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Vol. 23 No. 6 — June 2003

Libraryevents.com has announced a new service for information professionals, which consists of a fully searchable current awareness database and a monthly newsletter called LIS Events. The service provides subscribers with up-to-date details of important library-related events.

The service covers events such as training courses from a range of organizations, conferences, exhibitions and trade shows, library association meetings, and national book and library events in many countries.

The Library Events service uses EventKeeper, a software package for creating online calendars and event listings, which is produced by Plymouth Rocket, Inc.

Source: Libraryevents.com, Ystad, Sweden, 011-46-411-121-70; Fax: 011-46-411-121-10; http://www.libraryevents.com.

OUP Adds Words to OED Online Edition

Oxford University Press (OUP) has announced that the online edition of The Oxford English Dictionary (http://www.oed.com) has been updated with more than 2,200 new and revised entries, including "muggle," "Mr. Nice-Guy," "sexual harassment," and "multi-task."

While the computer and technology fields contributed a vast array of new definitions, including "MPEG," "MP3," "weblog," "multiplatform," and more, Oxford reports that its lexicographers have uncovered new words and usage in every area of human endeavor. A complete list of the new words and their definitions in the latest update is available online at http://www.oed.com/public/help/Dict/Quarterly/0303a.htm.

Source: Oxford University Press, New York, 212/726-6000; http://www.oup-usa.com.

EBSCO Book Services Announces Affiliate Program, Features a Revamped Interface

EBSCO Book Services (http://www.ebscobooks.com) has announced an affiliate program that will enable participating libraries to receive a percentage of their book purchases when using their EBSCO Book Services accounts.

Customers can earn 4 percent of sales (excluding shipping) when purchasing items through EBSCO Book Services. Checks will be issued to qualified participants on a quarterly basis when revenue earned is $100 or more. The program is available to new and reactivated institutional accounts.

Also, EBSCO Book Services features a new interface. The new format includes detailed product information provided by MUZE, an organization that delivers information about commercially available books, music, and movies.

Source: EBSCO Subscription Services, Birmingham, AL, 800/815-9627; http://www.ebsco.com.

IMLS Awards Grants to Improve Technology

The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has announced grants totaling $150 million to state library agencies in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories. The grants are awarded under the Library Services and Technology Act and are made to each state according to a population-based formula; the state's Library Administrative Agency will administer the funds. States provide at least $1 for every $2 of federal support.

Besides employment services and early childhood education, libraries will use these federal funds to invest in technology. Public libraries remain the number-one point of online access for people without Internet access at home, school, or work.

Source: Institute of Museum and Library Services, Washington, DC, 202/606-8339; http://www.imls.gov.

Inmagic Releases Content Server Platform

Inmagic has announced the release of Content Sever, a database management environment that allows high-speed search and categorization of content.

Content Server allows business users to create content as well as to integrate existing content from internal and external sources, deploy that content to Web pages, and organize and manage information flow so that the databases drive the content for end users.

According to the company, Content Server can be deployed quickly and cost-effectively with only minimal support from the IT staff; current customers of Inmagic's DB/TextWorks can migrate to the new management tool by contacting their account managers.

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

Oregon Libraries Launch New Chat Service

Multnomah County Library has announced that Oregon Libraries have launched Answerland, a collaborative online chat service (http://www.answerland.org).

The new service, funded with a $170,000 LSTA grant, connects Oregon residents with librarians via Web browsers. In order to ask a question, patrons must enter their ZIP codes to verify that they are Oregon residents.

Librarians from 21 academic, public, and school libraries in Oregon are initially staffing Answerland afternoons and evenings, 7 days a week. According to the announcement, the service hours will expand as additional libraries join and users provide feedback.

Source: Multnomah County Library, Portland, OR, 503/988-5402; http://www.multcolib.org.

Content Agreements

Infotrieve Adds Content from Six Publishers

Infotrieve has announced that it has signed article distribution agreements with six publishers in the scientific, technical, and medical fields.

These publishers are the American Academy of Pediatrics (http://www.aapjournals.org), the American Society of Clinical Oncology (http://www.jco.org), the Association of Research in Vision and Ophthalmology (ARVO; http://www.iovs.org), the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery (http://www.jbjs.org), the New York Academy of Sciences (http://www.annalsnyas.org), and the Society of Nuclear Medicine (http://www.snmjournals.org).

Source: Infotrieve, Los Angeles, 310/234-2038; http://www.infotrieve.com.

