Dr. Rob Kling Remembered
Rob Kling, Ph.D.
Professor of Information Systems and Science
Director of Center for Social Informatics
Director, MIS Degree Program
Indiana University
School of Library and Information Science
SLIS News Press Release:
Rob Kling Passes Away May 15th, 2003
Indiana Daily Student article:
SLIS professor dies at 58
Kling remembered as a ‘team player’ and an ‘inspirational’ force in education
ACM MemberNet:
Rob Kling Was Expert on Social Aspects of
Computerization
Comments from SLIS Faculty, Friends and Professional Colleagues
ROB KLING: A PERSONAL REMINISCENCE
Blaise Cronin, Ph.D.
Dean, SLIS IUB and IUPUI
Rudy Professor of Information Science
“Recruiting Rob Kling was like reeling in a prize marlin: a wrenching struggle, but also a massively gratifying experience. Not that he was rapacious; Rob actually took a salary drop coming to IU from UC Irvine. That spoke volumes. Our negotiations were protracted, but we got to know one another well as draft letters of offer winged their way westwards and back. He played according to the Queensbury rules.
Rob Kling’s accomplishments are legion, and well documented. They don’t require retelling here. He was quite simply the brightest bloke with whom I have had the pleasure of working. Infectiously curious, playfully serious, razor sharp, generous of spirit, and wonderfully open-minded. Which isn’t to say that we always saw eye-to-eye; over the years we had a couple of serious spats; on both occasions he ate humble pie in a way that only a special kind of colleague could have. He probably didn’t need to, but he did. That, too, spoke volumes.
We regularly read and commented on one another’s drafts. And we chatted a lot, to the point that we could complete one another’s sentences. He’d laugh, the upper body juddering, a cross between sometime UK Prime Minister Edward Heath and a pneumatic drill. I can see him vividly as I write; eyes sparkling, mischief never a million miles away.
Rob cared about the academy, and was passionately committed to maintaining scholastic standards and collegiality. He juggled a workload that made the rest of us blanch. Yet, as soon as a new problem, challenge, or opportunity presented itself, he was off. Another ball was tossed up into the already seriously congested air.
I’d routinely tease him that he had more bees in his bonnet than an apiarist, but the man was not for turning.
Such was Rob, and we would not have had it otherwise. He added so much to the life of our school and IU in a relatively short time. He enthused and inspired us all, young and old, seasoned and wet behind the ears. I cannot bear to think that the Big Man’s face will never again peer around my door. Those of us who have had the pleasure of working with Rob Kling know just how fortunate we are.”
Alan Dennis Ph.D.
John T. Chambers Chair of Internet Systems
Information Systems Department
Kelley School of Business
Indiana University
“Rob was an icon in our field having spent time at the Stanford Research Institute, the University of Wisconsin Madison, UC Irvine, and most recently here at Indiana University. Rob was a leader in social informatics, serving as the Editor-in-Chief of The Information Society. He will be missed.”
I first met Rob when I was a doctoral student in the late 1980’s at the University of Arizona. Rob’s research on public and social informatics was close to but distinctly different from my own research area, which made it particularly interesting; it introduced me to new concepts I had not before considered. When I first contemplated moving to Indiana University, Rob’s presence just across the street from my soon-to-be new home in the Kelley School of Business was an important draw. I visited with Rob many times after I got here, both formally—as part of the Center for Social Informatics—and informally—just to discuss the issues of the day. In many ways, I had found a kindred spirit.”
Howard Rosenbaum, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Library and Information Science
Indiana University, SLIS
“I was somewhat intimidated when I first met Rob in 1996. At that time, I knew him only by his formidable reputation and here he was, interviewing for a position at SLIS. I was a junior faculty member sitting across the table from him asking him why he wanted to join us and what he could teach. Within minutes, however, Rob had turned the conversation to a mutual topic of interest: information technologies, the people who design and use them, and the organizations in which they work. I was no longer intimidated; I was engaged. So began a conversation that continued on and off for the next seven years in our offices, in the hallways, in restaurants, and in bookstores. During that time, we wrote together, argued about ideas, and worked on several projects. The result? Over time, Rob drew me into his amazingly extensive social network and I became another of the many CoK (colleagues of Kling).
