One of the most significant decisions in a library administrator's career is the decision to automate one or more of a library's operations. This book describes the present state of local library automation; the planning, selection, and implementation process; and the library administrator's role in the process. The bulk of the text provides a foundation for the basic understanding of hardware, system architectures, software, standards, and data communication, which is essential for an administrator to make intelligent automation decisions. The book also emphasizes the context in which technical decisions must be made, and describes all steps in the process of making and carrying out the decisions. The book contains the following chapters: (1) Library Automation Today; (2) Hardware Basics; (3) System Architectures; (4) System Software; (5) Applications Software and Programming Languages; (6) System Functionality; (7) Content and Interfacing Standards; (8) CD-ROM, Internet, and Other Related Technologies; (9) Cabling and LANs; (10) Connecting Remote Sites; (11) Planning, Procuring, and Implementing Systems; and (12) The Costs of Automation. A glossary and index are provided. Words found in the glossary are highlighted throughout the text. (Contains 153 references.) (SWC)