This paper outlines the challenges and opportunities for the services of the Japanese National Diet Library (NDL), especially the Research and Legislative Reference Bureau by using a SWOT (Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis. The introduction lists the major goals of the NDL's reform. The second section discusses the NDL's…

Discusses issues of preservation of and access to library materials from a historical perspective, based on a story by Washington Irving. Topics addressed include the founding of the Astor Library, early access and service problems, preservation issues and remedies, and new definitions of access. (14 references) (LRW)

E-Books are books or other forms of text in digital form, an enhanced book without paper and at little or no cost, technologies that are already available at most schools can be used to expand the library media center's collection of books, at the same time making many books more accessible to students. Many tools are available for free to convert…

The Australian Museum, Sydney, is Australia's oldest museum, internationally recognised for its longstanding scientific contributions. Less well-known is the Museum's fine collection of monographs and journals relating to natural history and anthropology, which has been used to support the work of Museum staff and external enquirers since the late…

Twenty-three scholarly papers and twelve abstracts comprise the content of the eleventh annual Brick and Click Libraries Symposium, held at Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, Missouri. The peer-reviewed proceedings, authored by academic librarians and presented at the symposium, portray the contemporary and future face of…

Recovery of significant achievements by exemplary individuals and institutions in public education and librarianship informs our present understanding and motivates future efforts. This narrative history recounts some of the struggles and successes of a great city library when the very conception of a free, public library was still being defined.…

Libraries need to weigh the benefits, usage, and cost-effectiveness of owning collections against seeking alternatives to deliver the information needed by customers. The University of Arizona Library investigated different approaches for meeting the research needs of East Asian Studies faculty and students under great pressure of physical space…

Although academic libraries have a long tradition of program assessment, in the past the results have been more meaningful internally than externally. Recent changes in the conceptualization of libraries' role in higher education and advances in measurement tools will likely provide answers to different questions, particularly the relationship of…

Sooner Xpress service arose out of a need to improve and expand services for library users at the University of Oklahoma. After several years of service for our distance education students, a decision was made to expand those services to include all campus and local users in an effort to streamline retrieval services in the library. Both…

The Arts Libraries Society of Australia and New Zealand (Arlis/ANZ) recently implemented a new web presence. More than just a website, it was envisaged as a web "identity", a virtual clubhouse where the Society could conduct its "virtual business" and where members could "meet" and contribute to the activities of…

This book assesses the current condition and direction of the American public library. It considers the challenges and opportunities presented by new electronic technologies, changing public policy, fiscal realities, and cultural trends. The authors draw on site visits and interviews conducted across the country, as well as extensive reading of…

The seven state libraries of Australia are profiled in two- page articles. Each article contains a description of the library and its programs, a statement from its director or state librarian about his/her background, and photographs. (DGM)

Through American Library Association (ALA) projects in Latin America, American librarianship progressed from conceptualization to implementation as the model in modernizing Latin American library practices and societies. Development of library practices was fundamental to pursuit of a "modern" society. In fighting fascist propaganda, the…

When Leslie Polott arrived at the Hudson Library and Historical Society in 1996. She headed out into the community to find out what people wanted from their library. After rounds of surveys, focus groups, and town meetings, she knew: a library that was the center of their educational and cultural lives, that provided more opportunities for…

This study analyzes 9,131 citations from the 2002 volumes of journals in eight humanities fields: art, classics, history, linguistics, literature, music, philosophy, and religion. This study found that citation patterns varied widely among humanities disciplines. Due to these differences, it is important for librarians with humanities collection…