cultural riches that no other conference can match! These are all wonderful locations and I look forward to seeing many of you there. Granada's unique position, at the overlap of two cultures, makes it a place where the history comes to meet you at every turn. This month is still time to book for Granada at the early bird rate, but don't delay, go straight to our web site at www.eg.org. Credit card bookings can be made for both the event and a hotel, so you can be sure of your place.

See you there!

Phil Willis
EG Chair chair@eg.org