Too Funny

Just a bit more Library humor to get you through the rest of this boring Thursday.

What are people thinking?

Now, this is interesting.

Honestly, at first I thought this was a joke.

For instance, check out this YouTube presentation on “Motivational Deficiency”. (I believe that I may have experienced a touch of this syndrome just last Monday morning)


But it turns out that these folks are quite serious;

“…the techniques of ‘disease-mongering’, in particular the expansion of the boundaries of disorders, the medicalisation of normal life events and the portrayal of risk factors as diseases is prevalent in the medical marketing world. Conference delegates expressed the hope that the public and media would become more skeptical of such claims and that health professionals would challenge the claims and recognise the marketing interests that attempt to shape their perceptions of disease.”

The Public Library of Science (An important, open-access science resource which really deserves a ‘blog entry of its own) has a collection of articles on “Disease Mongering” here.

Perhaps all these (ahem) patients really need is a bracing dose of bibliotherapy?

Searching “Librarian and syndrome” in Google returns:

“Systems Librarian Imposter Syndrome”

“Overprotective Librarian Syndrome”

“Tidy Librarian Syndrome”

“Silent Librarian Syndrome”

Finally, there must be a market out there among librarians for this sort of thing, Haworth Press has created a cottage industry out of it.

“Martyr-Librarian Syndrome”

“University-Library Syndrome”

Just a little Library Humor to get over Hump day

The Downfall of Atlas Shrugged

I love the book (the part of it that I read).

I have only gotten a few hundred pages into it when I saw the book entitled "Honky" by Dalton Conley.

Since I do not like to read two books at the same time, I am taking a break from AS to read Honky.

Sometimes,,,,Its just not worth it

Friday afternoon was a total waste of library work.

The copier was down, one of our employee's parent's passed a way and many attender her funeral, no one returned my calls and surprisingly, everyone who came into the library needed their research completed "right away".

Only a month to go.

Urban Hang-Out vs Traditional Library

Slate has an interesting photo essay exploring the question of how to build a public library in the age of Google, Wikipedia, and Kindle. The grand old reading rooms and stacks of past civic monuments are giving way to a new library-as-urban-hangout concept, as evidenced by Seattle’s Starbucks-meets-mega-bookstore central library and Salt Lake City’s shop-lined education mall. Without some dramatic changes, The Extinction Timeline predicts libraries will R.I.P. in 2019.”

Public Health Libraries Go National

On Friday’s Talk of the Nation, Harold Varmus was interviewed on the new policy requiring that NIH funded research be deposited in PubMed Central within a year.

Listen to it (22 minutes) at: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=89562597

The Deed Is Done

Last night, over about 4 hours of toil, I sent the email to my immediate and secondary supervisors telling them that I will not be employed here at May 30, 2008.

What a load off my shoulders.

I have a few prospects under my belt though. I have listed them in order of which I would like the most.

1. I have applied to manage a university Law Library here in town.

2. I have applied to take a temporary position as an inter library loan technician. If I get this position, I will work there until school starts in the Fall and then become a full-time student.

3. i have applied to be a circulation clerk at my old place of employment. The money would be horrible, but at least I would be happy.

I have finally decided

After taking a sick day off work and being blamed for causing a gap service (despite the fact that I followed established procedure), I have made the decision to terminate my current employment at the library which I am working.

That WILL NOT stop me from keepin gthis blog current.

I still very much love library science and will hoefully find anoth position in the same field.

I just feel that my current working environment is dis-jointed and very inward thinking, if that makes any sense.

The people whom I work with are not bad in the least, but there is nothing too exciting about them, they are just kind of there.

I am looking for a working environment that invigorates me, and beckons me to get up in the morning. I know that may be a lot to ask, but all of my former positions did this for me, even when I was in the military.

So I will be handing in my resignation on Monday.

Wish me luck.

What do my bosses do all day?

I know that most of you are asking the same question.

It does not help when the one who is writing your appraisals are on the other end of the country, as the situation with mine.

For the first time in a year, I met my approving supervisor when they came to visit our library this past week.

You would think that there was an agenda...

Fat chance.

It seems that they just came to hang out.

You would think that they would make the most of this visit. I guess that's what you can do when you are in charge of people around the country.

Innovations in Library Science

A few years ago, I presented to a State conference on the way the Academic Libraries are changing to accommodate the advances in library science.

I came a cross this seminar which will held at my former place of employment later this month. I think I am going to check it out.

McGill Library Announces Global Health Resource Wiki

*The McGill Library Global Health Resource Wiki*
*wikisites.mcgill.ca/GlobalHealthGuide*

The McGill Library has created a Global Health Resource Guide to promote collaboration and to share and organize knowledge about resources within the McGill community and beyond.

This resource guide was created as a wiki using MediaWiki software so that as many people as possible would be encouraged to both use the guide and add resources to it.

All members of the McGill community - students, faculty, clinicians, researchers and staff - can add resources to the guide by logging in with their McGill user ID.

Anyone in the international community with an interest in global health is welcome to use the guide for finding global health information and resources.

If you are from an academic community outside of McGill, they encourage you to participate and contribute to the wiki. Contact them for a user ID if you would like to contribute resources or information to the guide.

To obtain more information, to comment or pass on suggestions for content, or to request a User ID to add resources and content, please contact one of these McGill librarians:

Eamon Duffy Government Information Service eamon.duffy@mcgill.ca
Louisa Piatti Nahum Gelber Law Library louisa.piatti@mcgill.ca
Jim Henderson Life Sciences Library jim.henderson@mcgill.ca
Deborah Meert Macdonald Campus Library deborah.meert@mcgill.ca

wikisites.mcgill.ca/GlobalHealthGuide

EPA Libraies: An Update

The Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) effort to reorganize its library system was seriously flawed and mired in agency management and oversight problems, said a Government Accountability Office (GAO) report.

GAO looked at how well the agency handled its library reorganization in the wake of a $2 million budget cut in 2006. The report, released March 13, documented numerous problems with the way EPA handled the closing of four libraries. For example, the agency failed to obtain appropriate input from staff or relevant experts to accommodate library users before closing facilities. Also, GAO said, EPA still lacks a strategy to ensure continuity of library services and does not know whether its actions have impaired access to environmental information.
Other shortcomings GAO found include:

EPA did not conduct a cost-benefit analysis for closing the libraries. The agency failed to track costs associated with closing the libraries and did not evaluate the cost of losing library services.
EPA did not conduct analyses mandated by the Office of Management and Budget. The agency failed to comply with federal law concerning the disposal of federal property. EPA did not implement an agency-wide communications strategy notifying stakeholders of the closures. GAO recommended-and EPA agreed-that EPA should continue its moratorium on further changes until it takes suggested corrective actions. Four closed libraries have not reopened.

"EPA should return to making decisions that are based upon reasonably obtainable economic and technical information," said Charles Orzehoskie of the American Federation of Government Employees Council of EPA, Local 238. "Initiating these changes now would improve EPA staff morale," said Orzehoskie in testimony before a House on Science and Technology subcommittee investigating the library closings.

The GAO report came in response to a request by Reps. John Dingell, D-Mich., chairman of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, Bart Gordon, D-Tenn., chairman of the Committee on Science and Technology, Henry Waxman, D-Calif., chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., chairman of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.

To see more, go to: < http://www.afge.org/Index.cfm?Page=PressReleases&PressReleaseID=832 > or the GAO report at: < http://www.gao.gov/highlights/d08304high.pdf >.

Access vs. Ownership

One of the most talked about issues in Library Science is the controversy over the benefits of ownership of databases/information versus the access to databases/information. Because of the amount of literature on the subject, coupled with my interest, I wanted to gain more information about the severity of the subject. In doing so, I would like to look at a few examples of the extent that database usage/acquisition to information and provide some economic reasoning for this phenomenon.

