Public Internet Access In Libraries And Information Services

Public access to the internet is arguably the most important current development in library and information services. It presents a series of highly demanding issues for information professionals in all sectors. Public anxiety about harmful internet content and inappropriate use, particularly by children, continues to be debated. All this is against a background of ongoing concern about how the new technology affects legal and human rights areas such as copyright and other intellectual property; confidentiality, privacy, data protection and official secrecy; freedom of information; and harassment, obscenity and defamation.This book is a much-needed guide for information professionals requiring a fuller understanding of these areas of law and ethics, and provides essential guidance on access policy and management. Whilst working on the basic principle that freedom of expression and freedom of access to information are simultaneously human rights and fundamentals of librarianship, it also takes into account the ethical and legal ambiguity of internet provision and uset. A step-by-step guide to developing an internet access policy is offered, including guidance on controversial aspects such as surveillance and monitoring of use, and software filtering and blocking. Helpful appendices provide access to a range of current codes of conduct, guidance documents, internal policy documents and public policy documents, together with Council of Europe Guidelines originally drafted by the author. The major areas covered are: public access to information on the internet, the internet problem, the ethics of internet access management, the law and the internet, managing internet access, making a policy for public internet access. (EDITOR).

Publicly-supported community libraries are a critical component of the National information infrastructure (NII) initiative. This survey provides data about Internet connectivity for public libraries. 79 tables.

Charles McClure and Paul T. Jaeger speak to the ways in which the Internet has had more impact on public libraries than any other technology since the creation of the book. The issues presented are vital to library service, planning, evaluation, research and educationand most significantly how effectively libraries service the general public.

This 1996 National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) survey gathered data from a national sample of public libraries concerning the current level of public library involvement with the Internet. The purpose of this study was to: (1) provide policymakers, researchers, and library professionals with longitudinal data that measured changes in public library Internet involvement since the first survey in 1994; (2) identify costs for public library Internet services; and (3) identify issues and inform the policy debate concerning public library roles in the electronic networked environment. This final report is divided into three sections: Introduction; Study Results; and Progress and Issues. The introduction discusses the Telecommunications Act of 1996 and the Library Services and Construction Act/Library Services and Technology Act; intellectual property and the National Information Infrastructure; and an electronic federal depository library program. The second section discusses study methodology; public library demographics; accessing the Internet; the current state of public library Internet connectivity; Internet uses and public access services; and benefits to connecting to the Internet. The third section focuses on disparities; connectivity versus services; the goal of universal service; quality of network services; the life cycle of public library Internet development; and preparation for the next survey. Appendices include the survey instrument, survey alert, and cover letter, and information about the authors. (Contains 27 references, and 45 figures that present survey data.) (Author/AEF)

This report is the result of the statutory mandate by the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science (NCLIS) to promote activities to extend the nation's library and information handling capability as essential links in the emerging global information infrastructure. In a study to inventory the challenges related to libraries' roles in the National Information Infrastructure (NII), it was discovered that libraries had difficulty identifying and describing specific Internet costs. The cost elements, models, and worksheets presented here are intended to serve as useful guides for public libraries and communities in planning Internet connections and services. Five representative connectivity models and seven broad cost categories are identified for use by public libraries planning Internet connectivity and services. The value of this study rests more with the development of cost models, worksheets, and cost categories than with the costs represented in this report. However, the representative costs illustrate the significant variations that are possible in planning the networking permutations and configuration available to the public library community. For example, an initial one-time cost of $1,475 and a recurring annual cost of $12,635, a public library can establish a minimal level of single-workstation, text-based Internet connection. A more sophisticated representative multimedia connectivity model is described involving multiple workstations at multiple locations for a one-time cost of $266,375 and a recurring annual cost of $154,220, indicating the wide variation in cost and connectivity possibilities. The findings are intended to provide a basis for extending the benefits of advanced information services to the nation through its 9,050 public libraries. Models are illustrated through 14 figures. Two appendices provide research methodology and glossary of Internet terms. (Contains 14 references.) (Author/MAS)

This work skeptically explores the notion that the internet will soon obviate any need for traditional print-based academic libraries. It makes a case for the library's staying power in the face of technological advancements (television, microfilm, and CD-ROM's were all once predicted as the contemporary library's heir-apparent), and devotes individual chapters to the pitfalls and prevarications of popular search engines, e-books, and the mass digitization of traditional print material.

The rapid adoption of the Internet and computing technologies by all sectors of modern society has made them an indispensable part of our daily work and life. Access to these resources is taken for granted by public agencies providing services to the community, by those who conduct business and commerce, and by those who use them to stay current on public affairs and in touch with their families and friends on a daily basis. Yet not all individuals have consistent access to these resources. They may be unable to afford them, they may need basic training in how to use them, or they may be displaced from their normal access points. This book outlines research targeted at documenting, describing, and analysing the impact internet and computers in public libraries have on the lives of individuals, families, and communities. It describes the characteristics of people who use public access computers and Internet connections, the types of use they engage in, and the impact that use has on their own lives, that of their families and friends, and the communities they live in. The book then continues to examine the effect of library characteristics and policies on public access computing use and impact, as a first step toward helping libraries understand how some of their services may be affecting the overall success of their efforts in providing public access services to their communities.