bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Enabling blind and visually impaired library users: Inmagic and adaptive technology
Authors: Rosen Leslie
Published: February 2008

A variety of enabling technologies such as synthetic speech, print enlargement on CRT screens, braille printers and displays, and communications technology has made library operations at the American Foundation for the Blind accessible to persons who are blind or visually impaired. INMAGIC software, a versatile database management system, has automated many library functions and has been integrated with other adaptive technologies. In addition to other applications, INMAGIC is used to update and create bibliographies and accession lists in inkprint, large print, or braille formats (with tape cassette versions available on request). Sidebars discuss the Xerox/Kurzweil Personal Reader (KPR); closed circuit television (CCTV); computers with speech; large print enhancements; Inmagic, Inc.—the company; and, in some depth, the functionality of INMAGIC.
CorelDRAW, version 2.0: A review
Authors: Dennis Don , Paster Mark
Published: February 2008

CorelDRAW, version 2.0, is, basically, a drawing program that includes sophisticated handling of a variety of fonts; it is much more powerful and flexible than the Paintbrush drawing program that is bundled with Windows 3.0. It is, however, neither a wordprocessing program nor a desktop publishing program. Nevertheless one of the prime uses of CorelDRAW could be to prepare illustrations and creatively styled text to be incorporated into a document being prepared in a wordprocessor or desktop publishing system. The people who have designed and developed CorelDRAW have managed to produce a tool that is, on the one hand, complex, powerful, and infinitely capable of accommodating creative expression and, on the other hand, simple and straightforward in design, engineered to accommodate the human visual sense and manual dexterity, and provided with one of the best introductory packages available with a software program.
Multipurpose technical services workstations: Access to NOTIS/OCLC/GTO with a single microcomputer
Authors: Breeding Marshall
Published: February 2008

Microcomputer and network systems have been implemented to support multi‐purpose technical services workstations at Vanderbilt University. Although the equipment and procedures described are specific to NOTIS libraries that catalog with OCLC, the general approach can also serve as a model that can be applied to other library management systems and bibliographic utilities. The workstations reduce equipment costs, save desktop space, improve work flow efficiency, and facilitate access to OCLC while reducing connection costs.
The Research Potential of the Electronic OED Database at the University of Waterloo: A case study
Authors: Lee Berg Donna
Published: February 2008

The online database of the second edition of the OED, combined with tools developed at the University of Waterloo, gives researchers a unique opportunity to explore the dictionary in depth and in ways that would either be impossible or too time consuming to contemplate by manual means. However, the OED database is an unusually complex reference text. It makes use of many technical terms and abbreviations, and employs numerous structural and typographical conventions to alert users to elements within entries. The author discusses the history and structure of the OED database as well as tools developed to manipulate the database. Four sample searches are discussed in an appendix to the article.
Planning for Network Disaster: Telecommunications Diversity in the New OCLC Network
Authors: Learn Larry L. , Carpenter George L.
Published: February 2008

Recently, OCLC successfully completed a multi‐year network design, procurement, implementation, and user transition effort. At a cost of $70 million, this effort resulted in the implementation of a totally new telecommunications network. The packet‐switching nature of this new network has for the first time made it practical for OCLC to effectively address the risks imposed by the potential of major catastrophes within the telecommunications‐carrier infrastructure, and, for all practical purposes, to eliminate any resulting widespread service outages for OCLC users.
The latest and greatest: Upgrade, replace, or stall? Part II: Software
Authors: Crawford Walt
Published: February 2008

IBM owners who upgraded to PC‐DOS 4.0 may rightly whimper when confronted with software upgrades—and this time, thanks to System 7, Macintosh owners don't get to nod smugly either. Whether at the system level or in applications, software upgrades can reduce the most expert techie to tears of frustration. At least with hardware, the manufacturers don't send you notices that it's time to change to a new version for a modest additional fee. Software involves more frequent upgrades than hardware, but the choices are no less difficult. The author recounts some personal experiences and offers some guidelines that may or may not do you any good. The author also provides notes from July‐September 1991 PC literature. Other than the drum‐beating for DOS 5.0 (not cited here), it's been a mixed period: some interesting material with few breakthroughs.
Expert system technology applied to item classification
Authors: Cosgrove S.J. , Weimann J.M.
Published: February 2008

This article describes how the n‐Cube expert system development tool can assist in item classification using the Universal Decimal Classification (UDC) standard. The n‐Cube makes use of a tree classification structure with associated rules and default inheritance features. Any information known about a particular classification is a combination of the defaults known about that class, as well as the defaults associated with any of its parent classes. As a result, many of the problems associated with simple rule‐based systems are overcome.
Incorporating the vector space model in a neural network used for document retrieval
Authors: Wilkinson Ross , Hingston Philip
Published: February 2008

