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Ag
conference focuses on hand-held technology
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[October 17, 2007]
BLOOMINGTON -- Applications of hand-held
technologies to farming and other agribusinesses will be the focus
of a Dec. 13 conference in Bloomington. The "it4Ag" conference,
sponsored by University of Illinois Extension, will be at the
Interstate Center, 2301 W. Market St.
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 "Farmers have many new delivery systems for information today,"
explained Dennis Bowman, U of I Extension crop systems educator
based in Champaign and one of the conference's organizers.
"Increasingly, producers use the Internet and podcasts to get
information when and where they need it."Now, with hand-held
devices like cell phones and PDAs, they can do all kinds of
things. For instance, with auto-steering devices on harvesting
and planting machinery, farmers can multitask and be in constant
contact with marketing information, making decisions literally
in the field."
The McLean County Farm Bureau is also sponsoring the
conference, noted Don Meyer, U of I Extension's director in the
county.
"We plan to have speakers who are familiar with uses of
hand-held technologies and also some panels of farmers who have
used these devices in their own enterprises," explained Meyer.
"We also will have vendors at the event."
The conference opens at 9 a.m. with a discussion by Paul
Hixson, U of I Extension communications specialist, about
current and future roles of information technology in
agriculture.
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"There will be three breakout sessions, focusing on 'Handheld and
Portable Devices: What and Why,' 'Internet Tools: Information on
Demand,' and 'Collaboration Technologies: Linking You to Your Supply
and Marketing Chain," said Meyer. "U of I Extension broadcast
communications specialist Todd Gleason will moderate a producer
panel presenting personal experiences using information
technologies.
"A trade show allowing participants to interact with various
aspects of information technology will also be featured."
Registration for the event is $50 and includes conference fee,
lunch and a USB drive with conference materials included. Those who
register before Nov. 13 will also receive a portable media player
for MP3 and video files.
Those interested in learning more about the event or in
preregistering may do so at
http://www.mcleanextension.org. Details on registration and
exhibitor information may also be obtained by contacting Brian
Lambert at the McLean County Extension office, 309-663-8306.
[Text from file received from
the University of
Illinois Extension]
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