4. On-line Reference Libraries
These already exist. A visit to the on-line Encyclopaedia
Britannica exemplifies some of the tremendous, mind boggling
possibilities:
Each entry is hyperlinked to sites on the Internet which deal
with the same subject matter. The sites are carefully screened
(though more detailed descriptions of each site should be
available - they could be prepared either by the staff of the
encyclopaedia or by the site owner). Links are available to
data in various forms, including audio and video. Everything
can be copied to the hard disk or to CD-ROMs.
This is a new conception of a knowledge centre - not just an
assortment of material. It is modular, can be added on and
subtracted from. It can be linked to a voice Q&A centre.
Queries by subscribers can be answered by e-mail, by fax,
posted on the site, hard copies can be sent by post. This
"Trivial Pursuit" service could be very popular - there is
considerable appetite for "Just in Time Information". The
Library of Congress - together with a few other libraries - is
in the process of making just such a service available to the
public (CDRS - Collaborative Digital Reference Service).
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