Rob was a man of towering intellect who was very generous with his ideas. His intellectual curiosity and capacity for work have been inspirational. I often wondered how could one person know so much about so much and then realized that one of Rob’s gifts was a prodigious memory - he seemed to remember everything he had read and could call up ideas and their authors at will. His academic integrity and rigorous standards made those of us around him every day better as he led by example.
I learned much from him about the world of ideas and about what it means to be a serious academic scholar. I will miss him greatly.”
Eleanor Wynn, Ph.D.
Intel Corporation
IT Innovation, Program Manager
“Rob was a long-time member of USACM, and served actively as a member of the Executive Committee for many years. He had a deep concern, personally and professionally, in the welfare of the public and the impact that technology has on quality of life. Rob will be missed.”
Rob was personally important in my life. I have known him since about 1980. He was a great leader in the field of Information Systems and Social Informatics. His journal The Information Society was unique and an especially valuable contribution. I was… impressed with the breadth and depth of Rob’s analysis of the social context of information systems. I remained always impressed by the range of his interests and activities.”
Steve Sawyer, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
School of Information Sciences & Technology
The Pennsylvania State University
“Vivid, compelling, nuanced, and empirically-based. These are both the words Rob used so often and a summary of what he did with his work. Working together on a paper (a treat every time it happened), I surprised both he and I by drawing from a book he’d not yet heard of, much less read. It was a moment of intellectual pride, pretty close to some of my academic life’s other achievements (like completing my dissertation, having a paper accepted at a major outlet, and promotion). We went to dinner soon after, chatted through dessert, and he dropped me off at the hotel that evening. The next morning he met me in the lobby. In the car riding over to his office, he quizzed me on two other parts of the book that I’d not mentioned to him. It turns out that after leaving me he found the book at a bookstore and read it that night. And, he pointed out two other books that I’d not heard of, that overlapped with the book…. Ok, Rob, Ok.
Over the last few years, I’ve worked on a few projects with him. These have been high points in my career. These have also been the intellectual equivalent of a triathlon. Working with Rob means sorting through hundreds of emails full of text, pointers, parts of papers, and a running commentary comprised of allegory and contrasting examples. It means getting phone calls that drive points home, that chase your points around the compass, and that challenge you to think more broadly and more deeply — no matter what the issues are. I will miss the intellectual exhilaration of trying to stem the tide of one of his points, or even to deflect his train of thought as it sped along. Most of the time, I just enjoyed going on the ride with him.
Rob was not always right, but he was always certain. He was not always polished, but he was always bright. He was always busy, yet he was accessible. He had a temper, but you had to work very hard to find that out. He had a sense of humor, which he showed whenever you let him. I will treasure the time I got to spend with him, even when he red-penned my ‘thought globs,’ pointed out that my latest ‘great idea’ was a side paragraph in a 25 year old paper that he’d read (or written) and could recall, or buried me with evidence on why he was right when we split views on any particular issue. It will be hard to go on without Rob’s mentoring, though it’s the one thing I most want to do as a means to honor his legacy.”
Lisa Murphy, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Management Information Systems
The University of Alabama
Culverhouse College of Commerce and Business Administration
“What I can say with certainty about Rob Kling…
I am one of thousands affected by Rob Kling. He was a complex man, a match for a complex, uncertain world. Knowing Rob, I can say with certainty that I would not have finished my doctorate if he hadn’t come to Indiana. Knowing Rob, I can say with certainty that I have thought of new things in old ways and old things in new ways because of him. Knowing Rob, I can say with certainty that he advanced my perceptions of myself. Knowing Rob, I can say with certainty that he altered my thinking about what it means to know and what it means to ask questions. Knowing Rob, I can say with certainty that he was an intellectual force to be reckoned with — an improbable imp — for that force arrived with a glint in his eye. Having known Rob, I can say with certainty that I will miss him terribly — as soon as I can accept that he is gone.”
Margaret Elliott, Ph.D.
Research Associate
Institute for Software Research
School of Information and Computer Science
University of California, Irvine
“How sad I am to hear of Rob Kling’s passing. I feel fortunate to have known Rob as a mentor and friend. He was so inspirational and insightful and his enthusiasm for social informatics was influential to my work and to many others. He will be missed by many.
Rob was my advisor at UC Irvine from 1993-1997 prior to his departure for the University of Indiana. During my tenure as a graduate student, I began as an Artificial Intelligence student but after taking a class with Rob in 1993 on the Social Implications of Computing, I was totally enamored with his exciting research and Rob invited me to join the CORPS group. For about a year, I worked as a graduate research assistant for him on the AIME project - a study of computerization and manufacturing.