Swets Blackwell Adds Content to SwetsWise

Swets Blackwell has announced that it has recently concluded agreements with several publishers of STM and other professional titles to provide access to their online journal content via SwetsWise, the company's Web-based service for the access and management of subscriptions and online information.

The new publishers are Australian Academic Press (http://www.australianacademicpress.com.au), Boom Publishers (http://www.uitgeverijboom.nl), Central European Science Journals (http://www.cesj.com), Radcliffe Medical Press (http://www.radcliffe-oxford.com), and Supply Chain Knowledge Centre (SCKC).

Source: Swets Blackwell, Runnemede, NJ, 800/645-6595; http://www.swetsblackwell.com.

Dialog Offers Inspec Content, Adds to ToxFile

The Dialog Corp. has announced that it is offering the Information Technology and Communications subset of the Inspec database, as well as customized Inspec subsets, to users of Dialog and Dialog DataStar services.

Produced by the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE), the Inspec database is an English-language bibliographic information source providing access to the world's scientific and technical literature in physics, electrical engineering, electronics, communications, and information technology. The Information Technology and Communications subset is composed of more than 1.4 million records dating back to 1969. Dialog and Dialog DataStar users can now also subscribe to customized discrete subsets of content from the Inspec database, which can be created using Dialog's Custom Solutions capabilities.

In a separate news release, Dialog announced that it has enhanced its ToxFile database by integrating additional toxicology material.

Previously, ToxFile on Dialog consisted of only journal materials provided by the U.S. National Library of Medicine (NLM), a data set referred to as TOXLINE Core by the NLM. To this material, Dialog has added material from TOXLINE Special, also provided by the NLM. TOXLINE Special consists of 15 data sets covering toxicology, hazardous chemicals, and related areas, as well as references from an assortment of specialized journals and other sources published by government departments and international organizations.

Source: The Dialog Corp., Cary, NC, 800/3DIALOG, 919/462-8600; http://www.dialog.com.

Washington Times Available on NewsStand

NewsStand, Inc. has announced that The Washington Times is available as an electronic edition through NewsStand, Inc., a provider of digital publishing and delivery solutions.

NewsStand's electronic editions allow subscribers to download exact digital replicas of newspapers directly to personal computers via the Internet and to read the publications offline. Readers also gain functionality such as keyword search, direct jumps to desired sections, and article continuations with one mouse click.

Single digital copies and subscriptions to The Washington Times can be purchased at http://www.washingtontimes.com or via NewsStand's Web site. The single-copy price is 25 cents for the daily edition and 75 cents for the Sunday edition. Monday through Sunday subscriptions are also available. Other publications that are available via NewsStand include The New York Times, Le Monde, Harvard Business Review, and Barron's.

Source: NewsStand, Inc., Austin, TX, 512/334-5100; http://www.newsstand.com.

ProQuest Adds 63 Kluwer Medical Journals

ProQuest Co.'s Information and Learning unit has announced a limited exclusive agreement with Kluwer Academic Publishers that will bring the full text of 63 medical journals to the company's online databases, including ProQuest Medical Library, MEDLINE with Full Text, and other databases.

Full text for all new Kluwer title additions will begin with 1999 issues and move forward; current content will be subject to a 12-month embargo.

Source: ProQuest Information and Learning, Ann Arbor, MI, 800/521-0600, 734/761-4700; http://www.il.proquest.com.

Automation News

Dynix Creates Authority Loader for Horizon

Dynix has announced the creation of a new Name Authority Cooperative (NACO) normalization authority loader for the Horizon Information Management System that, according to the company, will guarantee accuracy and reduce staff time spent in managing authority-controlled MARC records.

Created through collaboration with academic users of Horizon, the Horizon Authority Loader will allow a library to control how authorities are created and updated within its system. It uses algorithmic sequences built on NACO standards to normalize authority records during the importation and creation processes. NACO normalization is also used throughout the system for indexing, searching, and matching authority records.

Dynix reports that the Horizon Authority Loader eliminates the duplication of records and ensures that authority data is reliable by eliminating human error.

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

Brodart Automation Has Released Amlib 3.12

Brodart Co.'s Automation Division has announced the release of Amlib 3.12.

Version 3.12 includes several new features, including batch importing of patron pictures, merging of patron records (both circulation and financial), and enhanced invoicing features. Also, newly incorporated loan periods (term, semester, and year) were added to assist school libraries. Brodart says that libraries will also see improved searching performance while cataloging and within their OPACs, due to the development of an enhanced keyword table.

