Our popular and talented information industry guru addresses some of the trends, innovations and exciting challenges for information professionals in a world of networked information. It covers the roles, key issues, and challenges and provides a guide for managing expectations. Preece also includes a case study of developing and implementing an electronic service. New technology is emerging and taking libraries by storm. With information that was once kept on paper and microfiche transitioning to CDs and DVDs, Mendolia focuses on the best way for libraries to tackle this technology and the easiest way for a non-technical staff to administer it.
Breeding provides case studies of working applications and highlights their keys to success.
Fortunately, Microsoft s ever-increasing domination of the software industry has led to the packaging and delivery of many services in one application. Moving beyond Cold Fusion s bridging between databases and UNIX-based Web servers to provide database access and delivery via the Web, Microsoft s IIS 2 brings together all the tools necessary to deliver an existing database over the Web. As libraries begin to recognize the potential of linking to the wide richness of Web resources from their OPACs, they also find it necessary to dedicate staff and other resources to processes associated with maintenance of Web links in environments not always suited to the task. This session identifies the major problems associated with maintaining Web links in the online catalog, describes how libraries are working to solve these problems, and provides examples of various software solutions that are being used by libraries to make their efforts in this area more efficient. Improving the Odds Lynda Moulton, President, Comstow Information Services MIS managers currently favor groupware solutions that bundle e-mail, document management, and archiving and records management type activities, while information professionals have long preferred integrated library systems which have been designed to be highly structured in their management of information.