From that work, I went on to study computerization and the courts, which became the topic of my dissertation. Rob and I wrote a JASIS article on the organizational usability of digital libraries in the courts prior to his departure from UCI, and though I went on to graduate from UCI’s PhD program in Information and Computer Science (the CORPS group) with a different advisor, Rob’s brilliant way of characterizing the social aspects of computing will always influence my future research.
My husband and I also joined Rob and his wife Mitzy on several occasions for dinner - evenings we will always remember as special events filled with humor and marvelous conversation. My heart goes out to Mitzy and the rest of Rob’s family and friends.”
Lisa Spector
Research Assistant
Center for Social Informatics
Indiana University
“Rob was a brilliant and inspiring man, mentor, and friend. He nurtured my intellect, as he did for so many. I enjoyed his curiosity, about human behavior, fields from social through natural sciences, and assorted pursuits such as where to find fine teas. String theory and science fiction movies were exciting to talk with him about. I am so fortunate and honored to have spent many long lunches and meetings with him. Sitting with him through my first academic conference, the 4s, was such a treat, witty quips and dynamic critiques, in the way of scribbled notes and break-time meetings, were non-stop. His playful take on academics awakened my mind. His full engagement in life was contagious. During our last meeting he gave a creative, insightful twist to the chapter on scholarly communication that we were drafting. I exclaimed, “That’s exciting!” He replied, in his measured manner, “No…. that’s not exciting, you are exciting.” We agreed that it would be acceptable if I were excited about the work and his ideas. He was generous in his mentoring. His belief in me, the friendship he extended, his generosity, and his mentorship were rich and expansive.
Rob told me that he would get everything from my mind that he could, and he did; the neurons fired and made new connections daily, to try to keep up. His critique of my thinking kept me engaged in learning, working in hopes of “getting it right” only to find out we were on a new topic, new frontier, and that I would never catch up. He challenged my ideas, word use, analysis, and gave me room to explore.
I will miss him in so many ways, his wit, his sparkling and creative mind, and exploring social informatics and the world, from his viewpoint, is an irreplaceable loss.”
Rick Weingarten
ALA Washington
“I have known him since the early 1970’s when I was a program director at NSF supporting his work. He was a pioneer in developing the study of social informatics. The style and focus of our work at OTA in the eighties on Information Policy was strongly influenced by ideas Rob instilled in me in our many conversations.
He was a creative thinker who always had a valuable contribution. Just a few months ago, I had a long and very helpful consultation with him about how to understand better the epistemology of the web. I will miss him, as will we all.”
H. Raghav. Rao
Professor
Management Science And Systems; Computer Science And Engineering
University at Buffalo
The State University of New York
“Gosh! My deepest condolences to all at IU. It seems like only yesterday that he was delivering a keynote speech on Informatics at SUNY Buffalo and we were chatting at the Dakota Grill over lunch. Will also convey this to the Dean of Informatics.”
Christine V. Bullen
Senior Lecturer
Howe School of Technology Management
Stevens Institute of Technology
“I had known Rob Kling for more than twenty years. We worked together in the creation of the ICIS conference which went on to become the premier academic conference in the information systems field. We shared research interests in the behavioral aspects of the use of information technology He honored my work by including my research as a chapter in his book Computerization and Controversy, a uniquely valuable collection of writings that marked the beginning of the field Rob named social informatics. He was a brilliant and creative colleague. But more importantly he was a good friend who took the time to support and mentor those who sought him out. He will be missed for his academic contributions, his leadership, and his perennial good nature.”
He is such a significant loss to the field and to me personally. There are not sufficient superlatives to describe him!”
Eldon Y. Li, Ph.D., CPIM, CDE
Professor of MIS
Orfalea College of Business
Cal Poly State University
“It is very unfortunate to hear the passing of Rob. He is truly a hero in our community. He will be missed. Meanwhile, we should all take care of ourselves and enjoy life while we still can.”
Kate McCain, Ph.D.
Professor and Associate Dean
College of Information Science and Technology
Drexel University
“Sorry to read about Rob Kling. That is a real loss to the school, as well as to his family, friends, and profession.”
Kristo Ivanov
Professor Emeritus
Dept. of Informatics
Umea University, Sweden
“I have noted the communications about Rob Kling’s death and shared it with comments to my colleagues and graduate students at our department, since Rob visited us some years ago and gave a series of very appreciated seminars, and his “Computerization and Controversies” has been used in our courses.
