Electronic dissemination of government information in Canada: Implications for equitable access

Increasingly, federal government departments in Canada are publishing and disseminating official information in electronic form. A survey of all full and selective depository libraries in the Canadian Depository Services Program was undertaken to determine the extent to which those libraries are prepared for the shift to electronic formats. Findings reported in the article show that academic and government libraries are better positioned than public libraries to provide service. Academic and government libraries have access to greater numbers of more powerful personal computers, better printers, and higher speed connections to the Internet. The imposition of fees for service is seen to be an important issue. Public libraries comprise the largest single sector of libraries among depositories, and yet, their users are significantly disadvantaged in accessing government information by means of the new technologies. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd.