Student workers are a well-established component of academic library operations. Recently, their traditional role has expanded to include responsibilities that were previously assigned to librarians, including in-person and virtual reference support. This trend has raised concerns about service quality and highlighted the importance of adequate…

Reference lists from two assignments of psychology students in university-level online distance learning (ODL) were analyzed for number and type of sources and mark achieved. Most referenced were resources relevant to the assignment and provided by instructors. Use changed across assignments: Instructor sources were used more on the first…

This publication follows the tradition of publishing selected papers from the Pacific Islands Association of Libraries, Archives and Museums (PIALA) annual conferences. This 26th annual conference was held in Colonia, Yap State, Federated States of Micronesia, November 21-26, 2016 and celebrated the Association's Twenty-Fifth anniversary. This…

As technology continues to advance, libraries in Europe and America continue to improve upon their virtual reference services by employing new Web technologies and applying them to existing services. West African academic libraries have begun providing resources electronically to their users but still typically lag behind in the services they…

We asked the same 60 questions using DRS (digital reference services) in Japanese public libraries, face-to-face reference services and Q & A (question and answer) sites. It was found that: (1) The correct answer ratio of DRS is higher than that of Q & A sites; (2) DRS takes longer to provide answers as compared to Q & A sites; and (3)…

The society relies on institutions of higher education to produce a literate workforce; one that is able to function in a dynamic, technological, information-overload environment. In support of this new thrust, most universities have incorporated the use of new media and ICTs in the teaching learning process resulting in a multi-modal approach…

The authors compare Spanish faculty use of library services and the interest they express in value-added services and improvement actions. The results are based on data from a survey of 546 faculty in the field of science and technology. The study differentiates between the areas of pure science, engineering and architecture, and life sciences.…

What types of information sources do masters and doctoral (M and D) students at Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) use most, how do the patterns of use differ across subject disciplines and faculties, and to what extent does the Library and Information Services (LIS) keep or provide access to the journals that are mostly used by M and D…

As academic libraries move toward the electronic frontier for their serial subscriptions, there are several issues to be considered. This paper intends to outline the advantages and disadvantages with respect to electronic and paper serials, address selection criteria, and describe our practice in coping with these issues at the Leddy Library of…

Includes 6 articles that discuss the National Digital Information Infrastructure Preservation Program at the Library of Congress; metadata in digital libraries; integrated reference services on the Web. (LRW)

Discusses the amount of instruction that is part of reference service, based on experiences with the University of New Brunswick's LIVE (Library Information in a Virtual Environment) digital reference service. Concludes that digital reference instruction is not a substitute for more formal library instruction programs that include information…

Reports on an initiative by the Toronto Public Library to create the "Virtual Reference Library" (VRL). Describes the first service to be offered, a Dewey application called "Science Net." Discusses the VRL and its precursor, objectives, basis for its funding, technical aspects, progress to date and future direction. (AEF)

As players in the delivery of services and online information, libraries are in the best position to use staff expertise and the technology they have developed to foster community awareness of social, professional and commercial interactions on the internet. Historically, libraries have been progressive institutions, undertaking constant…

A new Danish act regarding library service has initiated several projects in order to promote libraries and to provide library staff experience in using the Internet to communicate with end users. Most public Danish information is found on official World Wide Web sites, and there is a tendency to publish online versions instead of printed…

Describes the introduction of virtual, or digital, reference service at the University of New Brunswick libraries. Highlights include analyzing transcripts from LIVE (Library Information in a Virtual Environment); reference question types; ACRL (Association of College and Research Libraries) information literacy competency standards; and the Big 6…