Due to globalization, access to information has become easier. Entities that manipulate information have been able to profit the most from this trend. At a conference organized by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Association for Research Libraries presented the 'Scholarly Communication and Technology Project'. This delineates the fact that even though the entities that control information will continue to profit from globalization, they also squelch out that those profits will be made on the backs of the consumer. In doing so, the project also gives economic reasoning for the escalating rate of profitability to be had by owners of information. In a nutshell, the project relays that fact that globalization and technological advancements have reduced the need of materials to be 'physical', similar to the traditional journal. This, combined with the ever-changing rules of the process of transactions of acquiring information in the electronic arena, is both reasons why information owners (i.e. publishers of scholarly journals and libraries) could profit greatly.

Annual reports are written for every major corporation in the world. This is the place for a company to state is accomplishments over the previous year. Another function of an annual report is to speculate about the progress that they foresee. Each one of the companies on Forbes' Fortune 500 list has an annual report. This concept of reporting financial prowess and speculated growth is not lost in the library community. In review of two libraries annual reports, we find that the present trend in acquisitions of journals/information and other media is to move towards access to them instead of ownership of them.

This trend of moving towards access to information as opposed to ownership was present as far back as twelve years ago. In reading The University of Wisconsin's Murphy Library's 1994 annual report, we find that the preparer mentions that its library's access to GPO, which offers online access to the Congressional Record and the Code of Federal Regulations, was one of their accomplishments in the previous fiscal year. They also state that their Inter-Library loan department was increasing their efforts in obtaining access to materials currently not owned by Murphy Library. The annual report goes on to convey the fact that OCLC FirstSearch, an online service that gives library professionals and end users access to a rich collection of reference databases, continues to have heavy usage, numerating over 3,000 searches, stating that the increase searches have not cost the library more money because the cost per search has decreased from $.70 per search to $.50. Murphy Library also planned to continue its evaluation and comparison of print and electronic material in efforts for continued analysis in the upcoming fiscal year.

In Victoria College's 2003-2004 Annual Report, they give example of Murphy Library's prediction of moving towards access to information rather than ownership of it. In this report, the following is reported:-CD ROM networks are 'dead' technology.-They provide off campus access to over 80 electronic databases and over 35,000 electronic books.-1/2 of library database usage comes from off campus locations-Electronic databases give users access to over 22,000 magazine journals.

This annual report goes on to relay the message that they not only provide access to many different resources, they also allow access of the material that they own. Jon Dahlstrom, Director of Libraries at Victoria College and University of Houston-Victoria states, "...wealth of online full-text resources that have become available over the past ten years, we have truly made a shift from owning journals to providing access to them through online subscriptions.

Publishers of journals (information) also benefit from libraries' purchases of their wares via electronic medium. We take a look at John Franks' Impact of Electronic Publication of Scholarly Journals, where he begins by stating that electronic publishing will first come to research conducted in a scholarly manner before it makes its way into any other type of publication. He gives reasoning for this by saying that scholars are much more connected to electronic resources (the internet) than other sects of the population and gives light to the fact that libraries are always in search of new ways to save money due to their extreme financial pressure.

As stated above, one of the most talked about issues in Library Science is the controversy over the benefits ownership of databases/information versus the access of databases/information. We have seen evidence that the ever striating economic balance of access to information and ownership of information will not end anytime soon without specified rules of practice. If this continues, the haves will continue to have more will the have not's will continue to have none.


Sources:

Franks, John. "The Impact of Electronic Publication." Cause/Effect 17

Meyer, Richard. "Consortial Access Versus Ownership." Scholarly Communication and Technology. Atlanta, GA. 04/24/1997.

Murphy Library , "Annual Report 1994." University of Wisconsin. 22 Aug 2006

University of Houston at Victoria, "Annual Report 2003-2004." 22 Aug 2006

The Search For An MLS Degree

With the virtual world no upon us, options for education have opened up.

I have begun my search for an ALA accredited MLA program, but my small Midwestern town does not offer it, despite that it has several first class universities. The three closest programs are all 100 miles away, in thee separate directions.

There is one satellite program that I could take near by, but that got me to ask the question, is closer better?

I have started to delve into online MLA courses and here is what I have found so far:

http://www.becomealibrarian.org/DistanceEdComparison.htm

Book Review: New England White...3.75

New England White by Stephen L. Carter is a fascinating mystery set in an old New England town with very new New England money as the heroine. I found it to be a great and easy read and if you are looking for a book that will take you away from the conundrum of everyday life, I would definitely pick this book up.

Here is what a reviewer from Amazon.com had to say about it:

After Emperor of Ocean Park, I could hardly wait for a second book from Stephen Carter. I even emailed him once to find why it was taking so long (no, he didn't respond) and so when I found out his new book was coming out last week, I rushed to my local bookstore (coupons in hand) and started reading. Once again, Carter has delivered an intriguing mystery while providing juicy tidbits about life in the rarified atmosphere of rich black intellectuals. However, as much as I loved reading all 556 pages (whew!), I found that about halfway through the book, I started getting lost in all the details. There is just so much information he includes that after a while they start to detract from the story. More than once I thought "And who is this again?" Not that any of that stopped me from reading, it's that with so many characters, so many events, so much repetition, I was relieved to finally get to the big reveal. Yes, it was worth it find out whodunnit and why, but there is another message Carter delivers that members of both the darker nation and the paler nation will likely find themselves admitting, even if to no one other than to themselves. My favorite scene in the book? When Julia finds herself in an unfamiliar neighborhood, knocking on doors and understanding that it's race, not money/class/privilege that people see first. And that truth is not lost on her.

Nebraska Library's Must Be Really Hard Up For Employees

I have never seen a public service announcement promoting library jobs. I guess, in my area, library jobs are pretty hard to come by.

Nebraska seems to have taken their shortage of library workers to a whole new level with this PSA.

Book Review: Raising the Bar: Integrity and Passion in Life and Business: The Story of Clif Bar & Co.

As a rule, I usually do not pick up self help books. i tend to think that they are filled with feel good attitudes that do exactly that, make you feel good, but giving little information which I could not figure out on my own.I am still convinced that the secret of life will never be found located between bound leather, but after speaking with friends, I have come to realize that some insight to life issues can be found printed in Black and White.

Still sceptical, I set out to locate a published work that would live up to my friend's promises.Raising the Bar by Greg Erickson was the first book that jumped out at me. Bar was writtten by the owner and creater of Clif Bar & Co., a line of fitness bars and energy drinks which came out of nowhere and took the industry by storm.Bar caught my eye for two reasons:

1. This book documents the success story of a small business who's healthy and eco-friendly business practices is the main readon for its prosperity

2. It documents a product that I have grown to love over the years, The Clif Bar.

If you are interested in learning how grow your business WITHOUT worrying about the economic bottom line, I would definitly recommend this book. Though containing some business theory and accounting mumbo-jumbo, it is still light and jovial enough to take on vacation with you or being considered a "light read".

Library Elf's Rating=======3 points (Rating based on a scale of 1-5, 5 being the best)

Happy Easter!

Violatiotion of Copyright

For obvious reasons, I can not post what the Journal of the Canadian Health Library Association says about HS Librarians and Web 3, but if you are interested in reading their article, pick it up and tell me what you think.

Jews & Blacks: A Review

Jews & Blacks: A Dialogue on Race, Religion, and Culture in America, by Michael Lerner and Cornel West chronicle the similarities of and differences in the struggles that both Jews and African-Americans have faced here in the United States.

Chapter by chapter, these two academic leaders in their perspective societies take on specific issues that have been of concern in both societies and give their unique and collective perspective of the societal concern.

In addition to introductions of the two intellectuals, some of the issues covered in this book include (but not limited to) Black and Jewish Nationalism, Jewish Racism/Black Anti-Semitism, and economic conflicts hindering/helping the two societies.

As an African-American, I have always known the struggles of the Jewish in the United States have paralleled those of Blacks, but this book gives me a greater perspective of the similarities and differences in the two society’s struggle for equality and inclusion.This is not light reading and I would not take it if I was going on vacation, but you are giving a speech on either two societies, I would definitely use this as a reference.

The race is on!

Well, its not really a race.

I have decided to throw my hat in and become a full fledged librarian.

I have done some research on MLS programs, and being stuck in the Midwest, there are only 3 programs close to me, and each one is exactly 100 miles ways.

UGH!!!

