ABSTRACT
The information explosion is bringing many changes to academic libraries. This article discusses some of the changes and results found during an investigative study of reference departments in forty-four libraries. The computer search services results deal with administrative concerns, organization and staffing, staff training, user education and orientation, fees, quick reference and end-user searching, and policy manuals. Discussed also are the information-fee-based services developed by several of the academic libraries visited. A short history of information brokering, characteristics of an information broker, and charging methods are included. People who need information on demand can use either a library which offers a computer search service or a type of information broker.
