"Understanding Information "illustrates the basic principles of information science, to provide a general introduction to the subject, through a series of selected and interesting examples. It touches on a variety of issues, including Intranets and knowledge management. All those who are involved in the turbulent changes in the information field will find a picture of how information and its concepts operate in contemporary society.

A step-by-step guide written specifically to introduce school library media specialists to the Internet, addressing their distinct needs and the unique relationships that exist between media specialists, their students, and classroom colleagues. Steps for incorporating the Internet into the media center program, online resource identification, and descriptions of successful learning activities will have immediate application in any media center. Intended for media specialists with little or no Internet experience, it explains clearly how to incorporate the Internet into the media center, cites exemplary World Wide Web sites for media specialists, and covers the following topics: how to connect to the Internet; Internet tools and how to use them; the best ways to browse the World Wide Web and retrieve useful information; the basics of home page development; listservs and USENET newsgroups for the school library media specialist; how to develop and evaluate Internet-based instructional activities--with illustrations of actual Internet use, and strategies for promoting responsible student use of the Internet. Helpful appendices include a guide for evaluating World Wide Web resources, a sample Internet acceptable use policy, a selective subject list of World Wide Web resources, a glossary of terms, and a bibliography of recommended titles. MacDonald explains clearly and with Web screen illustrations how to accomplish each step of Internet connection and use. He describes and evaluates hardware and service provider issues, Internet search tools and browsers, and cites exemplary World Wide Web sites for school library media specialists. All terms--such as Telnet, FTP, Gopher, WAIS, Netscape, HTML, and Java--are clearly explained and their uses evaluated in terms of the school library media center. This guide cuts through the confusion of the Internet and provides a clear path to transforming traditional media center services through use of the Internet and to developing enhanced media center and classroom programs in collaboration with teachers.

Hybrid Intelligent Systems for Information Retrieval covers three areas along with the introduction to Intelligent IR, i.e., Optimal Information Retrieval Using Evolutionary Approaches, Semantic Search for Web Information Retrieval, and Natural Language Processing for Information Retrieval. * Talks about the design, implementation, and performance issues of the hybrid intelligent information retrieval system in one book * Gives a clear insight into challenges and issues in designing a hybrid information retrieval system * Includes case studies on structured and unstructured data for hybrid intelligent information retrieval * Provides research directions for the design and development of intelligent search engines This book is aimed primarily at graduates and researchers in the information retrieval domain.

These papers focus on the topic of leadership in the library and information professions, providing an overview of institutes, programs and activities occurring around the world. Some are described in detail, outlining learning objectives, structure, recruitment and evaluation strategies; others summarise national and international initiatives. They will provide valuable insights to anyone interested in workforce planning strategies aimed at addressing current shortages of library leaders, as well as those who may have experienced difficulties recruiting to leadership positions and now want to explore the best ways of developing and equipping their own staff with skills to enable them to become the leaders of the future.

Research Data Management and Data Literacies help researchers familiarize themselves with RDM, and with the services increasingly offered by libraries. This new volume looks at data-intensive science, or 'Science 2.0' as it is sometimes termed in commentary, from a number of perspectives, including the tasks academic libraries need to fulfil, new services that will come online in the near future, data literacy and its relation to other literacies, research support and the need to connect researchers across the academy, and other key issues, such as 'data deluge,' the importance of citations, metadata and data repositories. This book presents a solid resource that contextualizes RDM, including good theory and practice for researchers and professionals who find themselves tasked with managing research data.

As part of an effort to formulate a list of principles underlying subject heading languages used in various subject access systems throughout the world, IFLA's Lisbon Satellite Meeting reviewed a broad spectrum of national systems and considered current issues in their development.

By examining programs developed in Brazil, Canada, Croatia, France, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Spain, the U.K., and the U.S., the papers help to identify which principles each system considers fundamental and implicit and which had to be stated explicitly in usage instructions or subject heading codes. More general topics such as "International Tendencies in Terminology and Indexing" were also addressed.

This book outlines the consequences of digitization for peer-reviewed research articles published in electronic journals. It has often been argued that digitization will revolutionize scientific communication. However, this study shows that this is not the case as far as scientific journals are concerned. Authors make little or no use of the possibilities offered by the digital medium, new procedures for electronic peer review have not replaced traditional peer review, and users do not seem to accept new forms of interaction offered by some electronic journals. The main innovations are to be found at the level of the infrastructures developed by publishers. Scientists themselves appear to be reluctant to change their established patterns of behaviour in formal scientific communication.