Luckily one MLS program has a satellite program at a university just a few miles away. Albeit, i will not be able to take ALL off my course at the closer school and several times a semester I will have to make that dutiful 100 mile trip for a presentation of a seminar, but I guess it is better than nothing.

I will keep you posted and wish me luck!

Google goes Medical?

During this year's Healthcare Information and Management Systems Society Annual Conference in Orlando there was a presentation by the Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Google.

During this presentation, an initiative sponsored by Google was presented intending to provide access to personal health records. It seems to include content from information providers such as Epocrates and ADAM.

If you can watch the whole thing, and let me know what you think.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTZKNcx9sBA

Library Organizations: Are They Worth It?

For years I have worked in a library, most of it in a public library but recent years have seen me dip my cap at academic and special librarianship.

All the while, I have never had the interest in becoming a part of the major library associations. They only time I was vaguely interested in these huge conglomerates were when National convention rolled around and they were being held in a city in which I would like to visit like the case with the ALA a few years back when they had their convention in The Big Easy.

My interest has sparked again this year with the Medical Library Association (MLA) holding a convention in Chicago during May 2008.

I would love to participate, but would like to do so for the right reasons and not for a free trip to Chi-Town.

Since, I am now working in a special/medical library; the MLA may be an association which I would like to become a member of. I will be doing some more research on this organization and let you know what I decide.

Any advice would be helpful as well.

Library Work Can Make You Sick

Literally...

I have been under the weather for the past few days.

I am in the process of resting up and will be back on track next week.

Just too funny

I have started searching YouTube clips just to see what all is out there. It was inevitable that I come across clips which invloved the library.

I am not sure if this one is real or not, but it is funny to watch...enjoy!

Library Presentation: Recap

Much to my surprise, the presentation went off without a hitch.

There were less than 10 people who showed up, but many more asked about how the presentation went and wanted me to forward on information about what was covered, so I thought post it here as well:

I. James Bradley

-Enslaved in Africa and transported to the United States. Here, he is “purchased” and shipped to Pendleton County, KY.

-Manages to earn enough money to purchase his own freedom and crosses the Ohio River at Covington, KY. Goes on to attend Lane Theological Seminary.

-Statue in Covington symbolizes his struggles in life and his instrumental role in the Abolition movement.

II. Margaret Garner

-Escaped slave who took the life of her daughter rather than see her returned to a life of slavery.

-Story depicted in Beloved, a Nobel Prize winning novel written by Toni Morrison, adapted into a film (Beloved-1998) and into an opera (Margaret Garner).

III. Beloved (a summary)

Sethe, daughter Denver and Paul D. are living free at the home of Baby Suggs, 18 years after escaping from slavery. House becomes “haunted” after Baby Suggs’ death. Sethe, Denver and Paul D. take in a young woman, who becomes attached to Sethe.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I have been asked to give a presentation on genealogy researching techniques and Native Americans, so I will keep you posted.

Library Presentation: Margaret Garner and James Bradley

Well, the day is finally here.

In staying with the theme of it being African American History Month, I will give a presentation about two African Americans who were instrumental in the Abolition movement in their respective times.

Most of you may not have heard of James Bradley, but can read more about him here.

Margaret Garner, on the other hand, so be a bit more recognizable. Her story spawned a Nobel Prize winning novel, a film starring Oprah Winfrey and a commissioned opera.

I will let you know how it goes.....wish me luck!

Library Elf's Book Review: Jews & Blacks

Jews & Blacks: A Dialogue on Race, Religion, and Culture in America, by Michael Lerner and Cornel West chronicle the similarities of and differences in the struggles that both Jews and African-Americans have faced here in the United States.

Chapter by chapter, these two academic leaders in their perspective societies take on specific issues that have been of concern in both societies and give their unique and collective perspective of the societal concern. In addition to introductions of the two intellectuals, some of the issues covered in this book include (but not limited to) Black and Jewish Nationalism, Jewish Racism/Black Anti-Semitism, and economic conflicts hindering/helping the two societies.

As an African-American, I have always known the struggles of the Jewish in the United States have paralleled those of Blacks, but this book gives me a greater perspective of the similarities and differences in the two society’s struggle for equality and inclusion.This is not light reading and I would not take it if I was going on vacation, but you are giving a speech on either two societies, I would definitely use this as a reference.

Library Elf's Rating: 3.75 points of the 5 (5 being the best)

Library Elf's Bookshelf

I went out to dinner last night and, throughout the entire evening, I ran into several people who I had not seen in years. In one case, it had been over a decade since I had laid eyes on them.

Departing from the normal questions asked to me like "How have you been?" and "Where do you live now?”, one question, "What are you reading?" was asked by everyone. No, those who I ran into were not librarians or worked in a library, but they all remembered that I love to read and always spoke of the books in which I was reading.

So I thought I would start letting you guys know what books I am currently reading and then give a brief synopsis after I am finished, along with my recommendations. You can find my current read off to the right.

EndNote Training Day

This morning a representative from EndNote gave a training presentation to out library. Tough I work in special library where there are only 3 staff members, we support a whole host of researchers who also use EndNote, so the session was packed (packed meaning about 50 people).

It always surprises me that the worst public speakers are charged with the duty of training.

Anyway...

I was able to learn a bit...and took some great notes...

Managing the 21st Century Academic Library: A Bibliography

Bernie Sloan
(b-sloan@alexia.lis.uiuc.edu)
Graduate School of Library and Information Science
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

June 3, 2002


This bibliography consists of items I have pulled together as a result of my interest in the library of the future, especially regarding the management of the 21st century academic library. I am posting this bibliography on the Web in hopes that it may be useful to those who share an interest in this topic.

There are 160+ entries in this bibliography, with about 85% of the entries accessible via the Web.

For the most part, this bibliography focuses on academic libraries. The entries in this bibliography generally date from about 1995 forward, about the time that the Internet and the World Wide Web began to impact academic libraries. There are some items that don’t deal specifically with academic libraries, and there are some items that predate 1995. These have been included because I found them generally useful.

This is a work in progress. Most of my focus so far has been on items that are freely available on the Web. I will be adding more print-based items as I begin searching abstracting and indexing databases for other resources.




Accelerating the Transformation of Information Resources...connecting people and information. Final Report of the Library of the Future Task Force. The University of Calgary. May 1998. http://www.ucalgary.ca/library/lftf/finalreport/index.html

Afifi, Marianne. Lessons in the future of libraries. Faculty Forum (the Newsletter of the USC Academic Senate), 2(2). 2000/2001. http://www.usc.edu/academe/acsen/info_for_faculty/newsletter/0001v2n2/0001vol2num2article04.shtml

American Library Association. Library and Information Technology Association Division. Top Technology Trends. http://www.lita.org/committe/toptech/mainpage.htm

The Artifact in the Library of the Future. Preservation & Access International Newsletter, No. 8. December 1999. http://www.clir.org/pubs/pain/pain08.html#artifact

Auret, Harry. The nature of academic library management. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/b/Harry_Auret.htm

Austen, Gaynor. What is my core business? The academic librarian as partner in the teaching and research process. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/a/GaynorAusten.htm

Baker, Thomas. TIAC white paper on appropriate technology for digital libraries. Technical Information Access Center, National Science and Technology Development Agency, Bangkok, Thailand. May 1999. http://www.tiac.or.th/tiacweb/Baker/Title.html

Balakrishnan, Shyama and P.K. Paliwal, eds. Future Libraries. New Delhi: Anmol, 2001.

Basefsky, Stuart. The Library as an Agent of Change: Pushing the Client Institution Forward. Information Outlook, 3(8), 37-40. August 1999. http://www.sla.org/pubs/serial/io/1999/aug99/bashefsky.shtml

Battles, Matthew. Lost in the stacks: The decline and fall of the universal library. Harper's Magazine, 300(1796), 36-39. January 2000. http://www.findarticles.com/cf_0/m1111/1796_300/58509209/print.jhtml

Bazillion, Richard J. Academic Libraries in the Digital Revolution: Libraries in the midst of revolution need new ways of thinking about their mission. EDUCAUSE Quarterly, No. 1, 51-55. April 2001. http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/EQM0119.pdf

Bazillion, Richard J. Planning the Academic Library of the Future. Portal: Libraries and the Academy, 1(2), 151-160. April 2001. http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/portal_libraries_and_the_academy/v001/1.2bazillion.html

Bazillion, Richard J., and Connie L. Braun. Academic Libraries as High-Tech Gateways: A Guide to Design and Space Decisions, 2nd ed. Chicago: American Library Association, 2001.

