Built in partnership with the Berkeley Electronic Press (bepress), the tools behind the eScholarship Repository improve the speed and efficiency of sharing the results of scholarly efforts. For participating scholars, publishing working papers is greatly streamlined. At no charge, researchers can search and view relevant research by topic, author, or sponsoring research department. The system also allows users to sign up for a service that alerts them to new content in their specific areas of interest. In addition, the eScholarship Repository enables reliable tracking of the evolution of a work by maintaining links and citations for previous or later versions of any material posted.

Source: California Digital Library, University of California, Oakland, CA, 510/987-0425; http://www.cdlib.org.

EBSCO Switches to New E-Journals Service
EBSCO has announced that its new EBSCOhost Electronic Journals Service (EJS) has replaced the EBSCO Online service.

A comprehensive gateway to electronic journals, the EBSCOhost Electronic Journals Service offers customers two versions: a Basic and an Enhanced version. The Basic service is offered to EBSCO Subscription Services customers at no additional charge and allows users to search and access electronic journals that the library subscribes to through EBSCO.

The Enhanced e-journals service, which carries a small annual fee, provides an end-user portal to more than 8,000 e-journals (all with durable URLs), comprehensive linking support to more than 10,000 e-journals, pay-per-view article purchasing, and alerting services. Access to e-journal packages and titles not purchased through EBSCO can be consolidated through the service. The Enhanced service also offers a suite of administrative tools. Add-ons include custom branding and enhanced usage reporting that enables custom analysis of an e-journal collection.

Source: EBSCO Subscription Services, Birmingham, AL, 800/554-7149; http://www.ebsco.com.

Online Information Conference Announced
The Online Information 2002 conference and exhibition will be held from December 3­5, 2002, in the Olympia Grand Hall in London.

Online Information brings together hundreds of companies exhibiting information resources, together with solutions for information management, knowledge exchange, e-publishing, intranets, and extranets. At the Online Information conference, which runs in parallel to the exhibition, online industry commentators, consultants, professionals, academics, and key vendors will explore major issues that shape the industry, determine key trends, and predict developments for the future.

For further information, contact Learned Information at 011-44-1865-388000 or visit the Online Information Web site: http://www.online-information.co.uk.

Source: Learned Information, Ltd., Oxford, U.K., 011-44-1932-730-746; http://www.learned.co.uk.

ITI Releases Programs for Fall Conferences
Information Today, Inc. (ITI) has announced that programming for the KMWorld & Intranets 2002 conferences is now available at http://www.kmworld-intranets.com. The conferences, which are dedicated to knowledge management, intranets, and portals, will take place October 29­31, 2002, at the Santa Clara Convention Center in Santa Clara, California.

ITI has also announced that the program is now available for the Internet Librarian conference at https://www.infotoday.com/
il2002. Now in its sixth year, the conference is designed for information professionals who are using, developing, and embracing Internet and Web-based strategies in their roles as information searchers, guides, Webmasters and Web managers, content evaluators and organizers, product developers, and more. It will feature four simultaneous tracks: Navigating the Net, Intranet & Portal Applications, E-Content & E-Skills, and Web World. Internet Librarian will be held November 4­6, 2002, at the Palm Springs Convention Center in Palm Springs, California.

Source: Information Today, Inc., Medford, NJ, 800/300-9868, 609/654-6266; https://www.infotoday.com.

4Developers Releases Net Snippets 2.0
4Developers, LLC has announced Net Snippets 2.0, a Web research software product that enables information specialists, researchers, and individuals who rely heavily on the Internet for information to save, manage, and publish their findings.

Instead of just using copy-and-paste functions, printing entire Web pages, or bookmarking, Net Snippets provides users with a unique working environment that consists of a menu of research tools inside the Web browser. Net Snippets allows users to save specific information (text and images), rather than entire Web pages, by selecting the relevant information using the mouse and dragging it to the Net Snippets environment. These information clips, called Snippets, are saved locally on the user's computer and can be edited at any time using familiar editing tools. Users can organize their Snippets in hierarchical folders and browse through them without leaving their browsers, online or off.

Along with every saved Snippet, the software automatically saves important bibliography information, including the original Web address, comments inserted by the user, and the date and time the information was found. Users can search through Snippets using a built-in search engine and can generate bibliography reports using the product's Report Generator. Net Snippets also supports information sharing features.

Net Snippets runs on Windows 95/98/ME/NT4/2000/XP and requires Internet Explorer 5.0 or above. The software can be purchased directly from the 4Developers Web site or by contacting sales@4dev.com. A 30-day trial version is also available on the company's Web site.

Source: 4Developers, LLC, Sunnyvale, CA; http://www.4dev.com.

Alacra Book Offers New 'Pay Per Book' Pricing
Alacra, a provider of business and financial information, has announced the new "Pay Per Book" pricing option for Alacra Book, an online service that aggregates company-specific information from multiple sources and publishes this information in a single, customized PDF.

The "Pay Per Book" pricing model will allow Alacra customers to pay for individual books—a set fee plus the cost of the content used. This option also facilitates bill-back capabilities, enabling company researchers to assign project or other cost codes to specific clients or to departments within firms. With the new pricing model, Alacra can now offer the Alacra Book service to smaller organizations. Key features of the service include Internet and intranet accessibility, more than 20 premium sources, electronic delivery in less than 10 minutes, and coverage of more than 30,000 global public companies. The only requirements for use are a standard Web browser and Adobe Acrobat.

Source: Alacra, New York, 212/363-9620; http://www.alacra.com.

Inmagic Upgrades BiblioTech PRO System
Inmagic, Inc. has announced the release of BiblioTech PRO 2.4, an enterprisewide integrated library system (ILS). BiblioTech PRO 2.4 features customizable keyword, multi-field, and document/report number search windows, with an option to add all or selected citations to new or pre-existing bibliographies.

