The increasing globalization of information is a fact of life in the last decade of the Twentieth Century. We have witnessed the fast-paced development of the Internet and the World Wide Web. This development has been fueled by the marriage of powerful computers, sophisticated workstations, and telecom-munications developments. John Naisbitt in Global Paradox writes "As com-puters, telephones, and televisions each are endowed with the capabilities of the others, there will evolve a splendid array of telephone/television/ computer hybrids" (Naisbitt, 1994, p.53). He goes on to state:

Local automated systems must now address the issues raised by this need to load databases in different countries with varying language requirements utilizing different cataloging standards and communicating over networks with assorted protocols. In this environment the capabilities of the automated integrated systems become crucial to the ability of the local library to become part of the global information system.

2. BACKGROUND

As the information world becomes increasingly global in nature so does the integrated information systems business. Increasingly, vendors are becoming international in scope. In the earlier decades of development, the system vendors tended to be national in scope. There were American companies for American libraries, Canadian companies for Canadian library systems, and European companies for European systems. Now, vendors are developing systems for the libraries in countries other than their own. For instance, Innovative Interfaces Inc. (III), in addition to North America, has developed systems for Hong Kong and Australia; VTLS has systems in Europe and Asia as well as the U.S.; and Ex Libris' Aleph system is installed in Europe and North America in addition to Israel. This is to name just a few of the international ventures of major system vendors. Clearly, this is an important development in the library system marketplace.

With this increasing internationalization of the system marketplace, it is evident that the vendors must consider new elements in information storage and retrieval design. At the same time, librarians must be aware of the features essential in system design to facilitate the connectivity and compatibility essential in the global information network.
 

3. GLOBAL FACTORS

3.1. NETWORK

Increasingly, the telecommunications networks are becoming the most important development in the globalization of information. The ability to com-municate instantaneously with libraries around the world makes time and place irrelevant. However, as Marilyn Gell Mason states, international cooperation requires the "...use of standard bibliographic data, access to holdings information, and the ability of a library to deliver the document once it is requested" (Mason, 1993, p.393). While much has to be done within the local library to provide access to the networks, the networks themselves have to develop standard protocols that allow connectivity. "Different types of computers have different ways of representing characters, organizing files, and other functions. If a file from one computer is to be used in another computer, it is important that there be prior agreement on how to represent the data and which record and file structure to use. When two computer systems communicate via a computer network, they do that by exchanging messages. The structure of network messages varies from network to network. Thus, in addition agreement must be reached on the structure of these messages as well. The message structures, as well as the types of messages, are agreed upon a priori and described in a set of rules, defined in a protocol" (Holm, 1994, p.158).

In this world of interlocking networks, standards become crucial to the computers' abilities to communicate. This includes the implementation of standards on the international, national, and local levels. It also includes stan-dards in telecommunications, database construction, and information retrieval.

3.2. STANDARDS

In a discussion of standards, there are three major areas to consider. First, in the area of network connectivity there are two major protocols -- OSI and TCP/IP. OSI is an abbreviation for Open Systems Interconnection which is a model for networks defined by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). According to Holm, "These ISO OSI service and protocol standards have strong functionality but are not yet widely implemented in networks." (Holm, 1994, p.159). TCP/IP, which stands for Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol, was developed for the U.S. Department of Defense's network, ARPANET, and became the protocol for the Internet. With the Internet becoming so widespread, TCP/IP is being used worldwide. Still, some networks are using the ISO OSI standard protocol, and it is essential for the two protocols to be able to communicate and transfer data. "For many years we will have to live with some implementations on TCP/IP, some on OSI and some on a mixed stack. For all these to interoperate we need gateways"

(Holm, 1994, p. 169) Gateways translate messages from one protocol to another. For instance, gateways for electronic mail transfer messages between the OSI networks using X.400 mail protocols and the Internet using SMTP (Simple Mail Transfer Protocol) (Holm, 1994, p.169).

