Just as the Internet is likely to be one of the most disruptive overall technologies of a man's lifetime, Google Books may become one of the most disruptive technologies for academic libraries. The immediate challenge is that Google Book's deeper indexing and more advanced relevancy ranking usually works better than that of local catalogs--and it…

The American Library Association's (ALA) Annual Conference, June 24?30, in steamy Orlando, drew 19,575 people, including 5,739 exhibitors, the lowest total since Miami in 1994, not counting the SARS-shadowed conference in Toronto last year (see statistics, p. 15). Although this years conference was filled with exciting events, this abstract is…

Discusses issues raised at the Special Libraries Association (SLA) 1992 annual conference. Topics addressed include international activities; goals for SLA; a keynote speech by Ray Kurzweil that discussed innovation and creativity; SLA board actions; candidates for upcoming elections; and the interests of academic members versus working corporate…

Presents a series of memos exchanged between the director and the reference librarian of an academic library, which argue whether a South African government publication should be labeled as propaganda. The two librarians debate whether labeling is a form of censorship or a necessary explanation of the nature of the material. (MAB)

Reports on the First African and African-American International Federation of Library Associations Pre-Conference Seminar, which was held in Nairobi, Kenya, in August 1984. Papers and issues highlighted cover publishing and ethnic collections, combatting racism, children's services, school libraries, public library services, academic libraries,…

Reviews information on part-time professionals from legislatures and associations, reports on informal survey of five academic library administrators, and examines part-time librarian situation at a community college (salaries, fringe benefits, adjunct decision making, different success scales). American Library Association's Part Time Employment…