Features
Reference Service in a Correctional Institution Library
Reference in a correctional library is similar to reference in a small public library.
Online Reference at the State Library
For state employees, the State Library of Ohio provides better quality information as efficiently as any search engine.
KnowItNow Update
24/7 reference service for all Ohioans.
Help Wanted!
Is your library a member of the KnowItNow Team?
LearningExpress Library – New Help Online
Providing online, interactive practice tests, career building tools, and writing aides.
Reference/Virtual Reference
In this electronic age, when anyone can "google" anything, how can libraries compete? How can we best serve technically–savvy patrons who expect to find information at the touch of a button?
As librarians, our advantage is that we are information professionals. Yes, anyone can use Google. But librarians add value to the masses of information available by recognizing and providing patrons with the high–quality web resources they need. No matter the format or media, information has always been available. It is libraries and librarians that make that information useful.
Highlighted in this issue are State Library reference services, an inside look a library that provides reference services in a prison environment, and an update on what KnowItNow 24/7 reference service is doing for Ohio.
State Librarian’s Report
We all know that the Web is a veritable jungle of information ... One of the things that the library community offers to Internet users is some guidance and safe passage.
Cell phones have changed the way people play (games), record life happenings (take pictures), communicate (anywhere, anytime with anyone) and seek information. It is not unusual for a person who is looking for an answer to a question to call someone (often a friend or relative) and ask for an opinion or an answer. Some even call their local librarian. But what about that savvy cell phone user who connects to their local library via the Internet to get information? I personally do not want to get information on a teeny–tiny screen – and cell phones are getting smaller and smaller – but my 27 year–old daughter assures me that this is no problem for her or her friends.
What are the advantages to doing this? We all know that the Web is a veritable jungle of information – both luscious and dangerous at the same time. One of the things that the library community offers to Internet users is some guidance and safe passage. I think that this is why KnowItNow, the 24/7 virtual reference service, has been an overwhelming success among Ohio residents. People know how to use Google and oftentimes find exactly what they need or want via that powerful search engine. However when the results from that service are overwhelming or a question is so specific that Google is just plain not helpful, one welcomes the expertise of the KnowItNow operator. He or she pushes the authoritative webpage at the person with the question and voila – there's the answer.
And then there is the intriguing idea that Don Barlow, Director of Westerville Library, has introduced: what about the use of *49 in the library community? Imagine that you have followed closely the directions from Mapquest but still have not arrived at your desired destination? What if by dialing *49 on your cell phone you were able to be connected to the nearest library and a friendly library professional who could get you the rest of the way to your destination? (Never happened to you? I won't tell you how many times Mapquest has failed me. You don't want to know! Maybe I just travel too much!)
This is yet another way to virtually deliver information – and I have a feeling that my 27 year–old and her friends would adopt this new service like fish to water.
Intrigued by this idea? I would love to hear your thoughts (and I believe that Don would also). Please send comments to jbudler@sloma.state.oh.us and I promise to share these with Don.
