Two of the most time-consuming jobs in the library are taking inventory and keeping track of in-house uses of library material. Librarians have long been searching for more efficient solution for these two activities. New technology can be the answer to creating efficiency for libraries. In fact, if one is a SirsiDynix library, there is an easy…

Each night, around 20,000 people--both adults and children--make the streets of Dhaka (the capital city of Bangladesh) their home. Living amongst the noise, rubbish, and traffic, thousands of families walk down the streets of Dhaka, looking for a safe place to rest for just a few hours each night. Trapped in a vicious cycle of poverty, the…

Driven by new digital technologies, the future of learning is increasingly interactive, individualized, and full of real-world experiences and information. Unfortunately, the average school has about the same connectivity as the average American home, but serves 200 times as many users, and fewer than 20 percent of educators say their school's…

The Future Voices in Public Services column is a forum for students in graduate library and information science programs to discuss key issues they see in academic library public services, to envision what they feel librarians in public service have to offer to academia, to tell of their visions for the profession, or to tell of research that is…

This study explores the library needs of students and tutors of Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU), utilization level of the library facilities and resources, the problems in the use of library, and suggestions for improvement of library facilities for students and tutors. Data collected from 4080 students and 526 tutors belonging to 15 different…

The New Mexico Public Education Department's (NMPED) mission is to ensure all students in New Mexico receive the education they deserve and that students are prepared for college, careers, and lifelong learning. To do this, the department is focusing on supports, sustained learning and outreach to districts, charter schools, tribal education…

As has been described in the editorials of the past two issues, "The Library Quarterly" has changed in appearance and content to better reflect contemporary research on library-related issues. As the newly dubbed "History of the Book" editor, Karen Nipps is excited that the cover article segment of the journal is being expanded…

Stress is a part of our working lives and is not likely to decrease in tomorrow's workplace. A difficult economy, downsizing, taking on additional responsibilities without assistance or additional pay--all are taking their toll on our physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Community college librarians can often feel isolated as the only…

Not so long ago the library at the high school in the author's semirural community was perking along every day with the help of one energetic and dedicated library clerk, a few student staffers, and the author, the professional school librarian. About 700 students, and 50 teachers and paraprofessionals access the library on a regular basis. They…

The difference between the University of Texas at San Antonio's Applied Engineering and Technology Library and other science-focused libraries is not that its on-site collection is also available electronically. It is that its on-site collection is only available electronically. The idea of libraries with no bound books has been a recurring theme…

Founded in 1887 as the Croatan Normal School, the University of North Carolina at Pembroke (UNCP) is a smaller branch of the UNC System (with an full-time enrollment of about 6,500), yet with awarded diversity and a historical dedication to individualized service. Its dedication to services drives its approach to course reserves, which is to…

The Mississippi State University Libraries' Virtual Reference Service collected statistics about virtual reference usage. Analysis of the data collected by an entry survey from chat and e-mail transactions provided librarians with concrete information about what patron groups were the highest and lowest users of virtual reference services. These…

The library environment has drastically changed since 1992 when Bostick's Library Anxiety Scale was developed. This project aimed to develop a scale specifically for undergraduate students. A three-stage study was conducted, using students of Kuwait University. A variety of statistical measures, including factor analysis, were used to process the…

Describes a two-part study of the research needs of graduate students at Georgetown University. The first part, conducted in May 2010, consisted of an online survey about students' research practices and opinions about the library. The second part, conducted in May 2011, consisted of focus groups with particular subsets of graduate students. The…

From a fledgling technology with no proven business models, electronic books (e-books) have grown in importance usurping traditional formats as an acquisitions budget line in many academic library contexts. Business models include purchase, subscription, and pay per use. In academic and research libraries, web based e-book delivery is the dominant…