---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 26 Jul 1996 15:40:59 -0400
From: ARL Publications <pubs@CNI.ORG>
Subject: 6th Edition of Directory of E-Journals & Lists

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE -- Please excuse cross-posting
July 1996

For further information please contact:
Patricia Brennan, Information Services Coordinator
pubs@cni.org

ARL Directory Highlights

Continued Increase in Electronic Publishing

The Association of Research Libraries is pleased to announce the
availability of The Directory of Electronic Journals, Newsletters and
Academic Discussion Lists, 6th Edition, the standard hard copy reference
work for serials available via the Internet.  This new edition of the
Directory is a compilation of entries for over 3,000 academic and
professional discussion lists and 1,688 electronic journals,
newsletters, and newsletter-digests, representing a 257% increase in
journals and a 26% increase in lists since the 1995 Edition.  The
Directory is a tool for assisting individuals in locating Internet
resources as well as assisting librarians in building electronic
collections.

Electronic publishing has gained unprecedented momentum since the
Directory was first published in 1991.  Summary analysis of the 6th
Edition indicates that the number of peer-reviewed titles are
increasing.  The majority of journals and newsletters continue to be
available for free, although this edition indicates a slight increase in
fee-based titles over last year.  In the 1996 Edition, 168, or 10% of
the titles, are available on a fee basis only.

The Directory is organized to assist the user in finding relevant
publications and discussion groups and connecting to them quickly, even
if he or she is not completely versed in the full range of user-access
systems.  A short description of each title in the Directory is included
as well as access information.  A URL is provided for over 90% of the
journal and newsletter titles.  Included also are ISSN, costs, first
issues, peer review, frequency, back issues, and submissions.  For the
discussion lists section, entries include moderator contact information,
and indicate whether the lists are edited and archived.  A combined
index for the two sections includes keyword, title, and institutional
affiliation.

Diane Kovacs, Kovacs Consulting, and The Directory Team created again
this year the academic and professional discussion lists section, while
Dru Mogge and the ARL Directory staff compiled the journals and
newsletters section.  The introduction to the Directory is by Ann
Okerson, Yale University.

Each year, ARL chooses a particularly relevant or noteworthy article on
electronic scholarly publishing for inclusion in the Directory; the 6th
Edition article of the year is a paper by Steve Hitchcock, Leslie Carr,
and Wendy Hall of the Multimedia Research Group at the University of
Southampton.  "A survey of STM online journals 1990-95: the calm before
the storm" is a comprehensive review of online, full-text, peer
reviewed, English language journals in the areas of science, technology,
and medicine.  An evaluative description is available for each journal
cited, including features such as delivery mechanisms, presentation
formats, and charging practices.

The Association of Research Libraries is a not-for-profit membership
organization comprising 120 libraries of North American research
institutions.  Its mission is to shape and influence forces affecting
the future of research libraries in the process of scholarly
communication.  ARL programs and services promote equitable access to
and effective use of recorded knowledge in support of teaching,
research, scholarship, and community service.  The Association
articulates the concerns of research libraries and their institutions,
forges coalitions, influences information policy development, and
supports innovation and improvement in research library operations.  ARL
operates as a forum for the exchange of ideas and as an agent for
collective action.

ARL Directory of Electronic Journals, Newsletters and Academic
Discussion Lists.  6th ed.  Dru W.  Mogge, editor.  1996.  1,136 pp.
ISSN 1057-1337.  US $79.00 ($55 ARL members).

Web Versions:
<http://arl.cni.org/scomm/edir/> - Journals and Newsletters
<http://www.n2h2.com/KOVACS> - Discussion Lists

--

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   Association of Research Libraries
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     Internet: pubs@cni.org