Systemwide features of BiblioTech PRO 2.4 include support for the Euro as currency, multiple recipients for e-mail messages, record update, and an increase in Dewey number maximum length to 50. Also, when a record is saved or a function is exited, the Global Index is updated. New features of the thesaurus include a check for pre-existing terms before a relationship between terms is added, and removal of extraneous characters from catalog record indexes when provisional terms are deleted.

Source: Inmagic, Inc., Woburn, MA, 800/229-8398, 781/938-4442; http://www.inmagic.com.

Endeavor Makes Interface for ENCompass and Blackboard, Releases ENCompass 2.0
Endeavor Information Systems has announced the development of an interface between the ENCompass system for managing, searching, and linking diverse collections and the Blackboard Learning System. According to the announcement, this interaction makes it easy for faculty to provide quality library resources as part of their online course settings.

The combined interface assists faculty in course creation and gives students single log on access to learning resources and tools. Instructors can locate all resources on a topic, whether in a remote commercial database, a print book in the library, or a librarian-qualified Web site. They can search the library's digital content and "collect" this information within their course materials using the Blackboard Learning System. Also, faculty members can create predefined ENCompass searches for students and select documents, images, and other digital information to be used as course content.

In a separate announcement, the company reports that ENCompass 2.0 is now commercially available. The new version features multiprotocol (Z39.50, XML, and http) searching across resources, OpenURL-syntax support, fully customizable XSLT for the user interface, and increased navigation.

ENCompass' multiprotocol, or "federated," searching increases the number of resources that can be accessed in a single search (for example, important resources that are not Z39.50-enabled such as publisher sites, e-book sites, and popular noncommercial databases).

Source: Endeavor Information Systems, Des Plaines, IL, 800/762-6300, 847/296-2200; http://www.endinfosys.com.

SMART Technologies Releases SynchronEyes 3.0 Computer Lab Instruction Software
SMART Technologies, Inc. has announced SynchronEyes 3.0 computer lab instruction software for the Microsoft Windows operating system. This new version delivers increased operating speed and new interactive features.

SynchronEyes uses an existing TCP/IP network to create a focused learning environment where up to 80 student workstations can be monitored and controlled from the instructor's computer. The software displays thumbnail images of all students' screens on the instructor's desktop so he can monitor each student's progress. If several students need help, the instructor can broadcast his (or any student's) screen to the entire class or to a specific group. To focus attention, the instructor can blank all student screens and lock mice and keyboards. Now with version 3.0, instructors can deliver interactive polls and multiple-choice quizzes, and the software will automatically compile the results.

SynchronEyes 3.0 is $999 per computer lab or classroom.

Source: SMART Technologies, Inc., Calgary, AB, Canada, 888/42-SMART, 403/245-0333; http://www.smarttech.com.

Virtua ILS Is First to Support FRBR Model
VTLS, Inc. has announced that the newest release of Virtua ILS is currently the only commercially available integrated library system (ILS) to support the IFLA Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR). The FRBR model is the latest development in cataloging practice, which is designed to serve as a conceptual framework for systems that share and use bibliographic data, nationally or internationally.

According to the announcement, present cataloging practices do not support "linked hierarchic metadata records," making it difficult to catalog certain types of materials. The FRBR model is designed to address these difficulties. The basic FRBR record consists of three entities—work, expression, and manifestation. Using the FRBR model, librarians do not have to re-catalog the entire work again, for example, for different performances of a piece of music or for different manifestations of the same performance. Instead, FRBR allows the new performance to be cataloged separately and linked to a previously cataloged work. This hierarchic relationship can exist in other material types, such as printed materials with different editions or language versions.

In implementing FRBR, VTLS has created an environment in which records in the FRBR model and records in the traditional catalog can co-exist in the same database. This allows libraries to ease into using the FRBR model without undertaking massive record conversions.

Source: VTLS, Inc., Blacksburg, VA, 800/468-8857, 540/557-1200; http://www.vtls.com.
 

Digitization

OCLC Offers CONTENTdm Software Suite to Help Libraries Develop Collections
OCLC Digital & Preservation Resources is now offering the CONTENTdm Software Suite as a complete solution for libraries that are developing online digital collections to provide preservation and access to special collections.

Already supporting hundreds of collections, CONTENTdm provides tools for all aspects of digital collection management. The suite, which has been developed in collaboration with archivists and library professionals, has the ability to handle virtually all media types—photographs, slides, maps, yearbooks, fully transcribed diaries, rare books, audio and video clips, postcards, and other assets—that are accessible via a Web browser.

Organizations that want to implement CONTENTdm collections may either purchase a direct license to install software on their own servers or take advantage of OCLC's new hosted offering of CONTENTdm as a member of the OCLC Digital and Preservation Cooperative. The hosted version provides full software functionality, while operating from OCLC's server. Co-op participants come together to share knowledge and to increase the value of digital collections by combining them with other collections, and members are eligible to receive an OCLC CONTENTdm 500-image Starter Kit.

Source: OCLC, Dublin, OH, 800/848-5878, 614/764-6000; http://www.oclc.org.

National Yiddish Book Center Opens the Steven Spielberg Digital Yiddish Library
The National Yiddish Book Center has announced the launch of the Steven Spielberg Digital Yiddish Library on the Web. With lead gifts from Spielberg, Intel pioneer Max Palevsky, and others, the $3.5 million project offers users on-demand reprints of more than 12,000 Yiddish titles, most of which have been out of print for 50 years or more.

Users can log on to the Spielberg Library's Web site (http://www.yiddishbooks.org) and search the catalog by author, title, or keyword using the VTLS Chameleon Web Gateway. All titles are cataloged both in the original Hebrew alphabet and in the English transliteration according to Library of Congress standards. Once books are selected and the checkout process is complete, the e-commerce system automatically generates an e-mail to the production facility. There, a digital printer taps into the center's database of stored facsimile images and generates a brand-new paperbound copy on acid-free paper—usually in 3 minutes or less.

