CANADIAN ADVANCES IN THE APPLICATION OF ELECTRONIC MAIL AND INTERLIBRARY LOAN AUTOMATION

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Abstract
Because of Canada's regional and cultural diversity and the size of the country, interlibrary loan arrangements (both formal and informal) have long flourished. Within the last 5 years Canadian libraries have increasingly abandoned telex in favour of electronic mail when sending ILL requests. An OSI based ILL protocol has been developed by the National Library of Canada and automated systems using this protocol are now being implemented, with the help of information gained from an informal ILL survey conducted by the author in 1987. The National Library of Canada's protocol supported automated ILL system includes all functions required for location, lending and borrowing activities. Benefits of this system include better control of requests and greater efficiency due to standardization of procedures, also the optimization of resources and more cost‐effective use of staff time, resulting in an ILL service which operates with increased effectiveness. However, there still remains room for substantial research and development in the areas of directories, information retrieval, invoicing protocols, electronic document delivery and service management before technology's potential can be fully harnessed.

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