Access to digital information

Abstract

As digital electronic materials offer reduced production costs and more sophisticated methods of use, so the interests of publishers and librarians can be seen to converge. Electronic materials can be sorted, transmitted and retrieved easily and quickly. They can be linked and made interactive with cheaper access than with printed materials. New library buildings can be avoided and the ideal of library co-operation may be realized. Typical examples of this trend are the applications of the Internet and World Wide Web to electronic publishing and access to online information. Nevertheless, the shift away from printed materials towards electronic materials and away from traditional patterns of ownership of resources to more reliance on external resources poses a number of questions which need to be resolved. These questions are posed and discussed at length.