Discusses the usefulness of the World Wide Web to answer reference questions as compared to print sources, based on a study of 104 reference questions. Topics include timeliness of the information, search engines, bookmarks, current versus noncurrent information needs, and time spent on searching. (LRW)

Document management (DM) systems capture, store, index, retrieve, route, distribute, and archive information in organizations. Discusses "passive" electronic libraries and "active" systems; characteristics of effective systems; implementing a system; fitting a new system to an existing infrastructure; budgets; system…

Describes the "National Inventory of Documentary Sources in the United States" (NIDS-US), a microfiche resource of finding aids for manuscript collections and archives. Discusses its companion, NIDS-UK (United Kingdom), the NIDS CD-ROM index, and the development of ArchivesUSA, a CD-ROM which will combine NIDS, the National Union Catalog…

Discusses the history and development of the Universal Decimal Classification (UDC). Topics include the relationship with Dewey Decimal Classification; revision process; structure; facet analysis; lack of standard rules for application; application in automated systems; influence of UDC on classification development; links with thesauri; and use…

Discusses the control of digital content and the stakes for libraries and our democratic culture. Highlights include copyright term extension, the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, use of contract law to limit the public domain, database legislation, trademarks versus the public domain, the void in our cultural vocabulary, and the concept of the…

Focuses on the influence of computers and communications technology on the scholarly process. Discusses examples of this influence on all aspects of scholarship, from formulating ideas and gathering data to collaborating and publishing results. (EV)

Discusses the changing relationship between information professionals (vendors, database producers, and searchers) and end users during the last three decades. Examines the concept of the end user, including professionals; libraries; end user searchers; DIALOG and BRS; ease of use issues; search intermediaries; menu-driven systems; and CD-ROM…

Describes a technique for statistically comparing bibliometric models and illustrates its use with two examples using Lotka's hypothesis of author productivity and one example using library circulation frequencies. Topics discussed include nested statistical models, analysis of variance, regression, log-linear models, and the likelihood ratio…

Reviews proposed legislation of the 101st Congress and discusses other factors that contribute to the national information policy. Highlights include federal information sources in electronic format; the Paperwork Reduction Act; legislation for the development of a National Research and Education Network (NREN); and the role of the Government…

Describes a two-week class activity in which students attempt an extended definition of an abstract word, working collaboratively and using the library's reference material extensively. Notes that students take careful notes on both the information and their search processes, and integrate the information into a mini-research paper detailing their…

Examines the job content of preservation librarianship as evidenced in job advertisements. The findings indicate that preservation librarians function in a largely administrative role, possess the Master of Library Science degree in many cases, and are paid below the average salary for functional and subject specialists and department heads. A…

Describes a study that examined the learning styles of 140 academic librarians in public and technical services using Kolb's Learning Style Inventory. The findings do not indicate significant differences in learning styles of technical and public services librarians. Relationships between learning styles and variables such as sex, age, education,…

Despite the growing intricacy of information management, academic institutions continue to relegate librarians to second-class status and lower pay than their peers in classroom positions. Efforts to combat salary inequities are often confounded by deficiencies in salary reporting systems. Librarians provide important one-to-one educational…

Discusses the technological changes that will necessitate the prospective conversion of library data over the next decade and addresses the problems of converting data from obsolete personal computers to newer models that feature radically different operating systems. Three case studies are used to illustrate possible scenarios. (11 references)…

Describes a study that obtained assessments of the status of research in library and information science from leading researchers in the field. Five key issue areas affecting the status of research are identified and specific recommendations are offered to address these issues and improve the status of research in this area. (31 references)…