I used to miss card catalogs, but I sure don't miss filing the cards! Of course, with databases, no one's coming along behind you to make sure that you spelled everything correctly. Now, though, I'm hooked on keyword searching, and you'll pry my fingers off the terminal keyboard with a large crowbar...

Your local public library (or a quiet branch) may have access to more resources than you realize, and the librarians may have more time to help you with understanding the various electronic resources. I'm in one of the smallest branches of the Boston Public Library, but with our Internet connection, I've got access to a broad variety of sources that the city or state have paid for but can only be accessed from library machines.

And with Inter Library Loan and Fax machines, even obscure journals are getting to be more accessible.

What I find, an awful lot of time, is that people come into the library and wander around frustrated because they don't want to "bother" me. The best part of my day is helping people find the information that they're actually seeking!

A quickie read that might give you some fun insights is "The Victorian Internet" about the establishment of the telegraphs and what that did. Can't think of the author this late at night. Yikes! It's bedtime!