DC/SLA Chapter Notes - February 2000

Chapter Notes February 2000

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Vol. 59, No. 5 February 2000 Contents New Members' Reception President's Corner Association of Independent Information Professionals (AIIP) to Hold Fourteenth Annual Conference April 6-9 Technology Day 2000 Ask the Experts DC/SLA Discussion List Minutes of the November DC/SLA Board Meeting Brown Bag Lunch Event Student Membership Award Members in the News!

Share Your Expertise, Become a Mentor!

New Members' Reception Welcome new members, greet your colleagues, and sample delectable hors d'oeuvres, desserts and libations at the Chapter's annual New Members' Reception, Thursday, February 24, 2000, from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Association Headquarters.

If you're a new member, come and learn more about our Chapter! All members, new and old, are welcome to meet and mingle. Oh, and by the way, we always invite the candidates for Association offices and usually have a good response, so it might be your best chance all year to meet the leaders of our Association as well!

WHEN: Thursday, February 24, 6:00 -- 8:00 p.m.

WHERE: Special Libraries Association International Headquarters; 1700 18th Street NW, Washington, DC (Near the Dupont Circle Metro) PRICE: NEW Members FREE! $15.00 Members $ 7.50 Students $22.50 Non-Members REGISTRATION FORM: Name:____________________________Phone:________________ Organization:__________________________________________ Email Address:_________________________________________ __ This is my first DC/SLA event __ Student __ SLA Member __ DCLA Member __ LLSDC Member __ ASIS Member Send your completed form and check to: Mandy Baldridge, TeleSec/CORESTAFF, 11160 Veirs Mill Road, Suite 414, Wheaton, MD 20902; Fax 301-949-8729; email: mbaldridge@telesec.com

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All registrations must be received by February 18.

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President's Corner Washington DC Chapter, Special Libraries Association

By Nancy Minter, DC/SLA 1999-2000 President, nminter@ui.urban.org STRATEGICALLY PLANNING OUR FUTURE I am delighted to report the Chapter's Strategic Planning Committee is back in business! Enriched by the addition of some new members, the Committee recently met to discuss the progress it has made to date from its most recent incarnation (circa Fall 1998). The committee's members are now planning how they will proceed.

If you've never been involved in developing a strategic plan or with the process, you will want to know to what we are referring. According to the Internet Nonprofit Center, a project of The Evergreen State Society, in Seattle, WA, strategic planning is basically a management tool, one that is "designed to help an organization do a better job -- to focus its energy, to ensure that members of the organization are working toward the same goals, to assess and adjust the organization's direction in response to a changing environment. In short, strategic planning is a disciplined effort to produce fundamental decisions and actions that shape and guide what an organization is, what it does, and why it does it, with a focus on the future." The committee will be crafting a vision statement. To do so, it must be clear about the Chapter's objectives and understand our resources, financial as well as human, and be able to coordinate both to work together in a dynamic environment over which we may have little or no control.

"The committee wants, first and foremost, to hear from YOU, the Chapter member."

So, how will we do this? The committee wants, first and foremost, to hear from YOU, the Chapter member. To that end, it is developing a member survey to gather your views and suggestions. It will be collecting information on the services provided by the Chapter: do you know about them, do you use them, do you like them, do you want others/more? How about your involvement with the Chapter, including your attendance at programs and other meetings: how often do you attend, why or why not? What about communications: do you want an electronic-only newsletter, do you access the Web page, are you on the discussion list? What do would you like to see in the future: program ideas, ways we can change or expand to better meet your needs, things you think the Chapter should no longer undertake, mid-course corrections the Chapter might take to change how it is evolving. We want you to put on your thinking caps and help us as we plan.

The survey will be mailed to all members, and copies of the survey questionnaires will be available at two or more Chapter programs. An electronic version will also be added to the Web site to make it easier to respond. We will be relying on the honor system to insure that each member responds only once -- no voting "early and often" here, please.

My thanks, in advance, to the Strategic Planning Committee: Chair Ellie Briscoe, Jane John, Jennifer Little, Anna McGowan, Lyle Minter, and Daille Pettit. They have a large task, but one, I feel, they are very well equipped to handle. We all look forward to helping them with their assignment, and to seeing their final recommendations.

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Association of Independent Information Professionals (AIIP) to Hold Fourteenth Annual Conference April 6-9 The Association of Independent Information Professionals (AIIP) cordially invites DC/SLA members to attend its Fourteenth Annual Conference, "Capital Gains: Investing Now for Future Growth" to be held April 6 - 9, at the

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Georgetown University Conference Center in Washington, DC. SLA members are eligible to register at the AIIP member price.