Bazillion, Richard J., and Connie L. Braun. Classroom, Library, and Campus Culture in a Networked Environment. Campus-Wide Information Systems, April 2001.

Bloch, R. Howard, and Carla Hesse, eds. Future libraries. Berkeley: U of California Press, 1995.

Bourke, Thomas. New roles for the library in scholarly communication. Paper presented at the Summer School on the Digital Library 2001. http://cwis.kub.nl/~ticer/summer01/publicat/bourke.htm

Branin, Joseph J. Creating the virtual library: New opportunities and challenges for resource sharing. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/c/JosephBranin.htm

Breaks, Michael. The eLib Hybrid Library Projects. Ariadne, Issue 28. June 2001. http://www.ariadne.ac.uk/issue28/hybrid/

Breivik, Patricia S. Information literacy for the sceptical library director. Paper presented at Virtual Libraries: Virtual Communities, 21st IATUL Conference. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. July 3-7, 2000. http://www.iatul.org/conference/qutpap/breivik_full.html

Bridges, Karl, ed. Expectations of librarians in the 21st century. Greenwood Press, 2003.

Brown, John Seely, and Paul Duguid. The social life of documents. First Monday, 1(1). May 1996. http://www.firstmonday.dk/issues/issue1/documents/

Buckland, Michael K. Redesigning Library Services: A Manifesto. Chicago: American Library Association, 1992. http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/Literature/Library/Redesigning/html.html

Building the hybrid library. National Library of Scotland. February 2000. http://www.nls.uk/professional/policy/docs/NLS_HYBRIDLIBRARY.pdf

Bundy, Alan. Forward with imagination: Innovative library client services for the 21st century. Paper presented at Virtual Libraries: Virtual Communities, 21st IATUL Conference. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. July 3-7, 2000. http://www.iatul.org/conference/qutpap/bundy_full.html

Bundy, Alan. Information literacy: The key competency for the 21st century. Paper presented at the Annual Conference of the International Association of Technological University Libraries held in Pretoria South Africa June 1998. http://www.library.unisa.edu.au/papers/inlit21.htm

Bundy, Alan. A partner in learning and research: the Hybrid University Library of the 21st Century. Paper presented at academic libraries conference held at Bandung Institute of Technology, Indonesia. February 26, 1999. http://www.library.unisa.edu.au/papers/hybrid.htm

Burgett, James, John Haar, and Linda L. Phillips. The persistence of print in a digital world: Three ARL libraries confront an enduring issue. Paper presented at the 10th National ACRL Conference, Denver, March 15-18, 2001. http://www.ala.org/acrl/papers01/burgett.pdf

Byrne, Alex. After the fireworks: Opportunities and directions for university libraries. Paper presented at Virtual Libraries: Virtual Communities, 21st IATUL Conference. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. July 3-7, 2000. http://www.iatul.org/conference/qutpap/byrne_full.html

Byrne, Alex. Travels in info space: Access to information and the university library in the 21st century. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/a/Alex_Byrne.htm

Campbell, Jerry D. The case for creating a scholars portal to the Web: A white paper. Prepared for the Association of Research Libraries. April 13, 2000. http://www.arl.org/arl/proceedings/136/portal.html

Campbell, Jerry D. Evolving effective organizations in an age of technology: Beyond university libraries as separate divisions. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/b/JerryCampbell.htm

Carr, Reg. Towards the hybrid library: the national perspective in the UK. Presentation to the MALIBU Conference, King's College London, 26 March 2001. http://www.bodley.ox.ac.uk/librarian/malibu2001/malibu2001.htm

Chu, Heting. Electronic journals in American academic libraries: A view from within. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/c/Heting_Chu.htm

Corrall, Sheila. Academic libraries in the information society. New Library World, 96(1120), 35-42. 1995. http://hibberson.com/weblog/acad.libs.pdf

Covey, Denise Troll. Usage and Usability Assessment: Library Practices and Concerns. Washington, DC: Digital Library Federation, January 2002. http://www.clir.org/pubs/reports/pub105/contents.html

Crawford, Walt. Being analog : creating tomorrow's libraries. Chicago: American Library Association, 1999.

Crawford, Walt, and Michael Gorman, Future Libraries: Dreams, Madness, & Reality. Chicago: ALA, 1995.

Crawford, Walt. Paper Persists: Why Physical Library Collections Still Matter. Online Magazine. January 1998. http://www.onlinemag.net/OL1998/crawford1.html

Creating University Library Services for the 21st Century. University of Canberra, Australia. November 16, 1999. http://www.canberra.edu.au/cts/isdocs/culs.html

Creth, Sheila D. The electronic library: Slouching toward the future orcreating a new information environment. Paper presented at Follett Lecture Series, Ulster, September 25, 1996. http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/services/papers/follett/creth/paper.html

Criddle, Sally, et al, ed. Networking and the Future of Libraries: An International Conference Held at the University of Bath, June 29 - July 1, 1998. London: Library Association Publishers, 1999.

Cullen, Rowena. Training and technology: Meeting training needs for reference work in the age of the digital library. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/f/RowenaCullen.htm

Davidson, Cathy N. Teaching the promise: The research university in the information age. A “digital perspective background paper” in: A Digital gift to the nation: Fulfilling the promise of the digital and Internet age. New York: Century Foundation, 2001. http://www.digitalpromise.org/report/backgroundpapers/4_Davidson.pdf

de los Reyes, Eileen. Becoming Pockets of Hope: The Challenge to Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Paper presented at the 10th National ACRL Conference, Denver, March 15-18, 2001. http://www.ala.org/acrl/papers01/reyes.pdf

Dempsey, Lorcan. The network and the library: Working in a new shared space: Infrastructure and I\institutions. Electronic Library, 17(4), 207-211, August 1999. Prepublication draft at: http://homes.ukoln.ac.uk/%7Elisld/publications/electlib.html

Dougherty, Richard M. Planning for new library futures. Library Journal, 127(9), 38-41. May 15, 2002. http://libraryjournal.reviewsnews.com/index.asp?layout=article&articleid=CA216311

Dowler, Lawrence. Gateways to knowledge: the role of academic libraries in teaching, learning, and research. Cambridge, MA : MIT Press, 1997.

Duguid, Paul. Material matters: Aspects of the past and futurology of the book. (Excerpt from: The future of the book, edited by Geoffrey Nunberg. Berkeley : University of California Press, 1996.) http://www.parc.xerox.com/ops/members/brown/papers/mm.html

Dutton, William H. Re-Imagining our libraries for the digital age. Faculty Forum (the Newsletter of the USC Academic Senate), 2(2). 2000/2001. http://www.usc.edu/academe/acsen/info_for_faculty/newsletter/0001v2n2/0001vol2num2article01.shtml

Eisenberg, Michael, et al. Re-Envisioning the Library: The Intellectual Commons of the University. December 7, 2001. http://www.washington.edu/change/library/appb.pdf

eLib Project Summary. Joint Information Systems Committee. http://www.jisc.ac.uk/elib/projects.html

Evans, Richard. New technologies and future libraries. School of Library and Information Studies, University of Alabama. No date. http://www.slis.ua.edu/~revans3/Bookmarks/Digital/DigitalIntroduction.html

Feret, Blazej, and Marzena Marcinek. The future of the academic library and the academic librarian: A Delphi study. Paper presented at The Future of Libraries in Human Communication, 20th IATUL Conference. Chania, Greece. May 17-21, 1999. http://educate.lib.chalmers.se/IATUL/proceedcontents/chanpap/feret.html

Ferguson, Anthony W. Back talk - print libraries in the digital future. Against the Grain, 12(2), 86. April 2000. http://www.against-the-grain.com/backtalk12_2.html

Ferguson, Anthony W. Digital cooperative collection building in New York: Ideals, reality, and challenges. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/c/AnthonyFerguson.htm