Please give my/our most felt condolences and assurance of our respect for Rob’s person, his integrity, and whose work we considered as exceptionally serious and fit to the spirit of our discipline oriented towards social science aspects of computers and computerization.”
Barbara McNurlin
“It becomes very personal when someone from our own generation passes away. He was such an original thinker; our field will
miss him.”
Kathryn La Barre
Ph.D. Student
School of Library and Information Science
Indiana University
“It is impossible to imagine SLIS without Rob Kling. He enriched our academic experience, and extended our horizons - a gift beyond compare.”
Tom McMaster
Information Systems Institute
University of Salford
“I am deeply saddened to hear of this.
I have no doubt at all that my colleagues in the Information Systems Research Centre at the University of Salford will share your sense of loss at the passing of such a wonderful man — a character who has contributed so much to our chosen field of study.
I’m sure that I speak for all of my colleagues when I say that he will be sadly missed; very much indeed.
May I please, on behalf of the Information Systems Institute here in the UK, offer our profound condolences to Rob’s family and his colleagues in Indiana?”
Serge Proulx
Directeur du Groupe de recherche sur les usages et cultures mediatiques
Professeur titulaire, Departement des communications
Universite du Quebec a Montreal
“I’m deeply sorry about that terrible news. I received Rob during last fall in Montreal and organized a meeting with him and my research assistants. Rob had the great generosity to listen to each of them, to dynamically react with many suggestions. It was a very stimulating meeting for everyone.
I’m so sad. I will miss the conversations with him. He was so young, so intellectually dynamic. We have all and together to pursue his important work in social informatics.”
Elihu M. Gerson
Director
Tremont Research Institute
“I met Rob in 1973. He called Howie Becker looking for a sociologist interested in computing, and Howie gave him my phone number. I still have a vivid image of him steaming up my front stairs for the first time, a huge grin lighting up his face. That was the start of a good collaboration and a good friendship.
Rob spent his career formulating the grounds of a new research specialty, one which combined the strengths of computer science’s engineering concerns and social science’s insights. When he started out in the early 1970’s, this was a visionary, not to say quixotic, thing to do.
The idea that information systems had anything to do with the way people did their work was pretty strange. Rob persevered, and over the years he built a program of research, trained students, wrote papers, sat on committees, all the things that build a field. Much of that discipline-building is poorly captured in academic vitae; it consists of patiently talking to people, always explaining the need for a better approach, the opportunity for some exciting research, the advantages of an alliance among programs and specialties which have little to do with one another. It often seems that the most important thing about those alliances is that they give multiple groups an independent chance to say “no”. Nonetheless, Rob went on building.
In the last few years, his early insights and efforts and examples have borne fruit, and there’s wide-spread interest in the uses and impacts of computing. For this, we owe him. I miss the grin too.”
James H. Watt
Professor and Chair, Department of Language, Literature, and
Communication
Director, Social and Behavioral Research Laboratory
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
“Let me add my voice to those expressing sadness at the passing of Rob Kling. I was a member of Rob’s “Computers and Society” course that he taught at the University of Wisconsin the first year after he arrived from Stanford (1971?). I remember fondly the intellectual range of that seminar (course materials ranged from readings from Jacques Ellul to a performance of Firesign Theater’s “We’re All Bozos on This Bus”), and the rather unconventional class meetings at his house. Requiesat in Pacem”
Dr. Philip Doty
Associate Professor and Chair of Doctoral Studies, School of Information
Associate Director, Telecommunications and Information Policy Institute
University of Texas at Austin
“Please accept my condolences on the death of Rob Kling. As you know, he was a widely respected and admired colleague for many. He and I met face-to-face only a handful of times but had some interesting email correspondence and telephone conversations. He was invariably courteous, encouraging, and gracious — all that one could ask from a senior colleague.
Please extend my best wishes to his family and to everyone at the university and know that many people’s thoughts are with all of you.”