The Yiddish Book Center is still actively collecting Yiddish books and expects to add several thousand more titles to the Spielberg Library over the next several years. The center is now working with the New York Public Library to digitize more than 800 yizkor books—rare Yiddish volumes chronicling Jewish communities destroyed in the Holocaust.

Source: National Yiddish Book Center, Amherst, MA, 413/256-4900; http://www.yiddishbookcenter.org.

Gale Embarks on New Digitization Project
Gale has announced plans to publish a digital edition of The Eighteenth Century, the world's largest library of the printed book. As a result, Gale reports that nearly 150,000 English-language titles published between 1701 and 1800 will be available over the Web beginning in June 2003.

In cooperation with The British Library, a variety of other research libraries, and the English Short Title Catalogue committee, Gale will scan more than 12,000 reels of microfilm, ultimately delivering 20 million text-searchable pages. Searching will be supported by hit-term highlighting and downloadable MARC records. Additional metadata, including the full text of title and content pages and direct access to all illustrations, will also be available.

The Eighteenth Century—Complete Digital Edition will be published in subject categories and released over a 3-year period. The initial release of History and Geography is scheduled for mid-2003. Modules of the complete database will be available to libraries supporting study and research in specialized subject areas.

Source: Gale, Farmington Hills, MI, 800/877-4253, 248/699-4253; http://www.gale.com.

ebrary Licensing Its Technology Platform
ebrary has announced that it is extending the availability of its technology platform to libraries and other organizations that need to distribute high-value documents over networks.

Recently, the company licensed its platform to Stanford University Libraries and Academic Resources, which will use the system to ensure that reserves are available to students from their desktops. Also, Octavo, which specializes in high-quality imaging of rare books, will resell ebrary's platform to libraries that utilize its services for a comprehensive digitization, archiving, and distribution solution.

Currently available as an ASP (a Web-based service hosted and maintained by ebrary), the company's platform enables libraries to securely and cost-effectively distribute high-demand reserves and special collections over the Internet. ebrary's technology is based on Adobe PDF, so the documents retain their original look and feel. The platform can be integrated with the company's existing ebrarian for Libraries service.

Source: ebrary, Mountain View, CA, 650/230-0700; http://www.ebrary.com.
 

Assistive Technology

ASCLA and HP Partner on Assistive Stations
The Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA) has announced a new partnership with Hewlett-Packard (HP) called Library Technology Access, which will help develop accessible computer workstation solutions for libraries nationwide.

These workstations will be complete with assistive technology, Internet access, and training programs. As a key part of this initiative, HP will donate a total of 12 workstations to six libraries to demonstrate the solution. It will provide resources to further expand the initial pilot to enable technology access for people with disabilities within libraries across the nation.

More information about HP's Accessibility Solutions program is available at http://www.hp.com/accessibility.

Source: Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies, American Library Association, Chicago, 800/545-2433; http://www.ala.org/ascla.

West Group Releases Access-Friendly Westlaw
West Group has announced the release of Westlaw Text Only (http://text.westlaw.com), a new text-only, user-friendly Westlaw interface that optimizes the program for those using assistive technology, such as screen readers, screen magnifiers, or voice-recognition software.

West Group reports that Westlaw Text Only offers an intuitive, single-frame platform that has a visually simple design, yet contains all the functionality users need for effective legal research. According to the company, while the product is designed for users of assistive technology, legal professionals who access the Internet through a slower or low-bandwidth connection may also experience improved performance.

Source: West Group, Eagan, MN, 800/778-8090; http://www.westgroup.com.

Web Eyes Plug-In Enhances Site Readability
ION Systems, Inc. has announced the release of Web Eyes, an Internet Explorer browser plug-in that automatically converts any Web page (your library's Web site and online catalog, for example) into ION's patented on-screen reading interface that eliminates scrolling and provides instant font resizing.

Web Eyes exceeds ADA and Section 508 accessibility guidelines for visually impaired and dyslexic users. The plug-in opens a second window, synchronized with the Web browser window. Simple button clicks allow automatic font resizing (4 to 144 points), instant page reformatting, comfortable page-turning control (with no scrolling), and column formation.

The initial release of Web Eyes works with Microsoft Internet Explorer (PC version 5.5 and above). Web Eyes is licensed by domain for an annual registration fee based on the number of site pages. The registered domain provides a link to the free download of Web Eyes.

Source: ION Systems, Inc., Crystal City, MO, 636/937-9094; http://www.ionsystems.com.
 

Virtual Reference

Polaris Integrates Virtual Reference ToolKit
Gaylord Information Systems (GIS) and Library Systems & Services (LSSI) have announced that Polaris will be the first library automation system to integrate the functions of the library's public access catalog with live reference service through LSSI's Virtual Reference ToolKit.

According to Gaylord's vice president of business development, integrating the two systems means that if a patron's PAC search does not retrieve the expected results, the patron will receive an automatic prompt to initiate a reference session. Prompts will appear at appropriate points throughout the search to remind patrons that reference help is readily available.

Patrons using Virtual Reference ToolKit can choose to maintain with LSSI a history log of their reference transactions. These logs can then be displayed within their Polaris patron accounts, providing a single point of access to information: items checked out, items on hold, fines and fees, and now open reference queries and logs of completed reference questions and answers.

Source: Gaylord Information Systems, Syracuse, NY, 800/272-3414, 315/457-5070; http://www.gaylord.com/ automation and Library Systems & Services, Germantown, MD, 800/638-8725, 301/540-5100; http://www.lssi.com.

Digi-Net and OhioLINK Partner to Create Virtual Reference Desk Software
Digi-Net Technologies, Inc., a creator of messaging technology for e-commerce and community-building applications, and the Ohio Library and Information Network (OhioLINK) have partnered to create virtual reference desk software for Ohio's college and university libraries.

Digi-Net has developed eLibrarian, software technology that provides librarians with the ability to interact with and assist patrons over the Web. Features include co-browsing, real-time assistance, content push, reverse push (wherein patrons can send Web-accessible content to the librarian), PatronScan (which allows library systems to filter patrons depending upon school and particular interest), message broadcasting, and entrance/exit surveys.

