Describes the development of a Government Information Locator Service as part of the National Information Infrastructure that will identify and describe public information resources throughout the federal government and provide assistance in obtaining the information. Access through the Internet, electronic mail, CD-ROM, and printed materials is…

Tom Corddry, Microsoft Corporation's Creative Director for the Consumer Division, is interviewed about the Microsoft Home line of products and the development of related CD-ROM and multimedia products. Reasons for Microsoft's entry into the content market and its challenges, the market's future, and the company's interest in developing online…

Provides an overview of CD-ROMs for use in elementary and secondary school libraries. Highlights include advantages of CD-ROM; availability by grade level and by curriculum areas; costs; formats; trends; evaluating and selecting titles; 20 recommended titles; and CD-ROM distributors. (two references) (LRW)

Discusses the human-computer interface as it relates to information technology and retrieval. Principles of interface design are examined, including visual display features and help messages; information retrieval applications are described, including online searching, CD-ROM, online public access catalogs (OPACs), and full-text databases; and…

This evaluation of means of accessing data on the U.S. Census Bureau CD-ROM Test Disc 2 describes computer hardware configurations considered in determining the most efficient method of manipulating the data, and mentions software options. Two dBASE configurations are compared, and it is concluded that the 80386 is essential for efficient…

Interview with a computer scientist for the U.S. Geological Survey focuses on CD-ROM as a medium for publishing, disseminating, and archiving government data; the private sector's role in producing value-added CD-ROM products; and SIGCAT (Special Interest Group for CD-ROM Applications and Technology), a free CD-ROM user group. (NRP)

Describes a portable CD-ROM machine intended for the mass market that provides access to searchable text, graphics, and audio through a user-friendly interface. Six search modes and other system features are reviewed, and electronic texts for the unit are introduced. A table compares features of the two available models. (NRP)

Discussion of factors to consider in purchasing a personal computer covers present and future needs, computing environments, memory, processing performance, disk size, and display quality. Issues such as bundled systems, where and when to purchase, and vendor support are addressed; and an annotated bibliography of 28 recent articles is included.…

Discussion of the distribution of government information on CD-ROM to federal depository libraries focuses on a survey of a sample of federal depositories that investigated the availability of hardware; software; staff, including staff training; reference service; and bibliographic instruction. Suggested GPO (Government Printing Office) guidelines…

Issues concerning the implementation of standard user interfaces for CD-ROMs are discussed, including differing perceptions of the ideal interface, graphical user interfaces, user needs, and the standard protocols. It is suggested users should be able to select from a variety of user interfaces on each CD-ROM. (EA)

Describes a mobile workstation that was developed at Penn State University to provide library instruction and demonstrations of online and CD-ROM searching. Use of the workstation for classroom instruction and staff training is discussed; and designing the workstation to include a computer, overhead projector, modem, CD-ROM drive, and printer is…

Discusses planning necessary for library media centers that are adding new technology. Highlights include equity and access; selection of an automated system; implementation; placement of hardware, both for patrons and for staff; CD-ROMs and networks; and a case study of the West Windsor-Plainsboro (New Jersey) Middle School. (Contains five…

Discusses business training programs and the productivity of training materials, and presents a case study that describes the experiences of a university-based electronic curriculum development group that was involved with the conversion of an existing text curriculum to a multimedia CD-ROM format. Data collection with videotaped interviews is…

Describes a study that determined the readability of medical information found on such CD-ROM products as the Health Reference Center on InfoTrac. Findings revealed that the readability scores all exceeded the accepted standard reading level of eighth grade, so they would not meet the needs of people with poor reading skills. (Author/LRW)

Discusses a prototype multimedia application that was designed to help college students solve problems and generate practice tests for an economics textbook. Highlights include step-by-step problem solving; a friendly interface; student tracking; inexpensive development costs; examples of screen displays; and generating random, scored tests on…