The task of a document retrieval system is to match a query, perhaps in natural language, against a large number of natural language documents. Neural networks are known to be good pattern matchers. This article describes investigations in implementing a document retrieval system based on a neural network model. It shows that many of the standard strategies of information retrieval are applicable in a neural network model.
Using expert systems to elucidate library and information theory
Authors: Dow Julie
Published: February 2008

As information services become more complex and the methods of delivery more diverse, the professionals providing this service must become skilled in problem solving, and have a sound theoretical understanding of their discipline. It is not sufficient to offer users vague, unsatisfactory solutions to their problems because we are unsure of our own strategies. As educators, we must look to the best means accessible to us to systematize our discipline; expert system development applied in a variety of subject areas is worthy of close examination as a means of working towards this goal.
Maintaining data integrity by documenting the system: Putting database policy in writing
Authors: Sealy Brian
Published: February 2008

Most libraries already have some documentation. Software vendors provide manuals for the “out‐of‐the‐box” programs they sell. The bibliographic utilities also provide documentation, which libraries use for guidance on entering data into the utilities. System documentation may exist also in scattered guides, “cheat sheets,” and “how to” manuals that have been developed for staff use as the need has arisen. Relevant documentation may reside even in non‐library sources. With all this existing documentation, one might conclude that there is no need for yet more system documentation. Yet it is precisely because of the scattered nature of the documentation, the selective use of these sources, the inadequacy of some of the sources, and, most importantly, the need for standardized input into the database that there is a need to develop adequate documentation for a particular library's system.
Development efforts between high tech firms and academic libraries: A case study of one library's experience
Authors: Reiman David , Sendi Karen
Published: February 2008

This article examines the University of Toledo Carlson Library's cooperative effort with IBM personnel in attempting to design a new and cost‐effective method for networking CD‐ROM databases. It outlines how the development effort was conceived and executed, and presents recommendations on how such ventures can be effectively carried out in the future.
OASIS: A front‐end for prototyping catalog enhancements
Authors: Buckland Michael K. , Butler Mark H. , Norgard Barbara A. , Plaunt Christian
Published: February 2008

There has been a massive investment in the installation of online catalogs: in selection, in the supporting infrastructure of terminals and networks, in catalog record conversion, in training, and, lately, in linking online catalogs with other online systems. In contrast, the state‐of‐the‐art of the functionality of online library catalogs has advanced little in the past few years. Rather it has been a matter of existing systems being upgraded towards the functionality of the better systems and of refinements being added. It is time for a further advance in online catalog design. We believe that the next generation of online catalogs should and will have features such as those discussed and illustrated in this article.
The university context and the research library
Authors: Frye Billy E.
Published: February 2008

In a general way it is obvious that the developmental cycles of libraries reflect those of their parent institutions, the universities. Thus, libraries, like universities, have experienced a period of intense growth and diversification in the past four or five decades. This has been followed by a period of increasingly severe resource constraint relative to need while high expectations have continued almost unabated. It is now widely acknowledged that basic changes in the way information services are provided are inevitable, even though there is not yet complete consensus about what the nature of those changes can or should be. Clearly there is a powerful connection between the new Fiscal realities of universities and our capacity to resolve the information management requirements of this new era.
Talking that talk: Notes on personal computing terminology
Authors: Crawford Walt
Published: February 2008

You can buy and use a personal computer without understanding the language—but it's a little hard to read these articles, and a lot harder to understand the Held thoroughly. The author starts a new sequence of Trailing Edge articles by denning some of the terms used in the articles and in the field and mentioning some of the other terms you'll see used but rarely defined. The author also provides notes from PC literature for July‐September 1992. For a year in which prices were supposed to stabilize, it's been a remarkable summer: the new general‐purpose machine is supposed to be a 50MHz 486DX2, a well‐equipped 486SX now goes for less than $2,000 complete, and even the hottest new machines are coming out at reasonable prices.
Personal computer price and performance
Authors: Crawford Walt
Published: February 2008

