Reference services in public libraries are changing dramatically. The Internet, online databases, and shrinking budgets are all making it necessary for non-traditional reference staff to become familiar with online reference tools. Recognizing the need for cross-training, Chesapeake Public Library (CPL) developed a program called the Database…

Virtual reference services seem a natural extension of libraries digital collections and the emphasis on access to the library anytime, anywhere. If patrons use the library from home, it makes sense to provide them with person-to-person online reference. The Library of Congress (LC), OCLC, and several large library systems have developed and…

The Inglewood, California Public Library provides a paraprofessional information service to assist its patrons in their initial encounters with the library. Persons staffing the information desk are specially trained to answer the telephone, orient patrons to the library, screen information requests, and provide ready reference service. These…

Purpose: Aims to investigate the impact of the internet on reference services in public libraries in England. Design/methodology/approach: A literature review provides the policy context for UK public library services and highlights developments in digital reference. A questionnaire was administered in 2003 to a sample of the public library…

The Internet is becoming an increasingly important medium of electronic information dissemination, and thus an increasingly important library reference tool. This study examines the Internet skills of a sample group of 15 public reference librarians in the Adult Services Department at the Cleveland Heights Public Library. The Internet skills that…

This training manual was written for student reference assistants to teach them about the Monterey County Free Library (California) and about libraries in general. It introduces library nomenclature (e.g., automated system, interlibrary loan, and MLS), describes requirements of the reference assistant position, and provides information on how to…

This guide to adult reference works and services for the small or medium-sized public library is divided into two sections. Section One lists 559 numbered items arranged in 22 subsections, and 222 additional items in notes following entries or at the end of the relevant subsection. Subject areas are as follows: guides and bibliographies; general…

Although a nationwide survey of genealogical services in libraries relates problems of limited budgets and trained personnel, it emphasizes that local genealogists' support can be valuable asset to libraries. Growth of interest in genealogical research is continuing phenomenon with which reference librarians will be expected to deal. Forty-three…

A survey of the reference departments of public libraries in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Utah was conducted to determine whether CD-ROM products are being used in routine reference work. Previous literature on CD-ROM had primarily been concerned with the response to and acceptance of the technology by patrons. A stratified sample of public…

The Inglewood, California, public library provides a manual on reference service. The theory, purpose, and objectives of reference are noted, and goals and activities are described in terms of budget, personnel, resources, and services. A chapter on organization covers service structure, information services, relationships with other library…

In order to teach high school students to transfer skills learned in school media centers to public libraries, public librarians visit classes whose students have been assigned term papers. They present information on reference materials students will need to complete their assignments, including those not available in most media centers. (EM)

Presents preliminary results of Clearwater Public Library's study of the usefulness of "Output Measures for Public Libraries" as an indicator of reference performance, and the impact of collection development choices on reference output measures. Data on turnover rate, in-library use, reference fill rate, and reference transactions per…

Discussion of techniques of response to the reference query from public librarian's point-of-view covers patron's need-motivation; structuring library instruction program (teaching skills related to encyclopedia use, library instruction on special subjects-health); and assisting patron in gathering materials on-site and through use of…

This guidebook and annotated bibliography is designed to provide a basic listing of sources of state (Maryland), federal, and some general law for the non-law library community, and to offer some insight into the suggested approaches for dealing with legal reference inquiries. Listings of contributors and members of the Task Force on Improving…

Participants in a workshop on the ethics and problems of medical reference service in public libraries generally concluded that people have a right to information concerning health and librarians should rely on common sense in answering medical reference questions and refrain from interpretation and diagnosis. Presentations included a report on a…