Successfully providing access to special collections of digital geospatial data in academic libraries relies upon complete and accurate metadata. Creating and maintaining metadata using specialized standards is a formidable challenge for libraries. The Ontario Council of University Libraries' Scholars GeoPortal project, which created a shared…

Broadband and bandwidth allocation is an essential technology planning activity that libraries should address on a continual basis. There are five key factors that will impact your network's performance: 1. infrastructure, 2. network load, 3. workstation performance, 4. prioritization of services, and 5. network management. The author thinks it's…

Bookstores, record stores, libraries, Facebook: these places--both physical and virtual--demonstrate an established and essential purpose as centers of community, expertise, convenience, immediacy, and respect. Yet as digital, mobile, and social shifts continue to transform culture and interactions, these spaces and places transform, too.…

Deciding whether to go with a particular open source product is an exercise in risk management: understanding the risks of one's possible actions and choices, calculating when a certain level of risk is appropriate to reach a desired outcome, and planning for how to handle negative outcomes. To be sure, opting to go with a particular proprietary…

Overview of recent developments in field of telecommunications, especially newer transmission media and equipment, highlights new information services and systems (telebanking, teleshopping, videotex); opportunities for libraries (storing material, information generation, provision of equipment, library management); reasons for adopting new…

In the 21st century, the school library is the hub on which the wheels of classroom programs turn, providing the human, physical, print, pictorial, electronic and digital resources necessary for curriculum delivery. A school library web site that supports the needs of the school community through information and links to appropriate resources…

Provides an overview of the INTERNET and INTERNET services of interest to libraries, including electronic mail, bulletin boards, electronic publishing, online public access catalogs and databases, and downloaded texts and software. (16 references) (MES)

Surveys library technology in India, and describes the various documentation, bibliographic, and information retrieval services currently in operation, including those programs which train information professionals. A bibliography, appendix of definitions, and list of computer programs are given. (FM)

Two articles describe computerized reference systems created for college libraries in New York (Cornell and SUNY Binghamton) and at the University of Virginia, respectively. (TE)

Explains 10 basic steps for librarians who are interested in applying for E-Rates, the Universal Service Fund financed by the telecommunications industry as part of the Telecommunications Act of 1996. Provides discounts on technology services including telecommunications services, Internet access, and internal connections for all public and some…

This presentation by the president and chief executive officer of OCLC focuses on library automation and networking in the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s, citing an article by Richard DeGennaro and relating experiences at OCLC in resource sharing and related information services. (EJS)

Provides a comprehensive list of all the major vendors offering the Windows NT operating system, the latest in integrated online library systems software. Describes features and capabilities; platforms; and libraries where it is installed. (AEF)

Discusses topics relating to the Virginia Tech Library System: the company (VTLS, Inc.); the software; data structure; cataloging, status, and authority control; circulation; serials control and acquisitions; the online catalog; management reporting; networking; and the operating environment. Sidebars discuss the Vanilla Network; LINNEA--a network…

Provides an overview of the 1995 automated system marketplace, compiled by analysis of data gathered from 27 vendors. Topics include sales data; dominant vendors in different library sectors; company restructuring and consolidation; plans for technological upgrades, especially Internet connectivity, and improved customer support, service, and…

Some corporate executives regard their libraries as black holes that just consume company resources, but thanks to Laura Gordon-Murnane, executives at the Bureau of National Affairs (BNA) know their library actively adds value to the company. As web master for BNA's intranet, Gordon-Murnane creates information tools, databases, and products for…