Editorial note

It's Tuesday, we're behind schedule, I still have an article or two to write, my typesetter is mad at me and I've just learned that I may not be able to get the paper stock I want for the Reporter because of a strike at a paper plant in Abitibi. Ah yes, it's all coming back to me now. Students aren't the only ones at McGill who feel that peculiar blend of exhilaration and dread when September rolls around. For us, the dread largely centres around the deadlines we have to contend with -- deadlines that are forever being complicated by everything from late-breaking news stories to taxi cab couriers who forget where they're supposed to be delivering urgently needed items. The exhilarating stuff? Susan Cowan, a teaching improvement counsellor with the Centre for University Teaching and Learning, probably put it best when I interviewed her a few years back. In the course of working with professors on their teaching techniques, Cowan finds out about their research projects. "I get to talk to people who are at the top of their disciplines about what they're up to," she said. "It's like getting paid to watch Nova." That's often what it feels like in this job. Getting a sense of the personalities involved with this place -- the faculty, the students, the staff -- the unique contributions each one makes -- is a never-ending pleasure. It also helps to have a solid team to work with. Bronwyn Chester is back with us this semester as the acting associate editor of the paper -- good news to the many readers who let me know how much they enjoyed reading her work. Eric Smith, our almost insanely gifted newspaper designer/typesetter/writer/Web designer /techno-guru, is also back. Oh, did I mention he's also done directing work for CBC Radio? Truly a man to despise if he wasn't such a great guy to work with. Jane Jackel, a woman who spots my boo-boos with relentless precision, returns as our proofreader extraordinaire. And our merry band of freelancers, led by talented photographer/cyber shopper Owen Egan, is with us once more. So is Karl Jarosiewicz, our eyes and ears in Senate. We have a new member on the team -- editorial clerk Marc Gilliam. A recent English literature and linguistics graduate, Marc has interned at the Montreal Mirror, compiled information for that paper's popular "Student Survival Guide," and edited a widely distributed newsletter for the Youth Employment Services Foundation. We're lucky to have him. We've made a few changes to the paper. Our "Kaleidoscope" section sports a new look. Starting next issue, we'll introduce "On the Move," a section that features short nuggets of information about people along the lines of our "Kudos" section. "On the Move" is a response to several requests we've received to publish something in the Reporter about the comings and goings of McGill staff -- who's new, who's gone, who's switched jobs. It's not intended as a comprehensive account by any means -- we'll need you to keep us up to date. "At Issue," a section where we regularly pose a question concerning McGill to four members of the community, is back unchanged. Its on-line equivalent features an interesting new wrinkle, however. It's now interactive. If you want to put in your two cents' worth about the question of the week, you can. The on-line Reporter can be found at www.mcgill.ca/reporter. Another change involves our back page, where we'll be running "Slice of Life," a new section that will spotlight an aspect of McGill that's a little out of the ordinary and that doesn't get much attention. For those of you who wonder about whatever happened to Diana Grier Ayton-- the exceptional woman who led the Reporter to several awards and whose ability to make computers behave very, very strangely is renowned among those who know her well (we're talking potential X-Files material here), she is currently the acting manager of communications for Development and Alumni Relations and the acting editor of the McGill News. Diana earned many admirers on the strength of her contributions to the Reporter. Keep an eye peeled for the latest issue of the News, to experience more of the same (and in colour!). That's it for now. Have a great semester. Daniel McCabe acting editor