ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 550 / C &R L News SLA in A n a h e im , 1 9 8 7 B y JoA n S. S egal Executive Director, A C R L A report on the 78th Annual Conference of the Special Libraries Association. T he Special Libraries Association’s 78th Annual Conference in Anaheim, June 6-11, 1987, had as its th e m e , “ G lo b a l I n f o r m a tio n A ccess— Expanding O ur W orld.” Many sessions stressed in­ ternational aspects of Librarianship and inform a­ tion service. W ith over 100 programs and more than 330 exhibit booths, the conference attracted 4,200 attendees. The Anaheim location encouraged participants to bring their families and visit Disneyland, but left a void as far as nearby cultural activities was con­ cerned. This was more than compensated for by of­ ficial and unofficial tours of libraries, museums, and inform ation centers. The opening general session featured Dr. Arno Penzias, Nobel Prize-winning vice president of re­ search and development at AT&T’s Bell Labs. Pen­ zias described inform ation and the new technolo­ gies in terms of their im pact on how we think, work, and provide inform ation services, and he stressed the need for inform ation specialists who analyze data, as well as retrieve it; but he asked frankly w hether we can trust our complex systems and the attitudes we have developed about them. A panel of regional specialists then presented papers on aspects of inform ation service and access in vari­ ous parts of the world. A significant feature was a day-long program on CD-ROM , w hich covered everything from the m ost e le m e n ta ry concepts of th e tech n o lo g y , through inventories of available products, h a rd ­ w are trends, costs, potential future applications, and standards. A reception at which vendors dem ­ onstrated CD-ROM products allowed participants to try systems out w ith their own hands. The SLA Presidential Task Force on the Value of the Inform ation Professional m ade a presentation at the P resident’s Luncheon Program . Jim Ma- tarazzo reported on several interesting attem pts to place a dollar value on inform ation in terms of time and money saved because of the availability of in­ fo rm atio n , or because of a u to m atio n . F u rth e r work in this area is being encouraged. Several sessions dealt w ith public relations, as special librarians asked themselves, “how do we make ourselves indispensable?” and answered: by- increasing our credibility, prom oting ourselves, understanding the political environm ent. In the area of m anagem ent, sessions dealt w ith leader­ ship: the need for vision, originality, assertiveness, decisiveness, fairness, and ethical behavior. E n tre­ preneurs were introduced to the idea of developing a business plan and a financial plan, dealing w ith banks, contracts, and prom otional concepts, be­ fore quitting their present jobs. Integrity and ethics were key elements in several presentations; there is a growing interest in this a re a . Sessions d e a lin g w ith lib ra ry e d u c a tio n stressed the concept th a t w h at one learns in library school is im portant, th a t graduates need to under­ stand basic skills and work behavior even more th an specifics of technology, which changes faster than any curriculum can. A breakfast meeting of the Professional Develop­ m ent Com m ittee focused on the role of SLA in the accrediting process for library schools. A prolonged October 1987 / 551 study period in which SLA took p art resulted in the realization on the p art of many library associations of the tremendous cost involved in accrediting li­ brary education. Panelists agreed th a t SLA should accept its p art in the funding of the accreditation activity. An active continuing education program a t­ tracted 920 participants to 21 courses before and after the m ain conference activities. At the annual meeting the entire board was on the dais as official reports of the state of the associa­ tion were presented by the president, the executive director, and the treasurer. The results of the elec­ tion were announced. Joe Ann Clifton, Litton In ­ dustries, is president-elect, and new board m em ­ bers include: M. Kay Mowrey, C hapter Cabinet chair-elect; Carolyn H ardnett, Division Cabinet c h a ir-e le c t; an d d ire c to rs -a t-la rg e M ary Jan e Miller and James E. Tchobanoff. Emily Mobley, associate librarian at Purdue, also an ACRL m em ­ ber, concluded the program w ith her inaugural ad ­ dress. She challenged the association to move away from “an outmoded nom enclature th at no longer communicates the content or functions of our pro­ fession any more than the materials w ith which we w ork.” Trends and issues of the conference and the spe­ cial library profession in 1987 were: •in teg rity and ethics; •v a lu e of inform ation and of librarians’ ser­ vices; •leadership, m anagem ent, and the differences between them; • internationalism ; •im proving the image; •risk and change. The last point was underscored by R ow land O. W. Brow n, president of O CLC, who was aked a question about the risk implicit in change early in the conference. His response: the only risk is not to change. ■ ■ International Conference on Computer-Assisted Learning in Post-Secondary Education The first in w hat will become a series of In tern a­ tional Conferences on Computer-Assisted L earn­ ing in Post–Secondary Education was held at the University of Calgary, May 5-7, 1987, under the sponsorship of the Institute for C om puter–Assisted Learning. Over .300 registrants came from Austria, C anada, England, France, G erm any, Malaysia, The Netherlands, Scotland, South Africa, and the United States. It was the intention of the conference to provide a forum th a t would address a wide array of issues associated w ith the development and im plem enta­ tion of CAL in the post-secondary environment. This was reflected in the keynote speeches, invited papers, and subm itted papers. The keynote speak­ ers included Brian Gaines, Norm an W agner from the University of Calgary, Gail Robinson from the Centre for Language and Crosscultural Skills, Alan Kay (an Apple Fellow), and Don Bitzer from the University of Illinois. The invited papers also reflected the breadth of the topic of the conference. Charles Findley and Jo-Anne W yer of Digital Equipm ent Corporation spoke on “Learning in the Inform ation Age.” H er­ m ann M aurer of the Technical Universitv of Graz described a CAL system currently being developed w ith support of the Austrian government th a t will perm it the delivery of CAL to low–cost microcom­ puters. Gordon M cCalla from the University of Saskatchewan addressed the promise of artificial intelligence for computer-assisted learning, and Jo­ seph Scandura of the University of Pennsylvania described the system which he has developed, an intelligent ruletutor. Some of the topics for the paper presentations w ere intelligent CAL, adm inistration of CAL, CAL applications development, courseware devel­ opm ent, CAL in the humanities, engineering ap ­ plications of CAL, artificial intelligence, CAL in language teaching, CAL applications in learning effectiveness, delivery of CAL, and video applica­ tions. There were also two symposia, “The Near F u tu r e of C o m p u te r-B a se d E d u c a tio n ” an d “Com puter-M anaged Learning”; two panel ses­ sions, “Vendors’ view of CAL in E ducation,” and “Im plem enting CAL: The Facts of L IF E ”; and a special presentation by Rosalyn Gerstein of The Public W orks, In c., on “Reconfigurable Video M arital Fracture: An Interactive Video Case Study for the Social Sciences.” An International Advisory Com m ittee has been formed to coordinate subsequent conferences on the same topic. The next International Conference on C om puter–Assisted Learning in Post-Secondary Education w ill be held in 1989 in Dallas, Texas. Copies of the 1987 Conference Proceedings are available for $35.00, plus $2.00 shipping, from: In ­ stitute for C om puter–Assisted Learning, Universitv of Calgarv, 2500 Universitv Drive N. W ., Calgarv, Alberta, C anada T2N 1N4; (403) 270-3303. ■ ■