========================================================================= N N EEEEE TTTTT N N EEEEE W W SSSSS NN N E T NN N E W W S N N N EEE T *** N N N EEE W W W SSSSS N NN E T N NN E WW WW S N N EEEEE T N N EEEEE W W SSSSS ========================================================================= an update to libraries and information resources on the Internet sponsored by Metronet ========================================================================= Number 5 NETWORK-NEWS April 1992 =============================================== A Guide to Internet/Bitnet available on LIBSOFT =============================================== GUIDE1.TXT contains information on using a VAX, sending email, subscribing to mailing lists, obtaining electronic journals, logging on to internet bulletin boards, and using FTP to obtain files. GUIDE2.TXT contains my latest list of internet libraries. (Jan. 1992 files) Both of these files are ASCII text files. To obtain copies of these files: FTP HYDRA.UWO.CA USER ANONYMOUS (give email address for password) CD LIBSOFT GET GUIDE1.TXT GET GUIDE2.TXT QUIT I plan to update both of these files in the next week or so. ========================================== Online Public Access Catalogs Corrections! ========================================== Brookhaven National Laboratory TELNET TID.BNL.GOV TELNET 130.199.129.45 LOGON: Username: BROOKHAVEN LOGOFF: Type Q from the main menu Gopher Internet (correction!) TELNET consultant.micro.umn.edu LOGON: gopher LOGOFF: quit ======================== THE JOY OF ANONYMOUS FTP ======================== Most of this newsletter will be devoted to resources available via anonymous FTP. The process is deceptively simple - FTP to site X, look at the file list, transfer copies of the files that appeal to you, and quit. That's the easy part - knowing where to go is the tough part! There are several FTP lists and they aren't very good. There are hundreds of sites but the descriptions of their contents are often out-of-date or misleading. For example, the LIBSOFT archive at hydra.uwo.ca is never mentioned. You can TELNET to an ARCHIE server to search for sites that might have a file you need. There are a number of archie sites around the world - one is archie.rutgers.edu. Logon as archie and search for sites by typing: prog XXX (or whatever it is you need). Try not to use a very common phrase or you will be overwhelmed by the number of hits. I searched for zen got hits on zenith, citizen, and lots of other terms in addition to the Kehoe guide that I was looking for. I was lucky - buried in the 750 hits was the ASCII version I wanted (see recommended reading below). A number of lists (PACS-L, EDTECH, and HISTORY for example) will on occassion carry tips on how to FTP to certain sites. Save these tips for later use. Some of you may be interested in the little VAX program I wrote to automate my FTP searches. It is loosely modeled on the original LIBTEL.COM and runs as @GOFTP. It is a bit of a kludge but works for me. It includes about 25 sites covering everything from Barron's list to MAC software to science fiction. It is not comprehensive but it's in the public domain - change it as much as you like. It will be available shortly on HYDRA.UWO.CA in the LIBSOFT directory as GOFTP.COM. Lastly, try to limit your FTP adventures to evenings and weekends so that the servers will not be overwhelmed. =================== RECOMMENDED READING =================== AUTAMATOME Vol.10, No. 3/4 and Vol. 11, No.1 These issues include excellent reviews of 15 automated library systems used in law libraries. Most of these systems are familiar to anyone who uses the Internet library connection. The reviews are frank and authoritative. Very good reading! Available via anonymous FTP from liberty.uc.wlu.edu in the pub/lawlib directory. INTERNET VOYAGER (a.k.a ELECTRONIC VOYAGER GUIDEBOOK) SOCIAL SCIENTIST'S GUIDEBOOK to AARNET/INTERNET Online Information Services by Dr T. Matthew Ciolek, Coombs Computing Unit, RSPacS/RSSS, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia Ciolek has put together a very useful guide to the information resources available on the network. He rates the range, quality, and freshness of the data. Each entry also includes the date he last accessed the database. This document is available via anonymous FTP to coombs.anu.edu.au. It is in coombspapers/coombswork/coombs-computing directory as internet-voyager.txt. ZEN AND THE ART OF THE INTERNET by Brenden Kehoe Kehoe's guide would qualify for the Internet best-seller list if there was one. It includes introductions to a wide range of Internet services and to Usenet. He includes useful examples and even a bit of humor. The official version of this document has not yet been made available as an ASCII text file. However, there are two unofficial ASCII versions currently available via anonymous FTP. Kehoe will be producing an ASCII version when he prepares the RFC version. FTP csn.org FTP csuvax1.csu.murdoch.edu.au cd pub/doc cd pub/internet get zen-1.0.txt get zeninternet.gde The CSN.ORG is nicely formatted but 20K longer. This site also has the other versions of Kehoe's guide. ==================== COOOMSPAPERS ARCHIVE ==================== This archive was established in December as an electronic depository for social science and