Describes a project which created a database of faculty and academic professional research interests at Arizona State University. Uses for library subject specialists, reference librarians, and collection development staff are discussed. Methods to link the existing collection development policy statement and the database are examined. Sample…

Outlines and analyzes new trends and developments at the Association for Information and Image Management's 1990 spring conference. The growth of imaging and the optical storage industry is emphasized, and new developments that are discussed include hardware; optical disk drives; jukeboxes; local area networks (LANs); bar codes; image displays;…

Discusses optical character recognition (OCR) for use with MS-DOS microcomputers. Cost effectiveness is considered, three types of software approaches to character recognition are explained, hardware and operation requirements are described, possible library applications are discussed, future OCR developments are suggested, and a list of OCR…

This article continues the description of DFT (Document, Find, Theseus), an online documentation system that provides computer-managed on-demand printing of software manuals as well as the interactive retrieval of reference passages. Document boundaries in the hypertext database are discussed, search vocabulary complexities are described, and text…

Discussion of CD-ROM and DVD (Digital Video Disk)-ROM covers CD-ROM software pricing and industry changes; CD-ROM drives; CD-recordable formats; DVD formats, hardware, and software; recordable DVD; and future issues, including standards, Windows 98, the DVD market, and compatibility. A sidebar lists Web sites with information on CD-ROM and…

Developers of the Intelligent Essay Assessor claim that it saves time in evaluating college students' essays and improves the assessment. This and the growing number of other automated grading programs use the same technologies that make computer-based tutoring possible. Many academics remain skeptical of grading technologies, citing the…

Presents a theoretical framework for analyzing educational media, discusses the role of narrative in comprehension, and describes MENO (Multimedia, Education and Narrative Organization), a project investigating how students engage in exploratory learning, and the design of multimedia material for a course on Homer. Argues that narrative structure…

Describes Multimedia Educational Technology for Operational Research (MENTOR), a multimedia teaching and learning resource which takes the form of a comprehensive range of computer-based learning modules to be used in higher-education teaching. Funding by the Teaching and Learning Technology Programme (TLTP) and case studies in the United Kingdom…

Common Knowledge: Pittsburgh (CK-P) is a school networking project which develops network connectivity and curricular applications in the Pittsburgh Public Schools (Pennsylvania). This article describes CK-P's network architecture; products developed, including a virtual classroom for German language instruction, online physics instruction, online…

Shares information gathered from a three-day librarian conference in Monterey, California. Compares and contrasts several search engines and offers tips for effective searching. Discusses the efficacy and legality of censorware and how to stay employed during times of cutbacks and downsizing. (AEF)

Describes four studies of high school students that examined the effectiveness of user-adaptive computer-aided instruction that explicitly models the cognitive processes of composing for developmental writers and is integrated with classroom composition instruction. Discusses the design and use of the writing software R-WISE (Reading and Writing…

Describes a study of high school students that investigated the kind of knowledge bases mathematics students can develop and the difficulties that may appear. Discusses knowledge-base development within LISD (Learning through Intelligent Software Development), an approach to teaching and learning mathematical problem solving, specifically word…

Describes an evaluation of educational software that compared software produced in Taiwan with software produced in the United States. Results showed a surprisingly small number of cultural differences other than language; article suggests that multimedia guidelines for international audiences would be helpful. (LRW)

A nine-month field study of a software-engineering firm's work practices revealed that the group's collective use of time perpetuated its members'"time famine." A crisis mentality and rewards for individual heroics were responsible. Altering the way engineers used their time at work enhanced their collective productivity. (66 references)…