Discusses the user benefits of write-once optical storage devices; describes typical applications in archival storage, one-off complex instruction sets, and information storage and retrieval systems; and identifies current trends toward standardization of equipment. (CLB)

This article defines three separate categories of microcomputers--personal, desk-top, multi-user devices--and relates storage capabilities (expandability, floppy disks) to library applications. Highlghts include de facto standards, operating systems, database management systems, applications software, circulation control systems, dumb and…

Discusses the development of literary and linguistic computing from the compilation by Roberto Busa of an index and concordance of St. Thomas Aquinas, through the inauguration of the Association for Literary and Linguistic Computing in the 1970s, to the recent formation of the Association for Computers in the Humanities. (SED)

This review of public domain software (written by individuals who release programs for free copying and distribution) focuses on disk utility programs which deal with the manipulation of files on disks (finding, moving, changing, viewing, organizing, storing). Sources for identifying programs and three addresses for software distribution are…

Proposals are made for practical approaches to the design of electronic office systems to provide for the effective storage and retrieval of the documents that they generate. Problems of records management and requirements to be met by the designer of an electronic office system are highlighted. Nineteen references are cited. (EJS)

Discusses the advances in and prospects of success for computerized systems, such as teletext, involving electronic transfer to the home of information traditionally transmitted through the newspaper. The new technology's effect in the marketplace, its providers, content, and potential audience are surveyed with respect to the future role of the…

Availability of low-cost digital optical disks will revolutionize storage and retrieval systems over next decade. Three major factors will effect this change: availability of disks and controllers at low-cost and in plentiful supply; availability of low-cost and better output means for system users; and more flexible, less expensive communication…

Defines in general terms the nature of computers, describes the various types of computers, discusses the characteristics and applications of the types of computers mentioned, reviews some basic facts about computer technology and computer hardware, and outlines a set of options for libraries considering acquiring a computer system. (JL)

The microcomputer revolution promises to alter drastically the means of communicating and storing information in higher education. Ways in which computers can enhance faculty members' productivity include: (1) word processing; (2) information access; (3) electronic mail; (4) graphics; (5) accounting; and (6) learning. The response of faculty and…

The description of the day of a hypothetical college president and his intense use of microcomputers illustrates how the use of this technology may become integrated into administrative style and efficiency. (MSE)

Computer assisted learning (CAL) is an old technology which has generated much new interest. Computers can: reduce data to a directly comprehensible form; reduce administration; communicate worldwide and exchange, store, and retrieve data; and teach. The computer's limitation is in its dependence on the user's ability and perceptive nature.…

In the 21st century, VIVOs (voice-in/voice-out computers using visual displays but no text) will make written language obsolete. Written language is essentially a technology created 6,000 to 10,000 years ago for storing and retrieving information. VIVOs will perform this same function more easily, efficiently, and universally without requiring…