This SPEC Kit, published six times per year, examines how Association of Research Libraries (ARL) libraries have structured themselves to identify networked information resources in the market, to evaluate them for purchase, to make purchasing decisions, to publicize them, and to assess their continued utility. In the summer of 1999, the survey…

Describes the Web-based technologies employed by the Grainger Engineering Library Information Center at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign in implementing access to local information resources. Discusses Microsoft Active Server Pages (ASP) technologies and the associated local database structure and format, as well as the general…

Using networked information resources to communicate research results has great potential for academic libraries; this development will require collaboration among libraries, scholars, computing centers, and university presses. Library managers can help overcome collaboration barriers by developing appropriate organizational structures, selecting…

Presents an overview of information infrastructure development in Latvia and discusses the role of the Latvian Academic Library. Describes Latvia's telecommunications, information network, data transmission, and electronic information services and reviews the types of electronic information sources that have been created. (Author/JMV)

A study of Australian university staff focused on Internet use and the potential impact of network use on librarians. This article reports on innovative uses of the Internet (information transfer, homework, evaluation of course material, reading information from networked resources, electronic journals), users' responses to the Internet, and…

Three articles on evaluation cover the use of the Internet as a reference resource and raise network policy issues: "The Internet as a Reference and Research Tool" (Edmund F. Santa Vicca); "NREN Update, 1993: Washington Policy" (Carolyn S. Elliot); and "Evaluating Physical Science Reference Sources on the Internet"…

Six articles describe various Internet applications, including a campuswide information system that uses Gopher; using an X Windows interface for Internet access; electronic text projects; the Nevada Academic Libraries information system; Multipurpose Internet Mail Extensions and electronic reference services; the Internet and OCLC. (Contains 61…

The eLib (Electronic Libraries) Program in United Kingdom higher education began in the spring of 1995, as a result of the Follett Report (Joint Funding Councils' Libraries Review Group, 1993) that emphasized the need for higher education libraries to be involved in the development of information and communication technologies. A "clump"…

Discusses the interrelation of product content with associated services, or "blurring" (Davis and Meyer) and its relation to federal information and services. Highlights include the federal role in facilitating use of government-collected information; infrastructure and policy issues; and implications for university library reference services,…

Discussion of the scope of electronic information resources available to libraries includes examples of several new sources. Solutions to increasing patron demand for materials are considered, including interlibrary loan, for-profit companies and agencies, and services that allow patrons to request materials directly. Issues of staff training,…

Discusses use of the Internet for research on adult and distance education. Highlights include a description of the Internet; scholarly discussion lists; Telnet; FTP (File Transfer Protocol); scholarship and research, including access to university library catalogs and electronic journals; and online information about networks, including user…

Five articles describe specific Internet resources, including geoscience and science databases; economic and statistical information; the JANET (Joint Academic Network) Bulletin Board for Librarians; and White House communications. A sixth article describes how practical applications of Internet information create new roles for reference…