Cybrarians Manual (Ala Editions)

Whether you call yourself librarian or cybrarian, chances are you are facing the Digital Vastness with some anxiety. Now comes the complete manual for navigating library services in the new millennium. Written by the top infonauts in the field, The Cybrarian's Manual is both a tool for getting your bearings and a daily source of insight, information, and inspiration as you move ahead.
One of the best ways to master the Net is to draw on friendly colleagues for tips, resources, and ideas. In The Cybrarian's Manual you'll find these colleagues amiable, engaging, and generous in sharing their experiences. They were gathered by editor Pat Ensor, head of Information Services at the University of Houston Libraries and herself a pioneering cybrarian.

Pat Ensor has done a yeoman's job of pulling together 63 original and previously published articles on what librarians need to know about the Internet, including connection options, browsers, and security. At its most basic level, the book exists, like windshield wipers, to clear away the muck that gets in the way of understanding the Net: after reading "Using Multimedia File Formats" by OhioLINK's Thomas Dowling, you'll be able to casually discuss GIF, JPEG, and TIFF at your next cocktail party. The book also succeeds in its mission to lead readers to valuable resources on the Web, such as sites for citation styles, web site development, and must-read publications. Despite these virtues, the collection doesn't sing as a whole. Some articles discuss topics on which I'd want a whole book, such as "Spinning the World Wide Web: An HTML Primer." Others are starting to show their age, such as "Intelligent Agents," from a 1994 issue of Online. Ensor, Head of Information Services at the University of Houston Libraries, recognizes that the static nature of the book calls for a web site, and there is one: www.ala.org/editions/cyberlib.net/. However, as a library-oriented site, it's disappointing: as of early May, there was no software to search the text. The aforementioned drawbacks, plus the collection's academic bent, make it an op- tional purchase.?Renee Olson, School Library Journal
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Actually more of a guide than a manual, this work takes a comprehensive approach to presenting the state of libraries and cyberspace. Topics discussed include access options, staying current, expert systems, censorship, reference services, multimedia, HTML, VRML (Virtual Reality Markup Language), evaluating and citing Internet resources, network licensing, basic UNIX commands, cyberpunk literature, and future applications such as nanotechnology. The authoritative contributors, such as William Britten, Steve Hardin, Barbara Quint, Louis Rosenfeld, and Ed Valauskas, all give an overview of their topics and list Internet and print resources for further information. Several of the contributions are reprints but have been updated with new material and resources when necessary. This book will be useful to those librarians who are looking for an overview of library issues and applications in cyberspace and not a "how-to" manual. The intended audience is stated as intermediate; however, the depth of treatment overall is not too deep for the eager beginner. Those looking for a more concentrated hands-on approach should also consider Diane Kovac's The Cybrarian's Guide to Developing Successful Internet Programs and Services (Professional Reading, LJ 5/1/97). A web site that will list any updates to the book's theme has been created. However, as experienced cybrarians have come to expect, the address cited in the book is already outdated and takes one to a referral page for the new address. Information on this book, including a table of contents, can be found, at least for now, at .?Robert Battenfeld, Long Island Univ.
Southampton Lib., N.Y.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.