Administrative Notes Newsletter of the Federal Depository Library Program Vol. 19, no. 02 GP 3.16/3-2:19/02 January 15, 1998 Electronic Transition Staff Update FDLP/ERIC DIGITAL LIBRARY PILOT PROJECT GPO, the National Library of Education (NLE) and OCLC are cooperating to make public domain reports from the Education Resources Information Clearinghouse (ERIC) available online through the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) . Scheduled to run through 1998, the FDLP/ERIC Digital Library Pilot Project will provide the participants with valuable information on managing a large, high-demand collection in electronic format. Reports from January 1997 forward will be converted to TIFF image format and stored at OCLC, with access available through OCLC 's First Search. Up to 250 new reports are expected to be added each month. UIC/OTA Discussions are underway between GPO and the University of Illinois-Chicago (UIC) to make the electronic Government information products from the Office of Technology Assessment (OTA) legacy collection permanently accessible under the auspices of the FDLP. Although the OTA files have been available from various sites, GPO and UIC will now assure permanent accessibility under this agreement. WEB ACTIVITIES ETS has worked on a number of web projects, such as the item selection update process and the creation of AskLPS, a web-based inquiry and answer module for the depository community to send questions to and receive answers from Library Programs Service. These projects are designed to make life easier for the FDLP as well as the depository distribution and acquisitions staff at GPO. There is currently a rough prototype of the "LPS Virtual Tour." The next step will be to load photos onto the site. An announcement will be made as soon as it is ready for public viewing. BROWSE TOPICS The Pathway Browse Topics service is being enhanced and expanded through the efforts of many in the depository community. As of early January 1998, 33 topic areas have been developed and kept up-to-date by 29 volunteers. In order to keep this project viable, individuals adopting a topic are asked to provide quarterly reviews of that topic. Some current topics that demonstrate the best practices for style and content are Human Rights, Economy, and Labor-Management Relations. Further information is available on the GPO Web site at: NATIONAL TECHNICAL INFORMATION SERVICE An Interagency Agreement (IA) has been signed between the National Technical Information Service (NTIS) and LPS to establish a pilot project through which NTIS will furnish U.S. Government information products in electronic image format to the FDLP. NTIS has been working with the University of California - Davis on the initial phase of this pilot project. The long-term project is expected to include up to 20 libraries, ranging from well-equipped academic/ research institutions to small libraries that have an interest in this material, but do not have high-tech equipment. This will enable NTIS to determine what technical specifications libraries should have in order to access these electronic image files. DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY GPO has signed an IA with the Department of Energy (DOE) that will provide depository libraries and the public with access to DOE reports in electronic image format. Under this IA, FDLP libraries and users will enter the DOE electronic dissemination system, called "Information Bridge," through GPO Access. This gateway will provide a public view to the DOE reports. A number of documents librarians were asked by ETS staff to examine the DOE site and provide feedback on its accessibility and ease of use. The comments received will be shared with DOE staff to ensure that "Information Bridge" will be user-friendly for the depository community. A roll-out of the depository library version of "Information Bridge" is scheduled to be held during the April depository meeting in Washington, DC.