Since the early 1990s, Carl Malamud has made it his business to return to the public what is rightfully theirs: free access to public information. Despite legislation that mandates such access to government information, some categories of information have been excluded, notable among them court opinions (with the exception of the U.S. Supreme…

Archivists are challenged by many competing demands on their time. The rise of institutional repositories, often located in libraries rather than archives, and the concurrent increase in attention to the changes in scholarly communication may be perceived by archivists as being a demand that is too far from the archives' core mission to warrant…

The author recently asked his colleagues, "How can libraries determine the value in collecting, managing, preserving, and/or cataloging e-resources?" hoping to challenge readers to come up with some thoughtful opinions and useful tips. Not surprisingly, he received a handful of substantially different but uniformly provocative and creative…

Discusses four megatrends from John Naisbitt's book--"Megatrends"--which have particular relevance to the electronic library: shift from industrial to information society; need to balance high-tech with high-touch; focus on self-help over institutional help; and change in organizational structures from pyramid hierarchies to networks.…

This paper discusses the concept of geolibraries and reviews related literature. Highlights include: the opportunity of geolibraries to elevate the work of both GI (Geographical Information) scientists and librarians; geolibraries' focus on digital information and metadata, as well as the distributed nature of the libraries and collections; the…

There is an electronic revolution in the library which may prove to be a revolution in the humanities and in the nature of learning and education. The humanities are an essentially human enterprise of which the record reposes in books in libraries. The central role of libraries in preserving these ideas must survive the electronic revolution.…

Academic libraries today are complex institutions with multiple roles and a host of related operations and services developed over the years. Yet their fundamental purpose has remained the same: to provide access to trustworthy, authoritative knowledge. Consequently, academic libraries--along with their private and governmental counterparts--have…

This paper looks at the importance of librarians with the current availability of online information. The first section summarizes the author's observations of online research in special libraries in the 1980s. The second section presents his observations of the current situation, using examples from the Los Angeles Times Editorial Library,…

Discusses electronic publication and legal deposit (the requirement that publications produced within a certain jurisdiction be deposited, usually in designated libraries which include the national library). The need for extension of deposit requirements to electronic materials, issues of concern, current legislation worldwide, and the role of…

In the late 1980s, when few Canadian citizens had Internet access, federal departments and agencies in Canada were already preparing for the future by putting information and documentation online. This paper outlines several government-sponsored programs--SchoolNet, the Canadian Investment Fund, Community Access Program, Canada Foundation for…

In the humanities, scholars accord libraries high prestige and use them extensively. Despite the availability of electronic mail and digital libraries, humanists persist in more traditional forms of scholarly communication. Because it will be many years before print records can be given digital form, this population will likely continue library…

Applies the anthropological concepts of culture shock and ethnocentricity to problems of computer and nonprint literacy in an electronic library. The role of librarians as agents of socialization is discussed, and the concept of education as a lengthy, ongoing process is considered. (Contains 12 references.) (LRW)

Discusses the future of librarians, libraries, and library schools in the age of electronic information. Commentary includes the changing role of the librarian in information selection; organization and access in instruction; and suggestions for revitalizing library education and image improvement. (seven references) (KRN)

Discusses the impact of electronic information on the role of librarians. Highlights include the future of print materials; redefining librarians as publishers, information network experts, or information engineers; a focus on information as opposed to library materials; matching information with the appropriate format; users' use of new…

Discusses the librarian's role in bringing about an equilibrium between private and public information interests that serves both information owners and the public, and comments on copyright law, libraries as managers of copyrighted property, access versus ownership, the library advantage in document delivery, the value of copyright, and creating…