Describes the development, current status, and possible future of NSFNET, which is a backbone network designed to connect five national supercomputer centers established by the National Science Foundation. The discussion covers the implications of this network for research and national networking needs. (CLB)

Describes computer networks that support scholarly research and explains the idea of a colibratory, i.e., a collaborative, distributed, experimental scholarly information network that is analogous to a traditional library. Information resources that could be available are discussed, technological considerations in networking are described, and…