The second area where standards become mandatory is in the matter of database construction. Standards for database records in electronic form have developed in the library and information fields. Known as MARC (Machine Readable Cataloging) these standards began in the 1960s in the U.S. which developed USMARC, but the British also developed a standard MARC record format known as UK MARC and other countries developed formats for their materials as well. IFLA (International Federation of Library Associations) has developed an international standard based on these formats known as UNIMARC. UNESCO has developed another standard CCF/B (Common Commu-nication Format for Bibliographic Materials). It is essential that local libraries devise formats that are compatible with the standard formats. As Simmons in his Program article states: "...preserving compatibility with an international or national standard usually is and always should be a major objective of local format design" (Simmons, 1994, p.126). The need to connect to networks, to communicate with other computers, and to transfer data from one location to another is a critical element in the developing global environment. Standards are essential in providing this capability. "With access to telecommunications networks, cooperation with other agencies is becoming a daily reality for more and more of us. In this yeasty atmosphere of widespread and freely accessible electronic resources, compatibility with standards may well be our only life raft in the rising sea of information chaos" (Simmons, 1994, p.139).

Connected to the standards for creating machine readable records is the related question of standards for information retrieval which is the third area under consideration. In the United States a standard for searching databases has been developed. This is known as Z39.50. "Z39.50 is a standard for client/server architecture in which a search engine and interface are divided into independent parts. If both the client (interface) and server (database search engine) conform to the standard, then any brand of Z39.50 client can search any brand of Z39.50 server. The driving idea behind this standard is the hope that widely dispersed databases on different native systems can be searched with the same local client, or interface" (Hollis & Brunelle, 1995, p.283). ISO has also developed a search and retrieval standard (SR) and there is work being done to align the two standards. "Alignment is achieved by introducing changes to one standard into the other through amendments. There are several propositions for amendments to Z39.50 that have been put forward by the United States as amendments to SR. On the other hand, Norway originated work on a browsing service called Scan, and it is now being introduced into Z39.50" (Holm, 1994, p.165). These efforts are extremely important to ensure the cross-database searching capabilities.

4. LOCAL CONSIDERATIONS

4.1. DATABASE

The database that a library constructs is unique to that organization, because it lists what that library owns and provides access to the rich cultural resources of the local community. "In the long run, far more money and effort will be invested in an organization’s database than in its computers or its programs. Hardware and software will eventually become obsolete, or at lease obsolescent, and will be replaced by newer, cheaper and more powerful models. Yet the database of an organization, especially if it is bibliographic, must be sufficiently flexible to withstand these changes and to endure, often over decades" (Simmons, 1994, p.125). When building a database it is essen-tial to follow standards, at least to be compatible with the national and international standards so that data can be transferred over the networks.

When purchasing an automated integrated library system for the local library, it is important to determine whether the system employs standard MARC formats. It is also necessary to investigate how the system processes the records to make sure fields aren't stripped. Future development may be determined by the condition of the database records. Therefore, it is necessary to maintain the records in standard formats to ensure compatibility with current external systems and flexibility for future needs.

4.2. MULTILINGUAL REQUIREMENTS

In this environment of global interconnections language requirements and machine capabilities become determining factors in the ability to load databases and communicate between systems. "Online searching and the Internet have gone a long way toward internationalizing the flow of information."(Still, 1993, p.72). However, language still presents an obstacle to the interchange of information. This problem becomes more complex as data is stored and retrieved on computerized systems. "With the introduction of OPACS, however, one can retrieve information from all parts of a record, including title keyword and, in some cases, contents notes. European countries, especially those with more than one accepted language, are now investigating ways of allowing users to search for information in each language. The Royal Library in Brussels, for example, would like to offer subject access in three languages -- English, Dutch, and French" (Still, 1993, p.72). The need to store and retrieve data in a variety of languages is important in Asia and Africa as well as in Europe. This, of course, has implications for the local libraries as well as the system vendors. Even more complicated for machine implementation are the various non-Roman scripts.

It is essential for the local library to have the capability to store information in the language of the country, in the languages of the collections, and in other languages for international communication. When purchasing a local automated integrated system, the multilingual capabilities of the system become a major consideration.