Charles E. M. Dunlop
Professor of Philosophy
The University of Michigan-Flint
“News of Rob Kling’s death came to me as a great shock. I co-edited the first edition of Computerization and Controversy (1991) with him. When I first proposed the project to Academic Press some fifteen years ago, Rob served as a referee. His report was so helpful and so impressive that the Press asked me whether I would consider having him co-edit the book with me. Not knowing Rob at all, I accepted the offer with some trepidation, fearing that I might be relegated to a minor role. My worries were entirely unfounded. Rob was a paradigm of collegiality, and despite the fact that I was a relative newcomer to the field, he treated me in every way as an equal partner. Moreover, Rob’s informatics perspective helped to broaden the book well beyond what I could have accomplished on my own, and he in turn clearly valued the viewpoint of a philosopher.
After first collaborating with Rob for some months by e-mail, our professional relationship mutated into a FTF friendship as I made several trips to California to meet him and spend some time working with him in person — a development that amused both of us in the light of our book topic. He had multiple computers set up in his house, and every day we would each write for a few hours, compare notes, and then return to our respective computers for more writing. Rob’s productivity was extraordinary, but he also had a wonderful capacity for enjoyment beyond work, as I learned on several sight-seeing tours that he gave me and in many delightful conversations we had in a variety of restaurants that he had discovered. Our book project led to a few further collaborations (both formal and informal) and although we gradually moved in different directions, I will always harbor very fond memories of this exceptional person.”
John L. King
Professor and Dean
School of Information
University of Michigan
“Rob had the most remarkable mix of brilliance, insight, and humor. I cannot recall a single conversation with him in which I didn’t learn something, whether the topic was artificial intelligence, sociology, antenna theory, or high-end stereo equipment (I still use a wonderful pre-amp he sold me from his collection). He’s the only colleague I’ve had where the most heated arguments would end up in hilarious laughter. He was also the most dedicated scholar I’ve ever known. Rob’s work wasn’t just a big part of Rob — it WAS Rob. Occasionally we’d make a pact to spend some time talking about other topics, but we’d inevitably drift back to research issues. As I think back on my academic career, there are very few people who come close to Rob’s level of influence on my thinking. He was a driven man, passionate about his ideas and his work, but at heart he was a gentle soul with a wonderful, ironic take on things. I can’t imagine things without him.”
Robert Bela Wilhelm, Th.D.
Founder and Director, School of Sacred Storytelling
Owner, Storyfest Journeys
“Rob Kling and I became good friends because of our love for amateur radio when we were in High School in 1958. We worked together for an electronics company after school and during the summers. He was filled with energy and enthusiasm. Rob’s Judaism and my Catholicism were endless sources of debate and intellectual stimulation. How we tried to convert each other! I loved him.
When he went to Columbia University our friendship was transformed by common philosophical quests and endless debates on Existentialism. Marxism, Theater of the Absurd, etc. Most of the debates were at exotic Chinese restaurants or sleepless marathons through the middle of the night ending with a walk around the Columbia Campus as the sun rose. He generously bought me books he thought I needed to read, and always encouraged our continuing and heated intellectual disputes.
Later, when Rob was at Stanford and I at Berkeley, we journeyed through adventures with the human potential movement, Gestalt therapy, Esalen, and Eastern Spiritual practices. He never ceased challenging me, and I valued our long disputes, arguments, and experiments in consciousness. I remember Rob, tall and lean, hair down to his shoulders, leading people through encounter seminars and Gestalt therapy with such energy, respect, creativity, and integrity.
But Rob was always transforming himself and was soon doing pioneering work in what was to become Social Informatics. For decades we kept in touch, but not enough. And how I now regret that. Rob was a great soul. I love him, and I miss him.”
Robin Peek, Ph.D.
Associate Professor
Simmons College
“Rob was one of those rare jewels-so much intellect and so much heart. This is very sad news. He was one of a kind. We were all lucky to have an opportunity to know him. I miss him.”
Mark Schlager
Associate Director of Learning Communities
Center for Technology in Learning
SRI International
“Turns out that Rob Kling was one of us! Between 1966 and 1971 he held a research appointment in the Artificial Intelligence Center at the Stanford Research Institute.
“Rob recently co-edited an upcoming volume in which Jim Gray & Deb Tatar and Judi Fusco & I have chapters, Designing Virtual Communities in the Service of Learning, Cambridge University Press. A week before he died, Rob had agreed to serve on the Steering Committee for our MSP LearningNet proposal. He was a champion of social issues in the design of technology. We’ll miss him.”
Roy D. Pea, Ph.D.
