Examines the various activities librarians perform to help patrons find information. Discusses new ideas in cataloging for electronic resources; extending patrons' reference questions to Web resources; reader's advisory services on the Web; online instruction for online searching; and the future outlook for the librarian profession. (AEF)

Presents perspectives from a library educator and three library administrators on the core values of librarianship, particularly public librarianship. The four contributors emphasize: cooperation for a shared endeavor, a passion to provide access, connecting information and people, and offering choice to individuals without restriction. (AEF)

Interlibrary loan and document delivery services have the potential to provide a wealth of information for collection development librarians. Insights into book and serial needs, departmental emphases, instructional opportunities and distant learning are available from interlibrary loan and document delivery databases, provided librarians are…

Discusses the strengths and weaknesses of patrons and reference librarians as sources of data for the evaluation of the effectiveness of answers to reference questions. Describes the Wisconsin-Ohio Reference Evaluation program and considers staffing patterns, time spent, collection size, and bibliographic instruction. Reference Transaction…

Describes how the free-of-charge Consumer Health Information Service (CHIS) of the Preston Medical Library of the University of Tennessee Medical Center (Knoxville) helps answer the community's health care questions. Discusses challenges related to public policy, time factors, and information retrieval; a user satisfaction survey; and the role of…

Discussion of the impact of distance education on academic libraries focuses on marketing aspects. Topics include the rapid expansion of educational computing; the maturing of higher education; the World Wide Web as competitor to academic libraries; business purposes of academic libraries; distance education strategies; servicing market segments;…

Describes changes in services of the United Technologies Corporation Information Network from a traditional library system to a virtual system of World Wide Web sites, a document-delivery unit, telephone and e-mail reference, and desktop technical support to provide remote access. Staff time, security, and licensing issues are addressed.…

Describes the experiences of the Italian National Research Council Library staff in the successful development and implementation of its Web site. Discusses electronic information sources that interface with the Web site; library services; technical infrastructure; and the choice of a Web-based library management system. (Author/LRW)

Describes the school library media program in New Trier Township High School (Illinois) that uses collaboration to respond to the needs of students, staff, school, and the community. Highlights include collaboration to meet curricular needs; staff development for teachers and support staff; supporting school values; and community programs. (LRW)

Presents a dramatization of a high school library in 1968, a place with wooden bookcases, card catalog, wooden furniture and tiptoeing librarian through 30 years of changes to a library media center with banks of computers, librarian-teacher cooperation, emphasis on authentic assessment, and the satisfaction of librarian, teachers, and students…

"Chronicle of Higher Education" presents an abundant source of news and information for college and university faculty members and administrators. This July 23, 2004 issue of "Chronicle of Higher Education" includes the following articles: (1) "Waking up from the American Dream" (Abramsky, Sasha); (2) "The Well-Tempered Seminar" (Parini, Jay); (3)…

Presents strategies for educating administrators as to the value of school library programs and their influence on student achievement. Highlights include meeting and communicating with principals and superintendents; providing documentation to support library policies and collections; demonstrating professional research abilities; inviting them…

This article provides an introduction to the major information resources in the field of economics. The essay evaluates the major selection tools in the area of business and economics, as well as selected core reference titles. The article also includes suggestions for developing and evaluating economics collections, as well as a listing of online…

This construct for collection development as it relates to Native American resources utilizes Thomas Mann's "Library Research Methods" (1993) concepts of the Traditional Model, the Actual-Practice Model, and the Principle of Least Effort to organize recommendations for both strategies and resources. The three-pronged hierarchical approach to…

Electronic resources are transforming the way librarians work. New technological skills have been added to the librarian's tool kit. Some libraries have undertaken large-scale organizational reconfigurations to meet the challenges of the digital environment. Yet libraries still rely on traditional functions such as acquisitions, cataloging, and…