Technical Editor’s Message

Have you noticed anything different about this issue of the RECORDER? That probably depends on how you normally digest the CSEG’s magazine-style publication. It is business as usual for those who routinely swipe through the webpages on their tablet or phone, but if you are used to thumbing through the pages of the print edition, this issue will feel different. As Nicole Willson, RECORDER’s Chief Editor, shared in the last edition, this publication is in the midst of a transition to a purely online existence. As the first ever online-only RECORDER, you can only feel it through your mouse or screen. Maybe you feel a tinge of loss, anxiety, or disappointment? Or perhaps a little excitement and optimism? You might believe that an emotional response to a change in medium is highly illogical.

The CSEG has been mailing a print version of the RECORDER to interested members for decades, and published it online for a number of years. To date, the online version has been a simple digital mirror of the print one, subject to the same limits of its print counterpart: limits on pages per article, articles per edition, editions per year. There are also some restrictions inherent to print media: animations and interactive maps cannot be mailed out. The RECORDER’s evolution in a purely digital environment presents an opportunity for the society to serve its members in ways not previously possible.

As Rob Holt, the past Chief Editor of the RECORDER, articulated back in October, the RECORDER serves the CSEG’s mandate in several ways:

1. By publishing high quality articles that are of interest to Canadian geophysicists from coast to coast to coast.
2. By publishing information about the CSEG and other industry activities and events for the benefit of the CSEG members.
3. By publishing information about the activities of individual CSEG members for the benefit of other CSEG members.

Was it through gifted foresight or keen insight that Rob chose not to specify a medium? The committee is interested to hear your foresight and insight on the evolution of the RECORDER. We encourage members to send their thoughts on this topic, or any other, to the Chief Editor at editor@csegrecorder.com.

The FOCUS of this edition is on Back to Basics, a topic the RECORDER committee pursued because of comments captured in CSEG member surveys. Survey responses are important and useful to the society, so thank you to those who have taken the time to respond.

The next RECORDER will be the final edition available in print. It will be the GeoConvention edition with the FOCUS on Greenhouse Gas/Environmental Geoscience. In it you will find useful information about the GeoConvention (May 15-19, 2017), some great articles, and some special content to salute the RECORDER’s history.