The shift from traditional print materials to electronic resources, in conjunction with the rise in the number of distance education programs, has left many electronic resource librarians scrambling to keep up with the resulting inundation of electronic resource problems. When it comes to diagnosing these problems, words do not always convey all…

In a year where the general economy presented enormous challenges, libraries continued to make investments in automation, especially in products that help improve what and how they deliver to their end users. Access to electronic content remains a key driver. In response to anticipated needs for new approaches to library automation, many companies…

Explains portals as tools that gather a variety of electronic information resources, including local library resources, into a single Web page. Highlights include cross-database searching; integration with university portals and course management software; the ARL (Association of Research Libraries) Scholars Portal Initiative; and selected vendors…

Discussion of remote access to library services focuses on proxy servers as a method for remote access, based on experiences at Saint Mary's University (Halifax). Topics include Internet protocol user validation; browser-directed proxies; server software proxies; vendor alternatives for validating remote users; and Internet security issues. (LRW)

Describes the Association of Research Libraries Geographic Information System (GIS) Literacy Project and the experiences of several libraries involved in electronic mapping. An in-depth description of the University of Connecticut's map library is provided. Sidebars include information about GIS business applications and sources of products…

Describes ways to provide interlibrary loan (ILL) services on the Web and discusses the decisions that Ohio University's Alden Library made when creating ILL forms. Highlights include using common gateway interface (CGI) scripts; choosing commercial software products; changing user needs and expectations; technical considerations; and design…

Discusses client-server architecture in dumb terminals, personal computers, local area networks, and graphical user interfaces. Focuses on functions offered by client personal computers: individualized environments; flexibility in running operating systems; advanced operating system features; multiuser environments; and centralized data…

Each of three articles describes an academic library's online catalog that includes locally created databases. Topics covered include database and software selection; systems design and development; database producer negotiations; problems encountered during implementation; database loading; training and documentation; and future plans. (CLB)

Provides an overview of the North American Interlibrary Loan (ILL) and Document Delivery Project that was initiated by the Association of Research Libraries to facilitate the delivery of materials to users at manageable costs. Highlights include vendors; management and financial software; standards; library policies; organizational and service…

Compares Wilson's database tape and the IAC "Expanded Academic Index" as explored by librarians in the State University System of Florida. Features addressed include journal coverage; abstracts and full text; subject headings, including consistency versus precision and controlled vocabularies; search software; disk storage requirements;…

This study is based on a survey of a sample of 162 academic libraries holding between 90,000 and 500,000 volumes. The report begins by comparing various characteristics of the libraries to arrive at a profile of an average sample library in terms of volumes, enrollment, volumes per student, budget, expenditures per student, salaries as percent of…