Definition of VIS

The following definition of VIS is outdated but interesting. It comes from the Call for Papers for the conference, Visual'97 15-17 December, 1997

VISUAL INFORMATION SYSTEMS
Clement Leung
Present day information systems are mainly based on alphanumeric information. The effective use of visual information for organizational applications has been limited and mostly confined to highly specialized applications. Visual information systems (VIS) will not only substantially enhance the value and usability of existing information, but will also open up a new horizon of previously untapped information sources. Future information systems in commercial and scientific applications will have a high visual content, and it is necessary to integrate the visual and image components into the architecture of o rganizational information systems. It is expected that VIS will supersede existing Information Systems, while maintaining all the strengths and fulfilling all the functions of the latter. Although there has always been a demand for visual information, the technology for such systems were either insufficiently mature or unavailable in the past. VIS is now becoming increasingly feasible because of rapid advances in hardware and software technologies. The construction of VIS represents a radical departure from building conventional systems, and many novel, fundamental, and architectural issues will need to be addressed.