Amlib is a comprehensive Windows-based library management system that offers many features, including cross-reference navigation between modules, Main Menu availability within each module, and the incorporation of multimedia into the system.

Source: Brodart Co., Automation Division, Williamsport, PA, 800/233-8467; http://www.brodart.com/automation.

Winnebago Spectrum 5.2 Has Been Released

Sagebrush Corp. has announced the release of Winnebago Spectrum 5.2, the latest update to its library automation system.

New features of version 5.2 include reading program/reading level search, bibliography font size specification, improved work flow for "lost" item status, new buttons on the Navigator toolbar, and two new add-ons—Spectrum Français and Spectrum Español, which allow French- and Spanish-speaking patrons to view search screens in the language of their choice.

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

Inmagic, Inc. Releases BiblioTech PRO 2.5

Inmagic, Inc. has announced the release of BiblioTech PRO version 2.5, the company's integrated library system that combines features of an ILS with the flexibility to support information management needs beyond the traditional library.

BiblioTech PRO is being released in conjunction with BibSpeed 2.5, a Web-enabling module for searching a BiblioTech PRO database over a corporate intranet or the Internet, creating a virtual library/virtual reference environment. According to Inmagic, the combination of the two products gives librarians and corporate information center managers the ability to provide value-added services to their customers, including self-service opportunities.

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

Events for Info Pros

O'Reilly Open Source Convention to Be in July

O'Reilly has announced that registration has begun for its 2003 Open Source Convention, which will take place July 7­11 in Portland, Ore. Programmers, developers, strategists, and technical staff will congregate for 5 days of tutorials, conference sessions, and networking. This year's tutorials and sessions are organized into specific tracks and conferences: Perl, Apache, PHP, XML, MySQL, and more.

For complete convention details, visit http://conferences.oreilly.com/oscon. For news from last year's conference, visit http://www.oreillynet.com/oscon2002.

Source: O'Reilly & Associates, Sebastopol, CA, 800/998-9938, 707/827-7000; http://www.oreilly.com.

Imark Starts Content Management Event

Imark Communications has announced Content Management Europe 2003, which will take place Dec. 2­4, 2003, at the Grand Hall, Olympia in London, and will run within the Online Information conference.

Content Management Europe will consist of an exhibition and a VIP conference designed for senior business sponsors, plus an educational program of seminars and master classes that will focus on selecting and implementing content management solutions.

For further information on Content Management Europe, visit the Web site at http://www.cme-expo.co.uk.

Source: Imark Communications, Middlesex, U.K., 011-44-1932-730-700; Fax: 011-44-1932-779-085; http://www.imark.co.uk.

Your Digital Library

Docutek Enhances the Features in VRLplus

Docutek Information Systems, Inc. has announced new enhancements to the Docutek VRLplus virtual reference librarian system.

New features in Docutek VRLplus include Operator to Operator Chat, which allows librarians to chat with one another while assisting a patron; Exit Survey functionality, so that when a virtual reference session is completed, the librarian can solicit feedback from the patron; Unfinished Question Tracking, which enables librarians to chart how many questions have been left unanswered; and enhanced queue management.

Source: Docutek Information Systems, Inc., Burlingame, CA, 650/286-7300; http://www.docutek.com.

eHelp Corp. Releases RoboDemo 4.0 Software

eHelp Corp. has announced the availability of RoboDemo 4.0, the latest version of its software for Flash-based tutorials of any software or Web-based application.

RoboDemo records the use of any application or on-screen activity and instantly creates a Flash movie with visible and audible mouse clicks. Users can enhance these movies with rollover and transparent captions and images, audio, interactive text entry, hyperlinks, and special effects. Simulations created with RoboDemo can be viewed on a Web site or intranet, burned onto a CD, e-mailed to an end user, or integrated into a Help system.

New features for version 4.0 include AutoText captions, which allow users to have RoboDemo automatically write and insert text captions that describe each step taken by the user during the recording session. Users can also edit movies by making universal changes to objects without having to edit frame-by-frame, and can copy and paste multiple frames and objects multiple times.

RoboDemo 4.0 is $349, and is available through eHelp's Web site.

Source: eHelp Corp., San Diego, CA, 800/358-9370, 858/459-6365; http://www.ehelp.com.

Blue Angel Announces MetaStar, Metasearch

Blue Angel Technologies, Inc. has announced that two digital library management products, MetaStar Digital Library and Metasearch, are now available.

MetaStar Digital Library allows libraries to create, capture, describe, publish, and discover numerous digital objects including images, video, audio, Web content; and traditional documents such as PDFs and MS Office.