Price and performance: that was the theme of Crawford's first Library Hi Tech article on PCs, way back in 1984. It's still an important theme, and one of the most unpredictable but enjoyable areas of personal computing. To celebrate the completion of Library Hi Tech's first decade, and as part of the tenth year of writing for Library Hi Tech, the author is preparing a brief series of articles that look back at the last decade in microcomputing. This “Looking Back” installment includes graphic analysis of how prices have changed in the direct‐market PC arena since 1986, with additional price/performance notes from previous articles going back to 1984. The author explains why “PC prices keep going down forever” is a myth and notes how difficult it is to predict the rate of price/performance changes. Trailing Edge #15, later in this issue, discusses factors to consider in buying a computer today, and includes the usual citations from the PC literature.
Phoenix public library—special needs center
Authors: Roatch Mary A.
Published: February 2008

During the 1980s' Decade of the Disabled, legislation, advocacy activities, and special programs stimulated increased awareness of the rights of people with disabilities for better access to education, employment, housing, and information. In response to the growing need for easier access to information found in a public library, staff at the Phoenix Public Library designed a library Special Needs Center to make the services and resources of the library totally accessible. The following policy and mission statements illustrate this effort.
ALPS: Electronic accommodations for students with disabilities at Purdue University
Authors: White Phillip
Published: February 2008

The Purdue University Libraries have created a more favorable learning environment for Purdue's visually impaired, learning disabled, and physically disabled students by offering adaptive technologies through a project called Adaptive Learning Programs (ALPS). ALPS makes the learning environment more accessible to students by providing the following services: Taped Text Program, Adaptive Equipment Loan Service, ALPS Lab, and ALPS Instructional Services.
The University of Michigan barrier free computer users group
Authors: Knox James E.
Published: February 2008

Increasingly, a large number of functions on the campuses of post‐secondary educational institutions are becoming reliant on the use of computers. In 1986, a user group was formed at The University of Michigan to give people with disabilities a voice in determining how their computing needs could be met. Passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) bolstered the group's efforts.
Resource list for adaptive technology in libraries
Authors: Berliss Jane
Published: February 2008

Note: No endorsement is meant or implied by inclusion on any of these lists. “Additional References and Resources” follow the article by Kneedler and Sizemore, in this issue of LHT. A retrospective bibliography of sources on computers as assistive technology for people with disabilities is available in Library Hi Tech Bibliography volume 8 (1993).
Buying your next (or first) PC: What matters now?
Authors: Crawford Walt
Published: February 2008

There's never been a better time to buy a PC, whether it's your first system, a replacement, or an addition. Values have improved enormously in the past year, and you can now get reasonably good values even from the traditionally high‐priced vendors. That doesn't mean you should automatically buy the best‐known brand. You'll still do much better by evaluating your needs, understanding what's important in a PC (and how to look for it), and looking over the marketplace carefully. If you're reading Library Hi Tech back‐to‐front, skip to Looking Back #1: it provides important background for this article. In this article the author discusses various aspects of PC purchasing in 1993, focusing on what matters now. He discusses the numbers that count, critical aspects of a system that are sometimes ignored in reviews, and the advantages and disadvantages of bundling. He offers some notes on brand names and suppliers, but cautions that completely safe purchases are nearly impossible. The article concludes with notes from the literature received between October and December 1992.
VTLS INC.: The company, the products, the services, the vision
Authors: Chachra Vinod , Gulbenkian Gail , Hartman Elaine , Somaiya Sandeep , Soini Antti , Stahl Bil , Weston Claudia V.
Published: February 2008

Today, VTLS is a comprehensive, integrated solution to the automation requirements of academic, public, and special libraries around the world. No two libraries are alike; no two regions are alike. VTLS recognizes these differences and offers libraries the flexibility of numerous options to configure the system that best meets their functional and financial needs.
An introduction to the special section on transaction log analysis
Authors: Peters Thomas A. , Kurth Martin , Flaherty Patricia , Sandore Beth , Kaske Neal K.
Published: February 2008

To provide a background for this special section on transaction log analysis, the following discussion proposes a definition of transaction log analysis and briefly introduces some of the issues involved in the methodology.
The history and development of transaction log analysis
Authors: Peters Thomas A.
Published: February 2008

The purpose of this article is to present an overview of the history and development of transaction log analysis (TLA) in library and information science research. Organizing a literature review of the first twenty‐five years of TLA poses some challenges and requires some decisions. The primary organizing principle could be a strict chronology of the published research, the research questions addressed, the automated information retrieval (IR) systems that generated the data, the results gained, or even the researchers themselves. The group of active transaction log analyzers remains fairly small in number, and researchers who use transaction logs tend to use this method more than once, so tracing the development and refinement of individuals' uses of the methodology could provide insight into the progress of the method as a whole. For example, if we examine how researchers like W. David Penniman, John Tolle, Christine Borgman, Ray Larson, and Micheline Hancock‐Beaulieu have modified their own understandings and applications of the method over time, we may get an accurate sense of the development of all applications.
Applying the results of transaction log analysis
Authors: Sandore Beth
Published: February 2008

