Explains the criteria by which 50 public libraries were chosen as outstanding, and reports the results of a survey of the directors which focused on major problems in libraries; desired goals in administration and technical and public services; predicted trends; stage of computerization; and sources of information and new ideas. (CLB)

Bibliographic utilities are marketing specially designed hardware and software that permit libraries to patch together automated cataloging, acquisitions, serials control, reference, online public catalogs, circulation, interlibrary loan, and administrative functions. The increasing complexity of the technology is making it more difficult to…

Presents remarks of the Secretary of State and State Librarian of Illinois concerning the Illinois Library and Information Network (ILLINET) which was created in 1965. Effective use of developing technology (online catalogs, interlibrary loan, automated circulation systems, collection development), anticipating changing needs of library users, and…

Profiles the New England Library Information Network (NELINET), whose purpose is to serve as focal point for achievement of cost effective library automation through shared resources. Origins of NELINET are highlighted as well as NELINET services, including archival tapes, role as OCLC broker network, cost effectiveness, and successful use of new…

Describes West Virginia Statewide Automation and Networking Plan, a single fully integrated and interfaced system, which links resources of public, college, and special libraries to users either in libraries or otherwise throughout state. Virginia Tech Library System software and off-the-shelf hardware and the network, telecommunications, costs,…

Summarizes status of academic libraries at beginning of 1980s in relationship to changes in broader society and technologies powering new communication networks (computers, video, teletext and videotex); outlines strategies for educating future library professionals; and forecasts how technologies might impact academic library beyond present…

Relates experiences of library director at King College--a small, four-year, undergraduate, private college faced with difficult budgetary decisions. Periodical collection, budgetary problems, cost effective online searches, acceptance of services by library patrons, and problems and solutions connected with implementation of online services are…

Describes Tennessee Technological University Library's participation in test of a network's local online services, i.e., database maintenance, authority control, reference support/patron access. Online catalog, training, patron access points, transactions and response time, database maintenance activities, bibliographic and authority record…

A simplified account of an extensive library automation and networking project that the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation initiated and funded in the Czech and Slovak republics is provided in this paper. The proposal to establish "The Czech and Slovak Library Information Network" (CASLIN) commenced in January 1993. Storage, document…

The Alabama Public Library Service (APLS) serves the information needs of Alabama public libraries. As a state agency, APLS is charged with improving library services throughout the state to ensure that all citizens have access to quality library and information services. The agency is responsible for receiving and administering federal and state…

This paper discusses changes in services, technology, and organization as libraries prepare to enter the "network-centric library world." Part 1 addresses the transition from the analog era to the digital age, and the convergence of libraries and education, including opportunities for library leadership in Internet access, digital…

This clinic's goal was to address questions arising during the process of transition from theory and research development to deployed useful and usable (and used) digital library systems. The idea was to use the Digital Libraries Initiative (DLI) based at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and entering its final year, as a detailed…

Provides generalizations and offers speculations about online library catalogs based on experiences of the Division of Library Automation, University of California, noting cataloging for access, rediscovering serial analytics, document delivery, electronic publishing, remote public access, circulation systems, and reference services. Four…

The major benefit of library automation lies in the potential for sharing infrequently used titles among libraries through local, regional, national, and international networks. These offer administrators a powerful tool for maximizing their institutions' research resources and flexibility. (Author/MSE)

Compares the effectiveness of five online systems in facilitating interlibrary services. The OCLC Interlibrary Loan (ILL) subsystem, the Research Libraries Group (RLG) Message System, the University of Toronto Library Automation System (UTLAS), and two others are evaluated with respect to the request verification, location, request transmission,…