Open access foreign scientific resources and the SciGuide navigator

This paper outlines the reasons that open access resources are required and the developmental patterns of open access models, as well as the advantages and disadvantages of open access information flows; it introduces a navigator that has been created as a tool for the use of open access resources. It also contains an analysis of statistical data about the use of this tool, including the results of surveys and interviews with the experts from one of the top research institutes of the Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences, and presents the authors’ ideas about the role of libraries in the open access movement.     

The rise and fall of the medical mediated searcher

The relationship between the development of mediated online literature searching and the recruitment of medical librarians to fill positions as online searchers was investigated. The history of database searching by medical librarians was outlined and a content analysis of thirty-five years of job advertisements in MLA News from 1961 through 1996 was summarized. Advertisements for online searchers were examined to test the hypothesis that the growth of mediated online searching was reflected in the recruitment of librarians to fill positions as mediated online searchers in medical libraries. The advent of end-user searching was also traced to determine how this trend affected the demand for mediated online searching and job availability of online searchers. Job advertisements were analyzed to determine what skills were in demand as end-user searching replaced mediated online searching as the norm in medical libraries. Finally, the trend away from mediated online searching to support of other library services was placed in the context of new roles for medical librarians.     

Open access to scientific knowledge: Its state,problems, and prospects of development

The concept of “open access” to scientific and teaching information has become one of the specific forms of the worldwide trend towards the formation of global interactive knowledge. This paper presents the basic information on open access (OA) to scientific and teaching information, its current status, financing options, problems and prospects of development, and the participation of Russia in this process.     

Copyright and licensing — the changing scene

A rapid survey of the key current issues and changes in the copyright and licensing environment. Briefly discusses the reasons why there is so much change, and in particular the changing attitudes of both authors and customers towards publishers. Surveys the new contractual problems confronting publishers; the requirements for doing business electronically in future; major legal changes; and developments in licensing. Concludes by considering how publishers can influence what happens.     

A case study of KGAY: The rise and fall of the first gay and Lesbian radio network

This case study will explore the rise, and more importantly the reasons for the fall, of the KGAY Radio Network. Based in Denver, KGAY was the first daily radio network to air music, news, and information via satellite to gay and lesbian listeners in North America, Canada, and the Caribbean. To date, there are no radio stations serving gay and lesbian listeners 24 hours a day. This paper also provides an overview of gay and lesbian programming on commercial and noncommercial radio stations.     

Normal service continues — the role of intermediaries in electronic publishing

The paper outlines some of the conditions which bring about the need for intermediaries in the electronic world, the views of end users and librarians towards electronic journals and the range of intermediary services which exist for Internet based full texts. It also briefly considers archiving and digitisation activities.     

Implications of technological change for scientific communication in the third world a case study 1

This study approaches media use among international students from a uses-and-gratifications perspective to explore the relationship between need for acculturation, acculturative motives, and media use among Chinese students in the United States. Eighty-four Chinese students participated in a survey at a large research university in the Midwestern United States. Results indicate that need for acculturation is, in fact, correlated with media use motives and patterns. An acculturative motive, for example, is correlated with watching US-based TV news programs and using US-based news websites and BBS. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.