Most librarians working with sci-tech collections are fully aware of the importance of conference papers and proceedings, which has long played a major role in keeping professionals informed of the latest developments in their field. In this book, first published in 1989, responsible executives from several publishers of conference literature have joined with a number of sci-tech librarians to discuss the nature and value of conference literature in sci-tech libraries. A commercial publisher discusses the difficulties in editing a set of conference papers in a book, while producers of indexing/abstracting tools describe their selection methods, retrieval services, and general outlook on conference materials. In addition, sci-tech librarians address the problems of accessing, citing, and locating conference literature and explore the many aspects of the cataloguing of conference publications.

Here is a unique volume on the relationship between sci-tech materials and trade literature, commonly called manufacturers’catalogs. Because very little has been published about the value and nature of trade literature in regard to sci-tech libraries, this volume will be important in informing librarians about a little-known segment of the larger picture of sci-tech information sources, thus adding to the value of their services to their clients. The Role of Trade Literature in Sci-Tech Libraries addresses the problems of handling sci-tech trade literature in a corporate technical library, a large public library, and a government library devoted to American history. Experts offer practical advice on selecting and organizing trade literature and on managing the growth and extent of a collection of trade literature. They discuss modern literature and older publications, which often have great historical value. Libraries that collect both old and new materials are identified, as are publishers of trade literature. The book also focuses on how a publisher of classic trade literature views its role. Of interest to any professional in the information science field, this practical volume will be particularly valuable to managers of corporate sci-tech libraries, managers of library collections in Americana, and beginning librarians who are learning about trade literature.

Required reading for any librarian who has been asked to identify standards and specifications, this unique new book highlights the importance of standards in many sci-tech libraries. Collections of standards in sci-tech libraries encompass a great variety--from the most narrow subject fields, to those covering many, and from collections of American standards only, to those with an international array. Role of Standards in Sci-Tech Libraries addresses the need for standards in libraries and provides crucial guidelines for developing standards collections. The first chapter describes the operation and collections of the ideal service that could be established to serve those needing stadards and to promote the use and collection of standards. A helpful list of foreign and domestic organizations that issue standards is included. Successive chapters explore the role of standards in different types of libraries--a public library’s science and technology department, a corporate library, an academic library, and the library of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). The final chapter addresses the role of Information Handling Services (IHS), a commercial source of all types of standards, discusses the range of standards services, and explains how information is acquired.

Catch up with the many innovations now affecting sci/tech libraries! The twenty-four chapters in Innovations in Science and Technology Libraries discuss the creation of digital collections, e-repositories, personalized Web environments, and discipline-specific Web sites for students and researchers. The book also explores the use of new technologies to improve document delivery and service provision as well as demonstrations of leadership by science librarians who are willing to take risks, adapt to change, control costs, and collaborate with colleagues. Here is just a fraction of the fascinating cases and important concepts highlighted in Innovations in Science and Technology Libraries: the Drexel University Library’s transition from print to an electronic-only journal collection the benefits of adopting a just-in-time (purchase on demand) rather than a just-in-case acquisitions policy IntelliDoc—how it has raised the standard for document delivery worldwide and increased international recognition of CISTI how California State University, Sacramento, merged its science library into its central reference department—an examination of the two-year merging process the creation of branch libraries focused on electronic information—an engineering library at Kansas State University and an agriculture library at the University of Manitoba the impact of electronic information upon undergraduate science education literacy competencies in the sciences—and their implications for library instruction how the MIT libraries created and developed the Reference Vision system that now guides all of their new reference services the impact of learning communities upon library services recent additions that enhance the usefulness of the IEEE Xplore online delivery system Innovations in Science and Technology Libraries will bring you up-to-date on the latest developments, sharpen your awareness of new concepts and techniques in sci/tech librarianship, and help your library stay abreast of important changes in this ever-evolving field. Make it a part of your professional reference collection today!

“Advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.” --Arthur C. Clarke This well-researched book makes sense of the new advances in electronic services and resources available to science and technology libraries. It will familiarize you with the latest collection development, reference service, and information service technologies. Inside you’ll find case studies, examples of successful implementations of emerging information technologies, helpful tables and figures, screen shots, and more! In addition to bringing you up to date on the latest trends in the area, Electronic Resources and Services in Sci-Tech Libraries will provide you with essential background information on these important technologies. With Electronic Resources and Services in Sci-Tech Libraries, you’ll learn: how the University of Arizona Libraries access remote electronic resources how journal articles containing complex mathematics are published on the Web--including the latest developments in MathML, PDF, OpenMath, and more how the e-resource registry approach can be integrated with existing custom Web-based services how to use user-centered criteria to evaluate electronic journals how to use e-prints (electronic preprints) to break the stranglehold that journal publishers have over science libraries how to get the most from electronic reserves-with tips and techniques for implementing an e-reserves service, negotiating copyright issues, and more how to implement a successful current awareness services program how the next generation of library portals will impact sci-tech libraries and much more!

Learn how sci-tech libraries are encouraging and training end-users to do their own online searching of sci-tech databases. In sci-tech disciplines, efforts to increase collegiate end-user training and on-the-job training in searching are more prevalent in many colleges and business/government organizations. This timely book includes information on how to train end-users to search with both natural language and controlled vocabularies in the sciences, describes a planning assessment for implementing end-user searching in a sci-tech organization, examines how the scientists at a major industrial research organization have begun to do more online searching with the encouragement of the information center, and explores the proactive role that medical libraries have taken in training health care professionals to search MEDLINE.