As the sole conference and exhibition devoted to the independent information business, AIIP's Annual Conference facilitates extensive networking among participants and offers practical sessions for the established professional and those interested in the field.

Attendees from around the world will participate in sessions featuring: z z z z z

Gary Hoover, founder of Hoover's Inc. Matthew Kroll, America Online Research Fellow and founder of Personal Library Software The Computer Guys, John Gilroy and Tom Piwowar, as heard on National Public Radio Genie Tyburski, founder of The Virtual Chase Mary Ellen Bates, information industry speaker and author

The three-day event will feature AIIP traditions including a welcome reception for first-time attendees, member introductions, the AIIP talent show, and a gala evening at the exclusive Mount Vernon estate.

According to AIIP President Renee Daulong, "The AIIP Conference is unique. We offer all the advantages of the larger information industry conferences, including speakers who are industry leaders, pre and post-conference seminars, and free vendor training. Yet our conference is small enough to allow us to offer unparalleled networking opportunities and to include some fun events such as the talent show and gala banquet."

Conference activities will be held at the Georgetown University Conference Center, along with several preconference seminars and free vendor training. The early registration deadline is March 1, 2000, and the registration fee includes most meals. Additional information and registration forms can be found at http://www.aiip.org/aiipconf.html. Or contact the Conference Headquarters, Association of Independent Information Professionals (AIIP), 7044 S. 13th Street, Oak Creek, WI 53154; Phone (414) 766-0421; Fax (414) 768-8001; email: aiipinfo@aiip.org.

About AIIP AIIP was formed in 1987 by 26 entrepreneurs. Today AIIP has over 700 members worldwide. Many members hold advanced degrees in science, law, business, medicine, library science, and other disciplines. Our members have combined their years of experience with entrepreneurship, operating companies that serve a wide variety of clients ranging from small companies to the Fortune 500. AIIP members offer expert online, Internet and manual research; provide document delivery, database design, library support and consulting services; and are writers and editors.

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Technology Day 2000 The Washington, D.C. Chapter, in cooperation with the Maryland Chapter and the Association of Independent Information Professionals is proud to announce: Technology Day 2000: Intelligent Agents, Corporate Portals, and Enterprise Information Management The Internet is changing everyting in our workplace. Intelligent agents, bots, portals, vortals, and knowledge center design and architecture are manifestations of this revolution. Come join us for a full-day immersion into the technology tools shaping our workplaces and workflow.

Keynote Speakers: Marcus P. Zillman, BotTechnology.Com, Inc., Marco Island, FL Stephen E. Arnold, Arnold IT, Louisville, KY

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Featured Luncheon Speaker: Clifford A. Lynch, Coalition for Network Information, Washington, DC WHEN: Monday, March 20, 8:00 a.m. -- 4:30 p.m.

WHERE: The Inn and Conference Center University of Maryland University College College Park, MD PRICE: (includes full continental breakfast, breaks and box lunch): $150 Association Members, $175 Non-Members Early Bird: $125 Members; $150 Non-Members OnSite: $175 REGISTRATION FORM: Please postmark by March 10, 2000 to assure a seat. ___ Discounted registration for SLA, AIIP, LLAM, MAHSL, MLA, SCIP members postmarked/faxed on or before Feb 22: $125 ___ Discounted registration for non-members postmarked/faxed on or before February 22: $150 ___ Regular member conference registration (see above) postmarked/faxed on or before March 10: $150 ___ Regular non-member conference registration postmarked/faxed on or before March 10: $175 ___ Late registration at the door for all (space-available basis): $175 Name:____________________________Phone:________________ Organization:__________________________________________ Email Address:_________________________________________ Box Lunch Desired: ___ Tijuana Turkey Wrap; ___ Classic Chicken; ___ Caesar Salad; ___ Vegetarian Pita Platter ___ Payment $ ______________ is enclosed (checks payable to SLA Maryland Chapter) ___ I authorize the AIIP Service Corporation to charge $ ___________ to my: ___ Master Card ___ VISA ___ Discover Credit Card Number : ____________________________________________ Expiration Date: _______________ Name as it appears on the card:__________________________________________________________________ Program Cancellation Policy: Request for cancellation must be received by the SLA Maryland Registrar before March 10, 2000. A $25 processing fee will be charged for each cancellation. Substitutions may be made at any time. In the event of cancellation for this event for any reason, SLA Maryland liability is limited to the return of the registration fee only.

Registrations should be mailed to: Sarah A. Riley, McCormick & Company, 204 Wight Avenue, Hunt Valley, MD, 21030; phone 410-771-7252; fax 410-785-7439 For further information contact Program Chair Peggy Carr, 410-719-8630 or pcarr@carr-research.com or visit the Maryland Chapter website at http://www.sla.org/chapter/cmd/TechDay2000.html VENDORS: Sponsorship and exhibit opportunities are available. For information contact David Shumaker, dshumake@mitre.org.

