The 17th Annual Interagency Depository Seminar will be held in Washington, DC from June 2 – 9, 2004. The weeklong seminar will consist of an overview of various agencies' information products and activities as they relate to Federal depository libraries. The seminar is being presented by many Federal agencies, including:

• Bureau of the Census
• Library of Congress
• Office of the Federal Register
• Patent and Trademark Office
• Government Printing Office
• and more to be announced.

At the Interagency Depository Seminar, representatives from Federal Government agencies showcase their products and services. The seminar consists of presentations that focus on the content of and access to these products and services, interspersed with tours and question and answer sessions. It offers the opportunity both to acquire information and to discuss and exchange ideas with colleagues, agency representatives, and Information Dissemination staff of the Government Printing Office. The intended audience is documents staff with three years or less of recent experience with Federal Government documents. Attendees with reference or public service responsibilities will find these sessions particularly useful. Attendance is limited to 60, so registration preference will be given to those outside the Washington, DC area and to those who have not previously attended the seminar.

There is no charge for the seminar. However, librarians attending the seminar must cover their own travel and subsistence expenses, as no government funds are available for that purpose.

Prospective attendees should complete the registration form and fax it to the Library Programs Service by March 29, 2004. Registrations will be confirmed immediately by e-mail, and registrants will receive an information packet by mail in mid-April 2004. As there is usually a waiting list, a helpful hint is to submit the registration form to reserve a place first, then try to obtain full or partial funding from your library administration later. If you wait until funding is assured, the limited slots for the seminar may be filled.

If you have any questions about the seminar, please contact the Chief, Depository Services, by telephone on (202) 512-1119; by fax on (202) 512-1432; or by e-mail at <rhaun-mohamed@gpo.gov>.

There will be an informal get-together of seminar participants in the lobby of the River Inn at 6:00 p.m. Librarians will be able to meet some colleagues and Information Dissemination staff in an informal setting. Those who are interested may enjoy dining together in the area with available GPO staff.

Information Dissemination staff will host the first day of the seminar. Staff will be available to answer questions about how GPO acquires, classifies, catalogs, and distributes and disseminates government information products in all media. There will be a tour of the lighted bins and an opportunity to network.

The Office of the Federal Register (OFR), of the National Archives and Records Administration, will present this morning's program on the Federal regulatory system. The workshop covers the rulemaking process, including the relationship between laws and regulations; the important elements of the Federal Register and the Code of Federal Regulations; using the finding aids of the Federal Register/CFR publication system; and an overview of electronic access to certain publications of the OFR.

In the afternoon, there will be a tour of the Library of Congress Jefferson Building, a presentation on the National Digital Library Learning Center, and a tour of the Serial and Government Publications Division.

In the morning, representatives from four different Federal agencies will discuss their products, services and electronic initiatives. The participating agencies will be announced in spring 2004.

In the afternoon, GPO's Office of Electronic Information Dissemination Services will present GPO Access, emphasizing how to use it to search the Federal Register, Congressional Record, U.S. Code, Congressional bills, and other databases.

Staff of the Census Bureau will present product information for the 2000 Census, American Community Survey, American Factfinder, etc., and demonstrate other products on DVD or CD and the Census home page. Bureau staff will provide a variety of handouts and answer questions about the availability and uses of Census data.

A full day workshop will cover the basics of intellectual property: patents, trademarks and copyrights, featuring speakers from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and the Copyright Office of the Library of Congress. Attendees will learn to differentiate between three types of Federal protection for intellectual property and the methods by which this information is accessed by the public. Publications and search methods, where applicable, will also be discussed.

In the morning, agency representatives from additional Federal publishers will discuss their products, services, and electronic initiatives.

The seminar will conclude at noon.

Presentations during the seminar week will be held in the Carl Hayden Room of the main building of the Government Printing Office and at the Library of Congress. Presentations will begin promptly at 8:30 a.m. and will last until 4:00 p.m., unless otherwise stated in a detailed program to be supplied to the registrants in late April 2004. All participants are expected to attend all presentations.

A block of rooms has been reserved for seminar participants at The River Inn. The hotel is located in Foggy Bottom, at 924 25^th Street, NW, in Washington, DC. The hotel is two blocks from the Foggy Bottom Metro Station (Orange/Blue Lines), and is close to such attractions as the Kennedy Center, the Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Veteran's Memorial, Georgetown, and the White House. Attendees can take the Metro subway train from the Washington Reagan National Airport to the hotel as well as to Union Station, a block from GPO. The Library of Congress can be reached by Metro or by walking (about twenty minutes) from GPO. For information about the hotel, see its Website at <www.theriverinn.com>.

For a map of the Washington, DC, Metro system, see <www.wmata.com/metrorail/systemmap.cfm>.

Rooms are available for the single room rate of $109.00, double room rate of $129.00, not including tax. Rooms are efficiency suites with queen-size bed, pullout sofa, and fully equipped kitchen. If you wish to reserve a room at The River Inn, you should call as soon as GPO confirms your seminar reservation. Hotel reservations at the River Inn must be made no later than April 30, 2004. After that date, the River Inn does not guarantee room availability or the seminar rate. If you choose to make other hotel arrangements, be sure the hotel is near a Metro subway stop for ease of transportation to and from seminar sites. Parking at the hotel is $12.00 per day.

To make reservations, call direct at 202-337-7600 or toll-free at 800-424-2741. The fax number is 202-337-6520. Please tell the reservation clerk that you are attending the GPO Interagency Depository Seminar and quote the above room rate. If you are interested in sharing a room with another librarian attending the seminar, Robin Haun-Mohamed at LPS will try to match up roommates. You may contact her by telephone on 202-512-1119 or via email at <rhaun-mohamed@gpo.gov>.

Fax to: Chief, Depository Services Register by: March 29, 2004

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