The ability to conduct unobtrusive observation of user searching is a potential strength of the method of information retrieval system analysis known as transaction log analysis (TLA). Transaction logs supply unequivocal information about what a user typed while searching. All other methods rely on self‐reporting, which, as Nielsen points out, is not always corroborated by the logs. Regardless of where in an institution information retrieval (IR) system evaluation takes place, TLA is a method that enables library staff at all levels to examine a variety of system and user‐related activities that are recorded on the log. Dominick suggested that TLA can enable the examination of three broad categories of activity: 1) system performance and resource utilization, 2) information retrieval performance, and 3) user interaction with the IR system. This article has been divided into several sections corresponding to functional areas in a library to suggest useful applications of TLA.
Finishing touches: Peripherals and portables
Authors: Crawford Walt
Published: February 2008

It takes more than a computer, hard disk, diskettes, display, keyboard, and software to make a fully productive computer system. In this article, the author discusses the finishing touches: some of the peripherals (excluding printers) that you will want to consider for your new or existing personal computer. You might even consider the “ultimate peripheral,” a portable computer. The second section of this article divides portable computers into their basic categories, discusses the premium you pay for portability, and notes the greater importance of vendor survival for portable computers. The first quarter of 1993 seemed unusually rich in noteworthy articles in PC magazines. That may be at least partially because PC Sources has increased its editorial scope and partially because the author is now including several Windows‐specific magazines (one new) in the mix.
BLISS: The Bradley Library Information Support System
Authors: Hartman Joel L. , Watson Ellen I.
Published: February 2008

The Bradley Library Information Support System (BLISS) is a comprehensive local area network designed to provide library users with an array of electronic information access and management services to support Bradley University's curriculum, research, and scholarly activities. The LAN is designed in a client/server architecture, with function‐specific Unix servers operating over an Ethernet network, to support a range of services both within the library and campuswide. BLISS workstations are available to both patrons and staff and located throughout the library; some BLISS resources are network‐accessible to the general campus community. A menu interface lists the resources available and establishes a transparent connection between the user and the selected resource. BLISS is a joint project of the library and computing services, providing a platform for the development of cohesive electronic information services and for the training, documentation, and mediation serices necessary to effectively use them.
Tools for a Document Image Utility
Authors: Krishnamoorthy M. , Molholt Patricia , Nagy George , Seth Sharad , Viswanathan Mahesh
Published: February 2008

This project demonstrates three specific applications for integrating paper‐based information into the electronic environment. The first allows users to interactively select and view portions of page‐images, such as illustrations, subtitles, or text paragraphs, when either the screen resolution of their workstations or low transmission rates prevent viewing the bitmap of the entire page. The second application automates the selection of suitable portions of the document (e.g., abstracts) for subsequent optical recognition for full‐text searching of journals and reports in paper form. The third application automatically links pixel maps of illustrations with ASCII text files.
The Adaptive Network Library Interface: A Historical Overview and Interim Report
Authors: Kantor Paul B.
Published: February 2008

The evolution of the concept of an Adaptive Network Library Interface is described and several technical and research issues are explored. The Adaptive Network Library Interface (ANLI) is a computer program that stands as a buffer between users of the library catalog and the catalog itself. This buffer unit maintains its own network of pointers from book to book, which it elicits from the users, interactively. It is hoped that such a buffer increases the value of the catalog for the users and provides librarians with new and useful information about the books in the collection. The relation to concepts such as hypertext and neural networks is explored as well.
Multilis: 21 years in the making
Authors: Richardson John A.
Published: February 2008

With precursor software dating to 1972, multi‐LIS became the first commercially available, fully integrated library system in North America to run on the Unix operating system. In 1988, multiLIS developers, Sobeco Ernst & Young Inc. (SEY), ported multiLIS software to the MIPS Reduced Instruction Set Computer (RISC) processor, making it the First fully integrated software program to be available on a RISC platform. multiLIS fully supports both CAN/MARC and USMARC as well as the monographs specifications of UNIMARC. As the multiLIS software was developed in a resource‐sharing environment, consortiums are a natural market for the multiLIS product.
Cheap type, truetype: Exploring inexpensive typefaces
Authors: Crawford Walt
Published: February 2008

