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…

These Guidelines constitute the third edition of the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) "Multicultural Communities: "Guidelines for Library Services." This revision follows the IFLA Section of Library Services to Multicultural Populations' "2006-2010 Strategic Plans": to review and revise the…

This study sought to better understand search performance using an online portal containing a collection of heterogeneous library resources for K-12 students. Search performance is examined in terms of search success, search time, strategy, and effort. This study revealed unsuccessful searches tended to take longer than successful searches;…

Based on an analysis on the features and problems in the libraries of some newly-upgraded local undergraduate institutions, this article finally comes to a series of management countermeasures.

When writing the first edition of "Teen Spaces" in 2002, YA expert Bolan was challenged to find excellent examples. Now, teen spaces abound and interest continues to grow. With a strategic use of web-based technologies--from the author's website to a Flickr account--this new edition showcases success stories as it reaches out to attract a global…

The Thompson Library, the main library of The Ohio State University (OSU), began a major renovation in fall 2006 that required the library to close for three years. During this time, the bulk of the circulating collection and many of the personnel relocated to an interim facility. The distance imposed by the renovation created special challenges…

This article explores the historical foundations of the South Carolina Digital Library, a collaborative statewide program that ties together academic special collections and archives, public libraries, state government archives, and other cultural resource institutions in an effort to provide the state with a comprehensive database of online…

As the corpus of gray literature grows and the price of serials rises, it becomes increasingly important to explore ways to integrate the free and open Web seamlessly into one's collections. Users, after all, are discovering these materials all the time via sites such as Google Scholar and Scirus or by searching arXiv.org or CiteSeer directly.…

Place reminds us to tailor our professional work to the shifting concerns, and indeed the shifting criteria, of our shifting constituencies, rather than to a placeless professional vision of what librarianship, society, and literacy should be. Every place maker must make do, make sense, and make place in an environment that is technologically…

The Web 2.0 "buzz" starts with new technologies such as virtual worlds, cell phones and handheld devices that offer 24/7 web access, tagging, social networks, and blogs and brings together various web capabilities in unique combinations. Web 2.0, however, is about much more than the technology--it is about a change in focus to participation, user…