Data Rules: How Mapping Technology Drives Better Customer Service

Is your library market-driven, product-driven or customer-driven? New internet-based data and tools are now available for public libraries that enable you to be customer-driven—for your own unique service area. This article shows how three library systems are using these tools—focused on market segmentation data and geographic information system (GIS) technology—to deliver more relevant customer services. Each solution described in the article was developed in close collaboration between CIVICTechnologies and the library, involving research to understand the library's objectives and desired outcomes, and using the data needed to meet each library's unique challenge.     

Partnering with Undergraduate Students to Conduct Library Focus Groups

Experiential learning is becoming an increasingly important part of the university experience. Academic libraries have long provided practicum opportunities for library and information science students. To date, however, few libraries have documented experiential learning partnerships with social science students. Librarians at Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) partnered with the university's anthropology department in an experiential learning opportunity. Undergraduate students conducted focus groups to discover how MTSU students complete research assignments and what role the library plays in the process. This article describes the collaboration, and it discusses the benefits and drawbacks of partnering with undergraduate student researchers.     

An Open Source ILS Glossary: Version 2

This article is a glossary of terms one finds in open source integrated library systems (ILSs). The focus of this glossary is on the two major open source ILSs—Evergreen and Koha. These are being used in an increasing number of U.S. and Canadian public libraries as well as other types of libraries. The glossary is an introduction to the terms that those working with these open source library systems use on a day-to-day basis, with links to sources with more information for those new to open source projects.     

The Internet,Public Libraries,and the Digital Divide

Virtually every public library in the United States provides public access Internet computers as a role central to its mission. This article addresses the issue of why the Internet matters for public libraries, both in terms of impacts on the general public, particularly the digitally disadvantaged (part one of the article) and impacts on libraries themselves (part two of the article). Each part of this report begins with an extensive literature review, followed by a data analysis section. In part one, the author uses the 2000 United States Census dataset to evaluate library efforts to bridge the digital divide, by analyzing differences in the growth of public terminals in library systems serving counties with different levels of household income, households in poverty, non-white households, and non-English-speaking households. The analysis finds no disparity in the number of public computers available in areas with high and low incomes but finds a significant—and widening—disparity in the number of computers available in areas with a higher versus lower percentage of non-white and non-English-speaking households. In part two of the report, the author uses a random effects linear regression model to estimate the effects of Internet access on library usage. This analysis finds that having Internet terminals (versus having no Internet terminals) has a significant positive effect on a library's visits and reference transactions, but not on a library's circulation. An increase in the number of Internet terminals has no significant effect, positive or negative, on visits, reference transactions, or circulation.     

Working at tribal college and university libraries: A portrait

This article presents an overview of the working lives of tribal college and university library directors and other library staff at the beginning of the 21st century. While little has been written on tribal college and university libraries in general, even less is known about what it is actually like to work at these libraries—the daily joys and frustrations and the factors that contribute to both positive and negative work experiences. This study addresses such questions as why individuals choose to work at a tribal college or university library, how they have emotionally and spiritually grown because of their work, and whether they would choose to stay.     

The Forecast for Special Libraries

ABSTRACT

Special libraries exist in an ecosystem consisting of the information industry, the library world, their own organizations, and workforce demographics. Librarians need to be aware of the trends shaping all of these facets. This column takes a close look at Outsell's Information Industry Outlook report for 2016 and its implications for special libraries. The outlook for special libraries is neither the previously forecast Baby Boomer retirement crisis nor the dire end of special libraries many feared during the recent recession. Instead, the special library world is transforming, creating both challenges and opportunities for special librarians. Millennials entering both the workforce at large and the library workforce will make their presence known. Savvy information professionals will stay on top of these trends and find their niche, whether in a traditional physical library or in emerging careers outside the library.

