Discusses the issue of fees for library services from two viewpoints: (1) as a practical solution to financial difficulties, and (2) as a threat to traditional professional values. Economic theory is suggested as a new way to consider fees, with information described an economic commodity and as a public good. (six references) (LRW)

This article identifies competing schools of thought about the teaching of reference work by examining the relationship among nine reference textbook authors and by exploring the educational influences of five pioneers in the field of library science. The use of textbooks to examine the understanding of a field is discussed. (93 references) (LRW)

Contains reprints of three articles: (1) "Our Commission, Our Omissions" (Eric Moon), published in 1984, discusses the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science; (2) "Some Popular Objections to Public Libraries" (William Poole), published in 1876, addresses taxes and quality of books; and (3) "Readers and…

Reviews state agency activities involved in advising and assisting school library media centers in Georgia, Virginia, Indiana, Alabama, Ohio, and Utah. (LRW)

Reviews and compares 11 books about the Internet, including 4 that concentrate on how to get connected; 1 for teaching about the Internet; 5 that are guides to using the Internet; and 1 that examines how special librarians are using the Internet. A sidebar lists 18 additional titles. (Contains three references.) (LRW)

To bring more young adults into the Thurmont Branch of the Frederick County (Maryland) Public Library, a children's librarian and the Young Adult Advisory Committee created Teen Poetry Night, at which teens were invited to read their own poetry or the work of a favorite poet. Program planning and implementation are described. (PEN)

Reviews Web-search tools available to librarians. Discusses the Clever project, (part of the Computer Science Principles and Methodologies Department at the IBM Almaden Research Center, Silicon Valley, California), an algorithm that finds authoritative sources on the Web; Google technology, based on links between Web pages; Ask Jeeves, a…

As part of its bicentennial celebration, the Library of Congress is sponsoring the Local Legacies project, an unprecedented effort in which Americans across the nation work with their members of Congress to document unique traditions for the collections of the American Folklife Center. Libraries will have a critical role in directing documentation…

Suggests that librarians should include street newspapers, produced by homeless people and their advocates, in their collections. Discusses characteristics and features of these newspapers and describes different papers from cities across the United States. (AEF)

Describes the jail library program of the Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office (ACSO), Englewood, Colorado. Discusses the regular jail library services and the new "Choose Freedom Read" program in which librarians from the local public library give book talks describing some 20 titles to groups of 10 to 20 prisoners. (AEF)

Discusses the use of distance education for library education courses based on experiences at the University of Illinois. Topics include the importance of real-time interaction; the availability of technical support; requiring some on-campus time; and the suitability of distance education for youth services and school librarianship courses. (LRW)

This study examined library Web sites of historically black colleges and universities to determine whether they disseminated information and provided services to users. Compared black college library Web sites with other library sites and found that most black library sites only provide basic information about the library and its collections.…

Discusses creating and managing an effective library Web site aimed at teenagers. Topics include omitting links to sites teens already know about; links to book review sites where teens can post their own comments; links to local sites; regular updating; use of graphics; and involving teens in the process. (LRW)

Discusses customer service in libraries and the tendency to rely on past experiences rather than meet the needs and opportunities in today's changing electronic environment. Suggests that libraries focus on the users, create a climate that supports change, continuously survey the environment, and redirect resources. (LRW)

Discusses how libraries can gather data on the use of their Web sites. Highlights include Web server log files, including the common log file, referrer log file, and agent log file; log file limitations; privacy concerns; and choosing log analysis software, both free and commercial. (LRW)