A curious and unexpected thing has happened to personal computing typography: it's gotten cheaper and much more interesting, thanks to TrueType, a new digital typography standard that nobody (including the author) took seriously when it was first proposed. The author evaluates eight TrueType type collections costing from 10 cents to $1.25 per typeface. This article discusses that evaluation, and also evaluates a $19 CD‐ROM with more than 400 typefaces. The results may surprise you. They certainly surprised the author, when a company perhaps best known for selling cheap software in Canadian convenience stores proved to have not only the cheapest (per typeface) but also the best all‐around inexpensive typeface collection. The author also provides notes on the literature for April‐June 1993, including the last issues of PC Sources.
A grant for Z39.50
Authors: Corey James F.
Published: February 2008

In September 1990, the U.S. Department of Education's Library Technology and Cooperation Grants Program awarded a three‐year grant to the Florida Center for Library Automation (FCLA), an agency of the Florida State University System, to develop software adhering to the ANSI Z39.50 Information Retrieval protocol standard. The Z39.50 software was to operate over the Open Systems Interconnect (OSI) communications protocols and be integrated with FCLA's NOTIS system, which is shared by all nine state universities in Florida. In order to test the correctness of its Z39.50 software, FCLA sought out other library software developers who would be willing to develop Z39.50 systems of their own. As part of this process, FCLA helped to found the Z39.50 Implementors' Group (ZIG), which has since gone on to improve the standard and promote Z39.50 implementations throughout much of the North American library systems marketplace. Early on in the project, it became apparent that TCP/IP would be a more heavily used communications vehicle for Z39.50 messages than OSI. FCLA expanded its design to include TCP/IP and, by the end of the grant in September 1993, will have a working Z39.50 system that can communicate over both OSI and TCP/IP networks.
Testing a new design for subject searching in online catalogs
Authors: Drabenstott Karen M. , Weller Marjorie S.
Published: February 2008

Library users continue to experience difficulty in using the online catalog, particularly in the area of subject access. This project describes a test of a new design for subject access to online catalogs. The new design requires a wide range of subject searching capabilities and search trees to govern the system's selection of searching capabilities in response to user queries. Is the performance of search trees superior to subject searching approaches chosen at random? This project is geared to make that determination.
Remote reference assistance for electronic information resources over networked workstations
Authors: Billings Harold , Carver Ira E. , Drew Racine J. , Tongate John
Published: February 2008

Libraries and the information community have moved rapidly into an era of powerful networked scholarly workstations, large quantities of information accessible in electronic formats, and dispersed information sources connected to regional and national networks. This rich diversity poses new challenges for the provision of appropriate reference services. The University of Texas at Austin General Libraries successfully implemented and tested a prototype solution to the problem of providing reference assistance to scholars who are accessing networked information resources and who are at locations remote from expert librarians. Librarians were able to intervene directly in information access and retrieval sessions, remotely assisting the user during the real‐time, online process. The testbed for the project was a CD‐ROM network delivering U.S. government information to DOS workstations via Ethernets connected to a routed TCP/IP wide‐area network and utilizing off‐the‐shelf remote control software. Although problems with existing technology were discovered, this mode of providing reference assistance is a valid model for future services.
The machine readable data center: A model approach to data services in academic research libraries
Authors: Treadwell Wendy , Cogswell James A.
Published: February 2008

The University of Minnesota Libraries have established a full‐service information center to facilitate end‐user access to machine‐readable datafiles, particularly U.S. government datafiles such as the Census. The Machine Readable Data Center (MRDC), funded through a three‐year, $240,000 grant from the College Library Technology and Cooperation Grants Program (HEA Title II‐D), presents an alternative, library‐centered model for providing students, faculty, and independent researchers with direct access to machine‐readable data.
A digital full‐text biotechnology system at Georgetown University
Authors: Broering Naomi C.
Published: February 2008

Georgetown University recently designed a prototype digital full‐text system to provide clinicians and researchers with electronically transmitted journal articles that include illustrations. The system enables health practitioners to quickly search a database and retrieve full‐text articles with the touch of a few keys. It includes new technical methods of storing, transmitting, and delivering documents electronically using a small test base in cancer and genetics. The project goals are to accelerate the library's ability to deliver full‐text documents in the clinical setting and to improve knowledge management and library services by using advanced technologies. The objectives are 1) to design and maintain a digital full‐text database of articles with illustrations; 2) to develop, test, and modify the storage/retrieval system and transmission technology; and 3) to provide users with access to the full‐text system and evaluate its usefulness and applicability.
ALEPH: A bilingual integrated library system
Authors: Steinberger Naomi M.
Published: February 2008

