Welcome to CSIT-97, the first meeting on computing and information technologies in independent Armenia. Currently, Armenia is going through general economic reforms, changing from a centrally planned to a free market economy. Prior to the break-up of the Soviet Union, Armenia was a leader in computer technologies and electronics, and an innovator in certain areas. With the collapse of the former USSR, most established links between Armenia and the outside scientific world were lost. Today, Armenia has overcome the "information vacuum" and has full access to the Internet. We have developed a scientific and educational network infrastructure. The National Academy of Sciences of Armenia (NAS RA), the center of scientific progress, has the possibility not only to use Internet resources, but also to contribute the results of its own research and investigations.

CSIT-97 is a very important event for the Armenian scientific community. The conference is aimed to encourage the exchange of scientific and technological information between researchers in computing and information processing. CSIT-97 will provide new possibilities for co-operation between participants within the framework of international scientific programs, and research and development. The program includes papers and poster presentations, with over 27 dedicated sessions, as well as roundtable discussions and plenary sessions.

CSIT-97 is the result of the work of program participants, committee members, and researchers who submitted their work to the conference. We thank all of them. We thank our sponsors: the Government of the Republic of Armenia, INTAS, and Mr. W. A. Manoukian. Special thanks to the Institute for Informatics and Automation Problems of NAS (IIAP), for suggesting a good idea which became the major initiative of this conference. We also thank JSC Hylink for its support.

Welcome to CSIT-97. Welcome to Armenia!