The cataloging of materials in non-Roman scripts and the transfer of the data into machine-readable format is extremely complicated. Research libraries in the United States have struggled with the options for several years. Recently systems have been developed which can accommodate Roman and non-Roman scripts. It is now becoming possible to catalog languages in electronic format in the native script. Although work still needs to be done to facilitate the electronic transmission of non-Roman scripts, nevertheless, the ability to enter these bibliographic data is one of the major accomplishments enabling the rich cultural materials in libraries worldwide to become available in electronic form and to provide access over the global networks.

Although the Internet is worldwide, accessible in over 137 countries and growing at the rate of a million new users every month (O'Hagan, 1995, p.45), still the situation in local areas can vary immensely.

The way networks develop in the different countries and different regions of the world determines accessibility, attitudes, and applications in the various libraries. As Mason stated:

Clearly, local networking capability is a crucial piece of the globalization of information resources. The ability of local libraries to access the Internet depends on economic, social, and cultural factors as well as technical issues. Library and information development is dependent on the forces at work in this complex environment.

5. VENDOR CAPABILITIES

5.1. INTERNATIONALIZATION OF VENDORS

Into this complex arena of worldwide networks, multiple language require-ments, and various national standards for records and information search and retrieval, the vendors of integrated online systems are expanding into international markets. While the integrated online system marketplace has centered on North America, there is growing internationalization of vendors, including North American, European, British, Australian and Israeli companies. North American firms are expanding into Europe and Asia while the other firms are making headway in the U.S. and Canada. Several of the annual market surveys are enlarging their scope to determine the international sales of the vendors. Although some firms have installed systems exclusively in one part or another of the world, other vendors are beginning to sell systems to countries other than their home territories. For instance, Innovative Inter-faces has sold several systems in Asia, a few in Europe, as well as the majority of systems in the U.S. Aleph, an Israeli-based firm, has sold several systems in the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East/Africa. VTLS, an American firm, also has widespread installations of its system including the U.S., Europe, South America, the Middle East and Asia. DRA (Data Research Associates) has a widespread base in North America, Europe, Asia/Oceania, and South America. Many other vendors have widespread installations as well (See International Survey, 1995). Also in widespread use is UNESCO's CDS/ISIS system which is not a completely integrated system. However, it is used in a large number of libraries in developing countries.

It is interesting to note that as these companies expand internationally, they have to come to terms with some of the issues we have been discussing. It is essential for them to develop multilingual capabilities, adopt networking standards, and develop standard search and retrieval capabilities.

5.2. MULTILINGUAL CAPABILITIES

As the companies expand internationally, they are developing their systems to accommodate various languages including non-Roman scripts. Some of the firms involved in these endeavors include VTLS which has developed an entirely new system called Virtua which can handle assorted scripts from around the world. VTLS' Unicode "...insures that the assorted scripts and technical symbols from different types of systems worldwide can be correctly represented and manipulated" (Rogers, 1995, p.119). Innovative Interfaces has done extensive work on encoding and displaying the Asian languages and Ex Libris' Aleph system can handle the Hebrew and Arabic languages. For libraries with multilingual collections, these and other integrated systems will be extremely helpful in providing the necessary system requirements to allow the inputting of records in different languages.

5.3. BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORDS

With the increasing globalization of the information field, the major biblio-graphic utilities, such as OCLC and RLIN are also expanding their services into the international arena. Bibliographic records from around the world are being loaded into their huge databases. This means that the standards for MARC records have to be closely adhered to, and the utilities have to develop their capabilities in handling non-Roman scripts. As this occurs, the databases become more and more international in scope and consequently more useful to libraries around the world.

6. CONCLUSION

As library and information resources become increasingly global in nature, the individual libraries around the world become more and more important. The local languages and cultural resources are becoming accessible through the power of the networks. In this environment, the local integrated online library systems must be able to handle multiple languages, connect to various networks, and adhere to standards for electronic records and search and retrieval protocols. Compatibility and flexibility are essential in this dynamic and fluid environment. One vendor writes that it is important for the system to have

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