Discussion of cooperation between academic and corporate libraries focuses on a case study of the library at the Colorado School of Mines where an industry information center was established. Issues in planning an industry-academic partnership are explored, including feasibility, funding, staffing, terms of agreement, and authority structures.…

Describes results of two collection condition surveys conducted at the University of Kansas libraries, one of which examined materials returning from circulation and the other which examined the general collection. Paper condition, text block condition, binding, and mutilation are discussed, and the impact on long-term preservation planning is…

Five Grand Challenges are proposed for library research: (1) Library service: Could library services be made more meaningful? (2) Library theory: Who knew what when? (3) Library design: Have digital libraries been designed backwards? (4) Library values: How neutral can libraries be? (5) Library communities: How do communities differ? (AEF)

Describes the Teen Center at the Schaumburg Township District Library (Illinois) that was built with a sports theme. Highlights include the physical environment; the library collection, mainly recreational, that includes music CDs; the young adult population and community; hours of operation; staffing; youth participation and programs; and the…

Discusses selection policies for library acquisitions and describes a quantitative model that explains variations in expenditures by subject that was developed at Arizona State University. The link between policy and selection practice is discussed, allocation formulas are examined, and further research topics are suggested. (57 references) (LRW)

Describes the institutional setting, history, and services of the New York Zoological Society Library. Topics covered include clientele; library collections and special collections; library staffing and organizational structure; computer applications; and relationships with other libraries. (11 references) (CLB)

Discusses academic and public libraries that expand the range and type of their services via fee-based information services and private information businesses that charge fees. Questions of billing the total cost to the patron versus part of the cost are considered; and the impact of such fees on library cooperation and networks is described. (six…

Discusses and analyzes information on personnel, gate count, and hours of operation in ARL (Association of Research Libraries) academic science and technology libraries for 1992-93. Data are then compared to similar data taken from the survey of academic health-sciences libraries, and potential comparisons with other library surveys are briefly…

Describes the framework in which the research library at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC) reengineered its technical services operations. Focuses on the activities of the "Before Team" in evaluating, measuring, and redesigning the work processes that occur before the library receives an item. Discusses the results. (Author/AEF)

An American delegation assesses how children are faring as libraries in China adapt to the contradictions of a socialist market economy. Discussion includes examples of public-, academic-, and school-library programs, librarian attitudes, technology, and future changes. (AEF)

Describes the experiences at the Williamsburg (Virginia) Regional Library when the children's department closed for two months for renovations and temporary quarters were created in a bookmobile in a nearby parking lot. Discusses technology challenges involved in hooking up computers, selecting an appropriate collection that would fit, and…

There is an electronic revolution in the library which may prove to be a revolution in the humanities and in the nature of learning and education. The humanities are an essentially human enterprise of which the record reposes in books in libraries. The central role of libraries in preserving these ideas must survive the electronic revolution.…

Identifies attributes that directors of the academic libraries in the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) need. Present-day directors must possess a wide variety of attributes and are less likely to remain in the same position for as long as their predecessors did. With the aging population of academic librarians, matching the right individual…

Describes characteristics of core competencies. Examines the competencies a librarian should possess. Discusses types of competence and reviews advantages of developing and improving core competencies. Looks at core competencies in terms of the major service areas of public libraries. Presents several steps for building core competencies.…