Library Technology Guides: Search the collection

Volume 2 Number 01 (January 1982)

In the past year over 500 libraries have begun using electronic mail-the fastest growing library technology. Electronic mail provides rapid transmission of messages between computer terminals. Users regard it as superior to regular postal and telephone services because:

Unlike regular mail, electronic mail is instantaneous. A message can be composed, edited and transmitted in minutes.

Unlike the telephone, electronic mail permits the transmission of messages irrespective of whether or not the recipient is immediately available. Surveys of office productivity show that only 25% of telephone calls succeed in coupling the right people on the first try. All electronic mail messages go to a central computer from which they can be accessed through any terminal in the system. Because the computer holds the messages until they are requested, there is no need for both parties to be available at the same time.

Unlike most messages, a computer-recorded message cannot be misplaced. The system give both the sender and receiver instant access to the message with proof of the times of transmission and pick-up.

It is possible to send the same message to several people with a single command.

Common library applications include communication among members of committees, intra-organizational communication among dispersed locations, reference query referrals from one library to another, announcements of meetings and transmission of interlibrary loan requests.

Several library groups have installed electronic mail systems. The largest effort to date is that of the California Library Authority for Systems and Services (CLASS) which has negotiated a group rate for use of the Telenet QNTYME Electronic Mail System. Over 400 libraries in the Pacific Northwest, Rocky Mountains and Plains States now subscribe to the CLASS version of Telenet's system, dubbed ONTYME-II.

The Pacific Northwest Bibliographic Center (PNBC) is using ONTYME-II for the communication of interlibrary loan requests. The Bibliographic Center for Research (BCR) in Denver recently became a broker for CLASS, having had only three subscribers to its earlier service based on The Source. As yet few libraries have expressed interest in the new ONTYME-II offering. The Executive Boards of LITA and SLA are using ONTYME-II to facilitate the work of their groups.

In Alaska the Department of Education uses electronic mail to communicate with school districts spread over an area equal to one-third of the lower 48 states through a network of 80 desktop computers. Each district office is provided with a Gnat micro with 32K memory and one single-density disk drive, a Teletype model 43 printer, and a B2 Beehive CRT equipped with a telephone modem. Each office can process small data sets or forward data to a Digital Equipment PDP 11/70 host computer at the central office in Juneau.

The computers have helped cut communication costs. Letters and reports are edited, condensed, then stored until atmospheric conditions are favorable for transmission. Both the sender and the recipient can prepare and examine their "mail" at their own convenience. The department, therefore, not only has an electronic mail system, but also a statewide report preparation and transmission system.

Libraries which use electronic mail are generally happy with the technology. In some interlibrary loan applications its use has resulted in staff and equipment savings. Problems are sometimes encountered in low message volume situations where particular institutions or individuals have not established a regular "mailbox" clearing routine which can result in messages languishing uncollected for a week or more, undermining the whole rationale of this method of communication.

The standard rates for ONTYME-II include an annual subscription fee or $100 and a monthly maintenance charge of $10. Connect time costs vary from $2.85 to $5.75 per hour. There are also message and transmission charges. The rates are approximately 50% less than regular Tymnet charges. An average cost of $.50 per message is estimated by users. Other services are slightly more expensive. The alternatives include Telenet's Telemail, The Source, and Compuserve. Microcom, a software firm, offers a software package that makes it possible for any Apple II micro user to call any comparably equipped Apple II.

Almost any general purpose computer terminal can be used to access ONTYME-II, either CRT or printing type. A combination of CRT and printer is recommended. The following are essential characteristics of the terminal: ASCII character transmission, asynchronous communication, 110, 300 or 1200 baud rate.

Steps usually taken in using the system are:

Compose-Type a note, bibliographic citation or multi-page document on the terminal.

Edit-Make changes in phrasing, add information and correct errors.

Send-Instruct the system to send the message to one or several designated persons.

Scan-Check the system to see if there are messages to be p.icked up.

Read/Print-Read or print messages when there is time to deal with them.

Answer-Compose a reply and have it automatically addressed to the person from whom the initial message came.

