This is the first issue of a new on-line forum. Its intent is to address issues involving risks to the public in the use of computers. As such, it is necessarily concerned with whether/how critical requirements for human safety, reliability, fault tolerance, security, privacy, integrity, and guaranteed service (among others) can be met (in some cases all at the same time), and how the attempted fulfillment or ignorance of those requirements may imply risks to the public. We will presumably explore both deficiencies in existing systems and techniques for developing better computer systems — as well as the implications of using computer systems in highly critical environments.

^ 1985, 2 years before i was born, on-line still had a dash. Man, what a time that must've been.