ABSTRACT
Slides, microfilms and microfiches are all photographic or quasiphotographic media, storing information in the form of text or visual images on film. Microfilm and microfiche can be projected but are far more likely to be used for individual study and research. Differences in the material used to make the slides or microforms result in slides deteriorating more quickly, which again affects the use to which the medium can be put. The librarian should seek to get on mailing lists for microform publishers. Because the technology needed to produce microfilm and microfiche is in most cases more complex than that needed for slides there are far fewer potential sources of supply. Computerized storage and access is the key to the future, or rather non-future, of both slides and microforms. As the price of production reduces and the appropriate technology becomes more widely available manufacturers will increasingly publish material in computerized form.