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Ask the Experts Due to the short amount of time our readers had to respond to this month's question, we invite you to send us more of your favorite web sites for the March issue. Send your submissions to cneditors@yahoo.com by February 11.

This month's question was: Which three web sites are your favorites and what makes them particularly useful for your work?

Tim McAllister, Research Specialist, writes: The websites that I keep going back to for research are: CEOExpress (http://www.ceoexpress.com) for its rich content and easy to use layout.

NLResearch (http://www.nlresearch.com) for its ease of use, excellent & flexible search engine and special collections of the "invisible web" other web search engines don't cover.

Free Edgar (http://www.freeedgar.com) because of the wealth of information in SEC documents. It is also cheaper than Live Edgar, and faster, more precise, and prettier than the SEC EDGAR site.

Caryn S. Wesner-Early, Reference Librarian, writes: I'm a Reference Librarian with the US Patent & Trademark Office. I usually get ready-reference questions about businesses (usually just "where's their Web page?") and general science questions.

For finding business Web pages, I've been surprisingly happy with Ask Jeeves (http://www.ask.com). While I have a large array of business search and information sites bookmarked, about 80% of the time, I don't have to use them. Just ask Jeeves, "Where is ABC Corp.?" and most often, their page will pop right up. It's good for general questions, too - anything that can be phrased as a simple question has a good chance of success there.

As jumping-off points for general science questions, I have a tie: SciCentral (http://www.scicentral.com) and PINAKES (http://www.hw.ac.uk/libWWW/irn/pinakes/pinakes.html). Both are lists of sites covering various scientific subjects (chemistry, physics, etc.), and if one doesn't find me something, the other one probably will.

Return to contents DC/SLA Discussion List Subscribe to the Chapter Discussion List!

A great way to keep up with Chapter news and events is to join the DC/SLA Chapter Discussion List! This list was created to provide SLA DC Chapter members a means of quick & easy communication. To subscribe to the list, send an e-mail to: lists@lists.sla.org with the following in the body of the message: subscribe sla-cdc Firstname Lastname You will receive an automatic confirmation message once subscribed.

For additional information, click here http://www.sla.org/chapter/cdc/list.html, or contact Greta Ober, 202-623-6413, e-mail: greta@worldbank.org Return to contents

Minutes of the November DC/SLA Board Meeting

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The November 9, 1999 DC/SLA Board meeting was held at the Urban Institute.

President Nancy Minter reported that the SLA Board voted to hold the 2009 Annual Conference in Washington.

SLA is seeking proposals for the 2000 Steven I. Goldspiel Memorial Research Grant, which supports projects that promote research benefitting information professionals and special librarians. The formation of a new Asian chapter was approved at the fall SLA board meeting.

President-Elect David Shumaker reported that the turnout was good for the Chapter's October 21st program featuring John Crosby of the headquarters staff, and that several association-wide officers and candidates, in town for the SLA board meeting, also attended. He reviewed plans for upcoming Chapter programs, including the December Holiday Reception, the February New Members' Reception at SLA Headquarters, and the March Technology Day Program at the University of Maryland, sponsored by the DC and Maryland SLA Chapters.

Director Michael Kolakowski announced that Loren Scherbak was chosen for the SLA Student Membership Award (consisting of student dues and vouchers for three Chapter meetings/activities). Her essay on special librarians will be published in a future issue of Chapter Notes. Mary Talley Garcia raised the issue of increasing advertising rates for Chapter Notes. The consensus of the board was that more information was needed before this proposal could be considered.

For a complete copy of the minutes, please contact Laura H. Foy, Recording Secretary, at labuy@msn.com Return to contents

Brown Bag Lunch Event Brown Bag Lunches (noon to 2:00) sponsored by the Society for International Development Information Working Group are held monthly, and are open to all DC/SLA members. The next lunch will be held on Friday, February 18, at 1331 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Suite 1425. The topic for discussion is "Online Catalogs in Very Small Collections." Representatives from several small libraries will describe their experiences with online software suited for collections of less that 5,000. Most "library" software is more complex and/or expensive for the small organization without a "library". Even individuals who want to index their collections can do so online. The presenters will compare Librarian's Helper Online with InMagic, Papyrus, Reference Manager, ProCite, RightOn, and the ubiquitous Microsoft Access. Bring your own experience to the meeting, or if you want to present another software package, contact Chris Matthews (ChrisMatt@igc.org or 202-269-3890).

