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Provides an overview of the technology being employed at some US colleges which is leading to the paperless campus. For example, the use of wireless networks to connect PCs and Internet displays in classrooms and laboratories that lack conventional network wiring, providing access to online libraries and other resources from laptop PCs and handheld devices. Looks at Web‐based technology and its use by faculty and students, not only for information gathering, but also for tutoring services. Shows how live chat sessions with teachers are heavily over‐subscribed. Looks at the use of e‐books (4 million e‐book units sold in 2000: predicted figure by 2005 – 140 million). Provides results of a study comparing print text books and e‐text books, and from another study which show undergraduates spend only a third of their study time in the library and faculty members only 10 per cent. To counteract these trends, online library resources are being expanded for 200,000 students and faculty at seven academic institutions in a unified students’ portal, with links to local online course materials and consultations with reference librarians.

Focuses on the changes taking place in the world of scholarly publishing. Outlines the activities and future plans of a selection of new open distribution publishing sources.

States that there has been a growing interest in digital archive development in universities and colleges and in national and international governmental institutions. Reveals that this has come about owing to the rising tide of digital documents created by faculty and students and also because of librarians’ growing dissatisfaction with pricing and practices in traditional journal publishing. Looks at some of the digital archives and software available.

Micro/personal computer Fujitsu's Micro 16s system is designed around an 8‐bit Z‐80 processor chip and an 8086 16‐bit chip. The 8‐bit chip allows the system to run older programs for micro/personal computers, and the 16‐bit chip gives the system more powerful capabilities. Users are offered the IBM/PC‐compatible MS‐DOS software or Concurrent CP/M, which can handle up to four applications programs at once. Like many of the micro systems from Japan, the 16s does not show any basic new capabilities, but relies on a modest price advantage over the IBM/PC to try to make it's way into the US marketplace. Fujitsu Micro‐electronics, Inc., Santa Clara, CA.

Several systems, ranging in price from about $30 000 to over $200 000, are now available to aid database publishers and other organizations in disseminating information products on CD‐ROM media.

LANs (Local Area Networks) offer a flexible way to interconnect personal computers with each other, and with shared resources such as large central disk files, printers, and larger computers.