Library Information Services

Although more and more information is being made available over the Internet, for many subject areas it is still true that reliable bibliographic information can only be found in the various commercial databases. Fortunately, astronomy is an exception in this regard. Thanks to many national and international projects as well as to the personal initiative of astronomers, computer scientists, librarians and publishers, members of the astronomical community can make use of a variety of non-commercial bibliographic resources on the Internet.

As commercial databases have been described in detail before (see e.g. Watson 1991), this chapter will concentrate on Library information services that require neither an account nor a password and do not charge fees according to the connecting time or the number of data sets that are displayed or downloaded.

The idea of using only one single database to answer all kinds of information needs for bibliographical purposes will remain a dream for a while. However, it is hoped that access to the various databases will become even smoother and more unified.

The following items are discussed in the printed chapter:

Access pointers

Library Catalogs and Services

General Addresses

Newsletters that are available electronically include:

AAS CSWA- Weekly women's issues / AAS Committee on the status of women in astronomy [CSWA]. Contact: Debra Elmgreen
AAVSO (American Association of Variable Star Observers) Newsletter, Cambridge, Mass.
American Astronomical Society (AAS) or anonymous ftp includes the AAS Job Register and other AAS documents.
Information Bulletin on Variable Stars (IBVS)
NRAO Newsletter
Star Formation Newsletter ST-ECF Newsletter
STScI Newsletter

Bookshops and Publishers

Abstract from a chapter of Information & On-line data in Astronomy
Kluwer Academic Publishers, Daniel Egret & Miguel A. Albrecht (Editors)