Frazier, Ken. Transcript of remarks presented during a panel discussion on the future of academic research libraries at Alternative Models of Scholarly Publishing in Higher Education, Berkeley, November 6, 1998. http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/LAUC/Conference/Frazier.html

French, Beverlee. Transcript of remarks presented during a panel discussion on the future of academic research libraries at Alternative Models of Scholarly Publishing in Higher Education, Berkeley, November 6, 1998. http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/LAUC/Conference/French.html

Friend, Frederick J. New mission? Or old mission with a new face? Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/a/FredFriend.htm

Gates, Dominic. The Library of Babel: The Dream of cyberspace as a universal library. PreText Magazine. October 1997. http://www.pretext.com/oct97/features/story1.htm

Gordon, Heather. Creating information structures that work for the new millennium. Paper presented at Virtual Libraries: Virtual Communities, 21st IATUL Conference. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. July 3-7, 2000. http://www.iatul.org/conference/qutpap/gordon_full.html

Graham, Barbara S. The digital research library: A practical perspective. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/d/Barbara_Graham.htm

Graubard, Stephen Richards and LeClerc, Paul. Books, bricks and bytes: libraries in the twenty-first century. New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction, 1998.

Gristock, Jennifer J., and Robin Mansell. Distributed Library Futures: IT Applications for 2000 and Beyond. A report prepared for the Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex. November 14, 1997. http://educate.lib.chalmers.se/IATUL/Pretoria/mansell.htm

Groen, Frances K. The change in the university library: Towards the 21st century. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/a/Frances_Groen.htm

Haak, John R. Acting locally, serving globally: Generating support for research libraries into the next millennium. . Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/a/John_Haak.htm

Hampson, Andrew. Information staff roles in the hybrid library. Impact: journal of the Career Development Group, 1(8), 129-132. September 1998. http://builder.bham.ac.uk/publications/html/impact980108.asp

Harris, Michael H., Stan A. Hannah, and Pamela C. Harris. Into the future: the foundation of library and information services in the post-industrial era. Greenwich, CT : Ablex Publishing Corporation, 1998.

Howell, Alan. Perfect one day – digital the next: challenges in preserving digital information. (Undated). http://members.ozemail.com.au/~aghowell/papers/aarlweb.htm

Howell, Alan. Preserving library futures. Draft Internet version, based on several papers presented by the author at various Australian conferences. April 28, 2000. http://members.ozemail.com.au/~aghowell/papers/ht.htm

The Hybrid Library of the Future. Final Report. HyLiFe Project. December 2000. http://hylife.unn.ac.uk/Hylife_Final_Report.pdf

Janes, Joseph. What is reference for? RUSA Forum on the Future of Reference Services. 2002. http://www.ala.org/rusa/forums/janes_forum.html

Jefcoat, Graham. The digital library: Issues and priorities. Transcript of a paper presented at Beyond the Library, Humanities Computing Unit, Oxford University, April 1998. http://www.hcu.ox.ac.uk/beyond/library/first.html

Jones, Robert Alun. What Humanities Faculty Want from the Library of the Future: A Visit with the Advanced Information Technologies Group. Videotaped presentation. December 11, 1996. http://gateway.library.uiuc.edu/colloquium/jones.html

Kaufman, Paula T. What Keeps Me Up At Night: The Future of Academic Librarianship. Videotaped presentation. April 26, 2000. http://gateway.library.uiuc.edu/colloquium/kaufman.htm

Kennedy, Margaret. Brave new world, or the end of libraries as we know them? Paper presented at the 13th National Cataloguing Conference, Brisbane, Queensland, October 13-15, 1999. http://www.nla.gov.au/nla/staffpaper/mkennedy1.html

King, Helen M. Academic library buildings for the next century: Insights from the United States. LASIE, 29(1), 21-31. March 1998. http://www.slnsw.gov.au/lasie/mar98/mar1998.pdf (link is to entire March 1998 issue).

King, Helen M. The academic library in the 21st century: What need for a physical place? Paper presented at Virtual Libraries: Virtual Communities, 21st IATUL Conference. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. July 3-7, 2000. http://educate.lib.chalmers.se/iatul/proceedcontents/qutpap/king_full.html

Kirk, Joyce. Navigating the information society. Paper presented at Virtual Libraries: Virtual Communities, 21st IATUL Conference. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. July 3-7, 2000. http://www.iatul.org/conference/qutpap/kirk_full.html

Kurzweil, Raymond: The future of libraries. Part 1: The technology of the book. Library Journal, Jan. 1992, p. 80–82. http://www.kurzweiltech.com/l192.htm

Kurzweil, Raymond: The future of libraries. Part 2: The end of books. Library Journal, Feb. 15 1992, p. 140–141. http://www.kurzweiltech.com/l292.htm

Kurzweil, Raymond: The future of libraries. Part 3: The virtual library. Library Journal, Mar. 15 1992, p. 63–64. http://www.kurzweiltech.com/l392.htm

LaGuardia, Cheryl and Barbara A. Mitchell. Finding common ground: creating the library of the future without diminishing the library of the past. New York : Neal-Schuman Publishers, 1998.

Lancaster, F. W., ed. Libraries and the future: essays on the library in the twenty-first century. New York: Haworth Press, 1993.

Lang, Gerald E., and Ruth M. Jackson. Re-engineering the Libraries: The Future of Information Access at West Virginia University. April 1997. http://www.libraries.wvu.edu/history/future.htm

Lankes, R. David, John W. Collins III, and Abby S. Kasowitz, eds. Digital Reference Service in the New Millennium: Planning, Management, and Evaluation. The New Library Series Number 6. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 2000.

Lesk, Michael. Practical digital libraries: books, bytes, and bucks. San Francisco, Calif: Morgan Kaufmann Publishers, 1997.

Levy, David M. Scrolling forward: Making sense of documents in the digital age. New York: Arcade Publishing, 2001.

Lew, Angela. Guarding against some not-so-virtuous side-effects of the virtual library. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/d/AngelaLew.htm

The Library of the Future at Virginia Commonwealth University. August 28, 1998. http://www.library.vcu.edu/admin/future.html

Library Futures Forum: towards the 21st Century. Summary of proceedings and papers. James Cook University of North Queensland, February 16, 1996. http://www.library.jcu.edu.au/General_Info/futures.html

Library Futures Institute. June 26 & 27, 2002 WPI Campus Center - Worcester, Mass. http://www.wpi.edu/News/Conf/LFI/

Library Futures Quarterly. An Introduction to the Library Foresight System. http://www.libraryfutures.com/lfs.htm

Licklider, J. C. R. Libraries of the future. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1965.

Lipow, Anne G. Point-of-need reference service: No longer an afterthought. RUSA Forum on the Future of Reference Services. 2002. http://www.ala.org/rusa/forums/lipow_forum.html

Lombardi, John V. Academic Libraries in a Digital Age. D-Lib Magazine, 6(10). October 2000. http://www.dlib.org/dlib/october00/lombardi/10lombardi.html

Lynch, Beverly P. Standards and evaluation of research libraries. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/b/BeverlyLynch.htm

Lynch, Clifford. The battle to define the future of the book in the digital world. First Monday, 6(6). June 2001 .http://www.firstmonday.dk/issues/issue6_6/lynch/

Lynch, Clifford. From automation to transformation: Forty years of library and information technology in higher education. Educause Review, Vol. 35, 60-68. January/February 2000. http://www.educause.edu/pub/er/erm00/pp060068.pdf

Lynch, Clifford. Information technology and evolving library futures. Transcribed Remarks of Clifford Lynch Presentation to OCLC Users Council, October 5, 1998.
http://www.oclc.org/oclc/uc/oct98/lynch.htm

Lynch, Clifford. The new context for bibliographic control in the new millennium. Paper presented at the Bicentennial Conference on Bibliographic Control for the New Millennium, Library of Congress, Washington, DC. November 16, 2000. http://lcweb.loc.gov/catdir/bibcontrol/lynch_paper.html

Makulowich, John. A peek at the library of the future. USA Today. November 28, 2000. http://www.usatoday.com/life/cyber/ccarch/ccmak009.htm

Managing the Hybrid Library: Organisation and Management, Staff Development, Legal and Business Issues. Reports from Kings College London. http://www.kcl.ac.uk/humanities/cch/malibu/reports/managing.htm

Marion, Linda. Digital librarian, cybrarian, or librarian with specialized skills: Who will staff digital libraries? Paper presented at the 10th National ACRL Conference, Denver, March 15-18, 2001. http://www.ala.org/acrl/papers01/marion.pdf

Martell, Charles. The disembodied librarian in the digital age. College & Research Libraries, 61(1), 10-28. January 2000.

