Here is a review of the major ABSEES developments in the past year (2003).

1. ABSEES Online Approaches 56,000 Records

We have added over 5,000 new records to ABSEES Online since this time last
year.  The database now contains 55,855 records.  Our goal is to add
between 5,000 and 6,000 new records to ABSEES each year.

2. Links To Full Text

The number of records in ABSEES Online with links to full text--either
directly through online journals, or through Ingenta, JSTOR, Project MUSE,
and other aggregators--continues to grow.  Currently, almost 70 percent of
the records in ABSEES Online contain links to full text, publishers' Web
sites, or related Web sites.  New links are added every month.  Our goal is
to enable users of ABSEES Online to jump directly from an ABSEES record to
full text or to a related Web site.

3. The ABSEES Online Bibliographic Workform

The workform allows contributing editors to create and submit bibliographic
records to ABSEES over the Web.  We introduced the workform at the
beginning of 2001.  So far, we have received over 3,000 records through the
workform from the following contributors at other institutions:

	Michael Brewer, University of Arizona
	Brenda Carter, University of Pittsburgh
	June Pachuta Farris, University of Chicago
	Mark Kulikowski, State University of New York (SUNY) at Oswego
	Marina V. Pereira, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
	Stefan Wiederkehr, University of Zürich

You can find the ABSEES Online bibliographic workform at:

	http://carousel.lis.uiuc.edu/~absees/submission/form.htmhttp://www1.msh-paris.fr/betuee/.
Access is free.

5. ABSEES Online Moving to Linux Server Computer

Greg Rogers joined ABSEES in October 2002 as a part-time research
programmer.  Greg is currently working on porting ABSEES from its current
platform to a Linux server computer.  We hope to have ABSEES running on
Linux early in 2004.  Among other benefits, we expect that this will result
in greater stability and much faster response time, especially for our
subscribers in the United Kingdom and Europe.

It will also enable us to proceed with some long-delayed enhancements.  The
following improvements are on our to-do list for the coming year:

--Adding the ability to display records in blocks of 25, 50, 100, etc.

--Adding the ability to tag selected records for later viewing or downloading.

--Adding a browsable list of ABSEES subject headings.

I will be out of the office from October 13 through October 24, but should
be back on Monday, October 27.  Please contact Aimee Fleming
(afleming@uiuc.edu) in my absence.

As always, thank you for your continued support of ABSEES.

If you would be interested in serving as an ABSEES contributor, please
contact me at the address given in my signature at the end of this message.

4. ABSEES and the European Bibliography of Slavic and East European Studies
(EBSEES)

Cooperation between ABSEES and the European Bibliography of Slavic and East
European Studies continues.  Using the ABSEES workform as a model, EBSEES
has developed its own Web-based bibliographic workform, and EBSEES editors
are using it to create and submit records to the central office in Paris.
ABSEES and EBSEES editors are also working a common list of subject
headings.