Responding to information needs of the citizens through e-government portals and online services in India

Providing government information, services, products and transactions electronically has the potential benefit of accessibility for a wider audience, political and administrative transparency, and improved service delivery. By using e-government websites, citizens can conveniently access government information and services and gain greater opportunities to participate in democratic processes. The present study aims to evaluate National Portal of India, which provides single window access to 601 e-government portals and websites in India. A total of 1576 online services are provided by these portals responding to information needs of the citizens. Ranking of the state and union territory portals has been done based on the number of online services they provide. The paper also focuses on the digitization of documents, acts, rules and schemes of central and state government departments and their availability and accessibility through government portals.     

Applying participatory design and collaboration in digital public services for discovering and re-designing e-Government services

E-Government projects are currently service oriented, focusing on the implementation and diffusion of digital public services through one-stop points of access for citizens. E-Government strategic plans are political, directed at cost and time minimization during the execution of public services, and they do not take into account citizen needs or public administration operating procedures. Although these plans have led to the development of projects that have succeeded in cost and time savings for both citizens and public administration, surveys conducted around the world show that users evaluate digital public services and do not hesitate to return to traditional methods rather than using digital channels to transact with the public administration again; neither would they recommend the use of digital services to others. This article presents collaborative and participatory tools and methods designed to exploit the knowledge and experience of public servants in the improvement and execution of custom and non-automated public services. Collaborative tools can succeed in the development of real one-stop shops for e-Government, while on the other hand they can encourage both citizens and civil servants to participate in the e-Government era.     

The use of information and communication technologies in public libraries in South Africa as tools for bridging the digital divide: the case of the Kempton Park public library

ABSTRACT

The information and knowledge society has resulted in the exponential growth of information and communication technologies (ICTs), thus creating a gap between those who use ICTs and those who do not; hence the emergence of the term “digital divide” in the 1990s. One of the milestones of South Africa’s National Development Plan, a policy that charts the country’s development up until 2030, is to ensure that high-speed broadband internet is universally available at competitive prices. Notwithstanding the importance of ICTs in public libraries, the provision of such is still taking place on a limited scale in South Africa. This article investigates the use of ICTs in public libraries in South Africa as a tool in bridging the digital divide. It also examines the inequalities in access and use and suggests ways in which ICTs may be used to reduce the digital divide. A qualitative research methodology was adopted. In order for public libraries to function as an important tool in bridging the digital divide, there is a need to standardize the provision of public library services with regard to the digital divide.     

Knowledge and skills for the digital era academic library

Technology has altered the traditional academic library beyond recognition. These dramatic changes have impacted significantly on the knowledge and skills requirements for LIS professionals practising in this environment. While there have been studies in other parts of the world which have investigated the knowledge and skills requirements for the digital era academic library environment, to date no comprehensive study has ‘drilled’ down into this area in the South African context. This paper reports on a preliminary study which is part of a wider study aimed at developing a comprehensive skills statement which would provide an objective framework against which professional LIS practitioners in the modern academic library environment in South Africa may both measure their existing competencies and also identify the need for further skills acquisition. The research question guiding this preliminary investigation was: What key knowledge and skills are required for LIS professionals to effectively and efficiently practise in a digital era academic library in South Africa? The triangulated findings (using content analysis of job advertisements and semi-structured interviews) from this preliminary investigation are used to ascertain an initial picture of key knowledge and skills sets required for LIS professionals in this environment. These preliminary findings also proved useful in teasing out some of the parameters for the wider study targeting the development of a comprehensive skills statement for higher education libraries in South Africa. The study reported here has relevance for the academic library context in other parts of the world as well.     

