[ BeanRef ]

Annu. Rep. Bean Improv. Coop. (1996) 39: 200.

BeanRef -- An electronic collection of references about research on Phaseolus and Vigna in the World Wide Web

Nenno, M. and Nagl, W.

Division of Cell Biology, The University of Kaiserslautern, P.O. Box 30 49, D-67653 Kaiserslautern, Germany

During the last years a number of genome databases, like BeanGenes (McClean, 1995) for Phaseolus and Vigna, has been set up. The information in these databases focuses merely on molecular and genetic data. Although these are highly important now, there will soon be a increasing demand for other relevant information.

Therefore, we intend to establish a database that is not restricted to one or two specific fields, but should cover many different aspects of research on beans. Important subjects are germplasm collections, cytogenetics, genetics, molecular biology, physiology, phytopathology, and systematics. Additionally background information of organizations, upcoming meetings, lists of researchers with special interests and electronic communications (Michaels, 1994) should be incorporated. This planned database is called 'PHARIS', Phaseolus Research Information system, (Nagl and Nenno, 1995).

In autumn 1995 we started a small information system called 'BeanRef' as a pilot project for PHARIS. BeanRef covers the same subjects as PHARIS, but is not a database. It contains just references like addresses, citations, short descriptions, lists, and links. Like most biological information systems today, BeanRef is placed in the World Wide Web (Frey, 1995; Harper, 1995) and can be accessed with any WWW browser by the URL:


This was the old URL: [http://scaffold.biologie.uni-kl.de/Beanref/]
This is the NEW URL: http://www.nenno.it/Beanref/

(Please take note of upper- and lower-case letters)

The problem is to keep data up-to-date with all the different information. Our solution is to draw researcher's attention to BeanRef and ask them to send us a short note by email. Alternatively, people using a WWW browser with an internal mailto-function can click to the appropriated link in BeanRef.

References

Frey, A.H. (1995). The Internet Biologist. The FASEB Journal 9: 472.
Harper, R. (1995). World Wide Web resources for the biologist. Trend. Gent. 11: 223-228.
McClean, P.E. (1995). BeanGenes -- A Phaseolus/Vigna sp. Database Annu. Rep. Bean Improv. Coop. 38: 13-14.
Michaels, T. (1994). New electronic mail discussion group for bean researchers. Annu. Rep. Bean Improv. Coop. 37: vii.
Nagl, W., Nenno, M. (1995). PHARIS, an integrated electronic database for Phaseolus. Grain Legumes 8: 7.