According to the company, Metasearch Solution allows libraries to deploy metasearch services cost-effectively. It contains an authentication module, a customizable interface, a metasearch engine, connectors to heterogeneous resource collections, a content management module, and an administration module.

Source: Blue Angel Technologies, Inc., Valley Forge, PA, 610/917-9200; http://www.blueangeltech.com.

Improved Databases

West Adds Database Directory to Westlaw

West has announced that through its new database directory users can navigate through the thousands of databases on Westlaw.

According to West, the new directory works much like many Internet directories. It features quick navigation with logical organization of headings and subheadings, which are available from the first screen. Users can also run a scan to search the entire directory, or they can search within selected topics to find the appropriate database. Users with customized subscriptions can view their content in the new display by clicking the My Databases link, or they can browse a list of new databases added in the last 30 days.

Source: West, Eagan, MN, 800/328-4880; http://www.westgroup.com.

Derwent Enhances Derwent Innovations Index

Thomson Derwent has announced Derwent Innovations Index 4.0, which features enhanced chemistry content and search functionality.

New features for chemists include chemical structure searching, links to images of Derwent Documentation Abstracts, fragmentation code searching, and links with DiscoveryGate from MDL Information Systems. In addition, Derwent Innovations Index 4.0 integrates content from Derwent Chemistry Resource, the companion file of chemical structures that is cross-searchable with the chemical information within Derwent World Patents Index. The new version also offers links to the full-text patent documents from a specially customized version of the Thomson Patent Store.

Source: Thomson Derwent, London, 011-44-20-7344-2800; http://www.derwent.com.

MuseGlobal Offers Authentication Feature

MuseGlobal, Inc. has announced a new authentication option in MuseSearch, which provides more flexible alternatives for retrieving data from subscription-based HTTP sources.

Originally, MuseSearch utilized a proxy wrapper in conjunction with a proxy server to ensure that the user's browser had access to all information passed between the Muse server and the information source server during the search process. According to MuseGlobal's chief technology officer, the new component is a "rewriting proxy" that eliminates the need to configure individual browsers, reducing the burden on systems administrators. The user's search is sent to MuseSearch, and the search is performed as usual. Returned results have their links automatically rewritten so that they include the Muse proxy in the loop when retrieving the full text of documents. In this way, authentication is maintained and the user is not required to individually log on to content provider servers.

Source: MuseGlobal, Inc., Salt Lake City, 801/208-1880; http://www.museglobal.com.

CSA Adds New Databases, Upgrades IDS

Cambridge Scientific Abstracts (CSA) has announced that the databases Index Islamicus and RILM Abstracts of Music Literature are now available through the Internet Database Service (IDS).

Index Islamicus indexes literature on Islam, the Middle East, and the Muslim world. Produced by the Islamic Bibliography Unit at Cambridge University Library, material cited in Index Islamicus includes not only work written about the Middle East, but also about the other main Muslim areas of Asia and Africa, plus Muslim minorities elsewhere. RILM Abstracts of Music Literature, published by the Répertoire International de Littérature Musicale (RILM), covers all areas of music research, including interdisciplinary studies of music. The database now contains more than 250,000 records with coverage back to 1967.

In a separate announcement, CSA released IDS 6.1. According to the company, the main change in the service is the addition of a new Global Marking capability, which allows users to collect marked records from multiple databases and multiple searches and to save/print/e-mail the group all at once. In addition, subscribers to SAGE Full-Text Collection databases can now mark records displayed in a SAGE journal table of contents view.

Source: Cambridge Scientific Abstracts, Bethesda, MD, 800/843-7751, 301/961-6700; http://www.csa.com.

EBSCO Provides BookSource: Nonfiction

EBSCO Publishing has announced BookSource: Nonfiction, which contains full text and abstracts for 1,000 popular, nonfiction books found in school and public libraries. It includes books on science, social studies, history, and literature, along with current information on careers, health, sports, adventure, and technology.

The BookSource: Nonfiction database is 100 percent full text and fully searchable. The content includes many popular titles and series from top book publishers. Another important feature of the database is the inclusion within the citations of nationally developed curriculum benchmarks. One or more of 170 benchmarks is assigned to content within the subject categories; the benchmarks will appear in the citation as a live link, which when clicked displays a list of all content in the database that shares the same benchmark.

According to EBSCO, additional books and updates will be provided on a continual basis.