数字参考咨询服务的现状和未来发展

论文介绍了国内外数字参考咨询服务的研究现状，分析了数字参考咨询服务的特征，并对数参考咨询服务的发展提出了建议。     

Principles for archival information services in the public domain

In 2010, in response to the Australian Government’s November 2009 apology to Forgotten Australians and former child migrants, a scoping study was undertaken by the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) to assess the options for a national ‘Find and Connect’ service to allow people to locate and access relevant records and have recourse to support services. The scoping study noted that Pathways, a web-based public knowledge space and a product of the Victorian ‘Who Am I?’ research project, was a community-based information resource without equal in the out-of-home care sector in Australia or indeed internationally. The scoping team made the observation that Pathways, due to its quality of content and coherent structure, appeared to be based on a set of principles and wondered what they were. In response the research team set about articulating the principles that underpinned their approach to archival documentation and the use of digital technologies – principles that had emerged through more than two decades of public domain, archive-focussed projects. This paper presents those ten principles and discusses them within the context of Pathways and the ‘Who Am I?’ project. The principles played a key role in FaCHSIA adopting Pathways as the model for the national Find and Connect database and web resource, launched on 15 November 2011. The principles underpin community knowledge building in the fourth or pluralised dimension of the Records Continuum. The paper ultimately argues that all stakeholders (all people and organisations connected with records) should have the ability to contribute to the utilisation of those records through the improvement of documentation and that some archival systems do have a duty of care to ensure they can inter-operate with community-generated knowledge.     

合作:数字参考服务的社会选择

基于用户需求的数字参考服务必然采用社会合作形式。本文着重探讨图书馆发展数字参考服务的合作策略。     

数字档案信息存储与灾难恢复研究

本文根据数字档案信息生命周期的不同阶段,从数字档案信息的存储、容灾备份、数据迁移和数据恢复等四个方面研究其生命周期中各个不同阶段的保护技术和保护方法,并提出了相应的保护策略等。     

论图书馆的电子书服务及数字版权管理

电子书产业是伴随因特网发展而出现的一个新的产业，是数字化图书馆建设中的重要组成部分。本文从我国电子书服务的现状和数字版权管理等方面来论述数字图书馆的电子书发展。     

The use of information systems in the Greek public financial services: The case of TAXIS

One of the most important transactions between government and citizens is taxation. The modernization efforts of the public sector using information and communication technology (ΙCT) have led to the application of large information systems. TAXIS (TAX Information System) is a major information system in the Greek public financial sector. It supports the Inland Revenue Services' employees to serve the citizens and the state. This study investigated the TAXIS usage and its evaluation by the tax office employees. An appropriate questionnaire was developed and distributed to tax office employees in three branches. The analysis of one hundred responses revealed useful results for governmental policy makers, tax officials as well as public information system developers. Most responders were pleased with TAXIS' characteristics except of the handbooks' effectiveness and the system's speed. Gender differences were located in their daily usage, problems' awareness, feelings and considerations about the security of TAXIS.     

数字鸿沟与网络时代公共图书馆的职能

论文介绍了数字鸿沟研究中的图书馆。因特网发展导致的“数字鸿沟”使公共图书馆的保障信息公平的作用被重新认识。数字鸿沟问题使人们对公共图书馆职能有了新的认识，公共图书馆在消除数字鸿沟方面的特殊作用有：提供公共计算机因特网接入、进行基本信息技能教育、提供合适的网络信息资源。     

The role of IT literacy in defining digital divide policy needs

This article expands our current understanding of the digital divide by examining differences in individuals' IT skills acquisition. In the last two decades scholars have gradually refined the conceptualization of the digital divide, moving from a dichotomous model mainly based on access, to a multidimensional model accounting for differences in usage levels and actors' perspectives. Digital divide views tend to focus on groups of users and user characteristics and focus less on different processes of use. As models of the digital divide became more complex, research focused on deepening the understanding of demographic and socioeconomic differences between adopters and non-adopters. While IT literacy is an important factor in digital divide research, and studies examine user characteristics with respect to IT literacy, few studies make the process of basic IT literacy acquisition their main focal point (Selwyn, 2005). This perspective furthers our thinking by expanding the notion of user characteristics beyond demographic and socioeconomic differences to differences in the processes leading to internet use. Based on a dataset referring to an Italian region, this paper presents a metaphorical interpretation of the digital divide in general and explores the process of IT skills acquisition in particular. Our analysis shows the key role of self-learning and the presence of three distinct approaches in IT skills acquisition leading to different needs in terms of policy. We argue that these preliminary results are a useful starting point for the design of more effective and sophisticated digital inclusion policies.     

