This paper presents a qualitative analysis of nine interviews with academic library practitioners discussing their approaches to Web content strategy work. Findings reveal shared challenges and suggest that, while awareness of content strategy appears to be growing, its practice remains intermittent for many. An updated version of a wModel for…

Reference librarians are constantly balancing their reference duties against other duties, for example, collection development and departmental liaison. The author works as a reference librarian at Texas A&M University-Commerce Libraries in Commerce, Texas. The university has approximately 11,000 students, a large number of whom are…

A mission-critical system is one that is so intertwined with the operation of an organization that the organization can scarcely function without it. Just as in corporations, mission-critical library systems offer the capability to unlock talent and time. They are essential to the transformation of higher education and the learning environment. A…

This article presents the story of how Pepperdine University migrated its library management functions to the cloud using what is now known as OCLC's WorldShare Management Services (WMS). The story of implementing this new service is told from two vantage points: (1) that of the library; and (2) that of the service provider. The authors were the…

A small, private academic library took the risk of moving from a traditional integrated library system to adopting a system "in the cloud." This case study presents the setting, history, and local needs of the library, including staffing challenges, and explains the decision-making rationale and process. A description of the library's transition…

Drupal is a PHP-and MySQL-based system for managing web sites, developed in 2000 and released in 2001 under the open GNU General Public License (GPL). It is modular, extensible, and scalable. In recent years, Drupal has gained a huge following within libraries as a content management system (CMS). Probably the best-known extension of Drupal in the…

One of the toughest challenges in an academic library systems office is how to manage and present the extensive selection of electronic resources from a variety of vendors. At York College of Pennsylvania, the authors participated in an admissions-driven web revision cycle and used a campus-provided CMS for 8 years. During this time, they tried…

Purpose: The aim of this paper is to develop a system for automatic extraction of metadata from scientific papers in PDF format for the information system for monitoring the scientific research activity of the University of Novi Sad (CRIS UNS). Design/methodology/approach: The system is based on machine learning and performs automatic extraction…

This article discusses the processes that occurred when the Library, Controller's Office, and Information Technology Department agreed to create an interface between the Library's Innovative Interfaces patron database and campus administrative software, Banner, using file transfer protocol, in an effort to streamline the Library's accounts…

Web 2.0 challenges libraries to change from their predominantly centralised service models with integrated library management systems at the hub. Implementation of Web 2.0 technologies and the accompanying attitudinal shifts will demand reconceptualisation of the nature of library and information service around a dynamic, ever changing, networked,…

Designed to assist with the management of e-resources, electronic resource management (ERM) systems are time- and fund-consuming to purchase and maintain. Questions of system compatibility, data population, and workflow design/redesign can be difficult to answer; sometimes those answers are not what we'd prefer to hear. The two primary functions…

Declining reference statistics, diminishing human resources, and the desire to be more proactive and embedded in academic departments, prompted the University of South Florida Library to create a taskforce for re-envisioning reference services. The taskforce was charged with examining the staffing patterns at the desk and developing…

Jacksonville State University's (JSU) Houston Cole (HCL) Library has always provided access to required course readings through a reserve circulation system. Prior to 2002, this services was "print based," requiring students to photocopy materials held physically at the reserve desk in the library. In 2002, the library integrated the…

The need to develop new OPACs that meet the needs of users better is becoming well acknowledged. How libraries can transform their OPACs to modern web friendly formats is not yet clear. This paper describes the State Library of Tasmania's experience in developing a new OPAC by exporting bibliographic data to a software package outside the ILMS.…