Date: Tue, 1 Apr 2003 08:32:31 +0530 From: Subbiah Arunachalam Lane, Megan. "[21]Is This the Library of the Future?" [22]BBC News Online (18 March 2003) (http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/2859845.stm). - Written in a rather whimsical style, this short article makes a serious statement about the direction in which libraries are evolving. The word 'library' may eventually be dropped from our vocabulary, to be replaced by the 'idea store'. Books are being displaced by computers, multimedia content, playgrounds, thematic displays, and cafes. This is proving extremely propular, given the surge in client population. The library locales mentioned are local, however, the transformation of libraries is universal. - [23]MG Lynch, Clifford A. "[24]Institutional Repositories: Essential Infrastructure for Scholarship in the Digital Age" [25]ARL: A Bimonthly Report on Research Library Issues and Actions from ARL, CNI, and SPARC p. 1-7 (February 2003) (http://www.arl.org/newsltr/226/ir.html). - In this article, Clifford A. Lynch, with his usual clarity and insight, overviews institutional repositories, discusses their strategic importance, examines key issues, considers how they may promote infrastructure standards, and speculates on possible future developments. He defines an institutional repository as "a set of services that a university offers to the members of its community for the management and dissemination of digital materials created by the institution and its community members." A repository could contain research materials (including data files), teaching materials, and documentation about the institution. A critical function of a repository is the long-term preservation of this information. Lynch voices three concerns about repositories. First, they should not become a tool for enforcing administrative control over faculty works. Second, they should not be unduly constrained by policies designed to promote other agendas such as creating virtual e-journals (although they may contribute to this effort by providing essential infrastructure that supports it). Third, they should not be established without institutions making well-considered, long-term commitments to their operation. On this point, he notes that: "Stewardship is easy and inexpensive to claim; it is expensive and difficult to honor, and perhaps it will prove to be all too easy to later abdicate." Lynch feels that repositories will promote progress in the areas of preservation formats, identifiers, and digital rights management. Over time, most higher education institutions will have repositories, and other types of institutions may as well. The "federation" of repositories will become an increasingly important area for experimentation. - [26]CB Pace, Andrew K.. The Ultimate Digital Library: Where the New Information Players Meet Chicago: American Library Association, 2003. - This highly readable and provocative book should be required reading for any librarian who wishes to pay attention to where the field is heading. Although Pace may not be able to tell us with any certainty where we will end up, he knows the current hot spots and he touches on them all. From the pivotal relationship between libraries and vendors to competition from dot.coms, the changing face of public services, and the erosion of basic reader rights, this slim volume belies the span of territory covered inside. You may not have all the answers after reading this book, but you'll know some key questions and will have pondered them along with one of the sharpest minds of the profession. Strap yourself in and take the ride. - [27]RT