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Student Membership Award DC/SLA presented its first Student Membership Award in December to Loren Scherbak, a student at the University of Maryland College of Library and Information Services. The award was established to increase awareness of the Special Libraries Association and our Chapter among Washington-area library science students. The award consists of paid student membership dues in SLA and free attendance at several DC/SLA chapter events. Loren is employed at the Smithsonian Institution's Archives of American Art and is also a practicing artist. She is interested in the future of the organization and retrieval of information through electronic tools. You can learn more about her ideas by reading her prize-winning essay: Key Challenges Facing Special Librarians in the Next Century

By Loren Scherbak I have worked in a variety of special libraries since 1982 and have noticed vast changes in those with which I have been associated. I believe library services are in a period of dramatic transition with the introduction of new information delivery systems. It is because of these systems, particularly the growth of the World Wide Web, that a re-evaluation of traditional library services is taking place. For example, if Lexis-Nexis is on everyone's desk, is a librarian needed? Special librarians will need to take an active role in helping define the information needs of their organizations and promoting services that meet those needs.

The end of the 20th century has truly become the "information age," but who will have access to and analyze the information? Who will determine the "human" information requirements? I have worked with talented special

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librarians who impressed me with their organization and knowledge of information resources. As our information delivery systems change, I am convinced that these librarians are best equipped to address the problems inherent in any new system. Special librarians will need to work towards enhancing communication between the information providers (e.g., databases, Intranets, and Internet resources) and the patrons seeking access to that information.

As a practicing artist, I am also convinced that visual language skills are important communication tools - and will be even more so in the future as publishing expands using the World Wide Web. I believe this development will be as dramatic a change in communication as the evolution of printing was in broadcasting the written word. It will become more important for special librarians to employ visual devices, such as web pages with image maps, to connect patrons with resources they need.

Special librarians need to creatively seek new approaches to organizing information, while retaining a firm foundation in traditional library systems. AACR2 cataloging principles have been very successful in organizing and uniting collections all over the world. Will this be the organizing structure imposed on ephemeral material such as webpages? Will images or audio recordings be as adaptable to this system as monographs have been? What are our responsibilities to patrons who gain access to our electronic resources as they become visible on the web?

These questions represent a few of the key challenges that will face special librarians in the 21st century. To address these questions we need to creatively use our experience of organizing information in traditional media that has been so successful in the past and adapt it to virtual media to aid our patrons in the future.

Special librarians need to use all of their skills, both visual and textual, to adapt, evaluate, and expand traditional text-based methods of organizing information to take advantage of the World Wide Web. We must aggressively utilize our communication skills towards creating new information delivery systems. With access to information comes an understanding of the special librarians' role as information communicators.

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Members in the News!

Do you have news to share? Use this column to tell the Chapter about your career change, your new job, promotion or retirement; the award you recently received; the presentation you delivered at a conference; or the article you just published. Send us your news! E-mail the editors at cneditors@yahoo.com.

Ruth Leonard, featured in last month's Members' News, can now be reached by e-mail at erl@usis.africaonline.co.ke. Drop her a line!

William Turner was promoted in January to Head of Public Services at the U.S. Census Bureau Library, as an employee of GCI Information Services. He was also elected to the office of President of the Friends of the Arlington County Public Library for a third consecutive term at the annual meeting of the Friends on December 7, 1999. As Head of Public Services he supervises six positions and coordinates activities and develops and establishes procedures in circulation, reference, and interlibrary loan on a management and services contract with the U.S. Census Bureau. As President of the Friends of the Library he is responsible for promoting the welfare of the Friends and for providing guidance and direction in achieving the objectives of the Friends in support of the Library.

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Share Your Expertise, Become a Mentor! a message from the Mentoring Committee The changes and challenges of the information environment call for ongoing assessment of skills, career goals, and direction by today's information professional. SLA's Competencies for Special Librarians of the 21st Century tells us that extensive knowledge, skills, and attitudes are needed for information professionals to thrive in their careers. Mentoring is a tool for evaluating one's current competencies, identifying competency gaps, and developing strategies to acquire new and required competencies. The DC Chapter is seeking members who are interested in sharing the knowledge, skills, and attitudes (competencies) necessary to succeed in our profession.

The Mentoring Committee is led by Barbara Folensbee and Rhea Austin.

Mentors assist mentees in assessing their strengths and weaknesses, and help determine which competencies

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need to be developed. Their mission is to be active listeners and provide helpful feedback. Mentees just need to have a desire to grow, and be open to feedback and advice.

If you would like to be a mentor or a mentee, or if you would like to participate in some other way, please contact Barbara Folensbee at folensbb@pepperlaw.com.

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