humanities papers. Its special strength is in the wide range of fulltext files on the Pacific and Asian areas, Buddhism/Toaism, and a few miscellaneous but genuinely helpful network resources (see above). Many of the papers are in compressed (Z) format to save space. If you are on a unix machine this should be no problem (ask your local guru). UNCOMP.EXE (see LDS below) will uncompress Z files on MSDOS machines. FTP coombs.anu.edu.au and cd coombspapers. ================== GENEALOGY ARCHIVES ================== FTP sites containing genealogy related information and programs: Text files, research guides, ROOTS-L archive: FTP vm1.nodak.edu or 34.129.111.1 then cd roots-l Genealogy programs, primarily for IBM pcs, in archived format. You will need PKUNZIP to unpack the ZIP files. FTP hallc1.cebaf.gov or 129.57.7.19 then cd genealogy LDS research guides. Need unix uncompress to expand the unix .Z files. See README and Zfiles.txt in the geo directory for more information on uncompressing files. Be prepared to spend considerable time reformatting these files if you want ASCII files. It will be worth the effort - the Minnesota Research Outline is excellent! UNCOMPRESS.EXE will uncompress Unix Z files on MSDOS machines - it is in the geo subdirectory. FTP rainbow.cse.nau.edu or 134.114.64.24 then cd geo/geneaology ======================= PILOT HYPERTEXT PROGRAM ======================= John Doyle of Washington & Lee University has written a hypertext program for IBM pcs and placed it in the public domain. He used it to put together a fine hypertext introduction to W&L's law library. The program is quite easy to use and the price is right!. It is available via anonymous FTP in the pub/lawlib directory on liberty.uc.wlu.edu. Be sure to get PILOTTXT.EXE, PILOT.DOC, and PILOT.EXE. (These programs are also available on MetroLine!) ================= EDITORIAL COMMENT ================= Now that there are over 300 library catalogs available on the Internet, I think that it is time for "information" folks (otherwise known as librarians) to begin to take a leadership position in helping users select appropriate online resources. Billy Barron, Art St. George, and, to a lesser extent, your friendly newsletter producer all attempt to circulate information about all of the libraries available on the network. Peter Scott, Mark Resmer, and the folks from UNC have created easy to use programs that take some of the pain out of reaching these resources. But the fact is that few library users or librarians need access to 300 plus libraries. They need access to useful information. I would like to suggest that we begin to collect information about collection strengths and special features. Librarians can share this hard to get information about their local systems via the lists, informing the persistent network catalogers (Barron etc.), or dropping me a line. I would be happy to add the information to my guide. I would like to see versions of the Scott/Resmer/UNC programs that emphasize the quality and accessability of the information found on the internet OPACS. A selection of the top 10 or 20 research libraries in the USA combined with a set of regional systems in the US and elsewhere would satisfy the needs of most users in the United States. The rationale for choosing selected systems could be based on the size and depth of the collections (Harvard would be a must), the flexibility and ease of use of the OPAC software (the system that just presents a "?" would not be included for obvious reasons), the specialized inhouse databases, or other locally determined criteria. And the rationale could be included in the program so that the user would know the basis for selection of systems. The point is not to limit access but to help users get the most of the superb resources that are available. I would like to applaud the efforts of the Australian group that designed regional programs that link to Resmer and Scott's programs. They focused on regional needs and priorities combined with ease of use. Scott's Hytelnet programs: FTP access.usask.ca and cd pub/hytelnet Resmer's Libs programs: FTP sonoma.edu and cd pub Aussie advances: ftp csuvax1.csu.murdoch.edu.au and cd pub/soft (Bet I will get a few comments on this little piece! At least, I hope so.) ============================= Local Folks: MetroLine is up! ============================= Lots of goodies there: READLIB (Minnesota authors who will who will speak at local libraries), COB.TXT (the community of the book - local and regional publishers), ACCESS.TXT (my guide to local libraries), PUBDIR.TXT (Metro Council's publication directory) and much more. The MetroLine calendar includes a wide range of local and national events of interest to the library community. Give MetroLine a call at (612) 224-8086. =========================================================================== Metronet is not responsible for the content of the newsletter - just me! Send corrections and/or comments to: Dana Noonan Metronet (612) 722-9257 (612) 224-4801 (612) 224-4827 (fax) noonan@msus1.msus.edu metronet@vz.acs.umn.edu Library User Network BBS (612) 772-7635 Metroline BBS (612) 224-8086 =========================================================================== Metronet >--< linking Twin Cities area libraries and media centers