INWOOD, WV, January 8, 2001 The Library Corporation (TLC) today announced it has launched a new cataloging tool, with integrated browser, that enables librarians to catalog library resources in virtually any language worldwide.

Called ITS.International, the new product utilizes Unicode technology and features a built-in, editable transliteration table that processes characters entered in a wide variety of native scripts and then automatically generates the corresponding romanized text. Of particular note, librarians will be able to use ITS.International to transliterate Chinese, Japanese and Koreanto romanized text so that users of older software can effectively retrieve and display information in the librarycatalog. The program can also catalog websites as if they were books.

"In the 21st century," noted Annette Bakhtiar, TLC's Chief Executive Officer, "library tools must truly be global and reach beyond the boundaries of country and language. "We believe ITS.International is the first product of its type to effectively bridge the language divide and make the use of MARC records global."

Additional features of ITS.International include an integrated web browser that enables users to toggle between functions without opening and closing applications. "By eliminating time-consuming cut-and-paste operations, librarians and catalogers will improve their efficiency," added Ms. Bakhtiar. "Another way in which TLC programmers have made cataloging MARC records more accessible was to incorporate icons, rather than text, wherever possible. That's faster, simpler, and more global."

ITS.International takes advantage of Unicode a universal standard for information exchange designed to support all the world's languages. The Library of Congress, OCLC, and other library automation vendors are in various stages of implementing Unicode software features. To support Unicode functionality, ITS.International must be installed on Windows 2000. The product also runs effectively on Windows NT if the user has a third party Input Method Editor.