Amid the rapid growth of information today is the increasing challenge for people to survive and navigate its magnitude. Dynamics and heterogeneity of large information spaces such as the Web challenge information retrieval in these environments. Collection of information in advance and centralization of IR operations are hardly possible because…

Discussion of the development of a knowledge navigation system to assist users in searching a large database in a local/wide-area network environment considers the construction of navigation maps, the use of DOS and Windows, connection with electronic mail, and parallel operation with other systems such as BITNET. (28 references) (MES)

Describes an approach for linking geographically distributed collections of metadata so that they are searchable as a single collection. Describes the infrastructure, discusses advantages of using linked collections of authoritative metadata as an alternative to using a keyword-indexing search engine for resource discovery, and examines other…

Describes the design and implementation of a prototype visualization system, AuthorLink, to enhance author searching. AuthorLink is based on author co-citation analysis and visualization mapping algorithms. AuthorLink produces interactive author maps in real time from a database of 1.26 million records supplied by the Institute for Scientific…

Describes a method of full-text scanning for matches in a large dictionary. The method is suitable for selective dissemination of information systems, accommodating large dictionaries and typical digital data rates. It can be implemented on a single commercially-available board hosted by a personal computer or entirely in software. (Author/AEF)

Describes UKOLN's (United Kingdom Office for Library and Information Networking--a national center for support in network information management in the library/information communities) experimental system that allows digital object identifiers (DOIs) encoded as uniform resource names (URNs) to be resolved on behalf of Web browsers by Squid, a…

This kit was developed to assist the postsecondary education community's efforts to resolve the Year 2000 (Y2K) computer problem. The kit includes a description of the Y2K problem, an assessment of the readiness of colleges and universities, a checklist for institutions, a Y2K communications strategy, articles on addressing the problem in academic…

Describes the function of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) Z39.50 protocol, which allows for construction of information "servers"--i.e., resources attached to a computer communications network that can be accessed by client machines to retrieve information. The relationship of Z39.5 to other OSI protocols is explained. (23…

Discusses information retrieval standards as tools for interoperability among systems and traces the development of de jure and de facto standards in the U.S. and international telecommunications environment. Implementation of the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) and Z39.50 standards is described. (EA)

Explores Web page and Web site mortality rates, and considers two types of change: content and structural. Examines those constancy and permanence phenomena for different Web document classes. Suggests that, from the perspective of information maintenance and retrieval, the Web does not represent revolutionary change, that in some ways it is less…

Outlines the features and drawbacks of Wide Area Information Servers (WAIS). Praises the ease of use for end users and the variety of documents and other information available, but cautions users about searching problems resulting from the use of relevance ranking schemes. Calls for greater librarian involvement. (EA)

Discusses knowledge acquisition and dissemination in a network environment. Obstacles to the electronic exchange of knowledge and functional requirements for knowledge acquisition, dissemination, and management are summarized. A prototype intelligent Internet interface that mediates knowledge acquisition and dissemination and preliminary test…

Abstracts and descriptions of Special Interest Group (SIG) and Panel Sessions include such topics as: knowledge management; information networks; courseware; accreditation; Web site design; information retrieval and processing; digital imaging; electronic journals; human computer interaction; digital libraries; digital divide; information science;…

Current search engines--even the constantly surprising Google--seem unable to leap the next big barrier in search: the trillions of bytes of dynamically generated data created by individual web sites around the world, or what some researchers call the "deep web." The challenge now is not information overload, but information overlook.…

This paper reports on a study aiming to develop a metadata model for e-learning coordination based on semantic web languages. A survey of e-learning modes are done initially in order to identify content such as phases, activities, data schema, rules and relations, etc. relevant for a coordination model. In this respect, the study looks into the…