When improving a web presence, today's libraries have a choice: using a free Web 2.0 application, opting for open source, buying a product, or building a web application. This article discusses how to make an informed decision for one's library. The authors stress that deciding whether to use a free Web 2.0 application, to choose open source, to…

Competition in the virtual reference market got really hot this past summer. Recent developments in virtual reference offerings suggest the market is much more dynamic than most people would have imagined a short time ago. With Google's acquisition of Meebo and its subsequent decision to shut down the chat widget service, many libraries scrambled…

Library blogs exchange information and ideas on everything from the everyday, such as library services, to the profound, such as values held by librarians (high-quality reliable resources, academic freedom, open access, and so on). According to medical librarians who maintain library blogs, a typical month includes two to four contributors writing…

Facebook is a social network that connects people with other people. Librarians have created Facebook Groups to share ideas and to debate how to use this resource as a potential marketing and/or reference tool. Based on conversations among these librarians, it appears that student response to library outreach on this medium is lackluster at best,…

Illustrates how users can take full advantage of the Internet to communicate and to network. Discusses electronic mailing, listservs and Usenet groups; referring cold connections to a Web page; and designing Web pages for maximum information retrieval by search engines. (AEF)

Provides a brief history of the Internet, highlighting its academic roots, and describes a survey conducted to determine how and why academics use the Internet. Information gathered, presented in seven tables, shows frequency of use; types of resources accessed; levels of computer experience; use of nagivational aids; and reaction to the survey.…

What would technological librarians like to see in the next generation of Integrated Library Systems (ILS)? This question was asked of several well- known library technology experts, and their responses are presented in this article. Survey respondents expressed a clear desire for the following features and functionality: (1) Direct, read-only…

This Helping You Buy survey is the next in an annual series of surveys that have been compiled by Pamela Cibbarelli in past years. This bird's-eye view should serve to both highlight some general distinctions and to underscore the commodified similarities of a wide range of library automation systems.

This case study offers insights into the process, pitfalls, and advantages of utilizing an Internet electronic discussion list to form a communication community in an undergraduate course that discussed gender differences. Results of an online evaluation are discussed and the use of electronic communication is considered. (Author/LRW)

Gopher and other early implementations of the virtual library are being superseded by the World Wide Web concept of "the global village library." Public libraries are implementing institutional Web pages, patron access to Internetwide e-mail, interagency programs, and Web training. Legislative issues and implications for the future are…