Describes the CHILDES/BIB electronic bibliographic database, its contents, and its relationship to the CHILDES database. CHILDES is a depository of child language corpora and is the publisher of CHAT (a transcription manual) and CLAN (an electronic package for child language research). (GLR)

Describes a conceptual model for bibliographic data called Maestro (Management Environment for Structured Text Retrieval and Organization) that is being developed both to support structured documents in databases, and to provide a query language to link information contained in these structures. Traditional text retrieval systems are discussed,…

Describes the development of a structural model of document retrieval based on lexical-semantic relationships between index terms. An algorithm that uses tree-to-tree distance to measure structural closeness between a document and a query statement is explained, and the proposed model is compared to a vector retrieval model. (18 references) (LRW)

The article presents a directory of assistive devices for persons with hearing impairments in a grid format by distributor and type of device (alerting devices, telephone, TV/radio/stereo, personal communication, group communication, and other). The product locator is also available in spreadsheet form for either the Macintosh or IBM-PC computers.…

Discusses the quality controls imposed on text and image data that is currently being converted from paper to digital images by the Patent and Trademark Office. The methods of inspection used on text and on images are described, and the quality of the data delivered thus far is discussed. (CLB)

Sidebar describes the use of the Biblio-Link software packages to download citations from online databases and convert them into a form that can be automatically uploaded into a Pro-Cite database. An example of this procedure using DIALOG2 is given. (CLB)

Considers the advent of surveillance societies--(i.e.,) societies where integrated surveillance of individuals is possible through various automated databases--with examples drawn from Canada and Sweden. Legislative efforts to regulate such developments and the role of data protection agencies are discussed. (13 references) (MES)

Description of the Library of Congress' Networking Advisory Committee focuses on recommendations it has made concerning issues pertinent to intellectual property in an information network environment. Alternatives to the present Copyright Act are examined, the economics of sharing information are discussed, and questions involving databases and…

Describes the evaluation of four relational database management systems (RDBMSs) (Informix Turbo, Oracle 6.0 TPS, Unify 2000 and Relational Technology's Ingres 5.0) to determine which is best suited for library automation. The evaluation criteria used to develop a benchmark specifically designed to test RDBMSs for libraries are discussed. (CLB)

Describes the development and functions of a text retrieval program that makes extensive use of the best match model of document retrieval rather than the Boolean model. The use of the program in teaching and research at the University of Sheffield is summarized. (24 references) (CLB)

Reviews models currently used to describe the retrieval process and questions whether extensions of traditional approaches can provide mechanisms for expert retrieval systems. An alternative view in which retrieval is based on concept space is presented. A logic framework is used to define a semantic model for using knowledge contained in concept…

Presents an online search strategy to help find pairs of medical literatures that are logically related but non-interactive, meaning the two pairs have no articles in common, do not cite each other, and are not co-cited. Each stage of the search strategy is described and favorable results are discussed. (four references) (CLB)

Describes the Contemporary Music Analysis Package (CMAP), a set of programs for atonal and serial music that is used for analysis, modeling, and composition of contemporary music in an interactive computing environment. The data structure is explained, examples are given, and a glossary of technical terminology is provided. (12 references) (LRW)

Survey of currently available CD-ROM products discusses: (1) subject orientation; (2) database type; (3) update frequency; (4) price structure; (5) hardware configuration; (6) retrieval software; and (7) publisher/marketer. Several graphs depict data in these areas. (five references) (MES)

Explains seven types of subject descriptions commonly used in databases--hierarchical classification, category codes, subject headings, descriptors, faceted classification, post-controlled vocabulary, and natural language--and describes specific search techniques for taking advantage of the strengths of particular types of vocabularies. An overall…