Newsgroups: bit.listserv.pacs-l
Date:         Mon, 16 Nov 1992 17:26:08 CDT
From:         Public-Access Computer Systems Forum <LIBPACS@UHUPVM1.BITNET>
Subject:      Library Automation Questions

4 Messages, 104 Lines
*Please reply to the authors, not PACS-L. Thanks, Jill
1. Macintoshes
2. Remote access CD
3. MARC and ORACLE
4. DRA Terminals
*-----
From: Teresa Dahlgran <dahlgren@umaxc.weeg.uiowa.edu>
Subject: A question about Macintoshes...

I am a student at the University of Iowa's School of Library and
Information Science.  In our classes, we are constantly hearing about
automated systems that run in a DOS environment.  My question is, are
there any systems or software for library applications that run on
Macintoshes?  Who are the vendors that produce them?
Any replies would be appreciated.
Sincerely,
Teresa Dahlgren,
University of Iowa
dahlgren@umaxc.weeg.uiowa.edu
*----
From: "Dawn E. Bergacker" <holly@csn.org>
Subject: Re: remote access-cd
I'm a corporate librarian located in an R & D center with about
18 people.  I'm also the only librarian for our company, which is
in five states.  In an effort to provide access to scientists and
technicians at other locations, I've hooked up a modem to a PC in
the library.

To the best of my knowledge you must have special software to do
this.  My company has copies of Co-Sessions at every location, so
that's what I'm using on the library computer.  I have a CD-ROM
jukebox.  When people dial up, they first see a menu where they can
choose between the CD-ROMs or the library OPAC.  When remote people
call up or hang up the system is automatically rebooted, so the
welcome menu is always the first thing people see.

BTW, when I was in the planning stages for this, I checked with
CD-ROM vendors to see if it would cost me more, copyright-wise,
to provide remote access.  The vendors I spoke to felt that as
long as only one person at a time could use the system, I wouldn't
need to pay more.  They were, however, uncomfortable with the
question, and felt it was a problem their corporate lawyers would
want to eventually look at.

Dawn E. Bergacker (holly@csn.org)
Imperial Holly Corporation, Colorado Springs
[my views are not their views...]
*-----
From:         Melinda Ann Reagor <REAGOR@ricevm1.rice.edu>
Subject:      Query on MARC application for use with ORACLE software
ORACLE software is being used here for a project to assemble and network
electronic resources in various disciplines.  Among the assembled resources
will be selected images scanned from the 220,000 slide collection of the
Dept. of Art and Art History.  There is also interest in computerized
cataloging of the entire physical slide collection.

I've been asked to find out whether anyone sells a MARC data-entry and
retrieval application built on top of ORACLE.  I'd be grateful if anyone
with information about such would get in touch with me.  Thanks.

Melinda Ann Reagor (former lurker/wallflower/voyeur)
Head of Cataloging
Fondren Library
Rice University
P.O. Box 1892
Houston, TX  77251

Phone:  (713) 527-8101 x3773
FAX:    (713) 285-5258

Bitnet:    reagor@ricevm1
Internet:  reagor@ricevm1.rice.edu
*-----
From: kgs@panix.com (Karen Schneider)
Subject: DRA Terminals--All The Same?

I work at Queens Borough Public Library in New York.  We have DRA
terminals, used for many actions--charging, acquisition, inventory,
material processing--but most importantly, for the purpose of my
question here, for searching.  (We also have a CD-ROM "catalog" for the
public, but it is a strange and largely useless thing.)

Unfortunately, searching is very difficult on these terminals because
we cannot do keyword searching or Boolean arguments.  In other words,
when I do a title search I am limited to strict letter-by-letter
input, so _Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile_ cannot be located unless I remember
"Lyle" to begin with; unlike the catalogs I worked with at the University
of Illinois, I cannot hope to find the book with just one word from the
title.  Additionally, I can't create the Boolean arguments that can
also help locate books.

O.k., here's my question: is this a problem with DRA (which, I
understand, is a brand of library automation software) or is it a
problem with the way the software is set up here at Queens?  Or is
something else altogether responsible?  I suppose I'm curious if
other libraries using DRA have the same (or other?) limitations.

I'm a new entry-level librarian, and I really didn't want to make
waves at work with these questions... thanks for any inputs.

--
Karen G. Schneider kgs@panix.com kgs@echo.panix.com
"when you open up your life to the living,
all things come spilling in on you."--Chris Williamson
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