Bitcoin is the first major decentralized cryptocurrency with wide acceptance. A core technological innovation of Bitcoin is blockchain, a secure and pseudonymous general ledger that stores every Bitcoin transaction. Blockchain has received enormous attention from both the commercial and academic worlds, and it is generally recognized as the…

Higher education is a key driver of economic mobility and future growth in California. Yet there is much unknown about how students advance from K-12 schools to postsecondary education and into the workforce--and where they falter. This lack of knowledge stems from the fragmented nature of California's education data and inhibits informed decision…

This report describes the development and implementation of a prototype system that integrates a microfiche catalog into an online computer system for bibliographic control. Such a system permits the storage of catalog data not yet converted to digital form, data in ideographic form, data for large numbers of little-used records, and data for use…

This publication discusses optical storage, a term encompassing technologies that use laser-produced light to record and store information in digital form. The booklet also discusses how optical storage systems relate to records management, in particular to the management of local government records in New York State. It describes components 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…

This report describes approaches to database translation (i.e., transferring data and data definitions from a source, either a database management system (DBMS) or a batch file, to a target DBMS), and recommends a method for representing the data structures of newly-proposed network and relational data models in a form suitable for database…

Examines the structure and components of information storage and retrieval systems and information filtering systems. Identifies 13 components as representations of data objects (copies, excerpts, descriptions, abstractions, and identifying references) and functions that operate on them. Reduces the functional components to transformation and…

Examines some medical classification systems with a long history--notably the "International Classification of Diseases (ICD)." States that this classification scheme retains many traces of its own administrative and organizational past in its current form. Suggests that ICD, like other large-scale classification systems, performs so…

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…

Describes the National Agricultural Library's microcomputer-based expert system, which is designed to help users obtain answers to simple reference questions. Building of the system and its linking to external programs and systems are explained, and building of a total information system is proposed. Samples of the program are provided. (CDD)

Discusses challenges to recordkeeping in a networked environment and describes emerging models. Suggests these principles that inform recordkeeping policies for National Information Infrastructure (NII) applications: move recordkeeping issues onto the agendas for planning and system design; understand recordkeeping requirements before systems are…

The results of a one year study to identify potential technology-based improvements in the operation, access, and utilization of the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) are described. Both current problem areas and future possibilities are considered with respect to the dichotomy: system components and the total system. Emphasis is on…

Compares and contrasts two systems designed for library automation applications--NOTIS, which was developed in the United States, and DOBIS, which was developed in Europe. The differences in the systems are discussed in terms of the availability or absence of machine readable bibliographic sharing capacities in the countries of origin. (CLB)

This project studied the feasibility of developing a computerized database of information about vocational and technical education curriculum materials. It was conducted in response to the need expressed by educators in the field for a comprehensive, centralized, computerized database of information on the availability of curriculum materials. The…