The 2009 database marketplace is bounded by two extremes: massive digitization projects to increase access, and retrenchment owing to budget worries. Picture medieval monks hunched over their desks in the scriptorium as they labor to copy manuscripts. A 21st-century version of this activity is being repeated daily in the world's libraries and…

The information industry continues to consolidate, just as agribusiness has consolidated and now dominates farming. Both the family farm and the small information company still exist but are becoming rarer in an age of mergers, acquisitions, and increased economies of scale. Small companies distinguish themselves by high quality, special themes,…

Reviews the database industry over the past year, including new companies and services, company closures, popular database formats, popular access methods, and changes in existing products and services. Lists 33 firms and their database services; 33 firms and their database products; and 61 company profiles. (LRW)

This article discusses how Phil Davis, Life Sciences Bibliographer at Cornell University, found duplicate articles in Emerald/MCB University Press journals. According to Davis, he has found hundreds of examples of the same article published in more than one journal in at least 73 Emerald/MCB journals over 30 years. This article gives the details…

An assessment of an increasingly tight national economy dictates a reevaluation of the costs and functions of the corporate special library if it is to survive recessionary pressures intact. Services which are crucial to daily business operation, not duplicated elsewhere, and of high visibility to upper management must become the prime focus of…

Examines overall costs of the scientific scholarly journal system and finds that relative system costs have not increased since the late 1970s. Describes scholarly publishing costs; factors that have contributed to spiraling price increases and changes in journal subscription demand; and alternative pricing policies that might help in the future.…

Describes optical data disk products currently on the market and discusses publishers to users' needs. Ways in which librarians can influence product development and design are suggested. (CLB)

Describes the processes involved in producing databases based on observations at the H. W. Wilson Company, Information Access Company (IAC), and UMI/Data Courier. Collection development decisions are discussed; serials ordering and receiving procedures are reviewed; and the indexing process is described, including abstracting, quality control, and…

Open access publishing is a hot topic today. But open access publishing can have many different definitions, and pros and cons vary with the definitions. Open access publishing is especially attractive to companies and small colleges or universities that are likely to have many more readers than authors. A downside is that a membership fee sounds…

Historical profiles of 18 corporations based on analyses of incorporation data, net income, comments in "Moody's Industrials," and changes in management show that economic growth and change in upper level management usually occurred in corporations prior to formation of a corporate library. An extensive 97-item bibliography is appended.…

Dispels misconceptions about print journal publishing so electronic publishing will not be based on old myths. Explains the truth behind 10 myths that have arisen in the publishing community over the past 20 years. Finds that scientists are using more library-provided journals, and that libraries are reducing journal collections by relying on…

Addresses the need for further research into three important areas of electronic publishing: how the change to digital information sources is affecting the scholarly work of college and university students; when libraries select electronic journals, how products offered to them or the delivery models they choose influence scholarship and the way…

Profiles 25 database distribution and production companies, all of which responded to a 1997 survey with information on 54 separate online, Web-based, or CD-ROM systems. Highlights increased competition, distribution formats, Web versions versus local area networks, full-text delivery, and pricing policies. Tables present a sampling of customers…

Discussion of electronic information access in libraries focuses on five areas that impact quality and cost: (1) hardware, including networking, graphics, and full-text capabilities; (2) software; (3) access and utilization, including Internet and instruction and training; (4) licensing, including suggestions for publishers as well as librarians;…