[Asis-l] LITA 2003 National Forum Advance Registration Still Open!

[Pascal Calarco]

(Please excuse any duplication, and forward as appropriate)

Advance registration is still open for the 2003 LITA National Forum,
being held in Norfolk, Virginia, October 2 - 5, 2003.  Advance
registration ends September 19, 2003, and hotel reservations are due by
September 15, 2003.  We are close to filling our room block, so please
reserve soon if you plan to attend.

"Putting Technology into Practice" is the theme for the three-day
event.  Three preconferences will focus on handheld services in
libraries, using open source systems in libraries, and the future of the
library as a physical place in the digital age.

Three keynote sessions are planned:  R. David Lankes, Executive
Director of the Information Institute of Syracuse and Assistant
Professor at Syracuse University's School of Information Studies, will
present "Digital Reference:  The First Mature Digital Library Service"
on Friday, October 3; Liz Bishoff, Executive Director of the Colorado
Digitization Program will present "Digital Dreaming, Digital Promise --
Getting Ready, Getting There" on Saturday, October 4; and David Seaman,
Director of the Digital Library Federation will close the conference on
Sunday, October 5, with "From Isolation to Integration:  Major Trends in
Digital Libraries."

Thirty concurrent sessions will cover such diverse topics as virtual
reference consortia, digital library collection management,
database-driven websites, metadata standards (including OAI), XML
databases, open source portal management, cross-database search
projects, managing access to GIS repositories, usability studies, and
more.

New to the Forum this year are poster sessions, presenting unique
technology applications that solve specific problems, such as digital
rights management in the academic environment, PDA use in health
sciences libraries, and link maintenance and repair, among others.

A Sponsor Showcase to be held on Friday evening and all day Saturday
will allow attendees to learn about exciting developments from a variety
of companies.  We gratefully acknowledge the support of all of our
sponsors:  Endeavor Information Systems, Ex Libris, Innovative
Interfaces, Openly Informatics, Serials Solutions, Sirsi, Swets
Blackwell, TDnet, TechBooks, and Veicon Technology.  In addition to
their Showcase participation, Endeavor Information Systems will sponsor
the Friday evening reception and Innovative Interfaces has agreed to
support connectivity for the email room.  Veicon Technology has again
agreed to provide email room equipment and terminals.

Registration is limited to 500 in order to retain the networking
opportunities and other advantages of a small conference. An opening
reception, generously supported by Endeavor Information Systems, will be
held in the Grand Promenade of the Sheraton Norfolk Waterside,
overlooking the picturesque Norfolk Harbor.  An evening of informal
dinners with LITA leaders and volunteers is planned for Saturday
evening.  Other networking opportunities include Saturday lunch,
continental breakfasts and refreshment breaks.

For more information and to register, please visit
http://www.lita.org/forum03.

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Pascal V. Calarco, MLIS, AHIP             e-mail: pascal.calarco at vcu.edu
Head, Library Information Systems         tel.: 804-828-0032
VCU Libraries                             fax: 804-828-0151
Virginia Commonwealth University          http://www.library.vcu.edu/
Richmond, VA USA 23284-2033
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