Introduction to use of compact disk technology for storing digital data highlights history, background, and developments; technical features; standardization issues; current CD ROM applications; and the market for CD products. A production diagram, a sampling of CD manufacturers and disk replicators, and performance comparison of three storage…

Survey of the history and current development of information technology covers hardware (economies of scale, communications technology, magnetic and optical forms of storage), and the evolution of systems software ("tool" software, applications software, and nonprocedural languages). The effect of new computer technologies on human…

Survey of recent developments in microcomputer technology, mass-storage technology, and telecommunications technology shows how these new technologies are driving the development of a new generation of information systems. Major changes in the information industry precipitated by arrival of new information systems and telecommunication…

This current overview of optical disk technology describes the evolving marketplace for optical products, the use of libraries as test sites for prototype CD-ROM (compact disk read-only-memory) products, CD-ROM developments, new optical technologies, and advances in magnetics. A list of some compact disk manufacturers and a glossary of terms are…

Describes three commercial, numeric databases that are available in microcomputer diskette format: Micro/Scan Disclosure; Wharton Econometric Forecasting Associates World Economic Service; and Trinet's Survey of Commercial Buying Power. Advantages and disadvantages of the diskette format, search strategies, and a selected list of eight suppliers…

Focusing primarily on hard disks, this report describes the choices currently available; explains the inner workings of hard-disk technology; lists 70 leading hard-disk products with their costs and capabilities; describes a new type of high-capacity drive; and compares speed, cost, and reliability of a number of widely used hard-disk backup…

Computer applications currently used on campus and feasible in the near future are discussed, ranging from potentials of word processing for teacher and students, to storage and dissemination of scholarly publications, instructional techniques, and highly efficient information storage. Further exploration of the technology's potential and…

This four-article section focuses on information storage capacity of the optical disk covering the information workstation (uses microcomputer, optical disk, compact disc to provide reference information, information content, work product support); use of laser videodisc technology for dissemination of agricultural information; encoding databases…

This article reports on portion of Non-Print Project in which still image disks from Prints and Photographs division are being linked to microcomputer database with results that hold promise for preservation, access, collections management, and security. Bibliographies on videodiscs (6 items) and cataloging of graphic materials (10 items) are…

The microcomputer revolution promises to alter drastically the means of communicating and storing information in higher education. Ways in which computers can enhance faculty members' productivity include: (1) word processing; (2) information access; (3) electronic mail; (4) graphics; (5) accounting; and (6) learning. The response of faculty and…

Designed to provide individuals responsible for the management of information resources with an understanding of the activities that lead to effective information management, this document identifies issues related to the management of microcomputer systems and analyzes some of the options available for the effective integration of small systems…

Describes the Eastman Kodak Company's microfilm and optical disk technologies and their applications. Topics discussed include WORM technology; retrieval needs and cost effective archival storage needs; engineering applications; jukeboxes; optical storage options; systems for use with mainframes and microcomputers; and possible future…

Included in this thorough overview of the probable future developments in videodisc technology and its role as an educational medium are (1) a review of current educational technology literature on videodiscs, which summarizes a U.S. Navy Delphi Study of videodisc technology use through 1986, discusses a National Institute of Education (NIE) study…

Advancements in computer technology are making great changes in the way scholars go about their research, affecting access to information, control over information, the nature of inputs and outputs, costs, library staffing and services, and aspects of the character of the research itself. (MSE)

An overview of the basics of computers is presented. Definitions and discussions of processing, programs, memory, DOS, anatomy and design, central processing unit (CPU), disk drives, floppy disks, and peripherals are included. This article was designed to help teachers to understand basic computer terminology. (CW)