Examines the transition from traditional single database retrieval to the emerging networked resources retrieval, and presents research and experimental solutions developed at the University of California, Berkeley. Highlights include recall and relevance, network navigation, vocabulary, and extending retrieval records. (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)

An inter-university network of computer centers, the "Because It's Time NETwork" (BITNET), is described. Specific guidelines and format requirements for using BITNET, with sample commands, are presented. More than 1,800 computers at over 600 institutions of higher education and research centers in Europe, Asia, and North America are…

Characterizes information retrieval systems in a network environment from a user's perspective along two axes: query and presentation. Several examples of early, current, and developing information retrieval systems are considered within this framework, and Daltext, a prototype system to support research on text-based retrieval systems, is…

Noting that telecommunications technology is making it possible to search library catalogs around the nation and the world via a modem and a personal computer, this paper highlights some of the reasons why a researcher would wish to search library catalogs through the Internet, which is a network of networks with connections to nearly 1,000…

Information from the U.S. Government is appearing with increasing frequency on the Internet. In many cases, the Internet is the only place to locate important government information. Virtually all agencies maintain their own web pages, which include linked statistical data, news releases, and other full-text publications. In the future, more data…

The purpose of this study was to identify the strategies used by learners in an open-ended hypermedia information system. Four participants were drawn from an introductory technology-for-teachers course incorporating a unit on telecommunications. Participants completed a survey measuring reported knowledge in three domains (metacognitive, system,…

Educators are finding new and interesting ways to use computers as tools to educate and learn. For students to compete in the global community, it is imperative that educators embrace and use the World Wide Web in their curriculum. Hillside Elementary School in Minnesota uses the Internet, in a project called Web66, as a medium for student…

A study of first-year college students (n=121) in Taiwan investigated the effects of navigation maps and learner cognitive styles on performance in searches for information, estimation of course scope, and the development of cognitive maps within a hypertext learning course. Students were tested to determine level of perceptual field dependence…

Discussion of the relationship between users, librarians, and vendors as it has been influenced by electronic databases and communications networks highlights experiences at Aston University (United Kingdom). Topics addressed include mediated searching; direct user access to databases; impacts on staff; user demand; costs; CD-ROM networks;…