Source: EBSCO Publishing, Ipswich, MA, 800/653-2726, 978/356-6500; http://www.ebsco.com.

H.W. Wilson Adds to WilsonWeb, Makes More Databases Available on EBSCOhost

H.W. Wilson has announced enhancements to its newly redesigned WilsonWeb reference database service.

Its new All-Smart search query in the advanced search mode is a rule-based search that takes advantage of Wilson's indexing metadata. All-Smart search assigns a relevancy ranking to each record depending on which field in the citation it finds the search term or phrase. Also, a new Keyword search looks for the search term only in records' bibliographic citation fields, including abstracts. The full text of articles is not searched, which avoids irrelevant hits. The interface has also been enhanced with some new features.

In a separate announcement, Wilson reported that 11 more of its databases will be available to libraries via EBSCOhost. This brings the total number to 17.

The new Wilson databases coming to EBSCOhost are Art Index Retrospective, Bibliographic Index, Biological & Agricultural Index, Book Review Digest, Current Biography Illustrated, Essay and General Literature Index, General Science Abstracts, Index to Legal Periodicals & Books, Library Literature & Information Science, Readers' Guide Abstracts, and Short Story Index.

Source: H.W. Wilson, New York, 800/367-6770, 718/588-8400; http://www.hwwilson.com.

ProQuest Completes Digital Archive, Adds Content to ABI/INFORM, Changes Interface

ProQuest has announced that it has completed the digital archive of The Christian Science Monitor in full-page image from its first issue in 1908 through 1990. The archive is part of the ProQuest Historical Newspapers project. The database includes each page from every issue of the Monitor in PDF files, and ProQuest will continue to add the most recent coverage.

In two separate news releases, ProQuest Information and Learning announced the addition of content from The Wall Street Journal and SAGE Publications into its family of ABI/INFORM full-text business databases. The Wall Street Journal content provides users with access to the current full-text file of The Wall Street Journal, covering the years 1986 to the present, with daily updates. It will be part of full-text subscriptions to ABI/INFORM Complete, ABI/INFORM Global, and ABI/INFORM Research.

SAGE Publications' content will bring 21 business and management titles to ABI/INFORM. The SAGE titles will support research in accounting and finance, change management, human resource development, marketing, and organization studies.

Also, ProQuest has announced that it will launch PQNext, the latest version of the ProQuest interface, in July. According to the company, PQNext will use metadata and rich content for superior search results. Article-level metadata, including abstracts and subject terms, and enhanced linking capabilities using OpenURL will help searchers find difficult-to-locate material. PQNext will retain all the capabilities of the existing ProQuest platform.

Source: ProQuest Information and Learning, Ann Arbor, MI, 800/521-0600, 734/761-4700; http://www.il.proquest.com.

New Books

Omnigraphics Publishes Security Guide

Omnigraphics has announced publication of Computer Security Sourcebook (ISBN: 0-7808-0648-4; $68), edited by Wilma R. Caldwell. The book brings together facts, figures, and resources to better assist computer users in navigating today's computer security issues. It provides basic consumer information about computer, Internet, and e-mail security, including hard drive integrity and backups, firewalls, virus protection, software bugs, Internet filtering for children, e-mail monitoring and security, and privacy rights and policies. The book also includes statistics, a glossary of related terms, and resources for further information.

Source: Omnigraphics, Detroit, 313/961-1340; http://www.omnigraphics.com.

LU Book Explains Law for School Libraries

Libraries Unlimited has announced publication of Law for K­12 Libraries and Librarians (ISBN: 1-59158-036-6; $25), by Lee Ann Torrans. The book is designed to help school librarians and media specialists to understand the relevance of laws that affect the daily operation of the school library.

While the book is not intended to give legal advice or to create lawyers from librarians, it does explain the many dangers facing the unwary librarian and offers recommendations on how to best avoid legal problems. Chapters cover such topics as the implications and limitations of linking, teacher Web sites, students' Web pages, privacy and filtering, and the USA PATRIOT Act.

Source: Libraries Unlimited, Westport, CT, 203/225-5800; http://www.lu.com.

ITI Publishes Title for New Webmasters

Information Today, Inc. has announced publication of The Accidental Webmaster (ISBN: 1-57387-164-8, $29.50), by Julie M. Still. According to the publisher, the book is designedto help new Webmasters, especially those who have limited financial and human resources at their disposal, to deal with the challenges they face.

The book does not deal with the technical aspects of being a Webmaster, but instead focuses on practical advice on topics like getting started, setting policies, gaining user feedback, and selecting content.

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