The standards of educational information exchange are still firmly rooted in a Newtonian paradigm that emphasizes strict rules of information exchange. With the explosion of information since World War II, and especially its accessibility through the mechanism of the internet, this paradigm has become a barrier to effective exchanges of…

Introduction: To provide valuable services in the future, libraries will need to create better information systems and set up an infrastructure more in line with the current technologies. The "Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records" conceptual model provides a basis for this transformation, but there are still a number of…

The preservation of digital data for the long term presents a variety of challenges from technical to social and organizational. The technical challenge is to ensure that the information, generated today, can survive long term changes in storage media, devices, and data formats. This paper presents a novel approach to the problem. It distinguishes…

Examines reasons that prompted the current shift from information to knowledge processing, encompassing both social contextualization and the recent technological advance. Discusses knowledge production, viewed as a five-step process. The highly interdisciplinary perspective and the primacy of the user are distinguished as necessary prerequisites…

This report analyzes file development efforts of the Resource and Referral Service project to determine the feasibility of computerizing a database of information on educational resource organizations. Background information on the project is presented in the introduction. The report describes present policies, identifies factors affecting…

The Latent Semantic Indexing and MatchPlus systems examine similar contexts in which words appear and create representational models that capture the similarity of meaning of terms and then use the representation for retrieval. Text Retrieval Conference experiments using these systems demonstrate the computational feasibility of using…

Discusses the contingency approach to organizational design, information processing as a critical contingent of design, and use of organismic and mechanistic structures within an independent merchant bank. Proposes that a more appropriate model is needed which takes into account the changing nature of information processing and is flexible enough…

Current issues in selecting, structuring, and implementing microcomputer database management systems in research administration offices are discussed, and their capabilities are illustrated with the system used by the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Trends in microcomputer technology and their likely impact on research administration…

This report describes the conceptual framework of a study examining the feasibility of developing, on a nationwide basis, a system of statistical indicators of educational knowledge outputs, dissemination structures, and knowledge utilization settings and outcomes, along with their contextual indicators. Using the notion of social indicators to…

This study identified alternatives for the design, implementation, and operation of a national information management system in multicultural education resources and materials and assessed the feasibility of implementing such a database. Sources of information for the study were potential users of the system, experts in information management and…

This comparative study of three major online bibliographic systems is designed to provide assistance to library administrators in the assessment of the potential impact of such systems upon the operations of their libraries. A side by side arrangement of the text allows an overview of any specific characteristic under consideration. These…

Written in response to a request to review the implementation of the Department of Agriculture's Electronic Dissemination of Information (EDI) system, this fact sheet discusses the performance of the contractor operating the system and the role of EDI in the Department of Agriculture's overall public dissemination activities. A letter from the…

This study assesses the application of both minicomputers and microcomputers to information-handling procedures and makes recommendations for automating such procedures, particularly in developing nations. The report is based on a survey of existing uses of small computing equipment in libraries, archives, and information centers which was…

Proposes that the concept of "utility" be applied in catalog construction and authority control. An iterative authority control process allowing for movement of proper name headings from uncontrolled to controlled states, based on user feedback in conjunction with comprehensiveness, will provide a new approach for information retrieval.…

A study examined the feasibility of adding employer-generated job titles to the North Carolina Unemployment Insurance Individual Wage Record as a means to providing a more comprehensive source of occupational data than has been possible with currently operating federal and state systems. During the study, researchers conducted structured…