B/NA Plans Interfaces

Blackwell North America, one of the major book wholesalers to the library community, has decided against the development of yet another automated acquisitions system for libraries. Instead the company will develop interfaces between its in-house system and the systems of its customers. Among the systems to which interfaces may be offered are OCLC, RLIN, WLN, DOBIS, CLSI and DataPhase. The B/NA on-line file will consist of book titles which the company has handled on approval for academic libraries over the past five years, with additions being made as time goes on from actual firm orders placed against the system as well as new titles received in stock. Access will be available by author, title and series entries. The planned on-line service is similar to the B/NA New Books Status Report which is issued in microfiche format. The company anticipates demonstrating at least a prototype of the new on-line system at the 1982 ALA Summer meeting in Philadelphia.

B/NA also expects to complete the development of a fully automated Name Authority Control System by early 1982. This will make it possible to convert the company's COM (Computer-Output-Microform) catalog customers to AACR2 and to provide AACR2 records to customers of B/NA's retrospective conversion services. B/NA claims more than 40 customer libraries for these services.

BLIS at Midwinter

There may be other reasons for bliss at the upcoming Midwinter meeting of the American Library Association in Denver, January 22 through 26 . . . but for Biblio-Techniques, vendor of the Biblio-Techniques Library and Information System (BLIS), it is the opportunity to unveil three new capabilities for their Washington Library Network (WLN) based, total-service automated library support package.

Biblio-Techniques reports that an easy access, "user friendly" interface for patron access catalogs, an online help system, and copy level detailed holdings capabilities to accommodate item specific information will be demonstrated at Denver.

Established BLIS capabilities cover the gamut of WLN software developments-catalog production and management, patron access catalog, acquisitions and funds accounting, serials listing, retrospective conversion, and management information and billing. Biblio-Techniques' agreement with WLN assures all BLIS users access to future software developments.

Offering a total package of software, hardware, installation, training and document support, BLIS is adaptable to a range of library situations-from a stand alone single library to a network. Priced from $200,000 for the software only system and $700,000 for software and hardware, BLIS is currently under serious consideration by libraries in Saskatchewan and California

[Contact: Biblio-Techniques, Inc., 8511 Lake Lucinda Drive, S.W., Olympia, WA 98502- 206-786-1111].

IBM cuts 4300 prices

IBM has recently announced price cuts for its 4300 line of computers and is promoting purchase rather than leasing. The IBM 4321, the new entry level machine, may now be purchased for $85,000, at least $10,000 less than what it formerly cost to get the same level of performance from a 4300 machine. At the same time as IBM dropped its hardware price, it raised prices on software by 6%. Another software price increase is expected in early 1982. The underlying strategy appears to reflect the findings of recent studies that by 1985 computer users will be spending only 15% of their data processing budgets on hardware. The shift in pricing would permit the company to maintain its past pattern of good income growth.

The applications software package most suitable for libraries that have, or are considering the IBM 4300 series, is that of the Northwestern University Library: NOTIS III. The integrated library system software package is now being enhanced and documented for sale to other libraries. The University of Florida Library is expected to have the first installed system.

CP/M gains more support

Each computer needs an operating system to monitor and control the sequencing of programs. As mentioned in the October Newsletter, CP/M appears to be on its way to becoming the de facto industry standard for microcomputers. Digital Research Inc., maker of the CP/M operating system, has announced that the Digital Equipment Corporation has selected CP/M as the operating system for the DEC VT180, a micro built around the highly successful VT100 terminal. The VT-180 is the first DEC product to make use of the CP/M operating system. Digital Research has been trying for some time to convince DEC, the world's largest minicomputer manufacturer, to follow the lead of such major firms as Hewlett-Packard Co., Xerox Corp. and IBM who have introduced micros supporting CP/M. The DEC decision will probably encourage more application programmers to develop CP/M-based programs.

CP/M, which can be used on microcomputers or word processors, was introduced by Digital Research in 1974. Since then it has been licensed to over 250,000 users. Digital Research estimates that 400 to 500 companies have already produced 3,000 to 4,000 individual programs. Several programming languages can be used with CP/M.

