The virtual reference desk

Creating a reference future

Online chat, text messaging, RSS feeds - we never imagined that these technologies would impact on information services in the ways they have, and we can only begin to imagine the greater changes that tomorrow will bring in the world of the virtual reference library. This ...

Evvaluating the impact of your library

All types of libraries and information services have traditionally collected a range of performance information about service efficiency. What has recently become a challenge for library and information managers is how to obtain information about the effectiveness of services and how to assess the impact ...

Reference and information services in the 21st century

an introduction

Reference and Information Services in the 21st Century is the most current introduction to reference work available. Part One covers the essentials # selecting and evaluating material, interviewing enquirers, instructing users, and assessing services. The authors effectively synthesize the growing need for electronic resources with the ...

Preservation management

for libraries, archives and museums

Memory institutions such as libraries, archives, galleries and museums all share pressing concerns about preserving heritage, whether in the form of material and documentary cultural artefacts in collections, or in the form of new digitally born material. Recent incidents of natural disaster and cultural genocide ...

Measuring library performance

principles and techniques

Measuring the performance of a library's services is a crucial part of good library management, since without a firm grasp of what is actually being achieved it is impossible to move forward to improved service. The key measure is no longer size and quality ...

Preserving archives

Access to archival material - the documentary heritage of people all over the world that gives them their identity and ensures their rights - is dependent on the survival of fragile materials: paper, parchment, photographic materials, audiovisual materials and, most recently, magnetic and optical formats. The primary ...

Managing information resources in libraries

collection management in theory and practice

Libraries and information services are being transformed by the increasing availability of electronic information. The management of information resources in libraries is of greater, not lesser importance in the digital world. Librarians are well placed to provide leadership in the new century as they draw ...

Ethics, accountability, and recordkeeping in a dangerous world

The new book from this eminent American archivist covers a wide range of recent issues and controversies related to the mission and work of archivists and records managers. The essays contained in it consider both the practical issues of administering records and the much more ...

Negotiating licences for digital resources

With the increasing availability of digital resources, it is vital for those involved in purchasing them to get to grips with the complexities of contracts, costs and the relationships that exist between subscriber and publisher. "Negotiating Licences for Digital Resources" is a practical guide on ...

Essential Dewey

In this book, John Bowman provides an introduction to the Dewey Decimal Classification suitable either for beginners or for librarians who are out of practice using Dewey. He outlines the content and structure of the scheme and then, through worked examples using real titles, shows ...

The academic library

Universities and colleges of higher education in the United Kingdom are subject to ever more rapid change. In the four years since this book was first published, the higher education landscape has evolved further, with new legislation and significant changes to the relationships between institutions ...

Sopporting E-learning

a guide for library and information managers

E-learning is becoming commonplace in academic institutions, largely as an alternative medium in the delivery of established content. Increasingly library and information services are directly involved in the delivery of e-content and in delivering services to support e-learning. Thus it is affecting all aspects of ...

The content management handbook

This essential new book provides step-by-step guidance on the specification, selection and implementation of content management system software (CMS) for websites and intranets. It covers every aspect of the process, from making the initial business case, writing a Statement of Requirements, assessing the relative merits ...

E-journals

a how to do it manual for building managing and supporting electronic journal collections

The electronic journal, a new format only a few years ago, is now commonplace in many libraries and information services. Recent years have seen a huge growth in the range and number of journals being published on the internet, and an increasingly large number of ...

Guidelines for colleges

recommendations for learning resources

In order for learning resource services to meet the ever-changing requirements of governmental agencies (social inclusion, accessibility for all, lifelong learning and #empowering the learning community#) there is a need for relevant, up to date and robust guidelines for such provision. This new edition of ...

Literacies for learning in the digital age

This book brings together a global community of educators, educational researchers, librarians and others involved in enabling learning, to consider how learners need to be equipped in an educational environment which is increasingly suffused by digital technology. Traditional notions of literacy need to be challenged ...

Cataloging and organizing digital resources

a how to do it manual for librarians

Managing suppliers and partners for the academic library

Delivering digital services

a handbook or public libraries and learning centres

Lifelong learning is currently a major concern of governments who wish to see their citizens remain employable while the job market changes. Critical to this are digital learning centres where learning is delivered through internet access or via CD-based packages. Access to these turns public ...

An introduction to library and information work

The expanded CILIP Framework of Qualifications, with its introduction of Certified Membership for staff in paraprofessional roles, reflects the continuing need for a textbook to replace earlier editions as the standard work for paraprofessional library and information staff and for the introductory year of professional ...