The goal of the project described here was to improve the quality of postsecondary education by offering institutions of higher learning information on currently funded educational projects through an interactive database, the Educational Resources Directory (ERD), which contains information on new methods, curricula, and educational technology.…

This conference reviewed the past and likely future impact of advances in the technology of communications on the Commonwealth and the countries of the Commonwealth. There is potential gain in terms of economic development from the leap-frogging of technologies, but there is not a lot of optimism that the new technology will help to narrow the gap…

This document provides an overview of the various telecommunications and information technologies available for rural communities to use in their health care systems. The first section explains the principal technologies of telecommunications such as the telephone, computer networking, audiographics, and video. It describes transmission systems…

Noting that telecommunications technology is making it possible to search library catalogs around the nation and the world via a modem and a personal computer, this paper highlights some of the reasons why a researcher would wish to search library catalogs through the Internet, which is a network of networks with connections to nearly 1,000…

This paper highlights some implications of living in an Information Age and discusses ways in which information is changing the economics of our society, as well as how the economics of information are also changing. The driving force behind the Information Age--technology--is presented in terms of its impact on information access. Noting that two…

This report highlights the trends and problems associated with rapid price increases of foreign-published journals, especially science and technology journals. It is observed that a combination of effects--e.g., discriminatory pricing on the part of some foreign publishers, the sharp decline of the U.S. dollar--have resulted in subscription…

Many futurists envision that the development of information technology will greatly impact the libraries of tomorrow. In response to this prediction, the Montgomery County (Maryland) Department of Public Libraries conducted a study of key trends and issues that the Montgomery County Public Libraries (MCPL) must consider if they are to remain a…

Arguing that telecommunications is transforming almost every sector of American society except education, this study analyzed the governance, management, technical, and fiscal issues associated with the creation and maintenance of an education satellite telecommunications system that would make cost-effective, equitable access to quality education…

The University of Alabama set up a communication network pilot program to enhance the early childhood and elementary methods block in the College of Education. The pilot program incorporated electronic mail (E-Mail), a fax machine, and a microcomputer communications network. The network made possible instructors' clarifications of assignments,…

The Charlton pilot project was one of a number of trials undertaken throughout Australia to bring educational resources to isolated children. In this project, Telecom Australia provided seven small Victorian Higher School Certificate (H.S.C.) schools with two first prototype experimental devices: firstly, a small group terminal and secondly,…

Two papers on library and information activities in developing nations, particularly in India and other Asian countries, were presented at the 1983 International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) conference. In "IFLA in Asia: A Review of the Work of the Regional Section for Asia," Edward Lim Huck Tee (Malaysia) describes the low…

Six papers on the theme, "Administrative Libraries in a Technological World: Past, Present, and Future--A General Stocktaking and a State of the Art Report" focus on West German telecommunications and information technology and the use of data processing and other technological aids in West German administrative libraries. These papers,…

Papers on geography and map libraries and a paper on European access to biomedical databases, which were presented at the 1983 International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) conference, include: (1) "History and Current Status of the Globe Museum of the Austrian National Library" by Franz Wawrik (Austria); (2) "Earth…

Written by a board member of OCLC, this paper discusses critical issues relating to OCLC for the remaining decade of the twentieth century. A brief history of OCLC traces its development and recounts its goals and missions to establish a computerized network to promote the evolution of library use, of libraries themselves, and of librarianship.…

Twenty-five papers presented at the conference include papers on the role of the site coordinator in a distributed education network in Ontario; student support systems in the Open University of Israel; the dilemmas of designing a computer mediated communication support system; interactive libraries; tutoring in technical science in the Open…