Martell, Charles. The disembodied librarian in the digital age, Part II. College & Research Libraries, 61(2), 99-119. March 2000.

Martin, Rebecca R. The library as a partner in creating a dynamic learning opportunity. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/e/RebaccaMartin.htm

Martin, Susan K. Forty years, and we’re still here. Portal: Libraries and the Academy, 1(2), v-viii. April 2001. http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/portal_libraries_and_the_academy/v001/1.2martin.html

McDonald, Andrew. The virtual impossibility of planning libraries for the information age. Transcript of a paper presented at Beyond the Library, Humanities Computing Unit, Oxford University, April 1998. http://www.hcu.ox.ac.uk/beyond/library/vision.html

Miller, Rush G. Building global partnerships in the 21st century: Envisioning the global virtual library. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/presentation/globe2.htm

Mitchell, W. Bede. Reflections on the Evolution of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Georgia Southern University. http://www2.gasou.edu/library/cio/ciospch.html

Morgan, Eric Lease. Marketing future libraries. (Pre-edited version of “Marketing library services." Computers in Libraries 18(8):50-51, September 1998). http://www.infomotions.com/musings/marketing/

Neal, James G. Does the virtual campus demand a virtual library? Paper presented at Virtual Libraries: Virtual Communities, 21st IATUL Conference. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. July 3-7, 2000. http://www.iatul.org/conference/qutpap/neal_full.html

Novak, Jan. Virtual libraries: Service realities. Paper presented at Virtual Libraries: Virtual Communities, 21st IATUL Conference. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. July 3-7, 2000. http://www.iatul.org/conference/qutpap/novak_full.html

Nunberg, Geoffrey. Farewell to the information age. (Excerpt from: The future of the book, edited by Geoffrey Nunberg. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996.) http://www.parc.xerox.com/istl/members/nunberg/Farewell.html

Nunberg, Geoffrey. Will Libraries Survive? The American Prospect, 9(41). November/December 1998. http://www.prospect.org/print/V9/41/nunberg-g.html

O’Donnell, James. Avatars of the word: From papyrus to cyberspace. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1998.

O’Donnell, James. The pragmatics of the new: Trithemius, McLuhan, Cassiodorus. . (Excerpt from: The future of the book, edited by Geoffrey Nunberg. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996.) http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/jod/sanmarino.html

OECD Experts’ Meeting on Libraries and Resource Centres for Tertiary Education. Programme on Educational Building and the Programme for Institutional Management in Higher Education Paris, March 9-10, 1998. http://www1.oecd.org/els/pdfs/EDSPEBDOCA016.pdf

Oppenheim, Charles. Libraries in the new millennium. Impact: Journal of the Career Development Group, 3(6). June 2000. http://www.careerdevelopmentgroup.org.uk/impact/0600/coppenheim.htm

Pearce, Judith, Warwick Cathro, and Tony Boston. The Challenge of Integrated Access: The Hybrid Library System of the Future. A paper presented at VALA 2000 - 10th VALA Biennial Conference and Exhibition, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. February 16 – 18, 2000. http://www.nla.gov.au/nla/staffpaper/jpearce1.html

Pinfield, Stephen. The Hybrid Librarian: the impact of the hybrid library on library and information services staff. Impact: journal of the Career Development Group, October 1999, 2(9), 141-142. October 1999. http://builder.bham.ac.uk/publications/html/impact990209.asp

Pinfield, Stephen. The hybrid library: A view from the UK. Paper presented at Bucher, Bytes, and Bibliotheken, 4. InetBib-Tagung. March 3-6, 1999. http://eldorado.uni-dortmund.de:8080/bib/1999/inetbib99/Volltexte/13pinfie.pdf

Pinfield, Stephen, et al. Realizing the Hybrid Library. D-Lib Magazine. October 1998. http://www.dlib.org/dlib/october98/10pinfield.html

Pitschmann, Lois A. Building sustainable collections of free third-party Web resources. Paper presented at Digital Libraries Federation Spring 2001 Forum. http://www.diglib.org/forums/spr2001/gwayforum.htm

Ray, Kathlin L. The postmodern library in an age of assessment. Paper presented at the 10th National ACRL Conference, Denver, March 15-18, 2001. http://www.ala.org/acrl/papers01/kray.pdf

Ray, Michael S. Shifting sands–The jurisdiction of librarians in scholarly communication
Michael S. Ray. Paper presented at the 10th National ACRL Conference, Denver, March 15-18, 2001. http://www.ala.org/acrl/papers01/mray.pdf

Rettig, James. Technology, cluelessness, anthropology, and the memex: The future of academic reference service. RUSA Forum on the Future of Reference Services. 2002. http://www.ala.org/rusa/forums/rettig_forum.html

Riggs, Donald E. Library services for distance education. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/e/DonaldRiggs.htm

Rusbridge, Chris. Towards the Hybrid Library. D-Lib Magazine. July/August 1998. http://www.dlib.org/dlib/july98/rusbridge/07rusbridge.html

Rusbridge, Chris, and Bruce Royan. Towards the hybrid library: developments in UK higher education. Paper presented at 66th IFLA Council and General Conference, Jerusalem, August 13-18, 2000. http://ifla.inist.fr/IV/ifla66/papers/001-142e.htm

Sanville, Tom. Transcript of remarks presented during a panel discussion on the future of academic research libraries at Alternative Models of Scholarly Publishing in Higher Education, Berkeley, November 6, 1998. http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/LAUC/Conference/Sanville.html

Savenije, Bas. The future of the library: The crucial importance of accessibility. Universiteitsbibliotheek Utrecht. July 5, 2000. http://www.library.uu.nl/staff/savenije/publicaties/florence.htm

Scepanski, Jordan M. Collaborating on new missions: Library consortia and the future of academic libraries. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/c/JordanScepanski.htm

Schor, Hilary. Reflections on the future of the library. Faculty Forum (the Newsletter of the USC Academic Senate), 2(2). 2000/2001. http://www.usc.edu/academe/acsen/info_for_faculty/newsletter/0001v2n2/0001vol2num2article09.shtml

Seal, Robert A. Erasing boundaries: Global resource sharing in the 21st century. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/c/RobertSeal.htm

Seay, Jerry. The Challenge of Quality in an Academic Library: Synergy in the information future. Paper presented to the Swedish Quality Institute in Gothenburg, Sweden on November 19, 1997. http://www.cofc.edu/~seay/sweden/paper.html

Shao, Hsi Ping. Embracing the technological future: Issues and challenges facing academic libraries. . Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/d/HsiPingShao.htm

Shepherd, Murray. Strategies for working with library staff members in embracing change caused by library automation. Paper presented at Virtual Libraries: Virtual Communities, 21st IATUL Conference. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. July 3-7, 2000. http://www.iatul.org/conference/qutpap/shepherd_full.html

Shipp, John. What will Australian university libraries collect this century? Paper presented at the National Scholarly Communications Forum (NSCF) forum held 26-27 July 2000 in Sydney -- Scholarship in peril: publication and the Australian research environment. http://www.anu.edu.au/caul/nscf/shippJul00.htm

Simpson, William. What kind of future? Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/a/William_Simpson.htm

Sloan, Bernie. Electronic Reference Services: Some Suggested Guidelines. Reference & User Services Quarterly 38:77-81 (Summer 1998). http://www.lis.uiuc.edu/~b-sloan/guide.html

Sloan, Bernie. Service Perspectives for the Digital Library: Remote Reference Services. Library Trends 47:117-143 (Summer 1998). Prepublication version: http://www.lis.uiuc.edu/~b-sloan/e-ref.html

Soong, Samson C. Revitalizing academic libraries for the 21st century. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/a/SamsonSoong.htm

Stallings, Dees. The virtual university: legitimized at century's end: future uncertain for the new millenium. Journal of Academic Librarianship, 26(1), 3-14. January 2000.

