Do students prefer to use Google instead of the library catalog? Ever wondered why? Google is easier to use and delivers plenty of "good enough" resources to meet their needs. The current generation of online catalogs has two main problems. First, the look and feel of the interface doesn't reflect the conventions adhered to elsewhere on the web,…

Purpose: The purpose of the paper is to examine the various features and components of web-based online public access catalogues (OPACs) of IIT libraries in India with the help of a specially designed evaluation checklist. Design/methodology/approach: The various features of the web-based OPACs in six IIT libraries (IIT Delhi, IIT Bombay, IIT…

Undertaken at the request of the Ad Hoc Statewide Automation Committee, this report provides a common understanding for Maine librarians of current library networking and how it might apply to Maine. The current status of Maine libraries and their cooperative and automation activities is summarized; resource-sharing in other states is examined;…

Eight authors discuss five questions related to user searching of online catalogs: What user needs can be met by online assistance? Should assistance be tailored to particular groups? Should there be more than one level of assistance? Do users learn through computer-assisted instruction? and Will increased system friendliness eliminate the need…

Describes Vannevar Bush's vision of memex, a mechanized private file and library, and suggests that the ability of users to download library online catalogs and manage the information on personal computers will realize Bush's vision. Current software packages are described, and the possible implications for libraries are explored. (CLB)

This report describes a demonstration of cooperative cataloging of nonprint media in a network environment. The project was jointly managed by the Indiana Department of Public Instruction and the Indiana Cooperative Library Services Authority (INCOLSA), a state-wide multi-type library network. Staff at large school library media centers in Indiana…

Shows how a successful bibliographic instruction program can be achieved through the interrelationship of program support, facilities, and growth by examining how the librarians at Brigham Young University (Utah) developed a proposal for, helped design, and obtained funding for a new bibliographic instruction facility. (Contains seven references.)…

This paper examines the use of the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) system at the U. S. Conn Library at Wayne State College (WSC) in Nebraska. Several developments in the last 20 years which have eliminated the trend toward reclassification of academic library collections from DDC to the Library of Congress (LC) classification scheme are…

Describes compact disk technology in general and possible library applications, including cataloging, online bibliographic searching, and full text searching, and compares the purchase of optical disk packages to traditional online services. Guidelines are provided for evaluating optical disks which focus on the size of the database, updating…

Addresses issues involved in implementing Out-Dial program at Pennsylvania State University Libraries, where the feasibility of using online catalog terminals to access external databases is undergoing evaluation. Placement of terminals and microcomputers, "ready reference" searching, vendors, training, cost-effective searching,…

This article describes use of the InfoTrac system, a self-contained periodical reference system designed for in-library use that provides coverage of 900 general interest, business, management, and economic periodicals, at Indiana University (Bloomington). Discussion covers InfoTrac installation, InfoTrac and student interaction, system…

Academic library computing systems, which are among the most complex found in academic environments, now include external systems, such as online commercial search services and nationwide networks, and local systems that control and support internal operations. As librarians have realized the benefit of using computer systems to perform…

Reports prepared by the Louisiana State University (LSU) Libraries Task Force on Electronic Services examine the present level of automated services at the LSU libraries and make recommendations for both long- and short-term plans to handle information in electronic format. The reports, each of which is followed by a list of recommendations, focus…

The Open Library Network (OBN) is intended to connect national and local university library systems in the Netherlands. OBN integrates existing automated library systems and procedures and brings services like catalog searching and document delivery to the desk of the library user. Project results can be grouped into four categories: (1) the new…

This report describes a three-stage catalog use study conducted at the University of Wisconsin-Stout from 1982 through 1986 to determine the types of searches conducted and search success rates for both the card and online catalogs during the library's transition to the DataPhase Automated Library Information System (ALIS). Phase I, conducted…