Describes the functions of book and periodical indexes and characteristics of varieties of book indexes. Problems related to periodical indexing including indexing policy, indexing language, depth of indexing, authors' names, titles, the physical form of indexes, indexes to single volumes of periodicals, and cumulative indexes are discussed.…

Reviews new educational materials designed for microcomputer use: compact disk encyclopedia derived from "Grolier's Academic American Encyclopedia"; "PC Word Power," vocabulary enhancement game; "Public Domain Software on File," 250 programs for Apple II microcomputer users; "RightWriter," program designed to teach effective writing; "Kansas…

Discusses the information database Britannica Online. Topics include compact discs versus online feeds; database delivery via the Internet; use of technology such as hyperlink, graphics, audio, and video; Britannica's search engine architecture; search options; user reactions, and costs. (AEF)

Cites major U.S. encyclopedia publishers interested in developing machine-readable versions and suggests design possibilities for accessing encyclopedia databases. Full text searching, searching by fields, and sorting on fields are presented as techniques that provide online systems with significant advantages over print. There are five…

Discusses the use of microcomputers as communication devices and presents features of several national bibliographic networks, together with examples of searches for information of interest to academics. The status of electronic publishing is discussed and differences between national and local area networks are described. (Author)