Wang Laboratories Inc. last week introduced a CP/M-enhanced Wangwriter. Xerox, Lanier, CPT Corp. and NorthStar Computers Inc. also offer CP/M compatibility for word processing systems, while representatives of Royal Business Machines, Inc., Burroughs Corp. and NBI Inc. have all indicated that they are considering it.

Western Electric, the Bell System subsidiary that developed UNIX, a competing operation system has reacted to the rapid adoption of CP/M by lowering prices. The decision is expected to encourage more micro manufacturers and software developers to use UNIX-in addition to, if not in lieu of, CP/M. Western Electric also appears to be determined to standardize UNIX by undercutting the price of UNIX-like systems-so called "look-alike" operating systems.

The operating systems for micros which appear to be losing ground are Microsoft's MS-DOS, Softech Microsystems' UCSD p-system, and Phase One System's Oasis.

Inexpensive daisywheel printers available

One of the greatest frustrations of micro owners has been the poor quality of the printer provided with most systems. Until recently, a high quality daisywheel printer (so called because it is composed of a set of spokes or arms, each with a single character, which radiate from a wheel-hub like the petals on a daisy) has cost in excess of $4,000. The domestic market has been dominated by Qume Corp. and Diablo Systems Inc., companies which competed with one another in all but price. Now, it is possible to purchase a Japanese daisywheel printer for under $2,000, especially if one is willing to accept a print speed of 15-20 CPS (characters per second). The biggest of the Japanese importers to date is Ricoh which ships its printers out of Fairfield, New Jersey. A 45 CPS version of its RP 1600 is already in use as part of many Lanier word processing systems. Another major word processing company, CPT Corp., is also planning to go with the RP 1600. The Ricoh unit is priced at approximately $3,000 list, but dealers can purchase them in quantity for under $2,000 each and may then offer them below the list price. NEC Information Systems, a Lexington, Massachusetts, subsidiary of another Japanese company is also expected to start shipping large numbers of inexpensive printers.

Olivetti of Italy plans to begin shipping its DY-2l1 to the U.S. The Contributing Editor recently had an opportunity to see it in Europe where it has been available for a year and was most impressed with both the quality and price, approximately $1,700.

In an apparent response to the foreign invasion, Diablo Systems Inc. has unveiled a 25 CPS daisywheel printer which the company claims is the first stand-alone printer to offer ''drop-ino plastic printwheels with automatic ribbon and printwheel positioning sensors. Listing for $2,000, Diablo has stated that the print quality of the Model 620 equals that of its faster, higher priced Model 630.

Today's programming languages here to stay

Libraries which are concerned about the possibility of obsolescence in programming languages used by turnkey library system vendors will be heartened by the views of a professor of computer science. John Lee of Virginia Polytechnic says, "Today's languages will be in use for the rest of the century." Professor Lee bases his view on the high cost of compiler writing and the slowness of new language acceptance. Ninety percent of the people in programming know only one language and don't want to learn another. Academics compound the inertia by teaching FORTRAN, COBOL, and PL/l says Lee. Furthermore, major corporations will not accept a new language until there is a substantial supply of programmers trained in its use.

The only new language for minis and mainframes that has gained recent acceptance is PASCAL which has been widely taught in academic institutions. The success of the language stems from its original design as a tool for teaching good programming habits, rather than through a concerted attempt to introduce it as a new language. The. existence of thousands of people qualified to program PASCAL led to the development of the compilers-the computer programs used to translate other computer programs from a high-level language into machine language.

Lees's views were confirmed by recent meetings on the revision of the standards for COBOL. A number of major users argued that the costs of implementing changes would far outweigh the benefits derived from any new standard. Implementation of the last major revision in COBOL cost one major insurance company over $1 million. Given those kinds of costs in changing the standards for a language, there might be little sympathy for a complete change of language.

None the less, there is seemingly a conflicting trend. According to a recently published manual from the Department of Defense, interest in ADA is building. This new language was developed for the military and is about to be adopted as an ANSI standard language. Several companies have announced their intention to market ADA compilers. The great appeal of the new language is its programmer efficiency and flexibility.

