James Morrison's interview with Trevor Owens explores Zotero, a free, open-source bibliographic tool that works as a Firefox plug-in. Previous bibliographic software, such as EndNote or Refworks, worked either online or offline to collect references and citations. Zotero leverages the power of the browser to allow users to work either online or…

Training professionals to design and produce interactive systems requires the use of well thought-out training scenarios. Indeed, it is essential to consider pedagogical forms whose objective is providing learners with field experience. It is also necessary to motivate learners to learn about subjects that sometimes seem distant from their…

Many education reporters are drawn to the beat because of its complexity and rich variety. Few topics provide such a wealth of political, business, human interest, breaking news, feature, and investigative stories. A reporter's day can start in a classroom with 4-year-olds struggling to learn to read, and end at a school board meeting with…

Interviews with three vendors of electronic resources provide a historical perspective of pricing, a discussion of current pricing structures, and insight into the future of pricing from three different perspectives: a database producer (Disclosure, Inc.), an online services provider (Questel-Orbit, Inc.), and a commercial online service/consumer…

The first of two articles discusses virtual reality (VR) and online databases; the second one reports on an interview with Thomas A. Furness III, who defines VR and explains work at the Human Interface Technology Laboratory (HIT). Sidebars contain a glossary of VR terms and a conversation with Toni Emerson, the HIT lab's librarian. (LRW)

Provides excerpts from interviews with expert online searchers to be published in a book entitled "Secrets of the Super Searchers" in the fall of 1993. Planning search strategies is the focus; and topics addressed include methods of planning searches, broad versus narrow searches, and building with component parts. (EAM)

Closer university-market relations are evidenced in increased university patenting, the formation of start-up companies, and partnerships with industry. They are part of a state and policy effort to link science and engineering to the market, thereby developing new technologies, stimulating economic growth, and creating new jobs. Yet the blurring…

This guide provides an introduction to the use of microcomputers with qualitative data. It is deliberately non-specific and rudimentary in order to be of maximum benefit to the widest possible audience of beginning microcomputer users who wish to analyze their data using software that is not specifically designed for qualitative data analysis. The…

Five librarians considered authorities on quality cataloging in the OCLC Online Union Catalog were interviewed to obtain their views on the current level of quality control in the OCLC database, the responsibilities of OCLC and individual libraries in improving the quality of records, and the consequences of quality control problems. (CLB)

Reports on the methodology of an evaluation of an industrial resource materials database intended for use in secondary science and mathematics courses. Due to time and budget constraints, the methodology involved the use of a postal questionnaire followed by telephone interviews. (Author/JDH)

Observations on impact of WILSONLINE (online access to H. W. Wilson's indexes) on the industry, library services, and end users are drawn from interviews with reference librarians, H. W. Wilson administrative staff, and monitors of database industry. Issues addressed include quality, thoroughness, ease of use, and marketing (demand, pricing,…

Describes DIALOG Web, DataStar Web, and highlights three other Knight-Ridder services: DIALOG Select, a service for high-tech, pharmaceutical, legal, consumer products, and media markets, KR@Site, which supports access to 80 databases, and DIALOG@CARL, which applies graphical interfaces to 300 DIALOG databases. Also includes interviews with…

Examines the challenges of using the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) Indexes to perform citation searches for personnel decisions and offers specific guidelines for searchers to follow during the presearch interview. Potential obstacles, search techniques, and systems commands are also described. (five references) (KRN)

Provides an overview of databases that include the best information about Latin America. Highlights include problems with using "Latin America" as a search concept; Latin American information on DIALOG; the dominance of TEXTLINE among the major newswires; comparisons between DIALOG and other online services; specialized Latin American…

Reports on interviews with five CD-ROM producers and vendors about their future plans. Questions are posed in three areas: platforms and standards, such as compliance with the Z39.50 standard; software installation and setup features; and pricing, including costs of print and CD versions, discounts, and networking fees. (KRN)