Presents a brief survey of Open Archives Initiative (OAI) e-print repositories, and of services using metadata harvested from e-print repositories using the OAI protocol for metadata harvesting (OAI-PMH). Discusses several situations where metadata harvesting may be used to further improve the utility of e-print archives as a component of the…

Proposes a model for digital library and hypermedia organizations that is adaptive, providing different conceptual orderings to support browsing for different individuals' or groups' needs. Highlights include types of links, document ordering and the Gray code (a binary programming code), adaptive classification, and an economic model for document…

Describes several projects aimed at building the Information Commons, including: Knowledge Conservancy plans to create a database of all freely available digitized content; the Universal Library, a project with the long-term goal of providing free, online access to all books; and several projects of the Creative Commons intended to build a robust…

Discusses the emergence of general audience digital libraries (GADLs), a context that represents a hybrid of both traditional information retrieval, using primarily bibliographic resources provided by database vendors, and popular information retrieval such as public search systems on the Web. Reports findings of a study investigating end-user…

This proposed project would define standards to describe in machine-readable format the information needed to create electronic "books" in a standard communications format. Proposed formats (employing the MARC structure) could be used to convert printed works to electronic forms or create original works in electronic format, and thus…

Examines the extent of change over a one-year period in the adult fiction titles most widely held by over 4000 OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc. member public libraries. Findings indicate the most widely held titles are popular works that form a stable core from one year to the next. (Author/AEF)

Includes six articles focusing on the purpose of digital public libraries; encoding electronic documents through compression techniques; a distributed finding aid server; digital archiving practices in the framework of information life cycle management; converting metadata into MARC format and Dublin Core formats; and evaluating Web sites through…

Includes three articles that discuss: (1) the creation of a persistent digital archive email collection, including technical issues; (2) a project at Cornell University that provides library users with personalized electronic library services; and (3) the digitization of a photographic collection in the United Kingdom for preservation purposes.…

Discusses interoperability as a key challenge to digital libraries and describes efforts of the Open Archives initiative (formerly Universal Preprint Service initiative) to develop an open architecture that supports simultaneous searching and retrieval of papers from disparate archives. Highlights include scientific information and journal…

Discusses changes in the location and provision of information services that have resulted from online technologies, particularly the World Wide Web. Highlights include knowledge management in digital libraries; the importance of research on information technology and digital libraries; semantic indexes; concept switching; information analysis;…

A special package of articles explores the push toward electronic textbooks and libraries, the businesses behind the drive, and the fears of many academics about the trend. (EV)

Discusses a study of use of the Web-based virtual library at CISTI (Canada Institute for Scientific and Technical Information) by NRC (National Research Council of Canada). Results indicate that NRC staff is favorably inclined toward electronic resources and that a positive correlation exists between use of digital resources and perception and…

Discusses the availability and quality of commercial reference services available on the World Wide Web such as Ask Jeeves and the decline in library reference service statistics. Describes a project in California to help libraries develop live, real-time reference services over the Web by adapting Web contact center software. (LRW)

Examines the reference interview in the digital library environment. Compares and contrasts traditional face-to-face reference interviews with electronic interviews; and presents suggestions for effective electronic interviewing, including the importance of good written communication skills. (Author/LRW)

Describes plans for a technical session that included presentations of six winning papers on practical collaborative applications of digital library or information science technology in advancing communications in developing countries. Papers were all written by citizens of a developing country and were selected from an international competition.…