Source: Digi-Net Technologies, Inc., Gainesville, FL, 877/404-2428, 352/333-3042; http://www.digi-net.com.

LSSI and Tutor.com Team Up Their Services
Library Systems & Services (LSSI) and Tutor.com have announced an alliance to integrate Tutor.com's Live Homework Help, an online tutoring service, with the virtual reference capabilities of LSSI's Virtual Reference ToolKit. This alliance will enable e-reference librarians to aid students with their homework help questions by passing them to expert tutors.

Live Homework Help is an online tutoring service that connects 4th­12th grade students with expert tutors in math, science, social studies, and English via the Internet. Students and tutors can review specific homework questions using features such as controlled chat, an interactive white board, and shared Web browsing. LSSI's Virtual Reference ToolKit provides tools to guide clients through online reference sessions without software set-ups or downloads. Now, LSSI's clients can purchase Live Homework Help and offer patrons a seamless service.

Libraries receive detailed monthly reports including the number of students using the service, satisfaction survey results, and student and tutor comments.

Source: Library Systems & Services, Germantown, MD, 800/638-8725, 301/540-5100; http://www.lssi.com and Tutor.com, New York, 212/528-3101; http://www.tutor.com.
 

The Digital Library

epixtech Releases DigitaLink Solution
epixtech has unveiled DigitaLink, a digital library solution designed to create and manage digital content for libraries of all types and sizes.

The primary components of DigitaLink are its capabilities to create, store, and update metadata fields, even from remote locations. Using epixtech's iPac technology, DigitaLink gives patrons the ability to perform a consolidated search of print, electronic, and digital collections. It also uses natural language searching and adaptive pattern recognition.

The DigitaLink offering also includes supplemental services such as digitization services, "Lite-Scanning," and data migration. Digitization services convert all types of hard copy data into digital format. Lite-Scanning offers libraries the tools to scan, enhance, and establish optical character recognition for new materials. For libraries that already have established digital collections, DigitaLink's data migration service transfers all types of digital records into DigitaLink-compatible formats with Dublin Core metadata for each item.

Source: epixtech, Provo, UT, 800/288-8020, 801/223-5200; http://www.epixtech.com.

ingenta to Offer E-Mail Alerting Services
ingenta has announced its new suite of e-mail alerting services for both library and individual use. Scheduled to have launched in July, the suite of alerting services has been designed to satisfy the level of flexibility, technical stability, and comprehensive content administrators and researchers seek, according to the company.

The products enable customized notification on ingenta's collection of scholarly full text available online, which includes millions of articles from more than 26,000 publications, together with 5,400 full-text online journals from 200 scholarly and professional publishers. The suite's flexibility allows administrators and patrons to highly customize the types of e-mail alerts they receive. Customizable characteristics include preferred delivery format, search strategies, and journal title selection. Services available include Table of Contents Alerting, Table of Contents Redistribution (receipts of table of contents alerts for specific titles that administrators can redistribute to select groups or individual patrons), and Saved Search Alerting. Additionally, custom solutions are in development, such as the bulk delivery of table of contents information to libraries wanting to enhance their catalogs and other Web resources, with direct links back to the electronic full text.

Alerts relating to paper content are delivered by e-mail in plain text, while alerts for electronic content are delivered by e-mail in plain text, HTML, and Procite- or EndNote-compatible formats.

Source: ingenta, Inc., Cambridge, MA, 617/395-4000; http://www.ingenta.com.

CASPR Offers Information Sharing Services
CASPR has announced the creation of iLibraries and LibraryWire, which represent a new approach to sharing library information over the Internet.

iLibraries is a software program that enables individuals to search for and share catalog records and digital files with anyone on the Internet. iLibraries is written in Java and will run on Windows, Macintosh, Linux, Sun, and other platforms.

LibraryWire is a network service that allows libraries to share information without central server software. The application enables users to build and share catalog collections (including holdings records and digital documents) with others using the iLibraries program or a simple Web browser. The program can import and export MARC records as well as XML documents. Records can be copied simply by dragging the items with a mouse. No special Web server or other software is required.

iLibraries can access a library directly by IP address or through the LibraryWire network. CASPR has placed its own copies of the Library of Congress collection on the LibraryWire network so catalog records can be moved easily to local collections.

The iLibraries application is currently available for download at http://www.ilibraries.com. The program can be used for up to 30 days at no charge. Individual licenses can be purchased for $195 per copy.

Source: CASPR Library Systems, Inc., Saratoga, CA, 800/852-2777, 408/741-2320; http://www.caspr.com.

III to Create E-Resource Management Module, Also Offers Portal Software as Stand-Alone
Innovative Interfaces, Inc. (III) has announced that it is developing an Electronic Resource Management module, which will solve the problem of libraries having to create local control mechanisms for managing licensed resources such as e-journals, abstracting-and-indexing databases, and full-text databases.

Electronic Resource Management is being developed in partnership with the University of Washington, a member of the Association of Research Libraries. Fully integrated with III's Millennium system or available as a stand-alone product, Electronic Resource Management will enable libraries to keep track of their e-journal licensing and purchasing details using a single interface, which streamlines work flows and eliminates the need to maintain separate databases.

In other news from Innovative, the company has begun to offer its portal software, Millennium Access Plus (MAP), as a stand-alone product.

MAP is a portal solution that manages access to online information sources, and is made up of three modules: WebBridge, MetaFind, and Web Access Management. Also, III has announced the introduction of MAP's WebBridge resolution server, which in addition to linking from the Millennium system to external resources, accepts incoming connections from a resource outside the system and returns an appropriate set of matches based on metadata passed to the resolution server. A WebBridge knowledge database will also be available, which includes a user-friendly interface for managing and adding resources.

