Microcomputer applications for urban infrastructure planning

A range of microcomputer applications packages developed in Australia of relevance to urban infrastructure planning and management are outlined. The array of packages range from those concerned with the acquisition and analysis of data typically assembled for strategic planning studies (including remotely sensed data, socioeconomic data, and parcel-based data), to those concerned with impact assessment of proposed infrastructure developments (in relation, for example, to waste disposal, retail development, local area traffic-management schemes, etc) as well as those concerned with design and maintenance of buildings. The paper concludes with a brief examination of the concept of desktop planning<nobr> -- </nobr>a technologically feasible yet radical approach for the planning practitioner.