Libraries and the Internet: Policy and Practice in the 21st Century

Abstract

This is an exciting time for world libraries. It is also a time of great challenge, uncertainty, change and risk. The introduction of the Internet and the World Wide Web, and the Global Information Infrastructure is creating enormous tension in the library community. The potential for a global networked community of libraries is only beginning to be understood. The challenges posed by such an entity are many and unique. According to Wedgeworth (1998) there are four main concerns to be addressed in the context of a global library community: