This paper focuses on the establishment of three standard international formats for the exchange of bibliographic data--UNIMARC, CCF, and the UNISIST Reference Manual--and outlines their common and differing features. The development of the UNIMARC manual as the standard international MARC network exchange format is traced, and its salient…

A new electronic bibliography, the Eighteenth Century Short Title Catalog, currently contains title and location information for 315,000 English-language books, monographs, and ephemera printed during the eighteenth century. The database is available to scholars on the Research Libraries Information Network and the British Library Automated…

Describes a prototype system--GeoMatch--that allows users to interactively define geographic areas of interest on a background map and to define, qualitatively or quantitatively, the relationship between the user-defined area and the map coverage. The knowledge discovery in database (KDD) factor is analyzed in the retrieval process. The MARC…

The International Project of the Commission on Preservation and Access was begun in June 1988 to explore the feasibility of creating an international database of preserved materials. Its main goals are to: (1) determine the extent to which preservation records exist in other countries; (2) identify the difficulties in converting records to…

This report provides the specifications for a bibliographic format which is a detailed and structured method for recording a number of mandatory and optional data elements in a computer-readable bibliographic record for exchange purposes between two or more computer-based systems. The specifications are designed to permit local designers to devise…

Traces the history of ways in which publishers of abstracts journals have provided readers with serial print products, the development of searchable products manipulated by the purchaser, and the economic impact of such products on the publisher. The discussion also covers major improvements needed in online searching systems. (CLB)

Describes a project at the University of Guelph (Ontario) that combined both bibliographical and archival references in one large machine readable database to facilitate local history research. The description covers research tool creation, planning activities, system design, the database management system used, material selection, record…

Discusses the benefits of mounting commercial and local databases to provide online access and describes the approach taken by the University of Pennsylvania. The issues discussed include database, local data file, and software selection; agreements with online vendors; cost effectiveness; and actual use of the online files at the university. (CLB)

This guide begins by describing the OCLC database, including ways in which it is used by librarians and library patrons; countries reached by OCLC; programs intended to enrich the database, e.g. retrospective conversion projects; cataloging formats (books, serials, sound recordings, musical scores, audiovisual media, maps, archives and…

Describes the role, users, collections and services of the National Agricultural Library. Some of the services discussed include a machine readable bibliographic database, an international interlibrary loan system, programs to develop library networks and cooperative cataloging, and the development and use of information technologies such as laser…

It is generally accepted in the library world that an automated catalog means more accessible data for patrons, greater productivity for librarians, and an improvement in the sharing of bibliographic data among libraries. While the desirability of automation is not a controversial issue, some aspects of automating remain problematic. This article…