Physical, economic, technical, and social constraints are analyzed in the case of the online vendor, and each component in the chain is considered separately. The user's problems are analyzed from the viewpoint of both the intermediary and the end user, and the effect of the changeover to a new system is considered. (Author)

Outlines steps in establishment of ALANET (electronic mail and information service of American Library Association): setting program goals; analyzing internal and external environments; choosing vendor; covering operational and service aspects; keeping up, keeping ahead. Support features (bulletin boards, electronic newsletters) and flexibility in…

This document reports on the e-mail-based question and answer services (digital reference) that the Department of Education offers to customers. The report is presented in five sections. Section 1, "Introduction," outlines the research goals which were to: analyze current processes, procedures and problems; suggest solutions for…

Describes the live virtual reference service, Q and A NJ (Question and Answer New Jersey), strategies used to meet the challenges of day-to-day management, scaled growth and quality control. Describes how it began; how long it took; how to manage a large project (constant communication; training and practice; transcript analysis and privacy;…

Memorial Hall Library in Andover, Massachusetts wanted to offer live reference service online but with limited resources, they couldn't do it alone. The 24/7 Reference cooperative program administered by the California State Library required Memorial Hall's librarians to monitor only 10 hours a week in return for live reference coverage. Memorial…

This paper describes the Loyola Center for Educational Improvement's (LCEI) effort to develop a clearinghouse on mastery learning (CML) which would serve as a depository for conceptual and research documents on mastery learning, competency-based education, instructional design, and other related topics. The nature of the clearinghouse is defined…

This detailed report states that information and documentation services in Eastern and Southern African countries are expected to: (1) increase the efficiency of research, development, and training; (2) improve the efficiency and competitiveness of industry and technology, particularly of medium-sized and small concerns, by assisting professional…

The Service-Learning Center (SLC) at Virginia Tech has developed a home page that has been cited in national publications and serves as a virtual center for linking more than 1,000 students across the university with the information and resources they need to fulfill course-based service-learning components. The home page was developed with the…

The Northeast Academic Science Information Center (NASIC) program, funded by a grant from the National Science Foundation to the New England Board of Higher Education, experimented in using a regional organization to develop an intermediary role in the process of providing machine-readable bibliographic search services to the academic research…

Argues that, in spite of the financial burden on local, state, and federal justice systems, prison libraries must be transformed from access-to-the-courts programs and emerge as community information and cultural centers that provide both electronic and book formats. (AEF)