Source: Innovative Interfaces, Inc., Emeryville, CA, 510/655-6200; http://www.iii.com.

ebrarian Service Receives Several Upgrades
ebrary has announced significant enhancements to its ebrarian for Libraries service in the areas of content and pricing. ebrarian is a Web-based service that enables libraries to provide their patrons with unlimited, multiuser access to a growing collection of more than 7,500 books and other documents from 115 publishers and academic presses, plus advanced research capabilities. ebrarian integrates with libraries' existing OPACs and other digital resources, and ebrary provides MARC records for documents in its repository.

The Library of Congress, The Bancroft Library at the University of California­Berkeley, the University of Utah Willard Marriott Library, Getty Images, Octavo, and Maps.com are distributing their publications, digitized archival works, images, and maps through ebrary.

ebrary charges an annual license fee for its service based on FTE/population served and library type. In addition, the company now offers two payment models for print/copy transactions: 1) Libraries can choose ebrary's all-encompassing pricing model, where their flat fee covers unlimited print/copy transactions, or 2) libraries can choose to have patrons set up individual accounts with ebrary and pay for their own print/copy transactions. The average cost per transaction is 15 cents to 50 cents per page.

Source: ebrary, Mountain View, CA, 650/230-0700; http://www.ebrary.com.
 

Most significant is the addition of a Web module for PC Reservation. This new component permits reservations for public computers to be made from anywhere via the Web. Reservations can be requested, and a verification of patron identification is made against the library management system database. When confirmed, the patron can book a specific time at a requested branch, and on any day permitted according to the library's policy settings. Patrons can also view existing reservations and cancel their bookings. Also new to PC Reservation is the ability to set a host of new preferences by each area of the library. An area may be defined physically, such as Reference or Children's, or by function, such as Word Processing or Internet.

The LPT:One system now integrates Macintosh computers into the managed Windows printing environment.

Source: EnvisionWare, Inc., Lawrenceville, GA, 800/216-8370, 678/735-0002; http://www.envisionware.com.

SIRSI to Offer EnvisionWare's PC Tools
SIRSI Corp. has announced its new partnership with EnvisionWare, a provider of software for managing and monitoring public-access workstations. This partnership will offer SIRSI libraries seamless access to EnvisionWare's LPT:One print cost management software and PC Reservation workstation access and session control software through the SIRSI public interface.

LPT:One enables libraries to control public-access PC printing by displaying the number of pages that will be printed, cost of printing, and printer location. With PC Reservation, libraries can control access to public PCs and manage session time.

Source: SIRSI Corp., Huntsville, AL, 800/917-4774, 256/704-7000; http://www.sirsi.com.
 

While the present development between the two companies is based on SIP2, NISO Circulation Interchange Protocol (NCIP) will be the basis for future development. GIS reports that it will fully implement NCIP in late third quarter 2002, shortly after the standard has been accepted by NISO.

In addition, GIS has also announced plans with Guardianet to integrate their respective library solutions and provide library patrons with one library card that can be used to borrow items, pay fines and fees, pay to print from a workstation, and schedule time on a PC. These services will be made available by fully integrating systems administration and patron display components of Guardianet's LibraryGuardian PC management software with Polaris. LibraryGuardian facilitates PC management in six areas: scheduling, print/cost recovery, time management, access management, personalization, and terminal reset.

Source: Gaylord Information Systems, Syracuse, NY, 800/272-3414; http://www.gaylord.com/automation.

Sagebrush Launches Self-Checkout Tool
Sagebrush Corp. has announced the release of UCheck, a program that lets patrons check out materials by themselves. UCheck integrates with Sagebrush's Athena and Winnebago Spectrum automation programs.

UCheck comes with an administration component that allows library staff to set up the program, including the method patrons use to check out materials. Passwords can be defined to ensure safeguarding against unauthorized personnel altering the setup configuration. Staff members can also place restrictions for patrons who are not allowed to check out their own materials. Library staff can create, preview, and print UCheck status reports. The program also works with an optional SLIP printer so that patrons can receive a receipt after an item is checked out.

Source: Sagebrush Corp., Minneapolis, 800/533-5430; http://www.sagebrushcorp.com.

Mandarin Offers Mandarin M3 Version 1.5
Mandarin Library Automation, Inc. has announced the release of Mandarin M3 version 1.5. According to the company, this release provides important new features in all modules.

With the new Mandarin M3 release, users can simultaneously search from the OPAC and SIRS Publishing online databases, providing retrieval of full-text articles in addition to records in the bibliographic database. For librarians, the system offers display of the 856#y (Link Name) in the OPAC instead of the URL, new authorization and security level definitions, and more than 850 packaged reports. Other enhancements include availability of the Cataloging Find/Replace function on record subset, an "Undo Save" function, and an "In Process" status.

Mandarin has also announced a new Authority Control Optional module. This can be integrated into the Cataloging module and fully supports the MARC 21 Authority Format record structure. Librarians may work from two interfaces in this module: an advanced full MARC record editor, or a quick-entry label heading and cross reference screen. With both interfaces, the user can easily control and insert name, subject, uniform title, and series headings into bibliographic records. Authority Control integrates "See" and "See also" hyperlinks on the Mandarin M3 OPAC.

Mandarin is also offering an annual subscription to a Library of Congress Authority database. Real-time, online access to more than 5 million subject and name headings are seamlessly accessible from the Cataloging module.

Source: Mandarin Library Automation, Inc., Boca Raton, FL, 800/426-7477, 561/995-4010; http://www.mlasolutions.com.

epixtech Upgrades Horizon Sunrise Product
epixtech has announced the general release of Horizon Sunrise 7.2, which introduces both the new Sunrise application launcher and a new MARC editor.

The application launcher makes all the tools a library needs instantly and continuously available through keyboard shortcuts or from the Horizon Sunrise desktop. epixtech has eliminated the need to open and close modules, search for utilities, or switch between applications.

Horizon Sunrise 7.2 also introduces record ownership tracking for consortia environments maintaining independent cataloging records. Additionally, the upgrade supports greater efficiency for acquisitions staff as epixtech further extends its utilization of the EDIFACT standard for processing electronic orders, vendor acknowledgments, and invoices, along with item record creation for preprocessed materials without staff intervention.

