Discusses the traditional role and functions of research library technical services departments and examines the impact of electronic information and information technology on technical services. It is argued that technical services units will stagnate if they do not accept the responsibility of becoming technologically adept. (19 references) (CLB)

Considers issues facing academic libraries in liberal arts colleges. Topics discussed include the need for faculty support; needs of faculty researchers; collection development, including faculty demands; resource sharing; the impact of information technology; the role of the library; and current awareness services, such as selective dissemination…

Examines the foundations of academic librarianship in terms of the ends and means of library services, recognition of the difference between them, exploration of the quality of library services, and development and refinement of descriptions of these concerns. The impact of information technologies on these areas is discussed. (17 references) (CLB)

Compares, contrasts, and critiques predictions that have been made about the future of research libraries, focusing on the impact of technology on the library's role and users' needs. The discussion includes models for the adaptation of new technologies that may assist in library planning and change. (38 references) (CLB)

Explores the theme of self-censorship in libraries in relation to new technologies. Highlights include the results of investing in high-cost electronic resources at the expense of traditional, lower-status formats; the effect of information technologies on literacy and historical records; and market censorship, including centralization and…

Examines the dilemmas of participation in resource sharing library networks and proposes solutions based on shifting inducements toward contribution by remunerating the contributing library for the unit cost of original cataloging. A "contribution pricing" model recently announced by OCLC is also evaluated as a possible solution. (21…

Discusses the growing similarities between academic libraries and computing centers and proposes an organizational model for the union of the two into an information services center. The administrative and personnel implications of such a union are addressed. (Author/CLB)

Describes the effects of electronic technologies on instruction, scholarly communication, and the storage and preservation of knowledge in higher education. The discussion covers the need to restructure universities, resolve the conflict between institutional autonomy and standardization, and explore new patterns of funding and staffing. (50 notes…

Urges the research library community, in which ownership is traded for access and competition for cooperation, to take concerted action to survive declining resources and the impact of electronic information technology. Concrete steps that can be taken toward contributing to a new world of scholarly communication are suggested. (Contains 12…

Reviews the literature on the impact of technologies on bibliographic instruction in academic libraries, and identifies environmental factors other than technology that need to be monitored in order to effectively modify instructional tools to meet the needs of learners in an electronic information environment. (CLB)

Examines the impact of information technology, the economics of information, and changing patterns of scholarly communication on the role of the academic library. Libraries are called upon to cooperate in building a national information network for scholarly communications based on existing bibliographic utilities and the developing academic…

Argues that, if libraries are to maintain their role in learning and research, they need to shift their focus from documents to content and from collection to individuals. Topics discussed include library concerns in 1939, services made possible by technology, and the necessity to implement information management strategies on campus. (22…

Discusses current trends that are predicted to intensify and to change library operations and the way society uses information technology. Trends discussed include focus on user needs; direct user access of electronic information; the obsolescence of first and second generation systems; a contention between optical products and online access; and…

This review of the positive and negative impact of centralization of library collections and services on library staff and quality of services focuses on reference services. The move from decentralized to centralized library services at Louisiana State University is discussed as well as the effect of automation on that configuration. (Author/CLB)

Explores value conflicts and ethical dilemmas arising from the more substantive role required of the academic librarian by technological developments. Discussion focuses on the interactions of social values, values of professional librarianship, and personal values of the librarian and the user, with the ethical requirements inherent in…