In the eighteenth century there were enough printed sources and archival materials to challenge or even overwhelm historians of that day. Two productive editors of lexicons and information management were Christian Gottlieb Jocher, who taught history at the University of Leipzig and became the chief librarian at his university, and Johann Heinrich…

Drawing on the author's experience as an information professional for individuals with disabilities, this article discusses the challenges faced by both library users and staff in obtaining and providing information to this community. It poses four questions: Where do individuals with disabilities fit into diversity studies? Do individuals with…

Prison libraries have traditionally fulfilled many purposes for their incarcerated patrons, and these libraries often carry a diverse collection to serve varied patron needs. However, during the trial of Steven Hayes for the Petit family murders, the prosecution questioned the collection development policies of the institutions where Hayes had…

As virtual worlds continue to proliferate globally, libraries are faced with the question of whether to provide information services to virtual patrons. This study, utilizing a mixed-method approach of interviews, focus groups, and surveys, represents one of the largest studies of virtual libraries attempted to date. Taking a holistic perspective,…

The cultural heritage preservation community now functions largely within the environment of digital technologies. This article begins by juxtaposing definitions of the terms "digitization for preservation" and "digital preservation" within a sociotechnical environment for which Google serves as a relevant metaphor. It then reviews two reports…

As library collections increasingly become digital, libraries are faced with many challenges regarding the acquisition and management of electronic resources. Some of these challenges include copyright and fair use, the first-sale doctrine, licensing versus ownership, digital preservation, long-term archiving, and, most important, the issue of…

Purposeful assessment of space for the understanding and improvement of the academic library is a relatively new area of inquiry. This essay offers a framework to consider different factors affecting such an assessment and insights for undertaking a meaningful inquiry about the relationship of space to an academic library's evolving purpose as…

Library scholars and practitioners have frequently reflected on the various factors that in combination make up a hospitable library, but there has been little theoretical synthesis of the notion of the library as a place of hospitality. The hospitality industry provides a rich vein of theoretical material from which to draw definitions of…

In this explorative study, we first investigate current use of public library statistics in public library management to identify a governing framework and then carefully suggest an alternative framework with income as a goal for sustainability. The meaning of income in terms of management is also discussed. Within this framework, we conduct a…

The preservation of paper-based artifacts is an essential issue for collection management in academic libraries. In recent years, the library science profession has often favored reformatting through microfilm or digitization, assuming too quickly that information matters, whereas an artifact's medium does not. However, much recent humanities…

Although single-purpose boards and commissions have been used to provide public goods and services since the colonial era, little scholarly attention has been given to the leadership characteristics and behaviors required of their members. As a result, appointing officials and those considering appointment have had little systematic guidance…

Pennsylvania public libraries began receiving increased allotments of state aid in 2000. In the first two years of enhancement aid, total state aid received by Pennsylvania libraries more than doubled. This reversed the trend of little growth in the years preceding 2000. The enhancement aid program also redesigned certain categories of state aid…

A general criticism of the management by objectives approach is given, the relevant research is detailed, and the possibilities for management by objectives in the academic library are explored. (Author/PF)

The function of library management is seen as different from the functions of librarians performing as professionals. (Author)