Describes the Reference by GammaFax Project, which joined nine area libraries to provide cooperative reference access to optical disk databases. The configuration of disk players, microcomputers, and facsimile equipment used by the libraries is explained, and the improvements in cost effectiveness, provision of service, and librarian expertise are…

Describes the networking of CD-ROM drives in libraries to accommodate users' simultaneous access to the same CD-ROM. Highlights include costs; vendors who supply local area network hardware and software; licensing practices; and a sidebar that describes the use of CD-ROM networks at Vanderbilt University and the University of Kansas. (LRW)

Describes two new multimedia products developed by IBM that are interdisciplinary, multicultural, and nongraded (i.e., suitable for elementary grades through college): (1) Columbus: Encounter, Discovery and Beyond; and (2) Illuminated Books and Manuscripts, which explores interrelationships between five literary works and other subject areas. The…

The development of CD-ROM following early computers and powerful personal computers will affect information retrieval by its accessibility and large storage capacity. Users will demand specific information and data sets from libraries, which could provide large research capacities. Librarians will act as database managers, thus enhancing their…