[881] in Public-Access_Computer_Systems_Forum
Project announcement
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Betty Braaksma)
Fri Jul 31 18:11:22 1992
Date: Fri, 31 Jul 1992 17:04:05 CDT
Reply-To: Public-Access Computer Systems Forum <PACS-L%UHUPVM1.BITNET@ricevm1.rice.edu>
From: Betty Braaksma <BRAAKSMA@VM2.YorkU.CA>
To: Multiple recipients of list PACS-L <PACS-L%UHUPVM1.BITNET@ricevm1.rice.edu>
----------------------------Original message----------------------------
This announcement is being cross-posted to several lists.
PROJECT ANNOUNCEMENT : INFORMATION RESOURCES MAP OF NORTHERN ONTARIO
Students, faculty and researchers in Northern Ontario often find their
activities hampered by the inaccessibility of data. The problem is not that
relevant data do not exist. The difficulty is that the desired information is
oftend scattered or embedded in larger collections or databases. In a
concentrated urban area, it is relatively easy for a student or researcher to
travel to different locations to find information; in the North, the distances
involved make this strategy very difficult, if not impossible. The development
of a "map" or master directory of information would go a long way toward
improving access to information in the North, and would allow students and
researchers to make choices about how and where to locate the resources they
need.
The Information Resources Map of Northern Ontario is a collaborative effort by
librarians at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay, Ontario and at York
University in North York, Ontario. The objective of the Map is to identify
information resources in the North and bring them together in a single machine-
readable directory or "Map". The Map is not a union list. The information
resources will include libraries at all levels, collections in individual
agenices (e.g. hospitals, womens' centres), museums and archives. Instead of
identifying collections held at each site, the Map will list information on:
hours, services, special resources and the focus of the collection at each
site. Extensive cross-indexing will enable the users to easily identify the
most appropriate location for their information needs.
There are two phases in the project. The first phase, now underway, involves
gathering data from information resource sites throughout Northern Ontario.
The second phase will see the development of a machine-readable database
containing the information gathered in Phase 1. It is expected that this
database will serve as a prototype for other areas where information resources
are widely scattered.
For more information on the project, or to contribute information, please
contact:
Betty Braaksma
Scott Library, York University
North York, Ontario
BRAAKSMA@YORKVM2//BRAAKSMA@VM@.YorkU.CA
Ian Dew or Gisella Scalese
The Chancellor Paterson Library, Lakehead University
Thunder Bay, Ontario
IDEW@LIB.LAKEHEADU.CA or OCLS@LIB.LAKEHEADU.CA
