The Application of Microcomputers to Aerospace and Defence Scientific and Technical Information Work
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
7 AGARD-LS- I4 ADVISORY GROUP FOR AEROSPACE RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT 7 RUE ANCELLE 92200 NEUILLY SUR SEINE FRANCE AGARD LECTURE SERIES No I49 The Application of Microcomputers to Aerospace and Defence Scientific and Technical Information Work IL \ NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION - - I DISTRIBUTION AND AVAILABILITY ON BAC&,COVER KI!.': d AGARD-LS- 149 NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION ADVISORY GROUP FOR AEROSPACE RESEARCH AIVD DEVELOPMENT (ORGANISATION DU TRAITE DE L'ATLANTIQUE NORD) AGARD Lecture Series No.149 THE APPLICATION OF MICROCOMPUTERS TO AEROSPACE AND DEFENCE SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL INFORMATION WORK 1 The material in this publication was assembled to support a Lecture Series under the sponsorship of the Technical Information Panel and the Consultant and Exchange Programme of AGARD presented on ~ l I 16-17 October 1986 in London, United Kingdom, 20-21 October 1986 in Ankara, Turkey and 23-24 October 1986 in Rome, Italy. THE MISSION OF AGARD The mission of AGARD is to bring together the leading personalities of the NATO nations in the fields of science and technology relating to aerospace for the following purposes: - Exchanging of scientific and technical information; - Continuously stimulating advances in the aerospace sciences relevant to strengthening the common defence posture; - Improving the co-operation among member nations in aerospace research and development; - Providing scientific and technical advice and assistance to the Military Committee in the field of aerospace research and development (with particular regard to its military application); - Rendering scientific and technical assistance, as requested, to other NATO bodies and to member nations in connection with research and development problems in the aerospace field; - Providing assistance to member nations for the purpose of increasing their scientific and technical potential, - Recommending effective ways for the member nations to use their research and development capabilities for the common benefit of the NATO community. The highest authority within AGARD is the National Delegates Board consisting of officially appointed senior representatives from each member nation. The mission of AGARD is camed out through the Panels which are composed of experts appointed by the National Delegates, the Consultant and Exchange Programme and the Aerospace Applications I Studies Programme. The results of AGARD work are reported to the member nations and the NATO Authorities through the AGARD series of publications of which this is one. Participation in AGARD activities is by invitation only and is normally limited to citizens of the NATO nations. The content of this publication has been reproduced directly from material supplied by AGARD or the authors. Published October 1986 Copyright 0 AGARD 1986 All Rights Reserved ISBN 92-835-1538-2 Printed by Specialised Printing Services Limited 40 Chigwell Lane, Loughton, Essex IGlO 3Tz LIST OF SPEAKERS Lecture Series Director: Dr J.H.Ashford Ashford Associate Ltd. 72, Harrow Lane Maidenhead Berkshire SL6 7PA SPEAKERS Mr P.F.Burton Mr J.Gurnsey Department of Information Science 20 Uxendon W University of Strathclyde ' Wembley, Middlesex HA9 9RX, UK Livingstone Tower Richmond Street Glasgow G1 lXH, UK Mr R.W.Hartt Logistics Management Institute Mr M.W.Collier 6400 Goldsboro Road Librarian 20817 Bethesda, Maryland Leicester Polytechnic USA P 0 Box 143 Leicester LE1 9BH, UK Ms C.E.Murphy Mr 1.F.Croall Chief Librarian Computer Science & Systems Division Canadian Forces College AFXE Harwell Laboratories 2 15 Yonge Blvd Didcot Toronto, Ontario M5M 3H9 Oxon OX1 1 ORA,UK Canada iii CONTENTS Page LIST OF SPEAKERS iii Reference INTRODUCTION AND OVERVIEW by J.H.Ashford 1 APPLICATIONS IN LIBRARY MANAGEMENT, REQUISITIONS, LOANS AND STOCK CONTROL by P.F.Burton 2 MICROCOMPUTER-BASEDCATALOG CREATION SOFTWARE OPTIONS FOR SMALL LIBRARIES by C.E.Murphy 3 BIBLIOGRAPHIC NETWORKS AND MICROCOMPUTER APPLICATIONS FOR AEROSPACE AND DEFENSE SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNICAL INFORMATION by RW.Hartt 4 APPLICATION OF LAN’S AND ELECTRONIC OFFICE TECHNIQUES IN THE LIBRARY by M.W.Collier 5 ~ MICROCOMPUTERS IN INFORMATION RESOURCE SHARING 1 - DATA AND GRAPHICS SYSTEMS by J.H.Ashford 6 KNOWLEDGE BASED SYSTEMS IN INFORMATION WORK by 1.F.Croall 7 MICROCOMPUTERS IN INFORMATION RESOURCE SHARING 2 - FULL TEXT SYSTEMS by J.Gumsey 8 TRENDS IN SOFTWARE AND SYSTEM DEVELOPMENT by J.H.Ashford 9 PROCUREMENT AND MANAGEMENT OF MICROCOMPUTER-BASED SYSTEMS by P.F.Burton 10 BIBLIOGRAPHY B iv 1-1 Introduction & Overview J H Ashford, Director, Ashford Associates Ltd 72, Harrow Lane, Maidenhead SL6 7PA. UK Summary In 1978 the theme of Lecture Series 92 was the opportunity offered in automation of library and information services by cheaper, faster minicomputer equipment, and new database and applications software. Speakers addressed the feasibility of automation; the techniques for the necessary systems studies; and cost effectiveness in units of tens of man years of programming and equipment costing $100,000 or more. There is now a radical change in what an information specialist may reasonably expect, due largely to the development of the low cost, reliable, general purpose microcomputer. Investments may start as small as $2,000 for a simple word processor or $20,000 for a package of software and hardware which will serve a small library.’ Software is being written for many tasks, and the best is of high quality and well documented. The speakers in this lecture series report the growing role of the micro-computer in cataloguing and library housekeeping; in accessing shared information resources through local and wide networks; and in new approaches to information management and retrieval. Developing awareness The scope of scientific and technical information work is wide, and depends on many skills in creating, validating, organising and distributing textual, numeric and graphic material in a variety of forms to many diverse users. The use of computers to support these processes has developed more and more rapidly from small beginnings in the 196o’s, until nowadays it requires some effort to envisage such information systems - at least for english language material, and in developed countries - without such an electronic infrastructure. Setting aside, for later papers, questions of languages and state of technological development, it seems only reasonable to survey, if not fully to explain, how such a narrow aspect of technology as the general purpose microcomputer has come to be so significant a component of the information specialist’s resources. A start may be made through a series of ‘snapshots’ of what was going on at a few sampling points in the last decade. The present lecture series is a lineal descendent of TIP LS 92, held in Delft and Ankara in 1978, on the application of low cost minicomputers to library work (1). The central theme was the new opportunity then offered in the automation of library and information services by cheaper, faster equipment, and the developing range of database and applications software products. Speakers were concerned with the feasibility of library automation; with the technical methodology of the necessary systems studies; with application of ‘database’ technology to library processes; and with cost effectiveness measured in units of tens of man-years of programming effort and equipment investments of $100,000 and more. The papers are still of value - perhaps the case studies in particular - as many of the problems identified with information quality and with project control during innovation are still with us. On the other hand, the practicality of computer application in libraries is now taken for granted, and the effectiveness of using database and other ‘package’ software to control costs and minimise development time scales is widely recognised. A sample of papers published in program during the same year (2), shows that most systems reported in this UK based journal were still custom built, although there is an account of the ASSASSIN retrieval package, a short paper on ‘Text processing’, and a review of a text book on BASIC which regards both that language and microcomputers as having some potential for library use. By the time of the TLP Meeting in Munich, in 1981 (3), there was no doubt in the minds of the speakers - nor of most of the audience - of the feasibility and desirability of applying computer based methods in information work. Telecommunications, and the use of minicomputers as well as mainframes in establishing networks of shared resources, were identified as important areas of innovation, and graphic presentation in a variety of forms was discussed and demontrated. At the same time, however, ‘small computers and cheap software’ still meant minicomputers and substantial investment in package software or major costs of special program development. The present writer devoted two pessimistic paragraphs to the lack of design and poor quality of implementation of microcomputer software being written for information work - still predominantly ‘one off‘ initiatives at that time. The Journal of Library Automation (4) for 1981, which is mainly concemed with North American material. contains one paper on the application of an Apple I1 microcomputer in ‘backup’ of a CLSI system: two references to microcomputers as intelligent terminals; and a reference to their potential for single user circulation control systems. By 1985, in contrast, just two quarterly issues of the same journal (now renamed Information Technology and