Over the past few years, access to quality and meaningful training opportunities has become more challenging. Library training coordinators across the United States express the same frustration of trying to fill classes with staff members from library branches that often cannot spare a team member for training. In this article, the author, who is…

In 2008, we started by pulling a sample of 483 public libraries from across the country, using 2007 public library annual report data. Because small libraries have different needs and resources than larger libraries, we stratified the sample to make comparisons by size, according to the following population groups: fewer than 10,000 served;…

Michele Reutty was director of the Free Public Library of Hasbrouck Heights for 17 years. Hasbrouck Heights is a mile-square "bedroom community" of New York City that is located in northern New Jersey. In this article, she narrates her experience--one that probably occurs with alarming regularity to professional librarians all over the…

Describes free-nets as free public access community-based computer systems; explains how libraries and librarians participate in the free-net movement; discusses Canadian free-nets; considers the public library/free-net analogy; and provides a survey of library services on Internet-accessible free-nets and civic networks. (Contains four…

Edited transcripts of three talks presented at the 1991 Research and Education Networking (R&EN) Conference address municipal information systems, including descriptions of local networks, privacy issues, and future possibilities; networking in Canada, including CA*net, regional networks, and federal activities; and Canadian reactions to…