This paper addresses the very timely issue of national information policy, particularly in view of the pending second White House Conference on Libraries and Information Services in July 1991. Information policy is examined from economic, political, and social points of view and the national government is urged to address the challenging task of…

A study was conducted to determine if the centralization of playback machine operations for the national free library program would be feasible, economical, and desirable. An alternative model of playback machine services was constructed and compared with existing network operations considering both cost and service. The alternative model was…

Technological advancement in academic library resources sharing, networking, and information transfer have developed dramatically in the past decade, with institutions (including nonacademic libraries) finding themselves hard pressed to acquire the resources necessary to institute or otherwise improve their networking capabilities. Further, these…

This report describes the Apple Classroom of Tomorrow (ACOT) project as it was in its second year in a comprehensive high school, Macintosh-based site in Columbus, Ohio, with 30 sophomore students. It is noted that all of the students in the ACOT classroom--who are selected by lottery from among applicants of the school's resident population--have…

This Texas plan to improve information and referral services in the area of developmental disabilities recommends an approach which focuses on providing improvements incrementally, spacing benefits over time, and periodically reassessing direction, alternatives, and costs/benefits. The plan stresses building a network which provides greater public…

The boundaries between various information, entertainment, and communication fields are shifting. The edges between our library systems and communication networks are becoming increasingly fuzzy. These fuzzy edges affect concepts of education, learning, and knowledge. The existing library paradigm does not easily accommodate the new, fluid and…

The proceedings for the 1990 forum provides both summaries of introductory and special remarks and 10 papers together with the full text of the following papers: (1) "The Changing Information Landscape: Opportunities for Better Management" (Jeff Bingaman); (2) "Managing Scientific and Technical Information in the 1990s" (D.…

Recommendations for starting a process of collaboration between public schools and social service agencies are offered in this digest. The first step, information gathering, is discussed, as well as strategies for carrying out other stages in the process--selecting, approaching, and meeting with participants; problem solving; and maintaining the…

This project located in Glasgow, Scotland, is concerned with the use of distance teaching for a non-formal community education program that is a component of a social change strategy to combat poverty. The study shows that the use of distance learning courses in non-formal community education is successful in attracting, at a reasonable cost per…

Bibliographers and librarians are aware of the new information technologies in information storage and retrieval. CD-ROMs and online database systems are two technologies used daily to assist users in accessing needed information. Although these resources are lacking in the fields of journalism and mass communication, possibilities for…

Over 50 delegates from 32 states and 2 Canadian provinces attended this conference, during which 5 intensive working group sessions discussed, debated, and achieved agreement on a number of relevant issues concerning the role of educational telecomputing in school reform and restructuring. The conference proceedings begins with an overview of the…

Prompted by new funding provided through the reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Vocational Education Act, a study examined the status of program development of tech prep initiatives in the technical institutes and community colleges of the United States. Using mailing lists of members of the American Vocational Association and the American…

Rural Arizona libraries received a severe blow when the Arizona Inter-Library Loan Center closed because of lack of funds. No northeastern Arizona libraries have been invited to join a new Arizona database, which is a spin-off of OCLC, and none of these rural libraries are in OCLC. The libraries will also have to pay long distance and user fees to…

Most institutions of higher education have a mission that specifically addresses three areas: instruction, research, and service. The repertoire of activities and the complexity of the goals of the University Library mirror the goals of the institution, the academic units, and the faculty. The clients of the library are the students, the faculty,…

Issues involved in establishing and supporting distance education in developing countries are explored, focusing on the role of teleconferencing in support of distance learners. One of the distinctive features of an effective distance education system is the quality of its learner support services. The development of an efficient infrastructure…