Examines some of the most frequently cited criticisms of keyword indexing, including (1) the absence of general subject headings, (2) limited entry points, and (3) irrelevant indexing. Six references are cited. (FM)

Discusses how to translate your data from Standard Generalized Markup Language (SGML) to other formats. Explores key features and concepts of tools that address this problem and relates the problem to the Document Style Semantics and Specification Language (DSSSL) standard. Also investigates translation problems and the roles of SGML and DSSSL in…

Discusses problems of matching personal names in information systems and factors influencing design of personal name matching algorithms. Several examples of name matching systems in the fields of art history, bibliography, commerce, genealogy, and law enforcement used for the purposes of authority control, information retrieval, and duplicate…

Discusses the problems plaguing ISORID, particularly the unresolved stresses that hinder the effective contribution to the world community that this interactive system for information scientists was envisioned to make. (FM)

Reviews methods of text segmentation for Chinese text retrieval systems, including single character-based approaches and multicharacter-based approaches; discusses problems of Chinese text segmentation, including morphological complexities, ambiguity of segmentation, and natural language parsing problems; and suggests further research. (Contains…

Reviews bibliographic control before and after the advent of machine-readable cataloging, and holds that new developments toward decentralization seem to counter the existing technological trend toward centralization of automated library services. (FM)

Examines the motivations behind proponents of distance education, as well as the potential impact of distance learning upon instructors and students. Curricular subjects and pedagogical styles that may not be appropriate for distance education are considered, and non-monetary costs of distance education are discussed. (Author/LRW)

Discusses limitations in the development of health care information systems; explains component methodology for complex software development, including component interface semantics; and describes Arachne, a development environment available via the Internet consisting of a set of tools that enables applications to be constructed through…

This programmatic article formulates a new approach to information science: domain analysis. Highlights include a literature review of pertinent research; transdisciplinary tendencies in the understanding of knowledge, including artificial intelligence; domain analysis compared to other theories, including the cognitive approach; and examples of…

Discusses the problem of how to permit a patron to represent the relative importance of various index terms in a Boolean request while retaining the desirable properties of a Boolean system. (FM)

Discusses the purpose of mathematical models and reviews the phases of the modeling process--defining performance, representing the problem, predicting performance, estimating parameters, defining optimization criterion, determining solution, and implementing results. Reviews of book-use, resource allocation, and library network models are…

Assumptions of different thesaurus construction methods are analyzed from an epistemological point of view as well as from the information retrieval needs of users. Thesaurus construction for social sciences is difficult because of inherent ambituities of terminology. An empirical study of the semantic differential of different sociological groups…

Presents an historical overview of Vannevar Bush's efforts to develop a machine for free-form indexing and computerized information retrieval. Descriptions of the Memex concept and two related machines--the Rapid Selector and the Comparator--are provided; and the shift in emphasis to a device for business or cryptanalytic purposes is discussed.…

Presents the results of additional analyses of shifts of focus in information retrieval interactions. Investigates how interaction between users and search intermediaries reveal aspects of user information problems, and how users and search intermediaries focus on aspects of user information problems during the course of online searches. (Contains…

Describes the functions of book and periodical indexes and characteristics of varieties of book indexes. Problems related to periodical indexing including indexing policy, indexing language, depth of indexing, authors' names, titles, the physical form of indexes, indexes to single volumes of periodicals, and cumulative indexes are discussed.…