Community outreach library services in the UK: a case study of Wirral Hospital NHS Trust (WHNT)

AIMS AND OBJECTIVES: The study evaluates the Community Outreach Library Service at Wirral Hospital National Health Service Trust (WHNT). It considers the information seeking behaviour and information needs of primary care staff, and service effectiveness in meeting those needs. METHODS: A literature review established the current context and areas of best practice. The investigative case study used postal questionnaires to 250 primary care staff and an interview with the Community Outreach Librarian. FINDINGS: Themes emerged from the literature regarding information seeking behaviour, information needs, and meeting user needs through effective service delivery. Outreach services have value in terms of improving information skills and providing services at point of need. Time is a major constraint for both users and service providers. CONCLUSIONS: Investment is needed from appropriate funding sources to support the provision and marketing of outreach library services. Librarians benefit from sharing best practice. The continued evaluation of outreach library services is recommended.     

Search for tomorrow: The electronic records research program of the u.s. national historical publications and records commission

The National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) is a small grant-making agency affiliated with the U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. The Commission is charged with promoting the preservation and dissemination of documentary source materials to ensure an understanding of U.S. history. Recognizing that the increasing use of computers created challenges for preserving the documentary record, the Commission adopted a research agenda in 1991 to promote research and development on the preservation and continued accessibility of documentary materials in electronic form. From 1991 to the present the Commission awarded 31 grants totaling $2,276,665 for electronic records research. Most of this research has focused on two issues of central concern to archivists: (1) electronic record keeping (tools and techniques to manage electronic records produced in an office environment, such as word processing documents and electronic mail), and (2) best practices for storing, describing, and providing access to all electronic records of long-term value. NHPRC grants have raised the visibility of electronic records issues among archivists. The grants have enabled numerous archives to begin to address electronic records problems, and, perhaps most importantly, they have stimulated discussion about electronic records among archivists and records managers.     

Progress and problems in declassifying U.S. government records

For the first time ever, Executive Order 12958 signed in 1995 established a process to greatly reduce the huge number of classified federal records accumulated since world war II. Although some progress was made under it, subsequent orders and legislation significantly decreased its effectiveness. The U.S. government must take certain actions now to reverse this trend.     

电子文件与数字文件之辨析

本文从新的角度,结合文件和档案学的相关知识,对电子文件与数字文件做出新的定义和解释,并重新界定它们之间的关系。     

透视情报档案

一、情报档案 情报是反映事物变化和人类活动情况的快速传递的信息材料.人们对情报比较普遍的认识是"传递过程中有用的知识、信息".由情报机构将这些"有用的知识、信息"搜集起来,经过加工整理归结为专门的档案,就成为情报档案.<军事大辞海>中给情报档案作了如下定义:从事情报工作过程中所形成的专门档案.     

电子文件系列讲座之一电子文件归档与电子档案管理概述

一、电子文件将成为未来社会现行文件的主导形式 大家都知道,纸是我们过去文件的主导介质,现在从总体上看也还是以纸为主导介质.电子文件和计算机是密不可分的.综观这几年,随计算机的科学计算、数据处理、实时控制、辅助设计、智能模拟、数字通信等功能日趋完善,特别是中文信息处理、计算机图形学、数据图象处理、计算机辅助技术、计算机多媒体技术、计算机控制、信息系统以及计算机仿真等又都各自发展成为一个领域,使计算机在整个社会、经济、文化、军事以及人类生活各个领域的应用愈加普遍,也可以说已成为现代社会不可缺少的一部分.     

Archival appraisal practice in U.S. state archives and records management programs

The quantity of government records has grown dramatically since the rapid development of information technology starting in the mid-twentieth century. This ever-expanding body of records has challenged the limited resources of government archives. Though U.S. government archivists constantly try to identify valuable government records among the geometrically increasing total, in order to justify spending public money on their preservation, little is known about how U.S. state archives and records management programs go about the process. The study discussed in this paper is the first to empirically investigate nationwide archival appraisal practice in U.S. state archives and records management programs. The study answered two research questions: How do U.S. state archivists and records managers conceptually define archival appraisal? How do U.S. state archivists and records managers practice archival appraisal of state government records? The study used an online survey and interviews for data collection and SPSS software and NVivo8 software for data analysis. This paper discusses the research topic and concludes with recommendations for practitioners and further studies.     

Integrating records management into information resources management in U.S. government agencies

This article presents several key issues facing federal agencies with regards to electronic records management practices. The article identifies selected management, technology, implementation, and definitional barriers that agencies encounter when considering how to create and maintain an electronic records management process. A key question for federal agency technology managers is: If an enterprise creates and manages virtually all of its information in an automated information technology systems environment, does it make any sense to manage its records in a manual environment? Based on research conducted by the author, the article reviews various federal agency electronic records management processes and the implications for those practices.     

Principles for information technology investment in u.s. federal electronic records management

Changing business and legal conditions force federal agencies to acquire information technology (IT) systems today that may be subject to future mandatory electronic records management (ERM) requirements. Agencies must devise IT investment strategies that optimize operating efficiencies and customer service improvements in the present and also comply with the likely future direction of ERM regulations. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency undertook a business process reengineering (BPR) exercise with respect to future co-location of previously separate regulatory docket facilities. Their experience suggests that future mandatory ERM will cause federal agencies to take a more thorough account of the full information life cycle when planning an IT system’s life cycle; and that BPR is a practical necessity when implementing ERM.