Stam, Deirdre. Responding to the changing relationship of library and classroom in American academic institutions: The Drew University library team approach to management. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/b/DeirdreSTAM.htm

Steele, Colin, and Mechthild Guha. Staffing the digital library of the 21st century. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/f/SteeleGuha.htm

Stoffle, Carla. Barbara Allen, Janet Fore, and Emily R. Mobley. Predicting the Future: What does academic librarianship hold in store? College and Research Libraries News, 61(10), 894-901, November 2000.

Taylor, Merrily E. Special collections in the 21st century. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/c/MerrilyTaylor.htm

Tennant, Roy. Building agile organizations. Library Journal (Digital Libraries column), April 15, 2001. http://libraryjournal.reviewsnews.com/index.asp?layout=article&articleid=CA71785&display=Digital+LibrariesNewsMore&industry=Digital+Libraries&verticalid=151&starting=9

Tennant, Roy. Digital Library Futures: New Roles for Libraries. Paper presented at the OCLC User’s Council Meeting, May 16, 1999. http://www2.oclc.org/oclc/pdf/tennant.pdf

Todd, Ross. Information literacy in electronic environments: fantasies, facts, and futures. Paper presented at Virtual Libraries: Virtual Communities, 21st IATUL Conference. Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. July 3-7, 2000. http://www.iatul.org/conference/qutpap/todd_full.html

Transforming the Academic Library: An Interview with Dr. James R. Martin, University Librarian. Library Focus (U of Southern Mississippi), 1(2). Spring 1996. http://www.lib.usm.edu/libraryfocus/spring96/spring961.html

Tyckoson, David. On the desirableness of personal relations between librarians and readers: The past and future of reference service. RUSA Forum on the Future of Reference Services. 2002. http://www.ala.org/rusa/forums/tyckoson_forum.html

Van Bentum, Maarten, and Johanneke Braaksma. The future of academic libraries and changing user needs: General concepts and concrete developments. Paper presented at The Future of Libraries in Human Communication, 20th IATUL Conference. Chania, Greece. May 17-21, 1999. http://www.iatul.org/conference/chanpap/vbentum.html

Wainwright, Eric John. The big picture: reflections on the future of libraries and librarians. Australian Academic and Research Libraries, 27, 1-14. March 1996.

Webb, Colin. The role of preservation and the library of the future. Paper presented at CONSAL 2000, the 11th Congress of Southeast Asian Librarians Conference, Singapore, April 26-28, 2000. http://www.nla.gov.au/nla/staffpaper/cwebb9.html

Webb, Terry D. Publishing on the cusp: Enlarging the mission of 21st century academic libraries. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/a/TerryWebb.htm

Whitlatch, Jo Bell. Reference futures: Outsourcing, the Web, or knowledge counseling. . RUSA Forum on the Future of Reference Services. 2002. http://www.ala.org/rusa/forums/whitlatch_forum.html

Wilson, Lizabeth. The future ain't what it used to be. Library Directions/ A Newsletter of theUniversity of Washington Libraries. 11(2), 1-2. Winter 2001. http://www.lib.washington.edu/about/libdirections/ldwin01-web.pdf

Young, Peter R. Balancing postmodern academic libraries. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/a/PeterYoung.htm

Zhang, Sha Li. Collection management in small and medium sized university libraries in the 21st century. Paper presented at the International Conference on New Missions of Academic Libraries in the 21st Century. Beijing, China, October 25-28, 1998. http://www.lib.pku.edu.cn/98conf/paper/b/ShaLiZhang.htm

Supervisors are the craziest people

You have been reading that I have been having a few problems with my onsite supervisor at my library.

It being a Special library makes the dynamics a bit different than if I were in a public or academic library, both of which I have had experienced working in.

There are only 2 of us here at this library.

Over the past week, my supervisor’s instructions have been well thought out, specific, concise and communicated in an effective manor.

I am impressed!

It only took 8 months to get this from her.

Its Been A Week....

It’s been a week since I proposed some ideas as to increase circulation and usage in my library and still now word from my supervisor. Not even an acknowledgement of receipt of the proposal, despite two email. Since we no longer have meetings, there is not way that I could bring it up in that forum.

The good news is (via pressure from my EEO and Diversity Steering Committee) I was given permission to give an African American History presentation at the end of this month. Of course, I was notified from the steering committee and not my supervisor.

i will let you know how it goes.

I Can't Give Up That Easily

I know, I know...

Going from the last post, you would think that I was about to go postal in my library.

Well...I love my library and my work too much to give up that easily.

Last Friday, I proposed 4 different ways to increase circulation and library use and asked permission to begin immediately implementing it. As of the end of the day today, I have yet to hear anything from my supervisor supporting/recognizing receipt/or acknowledgement of the ideas. It’s like pulling teeth, trying to get things done.

Maybe its my ideas. Maybe they are not conducive of my library's mission. I know that my ideas are more suitable for a public library; I still think that they will draw people into the library and maybe increase circulation. Here are my ideas.

1. Send an email out to the building announcing new items bought by the library.
2. Have an African American History Month program in the Library towards the end of February, inviting the entire building.
3. Have a quarterly book discussion meet in the Library.

What do you think? Are these ideas bad?

What A Difference A Day Makes

After my discussion about my annual evaluation, I have decided that the type of special library which the Library Elf is currently working strives to constrict free thought and strives off of here-say and gossip. These are detrimental to the Library Elf’s mental well being and coherent state of mind.

Coming to this conclusion, the Library Elf has decided to make a strategic exit from this employer.

No…I did not hold my hands up and declare this from on high, but I will be actively looking for a freer thinking working environment.

The straw that broke the proverbial camel’s back as when, during the review, I was told that I play on the internet too much and that internet use should only be conducted on break time.

I have no problem with this policy. I, in fact, have proposed it on my subordinates when I was a supervisor, but only when internet usage hindered their job performance. For instance, I did not allow the shelvers who I supervised to use the internet, due to the high volume of book that needed to be shelved. Conversely, when I supervised students working at a university library’s Information Desk to surf the web while waiting to help a patron.

I work at a special library where little to no direction is given and during a span of 8 hours, I may see 1 maybe two people. Not browsing the internet on down time (which is 90% of the time) could actually cause me to go insane.

No do not get me wrong, I am not spending hours surfing the web. Usually, I take a few minutes to look at our city’s news paper online, or another few minutes to catch up on my blog reading. All other times, internet use had always been on my break times. In addition to this, my onsite supervisor spends several hours a day either on the phone with her family or gossiping with others in the building about the creepy security guard that keeps hitting on her. Where is the justice in that?

Hopefully soon you will be hearing form a happy Library Elf who enjoys his job, but until that day comes, be prepared to hear a lot of complaining.

Has the Supervisor Turned Over A New Leaf?

The sun is shinning and all is bright in the land of this Library Elf.

My on site supervisor has even turned a new corner and barked something at me that was not a command.

Could it be that I am having a meeting with our off-site supervisor in the morning to discuss the “minimally successful” end of year evaluation rating given to me?

Only time will tell.

Assitance/Advice Needed

On New Year's Eve, about an hour before I was schedule to leave work, my on site supervisor handed me a box of microfiche with several hundred dissertations and asked me to find the WorldCat records for each one, stating that if there were more than one, that each one needed to be printed out, eventually sending the OCLC numbers and fiche numbers to be cataloged.

This was not a problem at all, since I am a library technician and it is my job to do so. The first problem is, the company that I work for does not have access to WorldCat records. Once I found a way around that, I get to work.

I opted not to start printing out each individually right away since my on site supervisor was using the copier the copier that we share. Instead, I began searching for each dissertation record in WorldCat and recording the OCLC numbers and fiche numbers in an Access database, knowing that the malleability of Access would be conducive of making a list when we need them.

