Eight articles in this section focus on sports: the baseball mystique and scholarly publishing; importance of archiving sporting activities; museums and libraries partner to make sport history live; online resources for sports information; Webliography of general sports sites; public libraries responding to changing needs; sports fiction; and…

Memorial Hall Library in Andover, Massachusetts wanted to offer live reference service online but with limited resources, they couldn't do it alone. The 24/7 Reference cooperative program administered by the California State Library required Memorial Hall's librarians to monitor only 10 hours a week in return for live reference coverage. Memorial…

The Anchorage Library Information Network created the STAR (State of the Art Reference) group to deliver reference training to Alaskan librarians and information providers. Librarians were trained to run workshops that focused on acquiring communications skills through practice, coaching, and reinforcement on the job. Due to budget constraints,…

As costs of subscriptions to scholarly journals rise, libraries struggle to house their collections. Journal Storage (JSTOR) is building a reliable and comprehensive archive of important literature, filling the gaps in existing collections of backfiles, fostering preservation, increasing access, finding ways to reduce storage and care costs, and…

Discussion of the reference practitioner-client relationship in academic libraries focuses on mediation and client self-determination. Highlights include the role of librarians, assessing the needs of the client, limitations in client capacity to make choices, empowering clients, and developing partnerships. (Author/LRW)

Describes a method of library staff training based on chat transcript analysis in which graduate student workers at a university reference desk examined transcripts of actual virtual reference desk transactions to analyze reference interviews. Discusses reference interview standards, reference desk behavior, and reference interview skills in…

Reports on work from two studies in progress related to assessing digital library reference services and developing standards that support such services. Suggests that two types of standards-utilization and technical-should be considered together in the costing, statistics, and measures for digital reference services. (Author/AEF)

Women's studies faculty often engage in complex information-seeking patterns as they examine social issues from a variety of disciplinary and theoretical perspectives. Academic librarians constructing an understanding of those patterns in order to provide effective reference service can incorporate the results of this national, qualitative study…

Discusses types of peer training and describes the development of peer training instruction for reference/instruction librarians at DePaul University (Illinois) to keep communication open among staff members, share subject expertise, sharpen skills needed in group and one-on-one instruction, train new librarians, and provide ongoing professional…

Discusses the current status and potential for automated library reference services in the areas of community information systems, online catalogs, remote online reference services, and telephone reference services. Several models of the reference procedure which might be used in developing expert systems are examined. (19 references) (CLB)

Discusses the need to include communication skills as a component of training sessions for library staff who will be serving patrons using online catalogs and databases. Specific points that should be covered in training sessions are identified and training methods are suggested. (eight references) (CLB)

Describes a study that used a nonobtrusive methodology to determine the effectiveness of an information desk staffed by graduate students and nonprofessionals in an academic library. Relationships that were found between the level of staff members and the quality of reference services are described, and the implications for staffing patterns and…

Describes a study conducted at the Brigham Young University Library that examined the quality of reference service provided by students and department assistants, the adequacy of the training program, and the effectiveness of the system of referring patrons to subject specialist librarians. Recommendations for improving training programs and…

Describes the development of a machine readable reference information file at the University of California at Los Angeles. The discussion covers factors affecting the database structure, the use of a sophisticated text management system to enter data onto microcomputers, and possible future implementations of the reference information system. (16…

Discusses CD-ROM with an emphasis on aspects that librarians need to know. The topics covered include the technology; installations and cost; advantages and disadvantages for libraries; products of interest to librarians; and selection issues. Other optical storage media are described and sources for further information are provided. (37…