Working with a foreign vendor and creating a network among three multilingual libraries was a challenging experience for the Library of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America. After four years investigating library systems offering integrated capabilities for English/Hebrew, the Library selected the ALEPH system. The intricacies of the Hebrew language posed unexpected problems. Gratz College and the Annenberg Research Institute became key players in the establishment of the network. Several technical difficulties had to be resolved before the interfacing aspects among the three multilingual libraries became functional.
Fenestration and follow‐ups: Windows and more
Authors: Crawford Walt
Published: February 2008

If confession is good for the soul, this is Crawford's personal revival meeting. Yes, the hardcore text maven and trailing‐edge devotee has gone GUI: most of his home computing now uses a true graphical user interface. The author says that the taste of crow has passed and that the new environment works very well, albeit not without a few frustrations. This article discusses the author's move to Windows and some of the good and bad points of that interface. The author includes some tips on Windows, as seems inevitable for any article on that topic. The author also provides some additional notes related to previous columns, on clip‐art collections and the actual construction of TrueType typefaces. As usual, the article concludes with notes on the recent PC literature.
GEAC: A formula for the future
Authors: Farley Charles , Beck Susan , Miller Julia
Published: February 2008

Geac Computers, Inc. is now in its twenty‐fourth year as a library system supplier. For the past year and a half, Geac has been combining the resources of recently acquired CLSI with its own to create a “new” Geac, a company focused on developing advanced information systems and superior service programs to meet the needs of libraries for the future. Geac's sole product development and design goal is to provide libraries with the most advanced technology available to enable them to manage and deliver information from a variety of sources worldwide. The measured transition to client/server architecture from the current centralized character‐based design is an example of Geac's adaptation of the latest technology to meet the needs of libraries. Networking is an important component of Geac's systems for the future. As more information becomes available in electronic formats via a variety of networks, it is important that Geac systems provide fast, easy, transparent access to it. The ultimate objective of Geac's client/server and network development is to provide fast, easy access to all types of data, wherever it resides.
UMI—History in the making
Authors: Pack Thomas
Published: February 2008

UMI is a gateway for the flow of information from the fields of business, education, engineering, social science, and the popular media. The company's staff collects, creates, and preserves information. Then they make it available in print and microform as well as online, on CD‐ROM, and on magnetic tape. They also develop integrated information delivery systems—diverse technologies working together to help libraries increase responsiveness, control costs, and deliver the type of information they and their patrons need—when they need it.
Courting discovery: Managing transition to the virtual library
Authors: Lowry Charles B. , Richards Barbara G.
Published: February 2008

Since the mid'1980s, a primary objective of the Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) Libraries has been to build a state‐of‐the‐art electronic library. This early development was known as the Mercury Project. A new effort is underway at the CMU Libraries to move beyond Mercury to a new virtual library infrastructure. The virtual library will become reality when users can access digitized information as easily as they can access television. A distributed computing environment is already in place at CMU; this distributed architecture allows the CMU Libraries to engage in the improvement of productivity for the campus community by making access to information more efficient. A primary focus has been to be a pioneer in creating and providing services not readily available from vendors.
OHIOLINK: A vision for the 21st century
Authors: Kohl David
Published: February 2008

OhioLINK, a consortium of Ohio academic libraries in both the public and the private sector ranging from major research institutions to community colleges, is one of the nation's first major attempts to create a virtual, statewide library system. More than just linking the holdings of participating libraries within the context of a 48‐hour delivery system for books and journal articles, OhioLINK provides the platform as well for the statewide delivery of commercial and other databases, Gopher Internet access, and experimentation with the development and testing of new information tools. OhioLINK also represents an intriguing and creative approach to state funding and automated system design. In terms of bold imagination and cooperative power, OhioLINK follows in the footsteps of that other major Ohio institution, OCLC.
Raison d'etre: Embodying design history and rationale in hypermedia folklore—an experiment in reflective design practice
Authors: Carroll John M. , Alpert Sherman R. , Karat John , Van Deusen Mary S. , Beth Rosson Mary
Published: February 2008

Raison d'Etre is a hypermedia design history application. It provides access to a database of video clips containing stories and personal perspectives of design team members recorded at various times during the course of a project. The system is intended to provide a simple frame‐work for recording and organizing the informal history and rationale that design teams create and share in the course of their collaboration. This article describes 1) the scenarios of use the authors are trying to support, 2) the methods they used collecting and organizing the database, and 3) the status of their prototype.
Managing technical illustrations in digital formats
Authors: Carberry Pat
Published: February 2008

