ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

NEW TECHNOLOGY

• Du Pont has introduced a compact disk infor- mation system that accesses data on the toxicity and safe exposure levels of thousands of chemicals. DUTOX provides information on physical and chemical data, manufacturers, exposure hazards and standards, toxicity, regulatory requirements, environmental fate, disposal guidelines, emergency handling, and first aid procedures. The information is contained on three databases, two from the Du Pont Haskell Laboratory for Toxicology and Internal Medicine and the third from the National Library of Medicine. A compact disk reader is provided with the service, which also provides subscribers with an annual search or summary by Haskell Laboratory of their choice of chemical not in the database. The system runs on IBMs or compatibles.

• The Faxon Company is now offering en- hanced versions of its automated serials control services, MicroLinx and SC-10. MicroLinx v.3.2 offers greater speed and security, as well as such additional search functions as: the ability to sort by call number on claims status reports; the ability to search address and location IDs with any characters, including diacritics and blanks; automatic calculations for the database management utility; and automatic re-display of search requests. The enhancements to the SC-10 system include barcode scanning, a new binding screen, and a more comprehensive display of SC-10 files.

Faxon has also released a software package that transfers selected Faxon invoice data into files readable by Lotus 1-2-3, Symphony, dBASE II, or dBASE III. Thesoftware, called FI$CAL, runs on IBM PCs and PC-compatibles.

Yet another Faxon service offers subscriptions to the MEDLINE Knowledge Finder CD-ROM database, which contains full citations of medical journal articles with up to five years of citations on a single optical disk. Developed by the Aries Systems Corporation, Knowledge Finder provides a variety of search options, including natural language expression. The system runs on Macintosh computers and is compatible with most CD-ROM disk players that support SCSI protocol.

For information on all Faxon products and services, contact The Faxon Company, 15 Southwest Park, Westwood, MA 02090; (617) 329-3350.

• The Public Affairs Information Service now

has an enhanced CD-ROM version, PAIS-on-CD- ROM, which contains over 275,000 records from 1972 to the present. PAIS-on-CD-ROM, which indexes public policy literature, was developed by a team of library indexers, programmers, systems analysts, information and reference specialists. The system runs on IBMs or compatibles with 640K RAM.

• SpaceSaver Corporation has introduced the S-

Line series of high density mobile filing/storage systems that will fit any room size, overcome architectural constraints, and solve difficult space configurations. The systems range from five feet in length to more than 80 feet, with load capacities from less than 5,000 pounds per carriage, to more than 1,000 pounds per lineal foot. The small manuals can be set on any type of floor, including carpet, and are especially adaptable for cul-de-sacs or other tight spaces. The larger electrical systems have pushbutton operating controls and passive safety features.

The Yale University Divinity School Library recently installed 8,500 linear feet of Spacesaver’s mechanical assist mobile shelving in order to accommodate collection growth for at least 20 years, with only a minimal amount of vertical construction. The total Divinity Library now occupies over 30,000 volumes and space for 320 readers. Some 100,000 volumes, as well as manuscript and archival records, have been located on the mobile system.

Architect Winthrop Cannon of Yale’s Department of Architectural and Engineering Services planned the project, which added two new levels over a passageway connecting two buildings. To make the best use of the additional 3,200 square feet, the mechanical assist systems sold by Space- saver were chosen after comparing several different products.

Although the cost of mobile systems per square foot is higher than that for static shelving, the construction cost per book is very low because dead aisle space is eliminated. Yale estimated that mobile shelving had a net per volume savings of $1.22 compared to static shelving. While the entire project including space renovation cost Yale $1.4 million, over the long term compact shelving at cost per square foot came down dramatically. This was a key factor in estimating air conditioning costs, because minimizing square footage reduced the amount of energy required at a cost of over $3.00

Yale Divinity School Library’s technical services area, where a small mobile compact SpaceSaver system was installed.

per square foot per year.

Spacesaver’s heavy-duty, wheel-mounted carriages ride on tracks, compacting right or left simultaneously when hand-pressure is applied to the 3-arm spoke on the face of the carriage. It takes only one pound of force on the arm to move 4,000 pounds of load. The library has reported no safety problems, complaints, or service maintenance problems. For further information, contact Mark Haubenschild, SpaceSaver Corporation, 1450 Janesville Ave., Fort Atkinson, WI 53538.

• Thomson & Thomson's Trademarkscan—

Federaldatabase will be one of the first to utilize DIALOG’S new image capability. The database allows DIALOG users to display, type, and save images of the trademark logos and other trademark design elements it contains. The database, available on DIALOG since 1983, provides access to all active registered and pending trademarks on file in the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Each record contains the trademark, a description of the goods or service, the owner’s name, and other pertinent information about the status of the mark. It allows for retrieval of unconventional presentations of words, corrupted spellings, non-Latin characters, and languages other than English. Of the 785,000 records in the database, about 40% contain some design element. Later on this year, users will be able to search for trademarks that contain a specific design element. This will be accomplished by the addition of design codes that index the most salient features of a trademark. For more information, contact Thomson & Thomson, One Monarch Drive, North Quincy, MA 02171-2126; (617) 479-1600.

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National Library Week, April 17-23

National Library Week will be celebrated April 17-23, 1988, with the theme, “The Card with a Charge.. .Use Your Library” (or “Charge up at the Library,” where there is no card).

ALA’s Public Information Office has developed theme materials including four posters, bookmarks, and balloons featuring “charged up” cartoon-style characters. PIO’s 1988 Library Publicity Book with publicity and promotional ideas is also available.

Other 1988 ALA Graphics products of interest to academic librarians are the Margaret Sanger and Gandhi additions to the “Great Minds Meet at the Library” poster series, celebrity READ posters of Oprah Winfrey, Phil Collins, Michael J. Fox, and Ruben Blades, notecards featuring ALA poster art from World War I and an enamel pin with the classic “Red Read” graphic.

For a free, full-color catalog, write: 1988 ALA Graphics Catalog, American Library Association, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 60611.

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