20 minutes into the project (mind you, supervisor is still using the copier, and there is only about 40mins left in the work day), my supervisor instructs me to start printing out the records immediately.

Just before I leave work that afternoon, I had her 25 WorldCat records and leave.

This is what transpired:

To Library Elf from Supervisor:

On Monday December 31st, for the first time in months, I gave you a special project. I gave you a box of microfiche with dissertations on each. I told you to look up the record in WorldCat. I told you to print out the WorldCat record. If there was more than one record for a title, I told you to print those out too.

You completely ignored my instructions. You did not print out the records, but instead listed the information in an Access database.

After being told again, you printed out one record for each title. I just checked the first print-out. You printed out only one record for this title, although there are four records in WorldCat. Two records are listed as microform format. Two records are not. You printed out one of the records that is not in microform format. This means that someone looking in our online catalog would assume that this dissertation is in print format and not on microfiche.

I expect that you will be able to follow oral instructions. From now on, any instruction I give to you will be in writing.

I expect that you would understand the concept and the elements contained in a cataloging record, and the importance of precise detail.
I expect that I will not have to check every detail of every project to which you are assigned.
Please provide me with a written document with your comments on the above, and actions you plan to take to improve your performance. Include in this document the most important characteristics you feel are necessary for an employee to succeed in the position of Library Technician.

To Supervisor From Library Elf:

I first want to apologize for the mix up.

I had no intention of "ignoring" your instructions to print out the WorldCat records. I did feel that it was in the best interest of my job performance to have an electronic file, which is easily manageable, IN ADDITION TO a paper copy of each record which you requested. Also, since we were both using the same printer at the time, I did not want to tie up the printer and was waiting for a more opportune time to print out the first 25 records which I found.

In regards to the specific WorldCat record that you mentioned, I entered the WorldCat Database via the website of my county's library and searched this record by its author. I again searched this record by its complete title. In both cases, only one record appeared which the one that I printed.

I did notice that search done by you was conducted via a different public library's WorldCat database, so the difference record matches may lie in that aspect, but I could be wrong.

Actions I Plan to Take To Improve My Performance
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to express some of ways in which I would like to improve my performance. There are as followed:

1-Take steps to insure that all instructions are understood by me and that all aspects which are not clear are questioned, making it clear not to question effectiveness of the specific directive, but to gain a better understanding of it.

2-Explain, in more detail, steps that I will take to complete the directive so that compliance with the directive is understood by my supervisor. Since out company has no way of searching WorldCat records, I should have mentioned that I would be using my public library's database so there may be some discrepancy in the records. In addition to this, I should have mentioned that I would be using my training in Microsoft Access to make a list of this records so that they could be easily managed at a later time (if need be).

Important Characteristics for Success as a Library Technician
The following are listed in order of importance, "1" being the most important.

1-Communication.
The best and most effective way to solve a problem is by communication, and identifying areas where problems/solutions may arise.

2-Attention to Detail
Being an employee of a library for the greater part of the past 11 years, I value the importance of attention to detail. When instructions are not clear or problems/solutions are not properly identified, perception of directive details are more difficult to decipher.

3-Compliance with Supervisor's Directives
When there are too many people directing the course of action, that actual course of action may be difficult complete. So listening to the directive of the supervisor is paramount.

Thanks again for this open dialogue and I hope that this will foster a better working relationship.

Now, I know that was a lot to digest, I would love to hear different ways that either myself or my supervisor could have handled this situation. Thanks in advance.

Censorship: Yea of Nay

Public libraries have faced many types of issues concerning censorship since early in its history. With the rise in popularity in electronic technology, the most recent target of censorship has been the internet, moving past the age old medium of printed material.

The internet has grown in popularity from a private government program that connected elite scholars and scientist in the wake of nuclear attack to a very public medium where one is able to obtain information if any kind. Since one of the purpose of a public library is to grant free access of information to it’s patrons, it was inevitable that public libraries would move to bring the internet into their buildings so that their patrons would have access. With the internet each person can choose the type of information that they would like to access without having the “hand of the library” to choose for them.

Many think that the instant access to the insurmountable amount of information that is stored on the internet may not be used solely for intellectual purposes. Many think that access to certain parts of the internet should not be accessible to the general public.

By reviewing the following:
1. How the Government Tried to Censor the Internet
2. Arguments for Censorship of the Internet
3. Arguments against Censorship of the Internet
it will be shown that a broad censorship ruling by the government is not necessary and is detrimental to free speech and free access to information.

How the Government Tried to Censor the Internet

The government has attempted to control access to material that is deemed “not suitable for public viewing”. One of the governments first attempts to do this was with the Communications Decency Act of 1996. Many parts of this act was deemed unconstitutional so the act failed. Two years later, Congress tried another attempt to censor the internet with the Child Online Protection Act of 1998 (Fourie & Dowell p.216) This act posed a narrower view of censorship of the internet:

“Child Online Protection Act makes it a crime for anyone, by means of the World Wide Web, to make any communication for commercial purposes that is harmful to minors…”(Center for Democracy and Technology. Available: http://www.cdt.org/speech/cda/ (Accessed August 4, 2000))

Arguments For Censorship of the Internet

The main reason why so many have campaigned for the censorship of the internet in public libraries is to protect the interest of children. With the internet having such a broad range of information, which includes pornography along with many educational materials, many have wanted to restrict children’s access to some of those websites that many have deemed inappropriate. Gary Glenn, president of the Michigan branch of the American Family Association (AFA) made a valiant push for censorship of the internet of the public library in Holland, Michigan. Glenn argued;

“Libraries need filters because children may accidentally stumble across pornography on the internet and become permanently scarred by it.”(Church & State April, 2000, p.18)

This same sentiment has been voiced by concerned parents, wanting to make sure that their children did not have full access to the “unacceptable” websites on the internet. Linda McCulloch of Colorado Springs, Colorado dislikes letting her fourteen year old son visit the local public library in fear that her son will become susceptible to the whims of the internet. McCulloch stated that;

“We need some kind of filtering system. The internet has things that are holy and it has things that are horrific.”(Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service August 4, 1999, p.8)

Arguments Against the Censorship of the Internet

As said before, the claim protecting children has been the basis of most of the arguments for censorship of the internet. Many opponents of the censorship of the internet say that these claims are overblown and exaggerated. In a viewpoint submitted to the National Commission on Library and Information Science on December 14, 1998, it clearly stated that there was not a distinct connection with public library internet access and the “predation by pedophiles”.(Libraries Should Not Filter Internet Pornography, p.1)

Many opponents of the censorship of the internet continue to say that current internet restrictions may hinder the legitimate use of the internet and does it discriminatory way.

Current internet filters filter websites on the basis of certain words so that those looking for information on breast cancer, for instance, would be denied access to that information. In the court case Mainstream Loudoun vs. Loudoun County Library Board, the Mainstream Loudoun opinion (written by a judge who was a former librarian), wrote that the current filters on their libraries computers were unconstitutional. This opinion also stated that there was little or no evidence that unfiltered internet access was harmful.

“The only evidence to which defendant can point in support of it’s argument that the Policy is necessary consists of a record of a single complaint arising from internet use in another Virginia library and reports of isolated incidents in three other libraries across the county.”(Free Speech, p.2)

In taking in both sides of the argument of internet censorship, one could come to the conclusion that although there is evidence to suggest that children should not be privy to some material that is contained on the internet, there is not enough evidence to create a federal mandate that would require all public libraries to introduce filters in their libraries. To deal with this conflict, public libraries should be free to determine the amount censorship in their own libraries. The amount of censorship should be consistent with the values of the community that they serve, much like the way that it chooses the books, magazines, and newspapers that it places on it’s shelves.


References
(April 2000). Michigan Town Rejects Censorship Plan For Public Library. Church & State. p.18
Barbour, S. (2000) Free Speech Retrieved 11/19/03 Gale Viewpoints Resource Center: http://www.galenet.galegroup.com/
Fourie, D. & Dowell, D. (2002) Libraries in the Information Age. Colorado: Libraries Unlimited.
Sampson, O. (1999). Censoring the Internet; a technological twist on an age old debate. Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service. p. K6731