155 Farmer's Bookshelf: Evolution of an Information System for Crops in Hawaii

Abstract

In 1988, the Farmer's Bookshelf started out as a computerized information system of crops grown in Hawaii. The first version was created on an Apple Macintosh computer using a hypermedia program called HyperCard. Because HyperCard came with each Macintosh computer, only the crop files needed to be sent to clientele. As the demand for an IBM-compatible version of the Farmer's Bookshelf increased, the Windows version was created using a hypermedia program called Plus. In addition to the crop files, the runtime version of Plus was also distributed to clientele. Later, other files were added to the Farmer's Bookshelf, including files to diagnose problems of macadamia in the field, select ground covers, select landscape trees, recommend fertilization, calculate nut loss for macadamia growers, and calculate turfgrass irrigation. Cost of analysis spread-sheets for several crops were also added. Recently, the Farmer's Bookshelf was moved to the World Wide Web, which has the advantages of reaching a world-wide clientele, easier updating and modifications, and linking to sites of related information. We have added links to newspaper articles on agriculture in Hawaii, to related sites on a particular crop, to on-line agricultural magazines and newsletters, to agricultural software, to upcoming agricultural events, and to Y2K sites. Because of the benefits of the Web version, the diskette versions (Macintosh and Windows) are no longer supported. Putting the Farmer's Bookshelf on the Web has allowed us to better meet the needs of our clientele for up-to-date information.