Chinese information access and retrieval : issues facing libraries

Chinese information processing has been very problematic in the past few decades. This is due to the fact that computer hardware, communication protocols, operating system software and application software developed so far are basically 'English' oriented. Libraries in East Asia have to handle information in Chinese characters and there is an imminent need to resolve the outstanding issues. This presentation will summarize those practical issues that libraries encounter when processing information in Chinese, with particular emphasis on the areas of access and retrieval.