The author was assigned the task to comment on the broad topic: "New sciences, technologies, and media--impact on education for librarianship (or libraries)." The author choose to emphasize "information science." Narrowing the subject down even further, in this article the author emphasizes some of the aspects of the…

As a concept, the next-generation catalog (NGC) is not new to librarians, who have been wishing for better OPAC interfaces for their integrated library systems (ILSs). The NGC has been the focus of discussion for more than 5 years now, from the 2006 report of the implementation of Endeca at North Carolina State University, to Marshall Breeding's…

The problem of selecting which journals to acquire in order to best satisfy library objectives is modeled as a zero-one linear programming problem and examined in detail. The model can be used to aid the librarian in making better selection decisions. (30 references) (Author/KE)

Describes major changes made in bibliographic control systems in the past three decades and discusses why these changes have occurred. (Author)

Describes a project designed to improve services to library users by solving, through application of operations research methods, a complex problem of delivery of library materials in an urban, multisystem library service region. (Author/PF)

This study evaluates contract services in reference and printed materials of the Maryland Interlibrary Organization (MILO)-Central (a network of public, county, and academic libraries) as performed by the County Services Department. Procedures and record-keeping processes--i.e., organization, basic operations, and request volume--are analyzed from…

This report contains the results of a study to design a communications network to facilitate interloan procedures in the three public library systems of New York City--the Brooklyn Public Library, Queens Borough Public Library, and New York Public Library. Methods employed for the study include interviews with appropriate library personnel,…

The Library Labor Cost Accounting System will provide visibility on current costs of manually processing library materials, at each campus as well as system-wide. The scope of the study includes the following: (1) 100 individual activities, grouped into 14 functional areas, e.g., Ordering, Receiving; and into 3 major operations: Acquisitions,…

This project was an experimental effort to study, analyze, and understand interlibrary networks. The immediate purpose of the project was to develop methodologies for evaluating or analyzing networks; the ultimate purpose was to provide planning assistance to network funders, designers or operators. The project was conducted in four simultaneous…

This case study applies a mathematical model to the Illinois Library and Information Network (ILLINET) Rolling Prairie Library (RPL) System. Given certain dimensions, parameters, and operating policies of a library network, the model calculates probability of satisfying a request, average processing time, average total and unit costs, and average…

Describes a technique for accessing a library system with limited interconnectivity by connecting the system to a gateway machine that is a host in the local area network and evaluates the performance of an existing prototype that has been implemented at the Los Alamos National Laboratory. (Author/CLB)

Based on analysis of the current system and comparison with existing and possible alternatives, this report evaluates the effectiveness of the Indiana library cooperative network, a de facto network based on the activities of individual libraries, Area Library Services Authorities (ALSAs), the Indiana Cooperative Library Services Authority…

This report presents results from Phase 1 of the British Columbia Library Network (BCLN) Project, which included the installation and evaluation of a comprehensive library cataloging system using the University of Victoria Computing Center IBM 4341 computer. Evaluation included actual use of the system, performance and cost studies, feature and…

Two parallel streams of work are the subject of this review: (1) the design of a long-range work program and planning process, and (2) the development of analytical techniques which give information about the use of libraries, new or old, and their service areas. The analytical model of library behavior proved illuminating, but is an area of…

Undertaken at the request of the Ad Hoc Statewide Automation Committee, this report provides a common understanding for Maine librarians of current library networking and how it might apply to Maine. The current status of Maine libraries and their cooperative and automation activities is summarized; resource-sharing in other states is examined;…