Considers site requirements that should be specified by the library and the vendor for a library automated system located at a central site away from the library, including size of site, the environment, cleanliness, electrical power, security/safety (fire, restricted access), site certification, telecommunications, and terminal sites. (EJS)

Background information about Peninsula Library Automated Network member libraries and description of the circulation system of choice include basic components of this cooperative effort: Joint Powers Agreement and organizational structure; jurisdiction responsibilities and financial planning; database and policy areas requiring joint decision;…

The two-phase effort at Clemson University to design a comprehensive library automation program is reported. Phase one was based on a version of IBM's business system planning methodology, and the second was based on a linear model designed to compare existing program systems to the phase one design. (MLW)

As technology permeates the special library, new requirements will emerge to integrate staff, equipment, and systems and establish connections between information resources and people. Being library managers in special libraries of tomorrow means mastering fundamentals of cost accounting, strategic planning, technological change, and behavioral…

Discusses the use of computer information systems to aid in library management functions such as planning, control, and decision making. Outlined are applications of macroanalysis (comparative library data, performance measures, use statistics) and microanalysis (circulation, acquisition, catalog support, and online catalog systems). (SW)

Describes a prototype reference collection management system that uses a relational database management program to automate traditional library processes such as library inventory and shelf-reading. Examines reference collection management criteria and system considerations, and reviews the database's characteristics and its benefits to libraries.…

Presents a framework for a knowledge management environment at the University of California San Francisco library that integrates information sources, access and delivery systems, education programs, and personalized services. Topics discussed include scientific communication, strategic goals, planning and implementation of the knowledge…

Offers 10 guidelines for librarians responsible for making decisions on whether to upgrade application software. Examines the Internet, client/server LAN (local area network) architecture, developments in contemporary stand-alone systems, and graphic user interfaces to determine their impact on the upgrading process. (AEF)

Describes recent changes in the District of Columbia Public Library. Highlights include the search and appointment of a new director; financial problems; past managerial problems; needed technology updates; the impact of municipal government problems; and a sidebar with a biography of the new director, Molly Raphael. (LRW)

This report details the findings of the Florida Postsecondary Education Planning Commission in its evaluation of the Florida Center for Library Automation (FCLA), library automation in Florida, and networking and resource sharing among the state's libraries. An introductory chapter defines terms and outlines data gathering activities, while the…

A survey on the extent of library automation in academic libraries in Louisiana was undertaken to satisfy four objectives: (1) program planning for the library section of the 1980 Conference of Louisiana Colleges and Universities; (2) to provide information about library automation to the academic community; (3) planning assistance for the…

An outline for librarians who want to cooperatively plan to implement a shared circulation system, this guide employs a method of planning based on policy analysis. The stages of problem formulation, identification of objectives, perceptual activity, system design, information gathering, and evaluation are outlined. Although this guide contains…

Presents the decisions behind the closing of the main card catalog at University of Toronto Library and the procedures, problems, and costs involved in converting the catalog to an on-line system. User orientation to the conversion, including microform catalogs, training procedures, and use patterns are also discussed. (CWM)

This essay illustrates a technique for reducing the risks of capital investment decisions involving considerable sums for advanced technologies by considering its application to a problem that arises frequently in selection of automated library systems. Incomplete information, using available information, selecting a system, and consultants are…

A library automation plan must not only produce an optimum system, but prepare staff, institution, and clientele for far-reaching change. This change can be accommodated by a functional model consisting of three phases: organization and overview; project expansion; project consolidation and preparation of system plan. Twenty-eight references are…