Column Editor’s NoteSpecial libraries share concerns with their more general academic, public, and school counterparts, but they also have unique characteristics and concerns which merit separate consideration. Libraries of all types are evolving, and just as special libraries can learn from the general literature on libraries, practitioners in all types of libraries can learn from the experiences and best practices of special libraries. “The Specialist,” appearing in even-numbered issues of this journal, addresses the administrative concerns of special libraries. The column's scope is a broad umbrella of specialized librarianship and includes corporate, non-profit, government, and independent libraries as well as the specialized departments and branches of academic and public libraries. Contributions from practitioners and scholars on any aspect of special libraries are welcome. Interested authors are invited to contact the editor at tmurray@stamps.org for submission guidelines.     

Knowledge Management and Library Culture

Knowledge management (KM), or the effective use of knowledge, has been practiced successfully by many business organizations. Individual libraries and librarians have periodically utilized KM. However, on a comprehensive scale, the library culture seems divided. This article examines the attitudes and practices of two distinct groups of specialized librarians and their relationship to the use of KM tools.     

国外图书馆立法特点探析与思考

论文从图书馆立法进程、民众对图书馆的认知、图书馆立法目的、立法体系、立法内容等六方面对国外图书馆的立法特点进行探讨与分析,建议我国应重视图书馆立法工作,采取国家立法模式,明确图书馆功能定位,倡导现代图书馆服务理念,确立专门机构对图书馆事业进行统一领导,同时立法工作必须做到与时俱进.     

Strategies That Public Libraries Use to Build Communities

This article is a companion to “The Role of Public Libraries in Community Building,” which appeared in Public Library Quarterly 30, no. 3. That article explored five facets of public libraries as agencies of community building: (1) how libraries serve as a conduit to access information and to learn, (2) how libraries encourage social inclusion and equity, (3) how libraries foster civic engagement, (4) how libraries create a bridge to resources and community involvement, and (5) how libraries promote economic vitality within the community. The goal of this article is to provide concrete examples of library community building. The focus here, therefore, is on the specific strategies that libraries employed to create and operate library programs that effectively built a library community.     

Boundary Objects/Boundary Staff: Supporting Digital Scholarship in Academic Libraries

In response to the increased construction of digital scholarship infrastructure in academic libraries this article articulates a new staffing model for the management of digital platforms in the academic library environment. Based on two cases, this article discusses the increased use of digital infrastructure in pedagogy by Library Special Collections at UCLA, and the workflow pressures these infrastructures created that challenge traditional staff roles. Digital infrastructures are then framed as types of boundary object, catering to multiple communities of practice. In order to tend to these boundary infrastructures, a new staffing model has been introduced—that of the boundary staff—whose primary purpose would be to support these hybrid infrastructures and more effectively integrate them into the general library environment. This approach to digital project collaboration can set the stage for more flexible and innovative digital instruction, building on the current skillsets of library staff to facilitate new modes of faculty and librarian partnerships.     

Changing partnerships? Government documents departments at the turn of the millennium

During the 1990s the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) has undergone a transition from collections comprised exclusively of tangible print on paper or fiche publications to a mix of print and electronic materials. This article examines the impact of this transition on depository library operations—both collections and services—at the turn of the millennium. The discussion of reference service on depository materials is considered within the context of G. K. Zipf’s law, that is, people will tend to seek the path of least effort in gathering information. Given this tendency, the extensive use of the Web to deliver electronic depository materials redirects depository library users away from depository shelves to Web workstations, and leads depository librarians to build Web pages to direct their patrons. The conclusion is that for depository libraries the new collection mix poses a management paradox—the FDLP receives thousands of tangible documents each year, yet it must maintain new services for patrons turning increasingly to Web-based resources.     

The Future of Presidential Libraries: Assessing Alternative Models from a Legal Research Perspective

Presidential libraries—each a unique combination of archival depository and historical museum—offer visitors an invaluable opportunity to examine millions of papers, records, and artifacts from the administrations of our chief executives. In response to a congressional directive to consider means of reducing costs and improving the preservation of and access to presidential records, the National Archives and Records Administration has proposed five alternatives to the current presidential library system. This article analyzes these alternative models from the perspective of the legal research community. After discussing the role of presidential libraries in legal research, this article considers the merits of each model and concludes that a central archival depository would best meet the information needs of legal researchers.     

