Outreach programs remain essential in fostering the use of library collections and services. A review of one hundred seventy-four papers on academic library outreach from 2008 to January 2019 highlighted the popularity of these programs during this period as well as the identification of five themes. These themes point to the importance of library…

Although the term lacks a standard definition, learning commons represent academic library spaces that provide computer and library resources as well as a range of academic services that support learners and learning. Learning commons have been equated to a laboratory for creating knowledge and staffed with librarians that serve as facilitators of…

As libraries of all types and sizes continue to re-envision themselves to remain relevant in a rapidly changing information landscape, the single service point is visible evidence of this effort. In a complex environment, combining formerly disparate functional or service units is for many libraries both an innovative and effective way to manage…

Assessment in United States higher education has become very important in recent years. Virtually all colleges and universities are now striving to prove through empirical evidence that they are committed to improving student learning. Created in late 2005, the US Department of Education's Commission on the Future of Higher Education was charged…

This article reviews the recent literature about the essential but often uneasy alliances made between content experts (archivists and librarians) and technology experts. Differing professional cultures, misunderstandings of one another, limited abilities to envision change, and lack of support from top-level administrators are the most often…

This article enumerates factors which created demand for fee-based information service (commercial databases, competition for proprietary information in business world, effectiveness of librarians) and relates experiences at two public libraries. Sources of business, value of advertising, techniques of selling, and hiring and deployment of staff…

Reviews the literature on academic library reference service, and examines changes in the traditional reference desk model. Based on the review from the perspectives of managers, librarians, and users, new research directions are proposed in which users' information-search processes and librarians' intervention in reference service are integrated.…

Discusses measurement and evaluation as ways to justify reference work to users and library administration. A trivia contest is cited as a way to achieve public recognition, and measuring use of reference materials rather than the number of reference questions is recommended. User surveys and other measures of reference activity and value are also…

Introduces four models of data library development for meeting information needs for machine-readable data files--University of Florida facility, University of British Columbia Data Library, Data and Program Library Service at University of Wisconsin, and online numeric Kentucky Economic Information System at University of Kentucky. Four…

Presents a model that can accommodate staff preferences when determining a reference desk schedule using a microcomputer, the Lotus 1-2-3 spreadsheet software, and the linear programing software LP83. (eight references) (MES)

Describes the functions and characteristics of the microcomputer and discusses library applications including cataloging, circulation, acquisitions, serials control, reference and database systems, administration, current and future trends, and computers as media. Twenty references are listed. (CHC)

Surveys literature relevant to study of University/TAFE (Technology and Further Education) joint-use libraries, revealing: recommendations for single line management; full integration of services and resources and need for broad guidelines for operation; indications of client and economic benefits; and concerns about service compromises. The…

Discussion of the use of CD-ROMs in academic library reference departments focuses on types of instruction librarians can offer and their possible impact on other reference services. Classroom instruction versus point-of-use instruction is compared, and implications for librarians and library management are considered. (Contains 23 references.)…

"ARL" is the bimonthly report on research library issues and actions from ARL (Association of Research Libraries), CNI (Coalition of Networked Information), and SPARC (Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition). "ARL" reports on current issues of interest to academic and research library administrators, staff and users; higher…

In May 1981 the American Library Association (ALA) conducted a survey to determine how online search services are financed in publicly-supported libraries and in libraries in nonprofit organizations. The survey questionnaire was prepared by the ALA Office for Research (OFR), and three vendors of online services--BRS, Lockheed, and SDC--mailed the…