ABSTRACT
The CD-ROM format was used prominently in libraries in the 1980s and 1990s, and had wide influence on acquisitions and reference services practices. At the technical level, CD-ROM was a rapidly evolving medium, which led in turn to frequent changes in equipment, search capabilities, and disc contents. The transition to Internet access in the 1990s reduced CD-ROM use in libraries substantially. The development of CD-ROM during its history of use in libraries is traced, and the causes of its decline in popularity are explained.