Hospital and Corporate Information Services

Successful hospital and corporate libraries offer customized resources and services to meet the needs of their dynamic organizations. Concepts such as customer-driven, service-oriented and value-added are central to these libraries. Serving decision markers and integrating the library into the decision-making process of the organization is critical. Future articles in this new column will furlher explore the underlying philosophies and the specialized resources and services that characterize these libraries.     

Enriching Your Wealth of Resources by Marketing Interlibrary Loan

Interlibrary loan (ILL) is a service that increases user access to resources, however it is of little use if no one knows about it. ILL statistics at libraries generally show that the service as a whole is well used, but upon closer inspection it becomes clear that these high usage statistics are generated by library power users, and not by new, novice, or intermediate users. When conducting thorough research, it frequently extends beyond the holdings of an individual library, which makes ILL essential. Therefore, it is important for users to know about and use this service. While ILL enhances what libraries can offer, very few libraries focus their marketing on ILL. Instead, most libraries simply lump ILL into the marketing of library resources and services in general. In this article we analyze libraries that have broken out of the mold to market ILL in innovative, cost-effective ways, and we will share the marketing campaign we undertook at Wheaton College (IL).     

Student Workers: Essential Partners in the Twenty-First Century Academic Library

This article describes a case study that best illustrates the value of student workers in university libraries, focusing particularly on how this kind of creative endeavor benefits everyone involved—the library, the students, the faculty, and at the end of the project: the university community.     

Hospital and corporate information services: introducing a new column

Successful hospital and corporate libraries offer customized resources and services to meet the needs of their dynamic organizations. Concepts such as customer-driven, service-oriented and value-added are central to these libraries. Serving decision makers and integrating the library into the decision-making process of the organization is critical. Future articles in this new column will further explore the underlying philosophies and the specialized resources and services that characterize these libraries.     

构筑图书馆文化,提升图书馆软实力

从文化概念的起源、文化概念的内涵入手,以北大文化、企业文化为例,透过美国的实力政策新论中的"软实力"视角,分析了文化的潜移默化的巨大作用,指出图书馆文化对图书馆可持续发展的影响力,提出了在新时期如何构筑我们自己的图书馆文化,提升图书馆的软实力。     

美国社区图书馆的特色化服务

社区图书馆是美国公共图书馆系统中分布广泛、数量庞大并发挥着巨大作用的一个群体。论文通过对美国两所社区图书馆的实地考察,简述了美国社区图书馆在特色化服务、尊重读者权益等方面值得借鉴的经验。     

Creation and development of an All-Wales Health Library Catalogue

This article focuses on the collaboration between the University of Wales College of Medicine (UWCM) libraries and the Welsh National Health Service (NHS) libraries to create a joint library catalogue. The goal was to create an all-Wales resource that gave users one access point to search for the location and availability of health-related material in any Welsh medical library. This venture grew out of the existing collaborative scheme, the All-Wales Health Information and Library Extension Services (AWHILES). Currently, all seven UWCM libraries and 17 NHS libraries contribute to the catalogue. Four more libraries are due to join in late 2003 or early 2004. All UWCM and AWHILES libraries would then be contributing members of the joint catalogue. The article discusses the background and motivation to the creation of the database. It explores the positives and negatives of the project plus what was learnt as the venture progressed. It reviews the establishment and operations of the Welsh Health Voyager User Group (WHVUG) created to involve all contributing members in the running and future development of the library catalogue.     

Library Policy and Legislation: a European Perspective

Why, in the last 5 years, have at least three European organizations — the Council of Europe, the European Parliament and the European Commission — devoted so many studies, investigations and, finally, policy documents to library policy and legislation? The answer is in the enlarged scope for library and information work and in the new emerging factors that are permeating its policy and planning. These factors are: convergence, globalization and participation.The author examines the four areas in which library and information planners are called to focus their policies — freedom of expression and free access to information, libraries within national information policies, libraries and the knowledge industries, and the protection of library heritage — and how these areas are covered by policy documents, in particular by the recently issued Council of Europe/EBLIDA Guidelines on library legislation and policy in Europe.