Source: epixtech, Provo, UT, 800/288-8020, 801/223-5200; http://www.epixtech.com.
 

According to the company, D&B's business database is the largest available, with information on more than 73 million companies worldwide. IMDDI is a Web-based product that can be accessed with a user name and password. It includes access to dozens of searchable data elements, including company name, public/private status, D-U-N-S Number, executive name, region, country, SIC code, and line of business. Users can also find number of employees, executive titles, and ownership status. Benefits of the Web-based product include easy access, fresh data, and upward linkage to top global and North American companies. Users pay a fixed price for access.

Source: D&B, Murray Hill, NJ, 908/665-5000; http://www.dnb.com.

Elsevier to Update Its EMBASE.com Service
Elsevier Science Bibliographic Databases has announced that an enhanced version of EMBASE.com is scheduled for release this fall. According to the news release, version 3.0 of this Web product will feature significantly improved functionality and expanded linking capabilities.

EMBASE.com allows users to search close to 15 million EMBASE and MEDLINE records simultaneously using an intuitive search interface. The Quick Search functionality has been redesigned to offer novice users more flexibility and ease of use. A range of limits will allow users to exclude all but the most relevant documents from their searches. Also, users will now be able to search records from all EMBASE and unique MEDLINE, or from EMBASE only, or choose from a variety of publication types, languages, medical disciplines, human age groups, and animal study types. More experienced searchers will be able to use new Advanced Search features powered by EMTREE, the Life Science Thesaurus, including synonym mapping, explosion, and keyword focusing techniques. Users can fine-tune their searches by searching specific fields and by using new field indexes and searchable look-ups to pinpoint specific authors and device or drug names and manufacturers.

In addition to direct links that are already in place to more than 15 publishers, EMBASE.com will extend its reach to full text by offering DOI (digital object identifier) linking to the full text of more than 100 publishers through the CrossRef reference-linking facility.

Source: Elsevier Science Bibliographic Databases, Amsterdam, 011-31-20-4853507; http://www.elsevier.com/locate/esbd.

Fulltext Sources Online in Electronic Version
Information Today, Inc. (ITI) has announced the launch of two electronic versions of Fulltext Sources Online (FSO), joining the existing print version of the directory. FSO is now available on the Web at http://www.fso-online.com. An electronic copy of the FSO database (FSO/e) is also available to organizations for internal use.

FSO Online is ITI's first Web-based product. Archive URLs are hyperlinked; the database is updated weekly; and users can limit searches for titles by language, geographic location, or aggregator. FSO Online costs $249 per year, and a combined print/FSO Online subscription is $299.

FSO/e is available for license to organizations. Subscribers receive quarterly updates of the file by e-mail. The comma-
delimited ASCII format files can be imported into virtually any database management program on the user's system. A 1-year subscription for a single workstation license is $1,800. For network access pricing, please visit https://www.infotoday.com/fso/default.htm#online.

Source: Information Today, Inc., Medford, NJ, 800/300-9868, 609/654-6266; https://www.infotoday.com.

CHOICE Announces a Site License Edition
CHOICE, the academic review journal, has announced the launch of the new Site License Edition of its Web review service, ChoiceReviews.online. CHOICE is a publication of the Association of College & Research Libraries (ACRL).

The Site License Edition of ChoiceReviews.online provides IP-based access to the CHOICE review database. Like the Password Edition of ChoiceReviews.online that was launched in 1999, the Site License Edition offers 24/7 Internet access to 80,000 CHOICE reviews. According to the announcement, distinctive features of this new edition include easy campuswide and institutional access and reasonable pricing. Also, the new Selected Records Page allows all users to create, edit, and print customized lists of reviews while online.

Source: Association of College & Research Libraries, American Library Association, Chicago, 800/545-2433; http://www.ala.org/acrl.

Gale, ingenta Launch Online Journal Service
Gale and ingenta have announced a new service that offers combined access from a single search to journals available from both ingenta and Gale via InfoTrac, Gale's search interface.

ingenta's 5,400 scholarly and academic electronic journals are combined with Gale's core periodical content, about 4,200 full-text titles, to create a collection of more than 9,000 titles online. At no additional cost, librarians and their patrons can view their ingenta subscription tiles through the InfoTrac interface. A pay-per-view option enables users to buy individual digitized articles when the library does not hold a subscription.

Source: Gale, Farmington Hills, MI, 248/699-4253; http://www.gale.com and ingenta, Inc., Cambridge, MA, 617/395-4000; http://www.ingenta.com.

IEEE Xplore 1.4 Contains New Features
The IEEE has released version 1.4 of its IEEE Xplore online delivery platform, which contains several new features to help researchers.

Xplore is the online delivery platform that powers IEEE subscription packages like IEEE/IEE Electronic Library (IEL), All-Society Periodicals Package (ASPP), and Proceedings Order Plans (POP and POP All). New features of IEEE Xplore include a "what can I access?" button to help users understand the content access rights of their subscribing institutions; forward linking from abstracts to show where a paper the user is reading has been cited, along with hyperlinks to the abstracts of those IEEE papers; links from author names to perform an author search directly from an abstract without entering new search criteria; links from index terms in abstracts, providing a shortcut to new research using predetermined technical terms; and downloadable citations when using bibliographic software.

Source: IEEE, Piscataway, NJ, 732/981-0060; http://www.ieee.org.

Books@Ovid Contains McGraw-Hill Texts
Ovid Technologies has announced that electronic versions of 115 medical text and reference books, including Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, are now available on Books@Ovid through a new licensing agreement with McGraw-Hill.

This agreement increases the number of titles available on Books@Ovid to 275. Featured among the McGraw-Hill titles are 75 included on the Brandon/Hill Selected List, a popular list of well-known and frequently used texts in healthcare. Also included are many Lange Medical Books, a series of widely referenced texts that provide consistently organized, up-to-date, and targeted information on basic sciences and clinical topics.