Twenty-eight contributed papers provide an overview of LIS research, offering recommendations and strategies for resolving issues related to this research and for improving the quality, quantity, and impact of research. Paper edition (unseen), $32.50. Annotation copyright Book News, Inc. Portland, O

Student literacy is a perennial concern in and across nations, with measurement and accountability continually ramped up at both individual student and school levels. Debates about literacy and how it can best be improved are never far from media headlines. However, relatively little consideration is given to the role that school libraries and their staff play in building and maintaining student literacy, despite research linking school libraries and qualified staff to student literacy gains. With the number of students who struggle with basic literacy skills increasing in many nations, school libraries can play an important role in improving the academic, vocational and social outcomes for these young people, thereby increasing their opportunities. Fostering student wellbeing is also a key priority for schools given the challenges young people face in current times. This book seeks to promote greater understanding of the links between reading, literacy and wellbeing that could help students cope with these challenges, and the role of the school library in leading this approach. It explores the current role of school library professionals and highlights how literacy and wellbeing education and support sit within this, paying specific attention to how school library professionals build reading engagement and promote student wellbeing through various approaches, such as fostering health literacy and creating nurturing environments. Readers will be empowered to build a case for the importance of their role and library, and audit their current literacy and wellbeing offerings, and adjust or extend them where applicable based on best practice. The book also explores some of the many challenges facing school libraries and their professional staff that may need to be mitigated to ensure that they can reach their full potential for supporting student literacy and wellbeing.

The year 1997 found the members of the OCLC (Online Computer Library Center) cooperative in an expansive mood. More than 1,000 library leaders attended the OCLC President's Luncheon in San Francisco, where they celebrated OCLC's 30th anniversary. There were more than 25,000 libraries participating in the cooperative, including nearly 3,000 libraries in 62 countries outside the U.S., and the WorldCat database contained more than 37 million bibliographic records. Over the next ten years, the global digital library would indeed emerge, but in a form that few could have predicted. Against a backdrop of continuous technological change and the rapid growth of the Internet, the OCLC cooperative's WorldCat database continued to grow and was a central theme of the past decade. As the chapters in this book show, OCLC's chartered objectives of furthering access to the world's information and reducing the rate of rising library costs continue to resonate among libraries and librarians, as the OCLC cooperative enters its fifth decade. This book was published as a special issue of the Journal of Library Administration.

Medical libraries are confronted with the international aspects of copyright and licence agreements, and cope with a fast-growing demand for high quality medical information in order to bring evidence-based medicine into practice. Medical librarians also serve the public, especially in those countries where consumer health information is in the forefront of health care policy. The importance of pharmaceutical information is well understood; the need for information transfer from (basic) research into (clinical) practice is not restricted to medicine, but is also important in veterinary sciences. In all fields in which members of EAHIL are working the commercial interest and political value of information is recognized. With the exponential growth of medical, health and health-care related information available or accessible on the Internet, librarians play a crucial role in information dissemination. Information services, especially in medicine, are no longer local activities, but are knitted into the global web. The Minister of Health, Welfare and Sports of The Netherlands, Mrs Els Borst-Eilers, gives many arguments why doctors need to be better informed. The papers of Lois Ann Colaianni (USA), Derek Law (UK), Charles Oppenheim (UK), Bas Savenije (NL) and many others show that the library provides a paradigm for the management of networked resources.

The Bliss Bibliographic Classification Association is an association of users and supporters of the Bibliographic Classification. The association promotes the development and use of classification, publishes official amendments, enables users to keep in touch and exchange experience, and gives them a say in the future of the scheme. It is a non-profit organization, founded in 1969, with members all over the world. Each of the following schedules is the result of a rigorous and detailed analysis of the terminology of the field in question, using the techniques of facet analysis.

Public libraries have accepted the challenge of new electronic possibilities and developed a remarkable range of services. Today, by providing these services, public libraries have the greatest opportunity to contribute to bridging the 'digital gap'. These guidelines and standards have been developed for a variety of public libraries at different levels of development, in order to support librarians in building effective library services in all circumstances everywhere, to meet the requirements of the local users. Examples from all over the world of the range of services offered illustrate the text and provide insights into imaginative possible solutions to specific problems. Internet addresses lead to further information on a variety of initiatives.

As social technologies continue to evolve, it is apparent that librarians and their clientele would benefit through participation in the digital social world. While there are benefits to implementing these technologies, many libraries also face challenges in the integration and usage of social media. Social Media Strategies for Dynamic Library Service Development discusses the integration of digital social networking into library practices. Highlighting the advantages and challenges faced by libraries in the application of social media, this publication is a critical reference source for professionals and researchers working within the fields of library and information science, as well as practitioners and executives interested in the utilization of social technologies in relation to knowledge management and organizational development.

