The four papers included in this publication provide an overview of the movement toward computer-based alternatives to library card catalogs. Three of the papers were presented at the 1978 Association of Research Libraries (ARL) membership meeting; the fourth provides an introduction to the volume. The introductory paper, by Richard Dougherty, describes the results of an informal survey of directors of ARL libraries, which asked whether they had decided to close their card catalogs and adopt the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules II (AACR II), what transitional planning had been accomplished, whether resistance was anticipated, and what strategies would be employed to gain support from campus administrators. Joseph Rosenthal's paper also reviews planning from a managerial perspective. He considers the use of computer output microform (COM) catalogs, authority control systems, and completely machine-readable files. An appendix to Rosenthal's paper provides an example of a 1977 planning document from the University of California at Berkeley. The third paper, by Robert H. Blackburn, describes experiences at the University of Toronto, where the main card catalog was closed twice, once in 1959 and again in 1975. Finally, H. William Axford considers the implications for ARL directors of freezing the Library of Congress (LC) catalogs, particularly in regard to reactions from faculty and library staff. (ESR)