Source: Ovid Technologies, Inc., New York, 800/950-2035, 212/563-3006; http://www.ovid.com.

APA Changes Pricing for Special Libraries
The American Psychological Association (APA) has developed new price structures for site licenses of PsycINFO and PsycARTICLES for corporations, government agencies, and other professional groups.

According to the senior director of PsycINFO, previously it was difficult to fit special libraries into the pricing mold developed for academic libraries. Under the new models, the price of an annual site license for PsycINFO and PsycARTICLES is tied to the number of professional staff members in an organization who are likely users of behavioral and psychological research. Basing the price on likely users rather than absolute counts of all staff gives the model the flexibility to meet the widely varied needs of libraries in any type of organization.

As with PsycINFO's academic price structures, the annual license fees apply to geographically distinct sites, such as the local office of a corporation or government agency. Multisite and consortial discounts are also available.

Source: American Psychological Association, Washington, DC, 800/374-2722, 202/336-5650; http://www.apa.org.

EBSCO Adds Several Databases to EBSCOhost
EBSCO Publishing has made several recent announcements regarding database additions to EBSCOhost.

MLA International Bibliography, the index of journal articles, books, and dissertations, has been added to EBSCO's collection of secondary databases. Produced by the Modern Language Association, the electronic version of the bibliography dates back to 1963 and contains over 1.5 million citations from more than 4,400 journals and series and 1,000 book publishers. Coverage is international and subjects include literature, language and linguistics, folklore, literary theory and criticism, and dramatic arts, as well as the historical aspects of printing and publishing.

AgeLine, produced by AARP (the American Association of Retired Persons), provides information on health, public policy, social, psychological, and fiscal issues related to aging. This database provides citations from both scholarly and consumer-oriented publications, with full abstracts generated by AARP. Sources indexed include journals, books, book chapters, reports, consumer guides, and videos. It's designed for researchers, professionals, students, and general consumers.

The Hispanic American Periodicals Index (HAPI) is a source of global information about Central and South America, Mexico, the Caribbean Basin, and the United States­Mexican border region and Hispanic Americans. Designed for academic, high school, and public libraries, the database includes analyses of current political, economic, and social issues and coverage of Latin American arts and letters.

Información de Salud para los Consumidores (en Español), offered via EBSCOhost Español, EBSCO's Spanish-language interface, is designed to make health information more accessible to Spanish-speaking consumers and patients. Content was selected from over 300 publications published by more than 50 research associations and national institutes. It includes essays and articles from federal and state health agencies, voluntary health organizations, pharmaceutical companies, and other health-related organizations.

Source: EBSCO Publishing, Ipswich, MA, 800/653-2726; http://www.epnet.com.
 

According to the survey, 87 percent of museums and at least 99 percent of surveyed libraries use at least some technology, most commonly desktop computers, Internet access, e-mail, standard office software, Web sites, and computerized collection catalogs. Also, IMLS found that the leading digitizers are SLAAs with more than 78 percent reporting digitization activities in the past year, followed by 32 percent of museums, 34 percent of academic libraries, and 25 percent of public libraries. IMLS says it will use the survey findings to encourage best practices in digitization activities including policy development, use of digital registries, and collaboration.

To obtain free copies of the institute's 42-page report, "The Status of Technology and Digitization in the Nation's Museums and Libraries," either send an e-mail to imlsinfo@imls.gov or access the report electronically from the agency Web site: http://www.imls.gov/reports/techreports/intro02.htm.

Source: Institute of Museum and Library Services, Washington, DC, 202/606-8536; http://www.imls.gov.

Chat Reference Common in ASERL Libraries
The Association of Southeastern Research Libraries' (ASERL) recent survey of its member libraries' practices shows that half of the research libraries in the Southeast currently have chat-based systems in place to field reference questions from users. By the end of this year, nearly all ASERL members will have such systems in place.

According to the announcement, ASERL is considering options to share staffing to cover overnight and weekend hours, times when reference librarians are not normally manning the reference desk. Currently only about 25 percent of ASERL members have virtual-reference staff working from off-site locations. With virtual reference, the librarian has the option of working from home or some other location. Those questions that require complex research or cannot easily be answered with electronic information are placed in a queue for response via other interactions with the user.

Source: Association of Southeastern Research Libraries, Atlanta, 800/999-8558; http://www.aserl.org.

Ingenta Institute Begins Consortia Study
The Ingenta Institute, an independent research organization of the scholarly communications industry created by ingenta, has announced the commencement of a comprehensive international study into the impact of site licensing and consortia developments on the scholarly communication process. According to the organization, no research has been done to assess the impact of the increasing popularity of consortia site negotiation between publishers and library groupings or consortia.

Consisting of three separate studies, the research program of The Impact of Site Licensing and Consortia Developments will run over a period of 2 years and will be coordinated by the Ingenta Institute. Detailed findings from the first phases of the separate qualitative and quantitative U.K. and U.S. studies will be announced and published this year at the Royal Society, London, on September 24 and at the Charleston Advisor pre-conference at Charleston, South Carolina, on October 30.

In the first study, industry expert Donald W. King, professor at the Pittsburgh University School of Information Sciences, will examine consortia e-journal services; the trends in these consortia considerations; how consortia can be served best and contribute to other system participants; and how publishers, consortia, and libraries can improve their decision making and optimize the consortia system.

Source: The Ingenta Institute, Cambridge, MA, 617/395-4000; http://www.ingenta.com.
 

To help bring widespread public access to information technologies, the portal will be designed to serve the ongoing needs of public libraries in managing hardware and software, implementing advanced applications, training staff and patrons, and delivering digital library services. It will leverage the installed computing base and trained population already established by the foundation's U.S. Library Program to develop a community of librarians who can share the resources and information necessary to provide ongoing public access computing. Content will serve five areas: continuing education, technical support, purchasing, capacity building, and community building. The portal will host a range of services and tools, such as online tutorials, training modules, Web casting, message boards, and expert assistance.