Is the paperless society really possible? What is the future of paper in the Digital Age? Based on extensive statistics and six separate surveys, Paper to Digital explores the evolution and changing characteristics of documents in the Information Age. Resultant implications are studied through the examination of emerging issues in the digital environment. Examples include: BLtrends in transforming scholarly communications BLtrust in the preservation of digital information BLchanges in reading behavior in the digital environment BLperceptions of the credibility of scholarly information on the Web BLuser preferences for and use of print and electronic resources BLthe future of paper in the digital age. This timely book represents a useful and scholarly exploration of a major concern in our society.

In these tough economic times, funding opportunities have decreased, while competition for monies has increased. Thus, this how-to guide is a must for anyone interested in writing, procuring, and implementing grants. Designed for libraries and nonprofit organizations, Go Get That Grant includes information about types of grants available through government agencies and foundations, as well as how to locate funding opportunities. From gathering basic information about an organization through accepting and implementing grants, Gail Staines provides step-by-step expert advice, numerous examples, and proven writing strategies. She also explains the processes of identifying fundable projects and selecting potential sources of funding. This volume also contains several appendixes with samples of strategic plans, narratives, budgets, needs assessments, evaluations, and much more. As securing funds becomes increasingly difficult, this current and useful book will prove enormously effective.

-A comprehensive text for students and professionals on an essential and emerging area of knowledge and skills for today's technical communication professions -Covers a growing area of focus for the field of technical communication, with relevance to digital marketing, social media publishing, and other professional fields -The first core textbook in this area designed to cover a full range of content strategy skills and practices

Cataloging standards practiced within the traditional library, archive and museum environments are not interoperable for the retrieval of objects within the shared online environment. Within today's information environments, library, archive and museum professionals are becoming aware that all information objects can be linked together. In this way, information professionals have the opportunity to collaborate and share data together with the shard online cataloging environment, the end result being improved retrieval effectiveness. But the adaptation has been slow: Libraries, archives and museums are still operating within their own community-specific cataloging practices. This book provides a historical perspective of the evolution of linking devices within the library, archive, and museums environments, and captures current cataloging practices in these fields. It offers suggestions for moving beyond community-specific cataloging principles and thus has the potential of becoming a springboard for further conversation and the sharing of ideas.

Knowledge Management as a term has been around for more than a decade, but do we really know what it means? This far-reaching book tackles the thorny question of how to define knowledge management and make it work in the 21st century. It questions our beliefs in the role of the information profession, but also sets out the issues in a much wider context of different subjects and disciplines. It develops the idea of the knowledge culture and knowledge work and goes on to expand how information needs to be shared and not hoarded as in the traditional role of libraries as keepers of knowledge. Thinking for a Living provides a clear and very accessible theoretical framework for knowledge work and provides a proven six-step methodology for bringing about the information sharing culture. This excellent book provides an insight into the future of the information profession and outlines the skills necessary for the knowledge worker of the future. It is essential reading for all information professionals and will prove to be a classic work.

The essays presented in this book reflect revised papers delivered at the Research Library in the 21st Century Symposium, held at The University of Texas at Austin, September 2006. Internationally known library, museum, information agency, and higher education administrators have contributed their views, concerns, and optimism in developing this book. In an effort to begin shaping a strategy for the future of academic research libraries, some of the best minds in the field and representatives from leading institutions have been chosen to explore these issues. These essays investigate the evolving nature of scholarly communications, the many challenges facing higher education generally, and the obligations of research libraries to promote teaching, learning, and research in a time of rapid change. Readers will find the perspectives offered here are as incisive and as fresh now as when they were presented.

This book was based on a special issue of Journal of Library Administration.

This volume provides insights into the organizational dynamics of libraries. Topics discussed include: decision making in libraries, bureaucratic structure and personality, controlling and reappraising, the handling of staff problems, communication, and the library and politics.

School library media specialists will find this book invaluable, helping them fulfill their role as curriculum partner with teachers and administrators in the collaborative development, implementation, and assessment of the instructional program. Current theory and research, the practical experiences of over 40 library media specialists, and step-by-step instructions will assist both the new and experienced school library media specialist to function as a full curriculum partner in the 21st century.

Chapters on leadership, change, and vision present the current models of leadership and explain the importance of being proactive, initiating change, and creating a vision for the school library media center as the center of learning that others in the school community will support. Suggestions for building a relationship with the principal and teachers, implementing flexible scheduling, and creating advisory groups and library advocates are presented here, along with techniques for successful staff development. Collaborative planning, implementation, and assessment of instructional plans (including special focus on technology, interdisciplinary curriculum, cooperative learning, and learning styles), complete with examples from all types of schools and grade levels, will inspire school media specialists to fully participate in creating information literate students in the 21st century.