Professor of Education and the Learning Sciences
Director, Stanford Center for Innovations in Learning (SCIL)
Stanford University
“I have to say I am really, really devastated by Rob’s loss. I got to know Rob very well in week-long retreats in a Social Aspects of Computing project over a five year period funded by Markle and administered via the SSRC (we had the pleasures of a good budget and Kiesler-Sproull leadership that had us in Tortola, BVI for these meetings - best boondogle of all time but an essential context for intellectual exploration and cross-boundary conversations). He taught me a lot about the sociological and organizational aspects of HCI and computing generally that I came to use in much of my thinking and work.
He was a mean pool shark and loved a good hearty rum punch for walks on the beach and deep forays into epistemology of sociotechnical design and its risks and, of course, what would happen-if-not-that. I am really sad and there is no one at all in the world quite like him. He has been our treasure and he has to live on, as Bakhtin would remind us, as a voice within, part of the heteroglossic canyons in which our minds live. I urge you all to read his work, and this gives even more poignancy to the Designing Virtual Communities introductory essay I need to write in the next week or so for the book he co-edited in my long-time series with Cambridge on Learning in Doing. Oh, oh, Rob… In honor of you. You are so missed.”
Dr. Noriko Hara, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Information Science, SLIS
Indiana University
“Rob was an inspiration to many of us, especially to me. I still remember the first time I met him in the spring of 1997 when I had the good fortune to enroll in one of his courses. After that, my life was changed. I became keenly interested in the field of Social Informatics that Rob had established. Since then, I have been one of his adherents, mentees, collaborators, and personal friends. I cannot begin to describe how much he has taught me. His advice varied from recommending helpful articles to helping foster critical thinking skills to encouraging me to take an acting class in order to become a better lecturer. He was also extremely generous with his time and knowledge and gave me many opportunities that I otherwise would not have had as a junior faculty member. Most importantly he believed in my capability.
I was looking forward to working with Rob in the upcoming years, and it is devastating to think that I can no longer look forward to conversations with him. Although I think it was too short of a period of time, I was so fortunate to work with him and to get to know him on a personal level. I felt alive when I had discussions with him. He stimulated so much of my thinking.
Rob has left a great legacy, and I value every moment that I worked with him. He will be greatly missed.”
Ben Shneiderman, Ph.D.
Department of Computer Science
University of Maryland
Founding Director of the Human-Computer Interaction Laboratory
“So sad sad sad… it was so troubling to hear about Rob Kling’s untimely death. It is so sad for his family, his colleagues, and our whole community.
Rob was a strong and capable advocate of his vision of social informatics. He brought a computer scientist’s technical knowledge from his PhD at Stanford and blended it with a visionary social concern that addressed the messy reality of people and organizations. Not everyone appreciated his vigorous promotional style, but I made sure to read whatever he sent for comments. His analyses were fresh, constructive, and potent — rigorously documented, carefully balanced, and brilliantly rendered. He spoke forcefully and for good causes.
He was a role model and an inspiration, a guy I wanted on my side, a tireless campaigner. He worked hard to make his journal, The Information Society, be an effective voice for those seeking to blend social policy with technical innovation. He fought for an educational program that integrated technical foundations with social and organizational theories.
I’m saddened by the loss, but reflecting on how to memorialize him and celebrate what he accomplished.”
Liam Bannon
Director, Interaction Design Centre
Dept. of Computer Science & Information Systems
University of Limerick
I have only just heard today (July 14th) of Rob’s death. I am very saddened to hear of his passing, and grieve with his family and many, many friends around the world. Rob was an exuberant, irreverent and enormously gifted academic, who has had a significant impact on, and indeed was instrumental in creating, the field he termed social informatics. I was lucky enough to encounter Rob in the early 80’s, when I was a post-doc at UCSD. Rob was one of the few academics in the computing field I could find in the US who really took the social dimensions of technology seriously. He was very supportive and helpful to me at that time. I was amazed at his erudition, and enjoyed the voluminous reference sections of his papers, which one one occasion I had to edit for a book, and which generated much delightful discussion! On my return to Europe, I have not had such close contact with him, but was delighted to visit him in Indiana in 1999, when I was on sabbatical in the US. He seemed to have settled well in Bloomington, and was full of energy and enthusiasm. I will miss that warm smile, and razor-sharp mind. He will not be forgotten by those who knew him.
