The U.S. Department of Defense has begun using its buying power to enforce standards on the vendors and contractors of automatic data processing hardware and software. An example of this, the Computer-Aided Acquisition and Logistic Support (CALS) program, is described, and how it will affect electronic publishing systems is discussed. (five…

Reviews attempts to find cost effective alternatives to scientific journals, including dissemination of separate articles, selective dissemination of separate articles, synopsis journals, miniprint, microforms, and electronic journals. It is concluded that the traditional journal has not been seriously threatened and that librarians need to take…

Explores the impact of rapidly changing information technology on the future of the scholarly journal. A discussion focuses on how such digital electronic media as word processors, fax machines, and electronic libraries could change journal format, printing medium, quality of information, centralization of journals, and costs. (CB)

Describes a project by Media Projects International to create a visual database of 56,000 items from The Wellcome Institute Library for the History of Medicine (United Kingdom). Topics discussed include identifying the users; defining the display system; project management; production processes; designing the photographic capture process; and…

Compares the processes and costs of publishing a book in printed versus electronic format. Discussion includes distribution by disk versus network distribution; flow charts for the two production processes; and implications for publishers resulting from cost savings for electronic publishing.(LRW)

Considers the future of CD-ROM technology. Highlights include software challenges; interactive CD-ROM, including music and databases; applications on disk; print publishers' interest in CD-ROM; mail order catalogs; hardware needs; CD-ROM drives; and the information superhighway. (LRW)

Examines ways in which the Internet and other electronic publishing media have changed the intellectual, academic, and social geography. Describes the possibilities of these new methods for organizing information to create new outlets for intellectual, artistic, and educational pursuits; conceptions of libraries; and avenues of communication. (MAB)

Discusses the possible demise of the textbook as new technologies are introduced and notes the conditions necessary for new technologies to become feasible educational alternatives. (AEF)

Strips away advertising hyperbole to explain multimedia CD-ROM technology and its place in today's classrooms. Only the newest computers are adequate for multimedia CD-ROM; only 10% of all computers in schools have CD-ROM drives attached. CD-ROM drives' performance varies, installation hassles abound, and the "edutainment" market directs…

Bruce A. Lehman, chair of the Working Group on Intellectual Property Rights, discusses three issues related to the Copyright Act that will affect Internet transmissions: whether transmissions are performances or deliveries of copies; the scope of fair use; and whether there should be a copyright system in the electronic age. (JKP)

A humorous list of 10 guidelines details the obstacles and difficulties that a university educator faces in the production of an educational CD-ROM, and offers advice for those who choose to pursue multimedia development for educational purposes. (JKP)

Discusses changes in the Internet that allow users easier access to multimedia materials. Topics include the client-server relationship; Internet Protocol; World Wide Web; commercial online services and Web access; Internet publishing; educational collaborations among classrooms, businesses, and research institutions; and examples from Virginia's…

Presents an interview with David Macaulay, author and illustrator of the book and CD-ROM title, "The Way Things Work." Focuses on Macaulay's opinions of the current and future promises and problems of publishing books on CD-ROM, and draws on his experience with transferring his book from print to CD-ROM. (JMV)

Describes the growing number of dictionaries available to reference librarians, discusses factors that have led to the need for more dictionaries, and provides buying guidelines to help in selection decisions. Electronic versions of various dictionaries are described, and a sidebar examines the "American Heritage Dictionary" revisions.…

Discussion of electronic books utilizing CD-ROM technology presents a taxonomy that contains 10 classes of electronic books. Development models, design techniques, and access stations are discussed; and several examples of electronic books, including encyclopedias, information dissemination/retrieval services, educational products, and a thesis…