Reviews the literature on reference service, particularly the reference interview, from 1876 to the 1970s and summarizes some research techniques used to investigate the reference encounter. Studies of reference clients are then briefly reviewed, and concerns of reference librarians regarding the level of assistance and the library-client…

Summarizes information about public libraries, including their number, administrative structure and legal basis, operating income and expenditures, staffing and collections, and services. Data from the Public Libraries Survey of the National Center for Education Statistics reflect the 8,967 public libraries in the 50 states and the District of…

When the first career test, back in high school, pointed to librarianship, Miguel Figueroa "just blew it off." But when a similar test in the senior year of college produced the same result, Figueroa, like the librarian and editor that he is today, did his research and called three libraries (a public, an academic, and a school media…

Raising awareness of the value of programs through publishing a library newsletter is recommended. It is suggested that besides writing about local library events one should write articles that teachers could use, as useful articles will attract more readers.

Weeding of library collections is a professional responsibility that should not be abdicated if deterioration of the quality of collections is to be avoided as also the spread of dangerous and misleading information. Guidelines are presented on how to go about this all-important task.

In this paper, the 2005 revision of ALA's position document on labeling and rating systems is closely examined and assessed, not only in comparison with the previous version of the document, but also in terms of its adequacy as a statement of library principles and as a practical guide for library practice. It is found to be ambiguous in meaning,…

This article gives details of the developments and changes in the Denver Public Library (DPL). Through a review of advancements in technology, vendor capabilities, staffing levels and talent, as well as outsourcing opportunities, DPL reinvented its workflow and processing. The result? The once giant stacks of books, CDs, videos, and DVDs waiting…

Small libraries don't have the resources to adopt every new technology. It is important that small libraries operate strategically, adopting only those technologies that are the most beneficial to their patrons.

When I first realized I'd been hacked, I thought, 'Oh, my God, they really did it!" While trying to recover from the shock, I had to call the supervisors of the departments with services affected by the loss of the library's server. In a seemingly calm voice, I told them one by one, "Sorry to let you know, our server is down; it has been hacked…

The creation of "Access Services" departments in academic libraries did not translate into the creation or offering of new services for patrons. Instead, it was typically just the combination of three already existing departments. Recent changes and trends in Access Services, including new NCIP and ISO standards, an increase in the use of…

Recently, the author participated in a conversation with several teacher-librarians about a school library remodeling project in which they were involved. The targeted libraries were in quite bad physical shape and needed extensive work; indeed, they were probably not safe. In these particular instances, not only were the libraries being…

To any library with an electronic collection of any significance, the OpenURL link resolver has (or should) become an indispensable service for helping its users retrieve full text from citations. Although they are a relatively new technology (in library terms, at any rate), link resolvers arguably have become as important as the OPAC; they locate…

It is hard to imagine operating a library today without the assistance of an integrated library system (ILS). Without help from it, library work would be tedious, labor would be intensive, and patrons would be underserved in almost all respects. Given the importance of these automation systems, it is essential that they work well and deliver…

This article reports the findings of a survey examining the current performances of libraries. The libraries that were surveyed this year reported a solid performance in 2005, with a budget growth of 4.7 percent. For the next fiscal year, libraries predicted a 5.5 percent increase in budgets which exceeded the inflation. Many of them, however,…

A challenge for school libraries is the identification and management of electronic and paper resources that teachers and students need. Courtenay Middle School, on Vancouver Island, has begun to assemble collections of mediated online links, in addition to the traditional paper and video resources, and to ask fundamental questions related to…