The availability and use of computers in teaching has seen an increase in the rate of plagiarism among students because of the wide availability of electronic texts online. While computer tools that have appeared in recent years are capable of detecting simple forms of plagiarism, such as copy-paste, a number of recent research studies devoted to…

Discussion of the use of search output clustering as an alternative representation method to ranked output focuses on difficulties involved in representing clusters for Internet users' evaluation in a concise and easily interpretable form. Describes findings and user feedback from a user study that investigated the effectiveness of search output…

Discusses Alta Vista, one of the most heavily used search engines on the World Wide Web. Describes the following search term manipulations: wildcard and truncation, adjacency, Boolean, and capitalization. Notes problems due to the Internet's constant state of transition and discusses advanced search mode. (AEF)

Examines changes in disciplinary identity demonstrated in the discourse of several Internet discussion groups and suggests the need for interdisciplinary collaboration to address digital storage and retrieval problems. Highlights include the culture of intellectual disciplines and the organization of knowledge; the culture of the Internet; and…

Reviews problems with the World Wide Web that can be attributed to human error or ineptitude, and provides suggestions for improvement. Discusses poor Web design, poor use of search engines, and poor quality control by search engines and directories. (AEF)

Describes the use of file transfer protocol (FTP) on the INTERNET computer network and considers its use as an electronic publishing system. The differing electronic formats of text files are discussed; the preparation and access of documents are described; and problems are addressed, including a lack of consistency. (LRW)

This kit was developed to assist the postsecondary education community's efforts to resolve the Year 2000 (Y2K) computer problem. The kit includes a description of the Y2K problem, an assessment of the readiness of colleges and universities, a checklist for institutions, a Y2K communications strategy, articles on addressing the problem in academic…

Explains why the Internet is not replacing libraries. Highlights include the lack of substantive material that is available; problems with finding what is there; the lack of quality control; physical difficulties with reading electronic texts; high costs of digitizing; and lack of access to older material. (LRW)

Discusses the results of a study of access problems and issues related to scholarly and peer-reviewed electronic journals (e- journals) found on the Internet. Reports data on the accuracy of directory information; accessibility of articles; status of e-journal archives; methods used to retrieve current and back issues; and data formats used by…

Describes "The Electric Library" (TM), a database (which can be searched via an Internet connection) designed to assist schools, librarians, and parents with information retrieval. Discusses technical and logistical benefits, the problem of selected and limited resources, and cost issues. Provides a sample debate topic exercise using "The Electric…

This paper discusses problems and opportunities, presented by the information explosion and the growth of the Internet, for libraries to apply and augment traditional methods of cataloging. The first section provides an overview of how the process of cataloging evolved, including the development of the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules (AACR),…

Discussion of computer networking and information retrieval technology focuses on the usefulness of accessing remote library catalogs. Experiences with the University of California MELVYL online catalog and Internet are described, problems of remote access for the user are considered, and future possibilities are suggested. (nine references) (LRW)