Volume 3. No 3 Information Technology News of the University of California, Davis Spring 1995

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Task Force Envisions Library of the Future

Digital Library Research and Development was the topic of discussion when librarians, information technologists, researchers and college administrators gathered in Washington D.C., April 10-11. The occasion was the Spring 1995 meeting of the Coalition for Network Information, a consortium of ARL, CAUSE, and EDUCOM.

With presentations exploring what's practical, problematic, and possible, participants pieced together visions of the library of the future. Discussions covering everything from downloading images from the Vatican to viewing educational sports and entertainment videos offered snapshots of an online, interactive library.

Addressing the challenges surrounding the discovery and retrieval of networked information was Clifford A. Lynch, Director, Library Automation, University of California Office of the President. Lynch noted that current expectations often exceed capabilities as he discussed the nuts and bolts of information retrieval -- addressing everything from infrastructure, to system architecture, to resource identification.