The CALS Engineering Information Management Office at Fort Meade, Maryland—a division of the Information Systems Security Organization (ISSO) of the National Security Agency (NSA)—has developed a centralized digital library to replace the physical library. Now, customers have instantaneous desktop access to any document stored in the digital library. Graphical documents are stored in a variety of formats. An important component of the digital library is the capability of online evaluation of engineering change proposals (ECPs), which are prepared by agency contractors. The new digital library makes all of these change proposals immediately available to qualified users throughout the Information Systems Security Organization (ISSO). Physical location and storage of documents are now transparent. Allowing many different types of graphic formats made it necessary to identify a viewing tool that would be capable of handling all of the required formats. The CADleaf package met the basic requirement of supporting all graphic formats contained in the digital library.
Global change resources, projects, and tools
Authors: Stoss Fred , Scialdone John , Olsen Lola , O'Donnell Anne , Wright Janet , Christian Eliot , Balstad Miller Roberta , Barton Gerald S. , Bogan Walter , Rodes Barbara , Harvey Diane
Published: February 2008

What follows is a small sampling of activities that are underway. All of them are working toward contributing to the understanding of the Earth system.
Preparing for the technological future: A journey of discovery
Authors: Lowry Charles B.
Published: February 2008

By formulating a vision that provides for a solid foundation for the virtual library, we can dramatically improve existing library services and create new ones with added value. The new library paradigm will be built on software and hardware information technology. Related requirements include distributed computing and networking; open architectures and standards; authentication, authorization, and encryption; and billing and royalty tracking. The “virtual library tool kit” will include reduced dependence on word indexing and keyword/Boolean retrieval; development and application of natural language processing; and effective tools for navigation of networks. Carnegie Mellon University offers some helpful examples of how information technology and information retrieval may be used to build the virtual library.
Brodart automation: Building on an innovative and stable past
Authors: VanFleet Ron , Gatcheff Gehrig Virginia , White Robert , Thompson Russ , Bauer Margaret , Nowicki Christine , Spong Alicia , Winters Sherry
Published: February 2008

Brodart Automation offers a wide range of services and products from microcomputer to online. In July 1985, Brodart introduced the first CD‐ROM‐based public access catalog, which was designed to compete with COM and online catalogs. Currently, Brodart is applying its creativity to adapting library services to global networks. Its vision and commitment are reflected in the team approach to product development and support.
Numeracy and common sense: Real‐world engineering
Authors: Crawford Walt
Published: February 2008

Whether you are dealing with computers or dealing with life, numbers matter—and you need some level of numeracy to deal with numbers effectively. Numeracy, or numerical literacy, does not mean remembering all your college calculus or being able to define every statistical term from memory. It does mean understanding basic concepts, being able to do on‐the‐spot approximations, and learning how to spot likely errors and deliberate distortions. While you need numeracy to work with personal computers and their output, you need it more in everyday life and library work. Common‐sense mathematical understanding is critical in these times of hype and suspect numbers.
A model CD‐ROM library: The University of Idaho experience
Authors: Bolin Robert L.
Published: February 2008

The University of Idaho Library has incorporated CD‐ROMs into its collection. Library users identify CD‐ROMs and related documentation through the library catalog, check out the disks from the reserve desk, and run search software for most of them on general purpose CD‐ROM workstations. Access to the search software is provided through menus organized by title or call number. The approach used allows the library to make a large number of CD‐ROM publications readily available with use of a minimum amount of equipment.
TULIP at the University Of Washington
Authors: Jordan William
Published: February 2008

The TULIP (The University Licensing Program) project offered the University of Washington (UW) a chance to explore document distribution enhancements to our existing campus information services. Materials science, the focus of the project, is an active research area in several engineering and physical science academic departments on campus. The core research community numbers approximately 75 faculty, 25 post‐doctoral research workers, and 250 graduate students; perhaps three times that many are working in related fields. The University Libraries subscribes to 39 of the TULIP journal titles, with holdings distributed among five campus libraries.
TULIP at the University Of Tennessee, Knoxville
Authors: Smith Earl C. , Davis Lynn J.
Published: February 2008

In phase one of The University of Tennessee, Knoxville's (UTK) participation in the TULIP (The University Licensing Program) project it was decided that the table of contents and abstract files would be mounted locally and the actual bitmapped images would be provided by Engineering Information (Ei; now Article Express) on demand via the Internet. This decision made implementation of TULIP a fairly standard process and allowed the implementors at UTK to use tools that were freely available on the Internet to provide access to the TULIP datafiles.
TULIP at Cornell University
Authors: Worona Steven L. , Saylor John M.
Published: February 2008

