TECHNOLOGIES TO FACILITATE ACCESS.

The article examines the role of technology in libraries. Libraries began using online systems in the early 1970s to automate internal procedures such as acquisitions and circulation control. This process of internal automation created an up-to-date online file of bibliographic information, including holdings and status availability of a library's collection. Initially, this online file was used only by library personnel at staff-use terminals. The proliferation of online terminals and the expansion of this valuable database have gradually attracted the library's users to its use. To meet this demand, libraries are now providing direct access for library users through the use of online public access catalogs. These are equipped with so-called user friendly interfaces with which a wide range of library users feel comfortable. Searching by subject, title, author, or keyword, library users can access all of the information in the catalog that relates to a specific word or phrase. Compared to the conventional card catalog, the online public access terminal quickly provides current information on a library's holdings, their availability, and their whereabouts. Library automation has now evolved into a powerful aid for gaining access to information both inside and outside the library.