Librarians should become more active in designing information systems so that their extensive knowledge of how people articulate their information needs and evaluate their findings can be incorporated into new systems. These systems would be more responsive to user needs than those driven by the machine or data processing mindset. (EM)

Five prominent consultants--Richard Boss, Susan Baerg Epstein, Rob McGee, Joseph Matthews, James E. Rush--discuss the most common mistakes vendors make in implementing library automated systems. Suggestions are made for correcting basic problems relating to identification of library needs, communications, delivery dates, inadequate systems, and…

A feasibility study identified the information requirements and alternative solutions for the Hawaii State Library System. On recommendation of the library service directors, the Book Inventory Building and Library Oriented System (BIBLOS) was purchased and installed. The system presently provides for automated acquisitions, orders, accounts,…

Information needs are growing more rapidly than the abilities of research libraries and information centers to meet them. Two reasons and their influence on information systems are discussed: a shift in scientific endeavor from basic science to applied, leading to the emergence of programmatic research; and the technology of science itself. (16…

The relations of the National Program for Library and Information Services to information literacy and the information industry are discussed. Private sector information resources are identified in several categories. The traditional relations of libraries and with the information industry are described, and examples are given of situations where…

The 7-week Advanced Postgraduate Training Course for Information Specialists from Eastern and Southern Africa described in this document was part of a long term training program designed to provide senior librarians, documentalists, and archivists with information on recent developments in methodology and technology in their special field of work.…

The Michigan Library Consortium (MLC) is studying the problems and possibilities of networking, with the Ohio College Library Center (OCLC) as a model and possible data base for the MLC. Standards on an international scale must be developed, and the need for constantly improving technology, particularly computers, must be recognized. Since the…

In its second year of activity, the Northeast Academic Science Information Center (NASIC) program of the New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) has assisted 18 universities and colleges in the Northeast in the implementation of local capabilities to provide computer-based reference services. Working through the libraries at these…

Part 1 of this two-part book examines "the subtle and ubiquitous nature of change." The purpose of the first group of readings is twofold. First, the works of Wasserman, Meadow, McAnally and Downs, Pettinger and Zapol, and Steere comment and report on needs, obstructions, and futures of many aspects of library-media-information programs and…

Summarizes issues raised at a seminar on electronic libraries that was held at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Topics discussed include network development; CD-ROM; technology costs; the relationship between academic computing centers and libraries; development of a national Information Infrastructure (II); digital library systems…

Descriptions and appraisals of significant recent trends and developments in the field of information science are presented. The individual chapters deal with the following topics: (1) information needs and uses, (2) design and evaluation of information systems, (3) an economist's view of information, (4) document description and representation,…

Three papers on system requirements for on-line and batch retrieval presented at the American Society for Information Science (ASIS) annual meeting are included here. At G.D. Searle, data for records related to pharmacology screening are used in a batch system, and an on-line system is used to search information on mutagenic, carcinogenic, and…

While the traditional uses of InterLibrary Loan (ILL) can be cumbersome, much of the work is now done electronically. Google and WorldCat can tell patrons which libraries in their areas owns the the titles they want, but they cannot always tell patrons whether there is a copy on the shelf available for loan. Several ILS vendors and OCLC are…

Discussion of the importance of adhering to standards in the library community focuses on standards related to linking systems, such as bibliographic utilities and circulation systems, and online catalogs. Three areas in particular are highlighted: (1) communications standards; (2) data format standards; and (3) user interface and indexing…

Librarians providing information services electronically must create useful information systems. This article illustrates that the effectiveness of an information system is characterized by its readability, browsability, searchability, and interactive assistance. Describes the concept of interactive assistance and how it relates to information…