In 1989, Cornell University embarked on a collaborative project experimenting with the concept of digital preservation. With Cornell's commitment to a universal network infrastructure on campus, the network would provide a natural home for the proposed digital library. Anne Kenney, from Cornell University Library (CUL), and M. Stuart Lynn, from Cornell Information Technologies (CIT), established a partnership, developed a plan, and assembled staff to implement it. Working closely with Xerox Corporation and with support from the Commission on Preservation and Access, and later Sun Microsystems, they defined the requirements for library preservation and access.
TULIP at the University Of California, Part I: Implementation and the lessons learned
Authors: Needleman Mark
Published: February 2008

This article discusses the implementation of the TULIP (The University Licensing Program) system at the University of California. It describes the design of the system itself, shares some of the experience gained so far from the implementation along with implications for the future, and discusses plans for delivery of electronic information to the university community.
TULIP at the University Of California, Part I: The Berkeley experience and a view beyond
Authors: Wanat Camille
Published: February 2008

The TULIP (The University Licensing Program) project was the first attempt on the University of California, Berkeley campus to provide journal page images directly to faculty and graduate student desktops. An electronic journal project can be viewed as the confluence of three factors: the technical implementation, the user group and the environment in which that user group functions, and the material itself. In the preceeding article, Mark Needleman addressed the technical specifics of the University of California (UC) implementation, which is common to all nine UC campuses. At Berkeley, we provided accessible workstations in the Engineering, Chemistry, and Physics Libraries for the use of faculty, students, or staff who might not have the required equipment or software in their laboratories or offices, as well as for demonstration and instruction purposes. However, all along we knew that the fate of any electronic journal project in the sciences would rest upon our ability to deliver the material successfully in the user's environment; in an academic setting, this necessarily means in a multitude of user environment types.
SGML as a component of the digital library
Authors: Cole Timothy W. , Kazmer Michelle M.
Published: February 2008

Working with documents in electronic format is inherently different from dealing with materials in print; nor can all electronic formats be considered equivalent. Processing and presenting SGML is not the same as processing and presenting materials in other markup or word processing formats. To maximize flexibility and extensibility, SGML is highly modular, which complicates implementation. Its emphasis on content structure rather than appearance enhances searchability but makes consistent and precise display difficult. Mechanisms used to maximize platform and software independence (e.g., entities, link protocols), though effective, can be used incorrectly or in ways difficult to implement on some systems or using certain software. Difficult questions remain for libraries planning to implement SGML.
Serving the library needs of students with physical disabilities
Authors: Graubart Marilyn
Published: February 2008

The University of Missouri‐Kansas City (UMKC) is one of four campuses of the University of Missouri (UM). As an urban university, it is committed to serving the needs of urban society. It provides under‐graduate, professional, and graduate schools, and the university's catalog states UMKC's dedication to public service related to community needs and resources. The University Library's vision statement calls for service supporting the information resources needs of UMKC and the community. In the past two years, the library has pursued fulfillment of this mission by offering improved service to students, staff, and community users with disabilities.
Universal access and the ada: A disability access design specification for the new UCLA library online information system
Authors: Hilton Chalfen Daniel , Farb Sharon E.
Published: February 2008

The time‐honored, fundamental mission of American libraries is to provide universal access to information, collections, materials, and services. In passing the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”), Congress estimated that over 43 million Americans have one or more disabilities. Congress further noted that society historically has tended to isolate and segregate individuals with disabilities, and, despite some improvements, such forms of discrimination against individuals with disabilities continue to be a serious and pervasive social problem. 42 USC Section 12101 (a) (5) provides that “individuals with disabilities continually encounter various forms of discrimination, including outright intentional exclusion, the discriminatory effects of architectural, transportation, and communication barriers, overprotective rules and policies, failure to make modifications to existing facilities and practices, exclusionary qualification standards and criteria, segregation, and relegation to lesser services, programs, activities, benefits, jobs, or other opportunities.”
Access to library internet services for patrons with disabilities: Pragmatic considerations for developers
Authors: Deines‐Jones Courtney
Published: February 2008

Many libraries are using Internet access to improve patron services. In the United States, an estimated 21 percent of public libraries have some type of Internet connection, with libraries in urban areas (having a patron base over one million) connected at a rate of 75 percent. These libraries are taking different approaches to providing Internet and online services to their patrons. Some have connections from terminals located inside the library; others allow dial‐in access from patrons' offices or homes. As services grow in sophistication, so do patron interfaces. Many new computers sport full‐color, mouse‐driven graphic user interfaces (GUIs), which allow access to CD‐ROM products, World Wide Web sites, and other multimedia products.