Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

The Evolving Database Marketplace, Jeff Barry, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

Initially propelled by online searching and CD-ROM networking, and now given added momentum by the Internet, electronic reference resources are changing the way librarians provide reference service. Library users are accessing traditional citation and abstract databases with greater ease and efficacy than before, thanks to more consistent and friendlier interfaces and the integration of full text and graphics.

How fundamental are the changes to library reference services? According to LJ's 1996 Reference Survey, librarians estimate that in the next three years their CD-ROM reference sources will grow by 51 percent and their online sources by 43 percent, vs. fairly …

Generations Of Online Searching, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

Presents an excerpt about online searching based on a presentation to the Florida Library Association. The assertion that online searching in the mid-1990s has its roots in earlier online generations; Evolution; Content/databases; People involved; Places people search; Uses for online services; Search engines/interfaces; Survival skills.

Front-End Software Proliferates, Carol Tenopir

School of Information Sciences -- Faculty Publications and Other Works

Discusses how online searchers are expecting to use a proprietary front-end software package to access their systems. Description of what front-end packages are; The markets to which they are aimed; What a successful front-end system features; KR ProBase.