CDL: _Astrophysics Data System_

From: 
        "Gerry Mckiernan" <GMCKIERN_at_gwgate.lib.iastate.edu>

         _ADS Abstract Service: A Remarkable Eclectic Index_

    In response to my recent posting for candidates for my new column
in Library Hi Tech News tentively titled e-Profiles, Michael Kurtz, 
an astronomer and computer scientist with the Smithsonian Astrophysical 
Observatory  [ http://cfa-www.harvard.edu/~kurtz/vita.html ]
reminded me about the ADS Abstract Service of the Astrophysics Data
System 
[ http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abstract_service.html  [See below for  
edited reponse which is  re-posted with his permission]

   Upon reading the 'What's New'
[ http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs_doc/whatsnew.html ] section (as well 
as Michael instructions below) I've concluded that this is perhaps 
the finest example of an Eclectic Index/Abstracting service that I know.

 I defined Eclectic in the context of e-journals in a recent posting: 

"By the "Eclectic Journal", I mean a Web-based resource that at its 
core provides access to e-journals that offer not only access to the 
conventional content of a digital form of a journal but also 
provides or permits interaction with novel and innovative _features 
and functionalities_ (e.g., reference linking, cross-publisher 
searching, page customization, open peer review, etc.) _AND_ novel 
and innovative _content_ (e.g., e-Books, pre-publication history, 
electronic discussions, translation services, e-prints, bibliographic
databases, etc.)"
[ http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Web4Lib/archive/0101/0131.html ]

  Here's are some the features, functionalities, and content I find 
noted for in the ADS Abstract Service from its 'What's Next' page:

    *   Citation indexing 
    *  Collaborative Filtering
    *  Font, Format, and Display Control
    *  Database Linking
    *  Sorting
    *  Data Extraction
    *  Access to Dissertations and Theses
    *  Personalization
    *  FAX Delivery
    *  Access to Conference proceedings

[For examples of some of these features in e-journals, see my EJI(sm)
registry [ http://www.public.iastate.edu/~CYBERSTACKS/EJI.htm ]

     I invite MyWebColeagues to explore this Most Remarkable Eclectic 
Index at their earliest convenience, if only to test its Collaborative 
Filtering functions and Citation Indexing feature described below.

     Regards,

/Gerry McKiernan
Remarkable Eclectic Librarian 
Iowa State University 
Ames IA 50011