They think all of this is new: Leveraging librarians' project management skills for the digital humanities

ABSTRACT

This article will explore how to develop the holistic project management planning (PMP) mindset in different parts of the library when undertaking digital humanities (DH) projects. PMP skills do exist within libraries and librarians, but organizational alignment typically does not allow for the most effective applications of librarians' PMP skills to DH projects. This article will explore how the skills of public services librarians, technical services librarians and administrative librarians align with the PMP phases and the challenges that each kind of librarian has to overcome in completing successful DH projects.     

信息无障碍理念在我国公益性信息服务业中的应用现状调查

本文采用文献调研、网络调查、田野调查等方法调查了我国各级政府、图书馆、第三方组织及相关企业在其提供公益性信息服务过程中应用信息无障碍理念的一些实际情况,并总结了8种具体模式及近50种子模式,并提出相关建议。     

Close encounters of the digital kind: A research agenda for the digitalization of public services

This paper contributes to e-government research by presenting a review and discussion on how digitalization of public services has affected the interaction between citizens and government. We argue for a conceptualization and critical reflection on the nature of the underlying interaction between citizens and public officials - the public encounter - that digital public services are developed to support. We apply a qualitative and hermeneutic approach and illustrate that digital public services change public encounters concerning when, where, and how interactions occur, what each actor does, and the skills required of them. By relating these changes to emerging digital technologies (e.g. data mining, machine learning, sensor technology, and service automation), we illustrate that while these new technologies carry the potential to further digitalize service provision and fulfill the democratic goals of digital government, authorities can apply the same technology to restrict, control, and surveil citizens. Based on a critical discussion on what digitalization might entail for society, we identify problem areas arising from this development and propose a research agenda for understanding this phenomenon further. We raise questions and ethical concerns regarding accountability and reskilling of citizens and public officials as public service provision becomes citizen self-service.     

企业数字图书馆信息资源的建设及服务

论文通过对数字图书馆的理解分析，探索企业数字图书馆的发展思路，对搞好企业数字图书馆信息资源的建设，利用个性化信息环境开展网络服务，提高企业数字图书馆文献信息资源的利用率展开研究和讨论。     

Transparency and accountability in digital public services: Learning from the Brazilian cases

The transparency and accountability of systems and algorithms aims to protect the user against undesirable or harmful results and to ensure the application of laws appropriate to digital environments. Thus, the objective of this study is to evaluate the transparency and accountability provided to citizens in three of the main digital public services (e-services) offered by the federal administration of Brazil (ComprasNet, Sisu and Naturalizar-se) locally recognized for their significant relevance and stage of development and use. Services were evaluated from eight perspectives: accessibility; awareness; access and repair; accountability; explanation; origin of data, privacy and fairness; auditing; validation, accuracy and testing. Adopting a qualitative approach through comparative case studies, this research contributes to information practices theory (construction of a model for assessing transparency and accountability in digital public services). The results obtained show the need to inform the user of possible bias and damage arising from these systems, which are not readily perceived; just as the need to clarify the benefits that arise from the collection of private data are not. This shows that computational models can be distorted as a result of biases contained in their input data, or algorithms. This paper contributes through an innovative combination of dimensions, as a tool to evaluate transparency and accountability of government services.     

数字信息资源的基础管理性元数据初探

论文提出管理性元数据是元数据在信息资源管理层面上的拓展.对管理性元数据的研究应从信息资源管理的总体来把握其特征,信息资源生命周期的基础管理环节为完整地理解、全面地把握、切实地研究管理性元数据提供了符合实际需求的切入点.论文还提出基础管理性元数据的研究将在信息资源管理层面推进信息资源的共建、共享、共管.     

数字知识产权保护的国际新潮流

论文介绍了近来世界知识产权组织、国际图联等有关数字知识产权保护的国际新动向,其目的是希望人们重新认识“资源共享”的问题,尤其是让发展中国家和落后国家“共享资源”的问题。     

网络环境下公共图书馆信息服务的思考与探索--苏州图书馆信息资源创建和信息服务实践与体会

1信息系统构成 1.1苏州图书馆信息系统包括建筑智能系统和图书馆管理系统两大块.这里仅介绍图书馆管理系统.该系统从功能上可以分为:业务管理系统、数字图书馆系统、网站系统、情报服务系统、办公自动化系统、多媒体导读系统、会议系统、VOD点播系统等.每个系统中又涉及图书馆工作各个层面的众多子系统.