Libraries Without Walls 6

This edited collection is drawn from the sixth Libraries Without Walls Conference, held in 2005. From their beginnings in 1995, the Libraries Without Walls conferences have mapped a major change in the practice of librarianship. While library services are still concerned to provide users with physical access to their buildings, electronic access, often from remote locations, is becoming ever more dominant. Papers presented at previous LWW conferences have provided examples of how libraries are pushing out the frontiers of their services. In 2005 a different approach was taken. The question was asked, 'How do we know whether these new services are having a positive impact on our users?' In response, papers written by leading professionals worldwide followed these broad themes: theoretical approaches to the evaluation of the new services, with an emphasis on qualitative methods the user experience: what do we know about the users of these services? assessment of the usability, including the accessibility, of the services measuring the outcomes and impact. Readership: These state-of-the-art papers will enable library managers and information professionals in all sectors to keep abreast of the latest developments in this vital area. The book will also assist educational specialists and course developers in increasing their understanding of the role and importance of information in the learning process.

This edited collection is drawn from the seventh Libraries Without Walls Conference, held in 2007. From their beginnings in 1995, the Libraries Without Walls conferences have mapped a major change in the practice of librarianship. While library services are still concerned to provide users with physical access to their buildings, electronic access - often from remote locations - is becoming ever more dominant. Library services are being integrated into virtual learning, research and personal environments. In 2007 CERLIM wished to encourage the widest possible range of papers to reflect the diverse current developments in library service delivery. These covered: New kinds of service, especially those that open up new paradigms of 'library' - perhaps the library equivalent of YouTube or MySpace The library's role within new models of scholarly publishing, including experience of developing services based on institutional or other repositories, and the responsibility of the library for digital curation Service delivery in challenging environments, especially where the infrastructure may be sub-optimal, as in some developing countries, or where the user group represents particular challenges New technological solutions and the impact on users of the improved services they make possible Delivery and assessment of information skills/literacies, especially where this is achieved through electronic environments. These state-of-the-art papers are designed to increase understanding of the role and importance of information in the learning process, and to enable information professionals and course developers to keep abreast of the latest developments in this vital area.

This unique annotated bibliography is a complete, up-to-date guide to sources of information on library science, covering recent books, monographs, periodicals and websites, and selected works of historical importance.

In these turbulent times, with the challenges of a constantly changing job market, shifting information-seeking behaviour and a vast array of new resources continually being produced, library and information services need to constantly keep one step, or more, ahead of their users. The benefits of analysing user behaviour are self-evident: better strategic planning, cost benefits and better use of budgets, better marketing, satisfied customers, satisfied management, and a library or information unit that is central to the needs of your parent organization. However, paradoxically, user needs and levels of expectation, including those of remote users, are often not fully explored. This accessible text goes back to the basics and investigates the following key issues: Why this book? Defining your users Understanding users: the what, why, where, when, how and who What is the current knowledge of user behaviour and needs: is it really predictable? Great expectations: how LIS professionals can manage and train users Using information about past user behaviour Making the most of knowing your users Keeping track of changes in what users want Tracking the future: electronic and social networking Future perfect? Readership: This book will help any library or information professional anywhere to take a fresh look at this important area and to tackle it in their organization, so as to ensure that their users will always obtain exactly what they want. Webmasters and knowledge managers will also find much to interest them.

Celebrates and acknowledges the contribution Professor Peter Brophy has made over a career spanning 37 years to the field of library and information studies. Reflecting on his work, this title offers strategies for the future direction of library and information services in the virtual era.

Social, cultural and technological developments are revolutionizing library services. The way ahead for the profession is now generally seen as a practical blend of traditional and electronic materials with integrated support services which fit seamlessly into users' normal ways of working. This is leading to a fundamental rethinking of the role of the library in society. Drawing on the author's recent research, this timely second edition of The Library in the Twenty-first Century offers a clear new model of how traditional and electronic sources can co-exist in the library of the future, building on the previous work by focusing on the library as a vehicle for encouraging creativity as well as a provider of information resources. It is now commonplace that libraries have a major role to play as expert intermediaries, helping users to gain access to the tools needed for effective acquisition and use of information, within the broader context of the networked information world. But it is beginning to be recognized that they still have a profounder role within their communities, and this book emphasizes that beyond the intermediary role is the vital requirement to promote understanding and engagement. Written by one of our most experienced librarians and drawing on a range of international research and development experience, this authoritative work offers the following topics: libraries in the modern world the view from the sectors cross-sectoral models the profession's view digital libraries what is a good library? linking users to resources beyond the intermediary the library user the information universe. Readership: This incisive text, supported by an extensive glossary and bibliography, proposes a practical agenda of issues for the information profession to tackle, and is essential reading for both established library practitioners and LIS students, as well as for library managers and administrators across all sectors.