Alice Robbin, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Library and Information Science
Indiana University, SLIS
I confess: It has been more than two months since Rob’s passing, but there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t read something and think, “Oh, I’ve got to send this to Rob.” Or that I half expect to see his large frame filling the doorway of my office, eyes twinkling, a slightly lopsided broad smile, lips pursed (a sign that he would reveal one of his latest discoveries), ready to talk “for a few minutes,” minutes that I well knew would extend into an hour or more, where we would continue threads of conversations started a year or more earlier, argue the merits of a particular article or book that we had just read, or discuss world politics, food, travel, SLIS affairs, conferences, and nearly everything under the sun. That “or” in the previous sentence really ought to be an” and,” for no conversation with Rob was ever about just one thing; Rob’s wide-ranging interests spanned many disciplines and subjects. He was irrepressible, curious, and enthusiastic. What he sought is exemplified by two of his favorite words, “engaged” and “energized,” words that found their way into the vocabulary of his doctoral students and colleagues. His untimely death has left us feeling bereft. Rob contributed to our well-being, individually and collectively. We, his SLIS colleagues, like so many around the world, miss him terribly and will for a long time to come.
Liam J. Bannon, Ph.D.
Director, Interaction Design Centre
Dept. of Computer Science & Information Systems
University of Limerick, Limerick, Ireland
I have only just heard today (July 14th) of Rob’s death. I am very saddened to hear of his passing, and grieve with his family and many, many friends around the world. Rob was an exuberant, irreverent and enormously gifted academic, who has had a significant impact on, and indeed was instrumental in creating, the field he termed social informatics. I was lucky enough to encounter Rob in the early 80’s, when I was a post-doc at UCSD. Rob was one of the few academics in the computing field I could find in the US who really took the social dimensions of technology seriously. He was very supportive and helpful to me at that time. I was amazed at his erudition, and enjoyed the voluminous reference sections of his papers, which one one occasion I had to edit for a book, and which generated much delightful discussion! On my return to Europe, I have not had such close contact with him, but was delighted to visit him in Indiana in 1999, when I was on sabbatical in the US. He seemed to have settled well in Bloomington, and was full of energy and enthusiasm. I will miss that warm smile, and razor-sharp mind. He will not be forgotten by those who knew him.
Mandy Swygart-Hobaugh
Social Sciences Librarian
Cornell College
As a research assistant to Rob for only one year, our relationship was but a brief interlude. However, in that short time, I witnessed his uncanny excitement for research and life that others have more eloquently illustrated on this page. While saddened by his sudden passing, I am comforted upon reading these passages that his professional as well as personal impact will be celebrated through his colleagues and friends’ fond memories.
Charles N. Brownstein
Corporation for National Research Initiatives
Rob leaves his field a wonderful legacy of scholarship and scholars. He leaves me personally wonderful memories of infectious good humor, inspiring intellectual curiosity, continual service, and collegial friendship.
We met way long ago. He and colleagues at Irvine were pioneers, in the just emerging field of CS, thinking about computing and society from a position of technical understanding. I was at NSF, and Rob became a partner in working and promoting the arena, planning the program, reviewing the proposals. Then and over a long period in professional settings he added instruction in solving queuing problems at cocktail parties and restaurants. A big guy with, big intellect, big sense of social commitment, a big smile and a warm heart. Much missed.
Prof. Jacques Berleur
IFIP-TC9 Chair
Institut d’Informatique
Belgium
On this October 3rd, you may be sure that the IFIP community will be present in thought at the commemoration of Rob Kling’s life and work, at the University of Indiana, and at the celebration of Rob’s life, at Mrs Mitzi Lewison place.
IFIP, and especially IFIP-TC9 (Relationship Between Computers and Society), has highly benefited of the presence and advice of Rob. He was the first co-chair of IFIP-WG9.2 (Social Accountability of Computing).
All of us remember that, in the second “Human Choice and Computers” Conference, in 1979, he presented a famous paper “Social Issues and Impacts of Computing: From Arena to Discipline”, which was like a first anticipation of what should become in 1996 the field of “Social Informatics.”
Let us hope that his work will continue.
His last direct contribution to TC9 was his keynote”Critical Professional Discourse about Information andCommunication Technologies and Social Life in the U.S.” presented at the IFIP World Computer Congress 2002. As always, we recognized his inspirational force.
Let us hope also that the project of his new book “Computerization Within Societies”, that we had the opportunity to discuss last October, will find an issue.
We shall miss Rob greatly.
With our gratitude for what he brought to our IFIP community, and with our deep condolences and warm respect for Mrs. Mitzi Lewison.
