EXPERT SYSTEMS FOR LIBRARY AND INFORMATION-SERVICES - A REVIEW

Do expert systems have a place in the Library and Information Services (LIS) industry? This paper reviews the progress made so far in the areas of online information retrieval, cataloguing, abstracting, reference work, and indexing and classification. Although largely of an experimental nature, the work undertaken so far will surely pay dividends in the future, given the huge advances in computing expected in the next decade. Thus LIS professionals can look forward to the time when, assuming the more mundane tasks are done by expert systems, they will be able to concentrate on the more interesting aspects of their work and spend more time with the public they serve.