nov05ff.indd


G a r y  P a t t i l l o  

Library systems 
Among institutions responding to an EDUCAUSE Core Data Survey, the most 
popular online library system vendor is Innovative Interfaces, used at 25 percent 
of libraries. This is followed by Endeavor (20.8 percent), Sirsi (17.1 percent), 
Epixtech (7.8 percent), and Ex­Libris (6.5 percent). The median year of imple­
mentation for such systems is 1998. 
Brian L. Hawkins, Julia A. Rudy, and Robert Nicolich, EDUCAUSE core data service fiscal year 2004 summary report, www. 
educause.edu/apps/coredata/reports/2004/. October 4, 2005 

Open Content Alliance 
“Yahoo, The Internet Archive and several other organizations announced the 
formation of the Open Content Alliance (OCA) to make thousands of books, 
multimedia files and other materials freely searchable and accessible online. 
The OCA project differs from other digitization projects in that the database of 
scanned material will be available for anyone to use on any site.” 
Gary Price, “A new digital library alliance makes its debut,” Search Engine Watch, searchenginewatch.com/searchday/ 
article.php/3553086. October 3, 2005 

Costs of higher education 
The cost of attending a public four­year institution rose by 22 percent between 
2001–02 and 2004–05. Tuition and fees for in­state students at the institutions 
grew by 33 percent, more than any other sector of higher education, accord­
ing to a U.S. Education Department report. During 2004–05, undergraduates 
attending private not­for­profit four­year institutions paid $16,046 on average 
for tuition and required fees while public in­state undergraduates paid $4,936 
in tuition and required fees. 
L. G. Knapp, J. E. Kelly-Reid, R. W. Whitmore, J. Cong, B. Levine, M. Berzofsky, and S. G. Broyles (2005), Postsecondary 
institutions in the United States: Fall 2004 and degrees and other awards conferred: 2003–04 (NCES 2005–182). U.S. 
Department of Education, Washington, D.C.: National Center for Education Statistics, nces.ed.gov/pubs2005/2005182. 
pdf. October 3, 2005 

Publicly interactive OCLC 

lib.unc.edu 

C&RL News November 2005  764 

Gary Pattillo is reference librarian at the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, e-mail: pattillo@refstaff. 

OCLC has enabled readers to write their own reviews for materials in Open­
WorldCat. Simply click on the “Reviews” tab in the record. In other OCLC­related 
news, Worldcat now contains over 1 billion records in its online database. 
Lorcan Dempsey, “The reader and OpenWorldCat,” orweblog.oclc.org/archives/000825.html, October 9, 2005. And: 
OCLC, “World’s largest library database reaches billionth milestone,” www.oclc.org/news/releases/200517.htm. October 
9, 2005 

Nanotechnology 
The National Science Foundation (NSF) has created a network of institutions in 
an effort to inform the general public about nanotechnology and its implications 
for society. Called the Nanoscale Informal Science Education Network, “the $20 
million, five­year effort represents the largest single award NSF has given to 
the science­museum community, and will be a cornerstone of the foundation’s 
multidisciplinary Nanoscale Science and Engineering Education program.” The 
NISE has institutional working partners across the country. 
“New grants are awarded to inform the public and explore the implications of nanotechnology,” October 6, 2005, www. 
nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=104505. October 7, 2005 

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