When Lars Ulrich, drummer for the rock group Metallica, testified before Congress about his group's lawsuit against Napster in 2000, many people who followed copyright issues in the music industry were not surprised (Ulrich, 2000). Ever since downloading audio files became as easy as clicking a few buttons on a personal computer, charges of…

Reviews the development of telecommunications networks and describes current technology being used for online information retrieval. Highlights include use for military and research needs; experiences in Europe versus those in the United States; value-added networks (VANs); local area networks (LANs) and personal computers; and the Integrated…

Discussion of the need for distributed information retrieval systems focuses on a model system, Fulcrum FUL/Text. Differences from distributed database management systems are described; system design is discussed; implementation requirements are explained including remote operation calls (ROC's); and a prototype simulation model based on FUL/Text…

Discussion of the use of dynamic data resources, such as Internet LISTSERVs or Usenet newsgroups, focuses on an experiment using an automated filtering system with Usenet newsgroups. Highlights include user satisfaction, based on retrieval size, data sources, and user interface and the need for some human mediation. (Contains two references.) (LRW)

Discusses ways to locate information on the Internet. Highlights include LISTSERVs; files to download, including text, graphics, software, sounds, and animations through Archie; locating files on a Gopher via Veronica; the World Wide Web; and electronic mail addresses. (LRW)

Examines historical and current difficulties in information retrieval, including the tendency of technology, because of the problems of scale and distribution, to make information invisible to users. Attempts to organize networked resources are described, and serendipity is proposed as a model for future retrieval. (two references) (MES)

Describes the use of file transfer protocol (FTP) on the INTERNET computer network and considers its use as an electronic publishing system. The differing electronic formats of text files are discussed; the preparation and access of documents are described; and problems are addressed, including a lack of consistency. (LRW)

Presents an overview of issues concerning civilian competitive intelligence (CI). Topics discussed include competitive advantage in academic and research environments; public domain information and libraries; covert and overt competitive intelligence; data diversity; use of the Internet; cooperative intelligence; and implications for library and…

Discusses the current status of 4 developments that will determine the emergence of generally available multimedia information services: high-bandwidth networks; inexpensive user appliances capable of handling multimedia; adoption of standards for representation, compression, packaging, and transmission; and development of a corpus of multimedia…

Provides a novice's guide to locating and using patent resources on the Internet. The guide examines how easily a novice can find and use patent resources, and evaluates resources on their search and retrieval capability. Findings are from the author's own experiences with various online services and are presented as personal narratives. (JMV)

Noting that standards are needed to enable libraries using different processors and different operating systems to connect their computers and share services in meaningful ways, this article examines the content and status of ANSI Z39.50: Information Retrieval Service Definition and Protocol Specification for Library Applications and related work.…

Discusses intelligent software agents, or knowledge robots (knowbots), and the impact they have on the Internet. Topics addressed include ethical dilemmas; problems created by rapid growth on the Internet; new technologies that are amplifying growth; and a shift to a market economy and resulting costs. (LRW)

Explains the technologies of electronic imaging as background for other articles in this section, focusing on technologies seen by the developer or user of electronic imaging applications. Topics discussed include image acquisition, storage, retrieval, compression, transmission, display, manipulation, and printing; standards and architectural…

Describes three encyclopedias available on CD-ROM: (1) Grolier's Electronic Encyclopedia; (2) World Book's Information Finder; and (3) Compton's Multimedia Encyclopedia. Ideas for how they might be used in the classroom are suggested, information retrieval versus motivation is discussed, learning processes are examined, and stand-alone versus…

Bibliographers and librarians are aware of the new information technologies in information storage and retrieval. CD-ROMs and online database systems are two technologies used daily to assist users in accessing needed information. Although these resources are lacking in the fields of journalism and mass communication, possibilities for…