Search results

Over the past four years Sultan Qaboos University Library in Oman has increased its CD‐ROM collection to 10 databases. It quickly became apparent to both staff and end users that discs varied in quality. This paper provides examples of inconsistencies in thesaural control, indexing policies, spelling mistakes, mistyping and hyphenation in various CD‐ROM databases. Differences between some CD‐ROM databases and their printed and online counterparts are also given. Also the limitations of the search software on some CD‐ROM products are highlighted. Few product reviews include comments on all these shortcomings although their effects can have significant impact on search results.

What a pity we didn't see the extent to which we were all unduly influenced by the hype put out by the more ‘commercially committed’ elements of the computer and information industry. Now, I know that the electronic revolution in the 1990s has brought many advantages to librarianship and I have in mind the tremendous strides taken with regard to journal publishing in particular. The provision of journals over the Net did introduce a radical degree of flexibility that has been appreciated by both libraries and readers alike. Nothing new there: however the mechanisms which were subsequently developed that allow readers to read, browse or scan an article — as well as being able to call up any references that look useful — are positive attributes. Publishing articles directly on the Internet when they are ready rather than waiting for a quarterly issue to be circulated is also welcome, although it took longer for this method of presenting academic material to be implemented by the major publishers than I would have expected. I thought it would have been available in the early 1990s.

The Sultan Qaboos University admitted its first students in 1986; this was an impressive achievement considering that very few schools existed in Oman 20 years ago. Since coming to power in 1970 Sultan Qaboos bin Said has led the renaissance in Oman in all aspects of life and this is probably most easily recognised in the area of education.

The quotation from Henry Longfellow's The Arrow and the Song: first appeared in the Target 2000 column in the first issue of the relaunched Online & CDROM Review in 1993. Since then a number of arrows have been aimed at developments that could be expected by the turn of the century. As this column was envisaged as a “floating Delphi”, this seems an appropriate point in the run‐up to the millennium to review the projections made to date. Below they have been reviewed and grouped, and it is hoped that in the coming months the authors may wish to expand or revise their original thoughts. The year, volume, issue and page numbers for the journal reference are given after the author’s name.

The Arabian Gulf Chapter of the Special Libraries Association (AGC/SLA) was founded in 1992 with the objectives of communicating, disseminating and using information effectively in the area which covers Bahrain, Dubai, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. AGC/SLA provides one of the main channels of communication for professional librarians and information scientists in the area and membership comprises staff working in academic, medical, school, governmental and industrial libraries, as well as ‘recreational librarians’ who serve the large, and predominantly ‘ex‐pat’ community, of Aramco in Saudi Arabia, many of whom are working in the oil industry.

This article provides a comprehensive look at suitability rules, first in the traditional brokerage context and then in terms of their application to online brokerages in general. It outlines the arguments made by the online brokerages to differentiate their world from traditional broker‐dealers, and offers hypothetical scenarios in which suitability concepts may apply in the online brokerage setting. The authors suggest that online brokerages should be allowed time to determine the appropriate rules in light of how the technology itself evolves over the next several years.

An attempt is made to define productivity in the context of service operations. In so doing some of the difficulties in relating this term to service are explored. The main part of the article takes a strategic approach and identifies three key strategic determinants of service productivity; volume, variety and variation. These terms are explained and their impact on productivity is illustrated in three short case studies.

In the last four years, since Volume I of this Bibliography first appeared, there has been an explosion of literature in all the main functional areas of business. This wealth of material poses problems for the researcher in management studies — and, of course, for the librarian: uncovering what has been written in any one area is not an easy task. This volume aims to help the librarian and the researcher overcome some of the immediate problems of identification of material. It is an annotated bibliography of management, drawing on the wide variety of literature produced by MCB University Press. Over the last four years, MCB University Press has produced an extensive range of books and serial publications covering most of the established and many of the developing areas of management. This volume, in conjunction with Volume I, provides a guide to all the material published so far.

This paper describes the ideas related to forensic practice with people with learning disabilities through a study that explores the apparent ‘truths’ about people with learning disabilities who are detained in forensic settings (referred to here as ‘the men’) and the staff who work with them by an analysis the dialogue contained in retrospective data from interviews and focus groups.The men in these settings are subject to intense stigma and disadvantage; socially and legally. Not only are they categorised as having a learning disability, but also have the added stigma of being offenders, and commonly having mental health issues that expose them to the worst of myths surrounding learning disability; such as the possibility of being viewed as ‘dangerous monsters and sex fiends’ (French & Swain, 2008). Similarly, but to a lesser degree, forensic nurses are stigmatised and subject to strict laws, policies and practices and stereotyped as prison wardens and ‘tough guys’. These ideas may be exposed and challenged through studying the discourses in the dialogue. Therefore, the general research questions included the following.• What are the discourses related to learning disability and forensic practice?• What ideologies underpin and justify forensic practice?This paper is primarily concerned with the way that the staff and the men experience the medium secure unit (MSU) and their views as to the advantages and disadvantages of secure care.The findings generally suggest that the men and the staff are very positive about their lives.They report that the men have many attributes and talents, and view having a learning disability as an advantage at times; the staff enjoy their work and have good relationships with the men. Paradoxically1, there are also negative discourses identified, some of which permeate from macro ideologies into policy and practice to justify the men's treatment in the MSU.The analysis showed that despite the certainty that many feel about the justifications for holding men with learning disabilities in secure settings, many paradoxes exist in the discourses in this setting, which question the validity of official knowledge in this area ‐ this is essentially a Foucauldian idea (Foucault, 1975). Foucault's ideas on the way that knowledge and practice may be challenged are important to this paper.

Aim of the present monograph is the economic analysis of the role of MNEs regarding globalisation and digital economy and in parallel there is a reference and examination of some legal aspects concerning MNEs, cyberspace and e‐commerce as the means of expression of the digital economy. The whole effort of the author is focused on the examination of various aspects of MNEs and their impact upon globalisation and vice versa and how and if we are moving towards a global digital economy.