Descriptions of the 12 specialized information centers of the National Agricultural Library (NAL) include subject coverage, information services provided, information technologies used, and staffing. The development of the Rural Information Center, a joint venture between the Extension Service and NAL to provide information services to local…

Describes the development of the Rural Issues Collection by the Central Kansas Library System, which is meant to deal with the problems of rural residents going through transition. The discussion covers the cooperative relationship developed between the library system and the extension service to make residents aware of library resources and…

Discusses three aspects of rural family life--i.e., socioeconomic conditions, belief in traditional values, and educational levels--that affect not only information needs, but also how information should be presented. It is argued that, in order for rural information delivery systems to be effective, the nature of the rural community and person…

Describes the events that led to the creation of the Rural Information Center (RIC), a joint venture between the Extension Service and the National Agricultural Library to provide information to government officials involved in rural development. The databases accessed by RIC are described, and plans for a gateway system and network of all…

Examines the information needs of rural populations by identifying eight national issues and interpreting these as requests made to rural county agents. Four groups of rural information users are identified, and information needs specific to each group and that cross over all groups are discussed. (CLB)