Source: OCLC, Dublin, OH, 800/848-5878, 614/764-6000; http://www.oclc.org.

ARL and FD Launch Scholars Portal Project
The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) and Fretwell-Downing, Inc. (FD) have announced the launch of the Scholars Portal Project, the goal of which is to provide software tools for an academic community so that it has a single point of access on the Web to find high-quality information resources and, to the greatest extent possible, to deliver the information and related services directly to the user's desktop. The inaugural libraries participating in the project are the University of Southern California, University of California­San Diego, Dartmouth College, University of Arizona, Arizona State University, Iowa State University, and University of Utah.

Initially, the Scholars Portal Project will use FD's ZPORTAL and several related FD products as a base. The focus will be on deploying ZPORTAL to deliver cross-domain searching of licensed and openly available content in a range of subjects and from multiple institutions. The portal will aggregate and integrate the results of the search and support delivery of the content to the user.

Future enhancements will include integration of the searching tool within the local online learning environment for a course and linkage to a 24/7 digital reference service to consult with a reference librarian.

Source: Association of Research Libraries, Washington, DC, 202/296-2296; http://www.arl.org and Fretwell-Downing, Inc., Newnan, GA, 888/649-6542; http://www.fdusa.com.

VTLS's Chameleon iPortal Makes Its Debut
VTLS, Inc. has announced the Chameleon iPortal, an aggregate Web service for libraries that "casts a wide net for capturing information via multiple Internet channels and search engines." Although many types of searchers may use it, this product caters to users who want immediate access to a broad range of online resources associated with a defined subject area.

The Chameleon iPortal is an extension of the features of Virtua ILS Chameleon Gateway. In addition to the Gateway's features, the iPortal will provide "drop-in/pull-out" components that will allow for easy access to subscription or external databases; broadcast searching across multiple Z39.50 databases; "canned" searches into a library's collection; access to external search engines and other portals that offer links to subject-based collections that are of interest to the patron; multisubject-based interfaces; a library calendar of events; extended, multimedia services with links to material such as book covers, tables of contents, and book reviews; integrated message boards, forums, and chat rooms; and the ability to incorporate new "open" technologies such as the Open Archives Initiative. Using Chameleon iPortal, a user may select a research topic and then be presented with a selection of "smart" links to other resources, such as Books In Print, Amazon.com, encyclopedias, dictionaries, and search engines.

Current customers using the Chameleon Gateway may migrate to the Chameleon iPortal simply by asking for an upgrade.

Source: VTLS, Inc., Blacksburg, VA, 800/468-8857, 540/557-1200; http://www.vtls.com.

Fretwell-Downing, Inc. Creates CPORTAL
Fretwell-Downing, Inc. has announced CPORTAL, a new community information network solution that improves the precision, relevance, and user-friendliness of Web-based searching. It allows online library catalogs and other Web sites to integrate with pre-existing internal databases.

With CPORTAL software, a library can allow patrons to simultaneously search a wide range of both internal and online Web sites and databases to receive a single set of results; select which information resources are the most appropriate and reliable for its community, and whether they are maintained by the library, government agency, or within the community; offer patrons access to Geographical Information Systems, which enable place-name searching; and provide a searching solution that complies with internationally recognized standards.

Source: Fretwell-Downing, Inc., Newnan, GA, 888/649-6542; http://www.fdusa.com.
 

Factiva Developer's Kit enables developers to create highly customized user interfaces to Factiva content, providing news and business information as well as internal information through a seamless single point of access. According to the company, this XML-based API provides developers with maximum flexibility and a simplified development path to customization that previously would have required months of co-development.

Factiva Developer's Kit is application- and platform-independent, and uses standard Internet technologies.

Source: Factiva, Princeton, NJ, 800/369-7466, 609/627-2000; http://www.factiva.com.

Inmagic's New Software Addresses Infoglut
Inmagic, Inc. has announced the release of Inmagic Gatherer, a spider that crawls specified in-house servers and Web sites, and Inmagic Classifier, an out-of the-box solution that provides classification technology based on semantic and syntactic knowledge.

Through automated searching and classification, Inmagic's Gatherer and Classifier provide knowledge management for organizations, supplying improved management, dissemination, and utilization of information assets. Inmagic Gatherer extracts content from the most popular file types and formats (HTML, text, Microsoft Office, and PDF), allowing the content to be loaded directly into the appropriate Inmagic DB/TextWorks knowledgebase or IntelliMagic (Inmagic's market intelligence system), or passed on to Inmagic Classifier. Inmagic Classifier incorporates a prebuilt taxonomy of close to 1 million categories, providing automated categorization and ensuring that new and dynamic information is kept current and relevant. Inmagic Classifier is completely scalable, from files on a single PC to systems with 60 million pages.

Source: Inmagic, Inc., Woburn, MA, 800/229-8398, 781/938-4442; http://www.inmagic.com.

Applied Semantics Adds Four Taxonomies
Applied Semantics, Inc., a software tools and applications provider for unstructured information management, has announced the addition of four new taxonomies as extensions to its Auto-Categorizer product, a content categorization solution that maps documents into one or multiple predefined or customer-specified hierarchies of categories without complex programming.

The four industry-standard taxonomies include MeSH (Medical Subject Headings), SIC (Standard Industrial Classification System), UNSPSC (Universal Standard Products and Services Classification), and Geography Codes. These new taxonomies supplement the existing Open Directory Project (ODP) and International Press Telecommunications Council (IPTC) taxonomy portfolios.

These industry-standard taxonomies are "plug-and-play" modules that can be individually licensed to enhance Auto-Categorizer. Customers can modify and extend the taxonomies for specific applications by using the Taxonomy Administrator tool integrated with Auto-Categorizer or by contacting Applied Semantics' Professional Services group.

Source: Applied Semantics, Inc., Los Angeles, 310/446-8162; http://www.appliedsemantics.com.