History of programming languages published

Librarians interested in programming languages may wish to read Richard Wexelbladt's History of Programming Languages from Academic Press. Thirteen popular languages are discussed: FORTRAN (the most popular language in the scientific community); COBOL (the first choice of the business community); PL/l (the second choice of the business community and widely adopted by IBM users); BASIC (first choice for micros); and less well known languages such as ALGOL, APT, JOVIAL, LISP, etc.

Not treated are ADA and PASCAL because they did not meet all of the criteria for inclusion: creation before 1968, use for at least 10 years, and influence in shaping the computer industry. Both languages are too new.

The chapters of the book are transcripts of a conference sponsored by the Association for Computer Machinery in 1978.

Bell's all digital system delayed

Bell's digital dataphone service (DDS)-a fully digital, point-to-point private line system is running nearly two years behind schedule, according to industry sources. Estimates vary on how long it will take AT&T to complete the monumental task of digitalizing the nation's phone network. Few think it can be done this century. Even if Bell wanted to hasten the conversion, the long-term depreciation schedule on its equipment would prevent it.

For more than a decade, data communications sages have been forecasting the imminent demise of the modem-the MODulator/DEModulator that converts computer signals from digital to analog form for transmission over voice telephone lines and decodes incoming data-streams from analog to digital. But the modem refused to die. It now appears that the devices will continue well into the next century because the phone network will become a patchwork of analog and digital lines, requiring modems at each point where a change-over occurs.

Europeans moving from Telex

European countries are preparing to substitute teletext for telex by early next year, according to U.S. communications industry representatives who have just returned from consultations with their European counterparts. Over 10,000 telex machines are currently in use in Europe.

In the U.S., the development of teletext, or the use of the television frequency spectrum to broadcast messages to customer terminals, has not been developing as quickly, if at all. Just last week, the Federal Communications Commission refused to open an inquiry into standards for protocols and display formats for teletext and videotex. (Videotex involves the two-way use of land based cable links, such as cable TV or telephone lines.) The FCC said it would not interfere by setting standards, opting instead for "an open environment approach" which currently pits the three major teletext/videotex producers against each other in the U.S. market.

In contrast, the Europeans with their centralized public telecommunications networks and administration are capable of handling voice, data, conferencing and facsimile communications over one network line instead of using a multiplicity of lines as in the U.S.

RCA disc sales lag

RCA sales of its capacitance videodisc players and discs are off to a very slow start. Projections for 1981 have recently been revised downward from 200,000 player sales to 60,000; disc sales are two-thirds of what was projected, two million units rather than three million. The one bright note has been that those who are buying the players are buying more than twice as many discs as expected.

Six RCA videodisc titles have grossed over $1 million each: Fiddler on the Roof, The Godfather, Grease, Heaven Can Wait, Rocky, and Saturday Night Fever. The RCA sales have lagged despite a major advertising campaign and a $50 manufacturer's rebate. Some dealers are discounting the players even further in an effort to boost sales of the discs, which are priced from $15 to $25 and carry a substantial dealer mark-up. In some cities it is now possible to purchase the player for $339. Discs are occasionally discounted up to 15%.

Aimed solely at the home entertainment market, the RCA videodisc venture is stymied by the limited range of materials available on capacitance discs- currently only 174 titles. Consumers interested in video entertainment appear to prefer the flexibility offered by the videocassette recorders and players. Sales of blank videotapes for direct off the air recording are reported to be excellent.

Sales of the laser-type videodisc players manufactured by Pioneer are closer to the projection of 65,000 sales for 1981, but the buyers are institutions rather than consumers seeking a home entertainment device. The interactive nature of the Pioneer player makes it an excellent machine for training/educational applications. Disc sales for the Pioneer, and other laser-type players such as the one manufactured by Magnavox, are "terrible" according to one New York dealer.

Publication Information

Publisher	Library Systems Newsletter was published by the American Library Association.
Editor-in-Chief:	Howard S. White
Contributing Editor:	Richard W. Boss
ISSN:	0277-0288
Publication Period	1981-2000
Business model	Available on Library Technology Guides with permission of the American Library Association.

Maintained by Marshall Breeding