ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

Fast Facts

Ann Viles

→ CyberCemetery

The University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department maintains the only federal depository for digital archives of defunct government agencies and commissions. Established in 1997, the Government Information Connection, dubbed “CyberCemetery” by early users, currently provides public access to the Web sites and digital publications of 14 agencies and commissions, plus the issues of "Access America E-Gov E-Zine,” which ceased publication in January 2001.

"CyberCemetery," University of North Texas Libraries Government Documents Department, Dec. 13, 2001. http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/. Feb. 3. 2002

→ First ALA-accredited online master's degree in the Northwest

The University of Washington Information School began a new program this fall offering “an online Master’s degree in Library and Information Science (MLIS). The UW Information School is the only American Library Association accredited institution in die Northwest, making this the first such degree by a school in Washington, Oregon, Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, Utah and Nevada.’’

"University of Washington Offers Online Master of Library and Information Science,“ Distance-Educator.com Daily News, Feb. 3, 2002. http7/www.distance-educator.com/dnews.php4?action=detail&id=5990. Feb. 3, 2002

→ Academic press titles on bestseller lists

Publishers Weeklyreported an unusual number of books from scholarly presses, including Yale and Rutgers, made it to the bestseller lists following September 11 last year. A total of 433 titles were listed during 2001, up 12.5 percent from the previous record of 385 set in 2000.

Daisy Maryles, “What the Numbers Reveal." Publishers Weekly, Jan. 14. 2002. http://publishersweekly. reviewsnews.com/index.asp?layout=articlePrint&articlelD=CA191212. Feb. 2. 2002

→ Digital library of tobacco documents

The University of California, San Francisco Legacy Tobacco Documents Library, “the world's largest public digital collection maintained by a library,” now provides public access to more than 20 million pages of documents from the tobacco industry,

"Digital Library of Secret Tobacco Documents Released by UCSF," University of California, San Francisco Library anticenter for Knowledge Management, Jan. 31,2002. http://legacy.library.ucsf.edu/update.html. Feb. 2,2002

→ Digital object identifiers

A Digital Object Identifier (DOI), a "persistent identifier of intellectual property entities," can be applied to physical objects, such as books, recordings, and journal articles, as well as digital files on the Internet. DOI technology links customers with content providers and enables “automated copyright management for all types of media."

"The Digital Object Identifier System," International DOI Foundation. http7/www.dol.org/. Feb. 3, 2002

→ ALA Midwinter attendance

About 7,500 librarians attended the ALA Midwinter meeting in New Orleans, a decrease of more than 1,000 from last year's attendance in Washington, D.C. but slightly higher than the total at the San Antonio meeting in 2000. The number of exhibitors attending this year dropped by over 23 percent from 4,700 in Washington to 3,600 in New Orleans.

Nora Rawlinson, “Library Budgets Holding Steady," Publishers Weekly. Jan 28, 2002. http7/publishersweekly. reviewsnews.com/index.asp?layout=article&articleld=CA193132&display=searchResults. Jan. 28, 2002

Ann Viles is coordinator of reference and instruction at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, e-mail: vilesea@conrad.appstate.edu