Describes the background of OCLC's international interests and briefly surveys the collaborative activities being undertaken in Europe, the Far East, and Canada. Both the benefits to all involved parties and problems that must be resolved are discussed. (two references) (Author/CLB)

Four papers on biological and medical sciences libraries were presented at the 1986 International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) conference. "Activities and Services of Medical Libraries in Japan--Past, Present, and Future" (Kazuo Urata and Toshinobu Suga, Japan) discusses the inauguration of the Japan Medical Library…

This symposium explored the effects of computers and modern technologies on library automation and cooperation. The following presentations are included in this collection: (1) "Economic Squeeze and Technological Challenge--Swedish Library Automation, 1987-90" (Svante Hallgren); (2) "A European Bibliographic Database Centre" (Bernard Gallivan);…

The six papers compiled here cover issues related to acquisition, library cooperation, and collection development. In "The UK Serials Group: A British Success Story," David P. Woodworth describes the background and work of the Serials Group, an autonomous British organization which aims to bridge the gap between serials producers and…

Describes the development of centralized library networks and the current factors that make library sharing on a smaller scale feasible. The discussion covers the need to decide the level at which library cooperation should occur and the possibility of linking via the Open System Interface Reference Model. (37 references) (CLB)

Papers on national libraries which were presented at the 1986 International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) conference include: (1) "Dangers for the Modern Information Society in the Computer Age" (Franz Georg Kaltwasser, West Germany); (2) "Functions and Objectives of the National Libraries in the Developing…

This study was designed to examine the degree of success of two current programs of the International Federation of Library Associations--Universal Availability of Publications (UAP) and Universal Bibliographic Control (UBC)--as they are seen from the point of view of one library. The data analyzed were culled from 237 interlibrary loan requests…

Describes the impact of reduced budgets on British university libraries in the areas of acquisitions, staffing, services, buildings, and library cooperation. The effects of changes in the funding and organization of universities on the library's role within the university are also discussed. (9 notes with references) (CLB)

This paper describes the interlending system in the Netherlands and examines the country's union catalogs, the main instrument in the interlending procedure. An overview of the integrated interlending system is provided; the union catalogs of the Royal Library in The Hague, the Technical University Library at Delft, and the library of the…

Describes resource sharing among Japanese university libraries, including interlending policies, provision of services to external users, the government role, and the national Scientific Information System network. Statistics on library holdings, annual acquisition levels, and expenditures are provided. (15 references) (CLB)

The eight papers in this collection focus on library activities in various geographical regions, e.g., Asia, Oceania, Africa, Latin America, the Caribbean, and Western Australia: (1) "Future Approaches and Prospects of Computerised Information Network among the Countries of South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)" (Abdullah…

Compares academic libraries in Japan and Australia in three areas: general background (number of libraries, financial support, size of collections, and student/staff ratios); the role of libraries (services offered, library instruction, accessibility, library cooperation, and expenditures); and library staffs (qualifications of directors, staff…