"Research Library Issues" ("RLI") focuses on current and emerging topics that are strategically important to research libraries. The articles explore issues, share information, pose critical questions, and provide examples. This special issue presents a report released by the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) Joint Task…

The American Council of Learned Societies and the Council on Library and Information Resources appointed 36 scholars, librarians, and leaders of various academic enterprises to five task forces "to consider changes in the process of scholarship and instruction that will result from the use of digital technology and to make recommendations to…

This volume is the pilot issue of the "Transforming Libraries" series, a quarterly subseries of SPEC (the Systems and Procedures Exchange Center of the Association of Research Libraries). Each issue will focus on a different application or aspect of library technology. This issue discusses electronic reserves. It is divided into five…

Describes the in-house operational procedures developed at the Penn State University libraries to produce facsimiles of hard-to-locate, out-of-print titles using digital scanning technologies. Highlights include identification and selection, costs, copyright issues, interlibrary loan, materials preparation, and future trends. (Author/LRW)

The experience of Rutgers University Libraries illustrates the extensive planning, work effort, possibilities, and investment required to develop the digital library. Examines these key areas: organizational structure; staff development needs; facilities and the new digital infrastructure; metadata standards/interoperability; digital collection…

Although making college libraries accessible by computer appears simple to laymen, developing a fully digitized library is not simple. Many technological and behavioral questions are unanswered, concerning copyrights, accuracy, and the issue of who will use the new technology and how. In addition, users' desire for hard copy persists. (MSE)

Describes problems facing academic libraries today concerning the amount of literature and information available, costs, copyright issues affecting ownership, and technological changes. Strategies for dealing with diminishing funds and increasing information resources are suggested, and activities at the Association of Research Libraries (ARL)…

Presents a holistic view of the management of licensed, networked information resources in a university library. Highlights include licensing and copyrights; collection development and acquisitions; aggregators, which combine electronic resources from disparate suppliers or locations into larger resource units for users; consortia; managing…

Surveys resource sharing among libraries in the cycle of scholarly communication. Highlights include emergence of digital technologies; coherence within disciplines; collection development and innovative solutions; digital works for world knowledge; National Periodicals Center; subscription cancellations; electronic documents; new research areas;…

Discusses changes in academic library collection development due to societal attitudes toward higher education; budget and service pressures; copyright, licensing, and intellectual property issues; and preservation considerations. Recommends cooperative collection management, made more possible through network technology, as a means to effectively…

Discusses problems in scholarly communication, particularly pricing strategies for scientific and technical journals and their impact on academic libraries' collection development. Highlights include the growth rate in scholarly titles; serials expenditures; research and development expenditures; expenditures at Louisiana State University; shared…

The possibility of producing journal articles in electronic form is creating a revolution in scholarly communication. A number of research libraries are investigating or offering local and remote access to electronic journals. Because Internet access to a journal may not be available at the time of need, a prime collection development issue is the…

Presents the results of a survey of Canadian academic libraries that was conducted to determine areas of needed research in light of changes in technology and user needs. Suggestions for research included collection development, automation and user access, government role, copyright, serials price increases, and library administrators' attitudes…

Presents eight scenarios that involve copyright issues in media centers. Topics addressed include copying legally and illegally made videotapes; adding off-air tapes to the collection; storing illegally made computer programs; making archival copies of software; supervising student bulletin board systems; possible legal actions; and student…

Discusses issues that must be addressed by universities in order to ensure access to information resources by students and faculty, and possible roles of academic libraries within the electronic environment. Topics covered include the changing face of knowledge, costs of information technology, copyrights, and universities as organizations. (14…