Alaska residents recently received free online access to commercial databases through a project initiated by the Research and Resource Library Directors, a group consisting of the directors of the state's major public and university libraries and the Alaska State Library.
The Statewide Database Licensing Initiative, funded through a $400,000 appropriation approved last May be the state legislature, currently offers users the full texts of hundreds of periodicals and other materials through EBSCO, Infonautics, OCLC, IAC, SIRS, and UMI. After the trial period ends February 28, selected databases will be licensed for statewide access for at least a year.
The initiative comes on the heels of the announcement of a similar program in Pennsylvania, where library-card holders will be offered free at-home Internet access to back issues of magazines and newspapers, an electronic encyclopedia, and other subscription databases.
Posted December 28, 1998.