Information Services in an Electronic Environment

Oh what confidence! Would that we all had such a hand to hold! This 1940 quote of Ranganathan is used to illustrate the person‐centred philosophy of reference service developed by Samuel Green, Melvil Dewey, and Ranganathan himself. The tri‐partite paradigm of reference service – user, resources, and the all‐knowing librarian – is changing fast, as is the structure of knowledge itself (or at least its incarnation in encyclopaedias, dictionaries and other text‐based resources of the “document paradigm”). Knowledge is being deconstructed into a context‐less “modularisation” world of digital reference. In this environment, new evaluative criteria are needed such as popularity rankings. But while the architecture of knowledge may have changed, user needs and the cognitive patterns underlying these changes have not, although maybe we understand them better.

These thoughts come from the opening essay in this volume, the latest in the International Yearbook of Library and Information Management series, a themed annual publication covering current issues, emerging debates, trends, models of best practice, and likely future developments. The chapters comprise a mix of research‐based, practice‐based and reflective scholarly studies of worldwide application and interest. The sort of book we should all read, digest, and discuss, but rarely have the time to do so. If this is the case, then shame on us; if we don’t reflect, we are lost!

The book starts with the dedication “For my friends in Vietnam who are committed to improving their country’s library and information services.” I was duly humbled. Part 1, “The evolution of information services” contains the substantial scene‐setter “Only connect … a survey of reference services – past, present and future” in which Ranaganathan et al. feature. This overview looks at the existing paradigm of reference service, at models of information seeking, the reference collection and reference process, information retrieval, the role of user instruction and the evaluation of reference services. The chapter concludes with a look at some of the models of digital reference being explored by practitioners. This sets the scene for the contributions that follow in Part 2, “Information services in different types of libraries”. The first of the four chapters in this section looks at the impact of the Internet on public libraries. I felt this was a little too US‐focused and read strangely from a UK viewpoint, currently dominated by the People’s Network and other government investment in ICT. The censorship issue seems “no big deal” this side of the pond. The chapter on electronic provision in the higher education sector does have a UK focus though, but the questions asked of the “drivers of information behaviour” are applicable worldwide and to all kinds of library. Youth services are covered in the third chapter, where the need to slow down the pace of innovation and the building up of social competence through the use of technology struck a very human note. Such a human note is an essential counter to the commercialisation and marketing strategies used to target the young (and the old!). The final chapter in this section looks at Danish attempts to establish an integrated e‐library infrastructure to underpin, not only research libraries, but subsequently all public libraries.

Part 3, “The delivery of information services’, also contains four chapters. These range from information retrieval and distance learning, to technical standards and copyright, all issues which are essential parts of service delivery in the electronic age. Information retrieval is in the midst of a revolution, with image and audio retrieval receiving particular attention. In this era of “hybrid libraries”, a key element is technical standards. These enable systems to perform bibliographic searches, initiate and track interlibrary loan requests, and operate remote holds on stock in co‐operating libraries: eight official and de facto standards in use are examined. “Research on library services for distance learning” reports on the international scene for library support for distance learning programmes and identifies priorities for future research. The integration of library and electronic resources into Web‐based distance learning courses comes top of these priorities. A major hurdle to these, and many other aspects of e‐library services, is copyright. Often laws have to be reinterpreted in the light of new developments, and instant transnational e‐communication can infringe national copyright laws. Copyright has, and does, influence library services. New legislation and licensing trends are discussed.

Part 4 features information literacy. The first chapter in this section covers “Internet training”, regarded here as a vague and ill‐defined concept, yet its relationship to information literacy provision is important as librarians increasingly develop their roles as teachers and leaders in the information economy. The theme is continued in the chapter on “The transition of traditional bibliographic instruction to information literacy”, where topics as diverse as the commodification of information, the development of personal computers, and the association of literacy with social good, are combined. This section is concluded with a look at new models for integrating information literacy to “mainstreaming” the library. This case study highlights the opportunity to develop information literacy skills with other generic skills in the changing learning environment. The concluding two essays of this volume address the issues of measurement and evaluation of information services. Methods of measurement and evaluation are considered in the first, while the second looks at developing digitised user‐profiles. A number of methods are considered for collecting and analysing user data using “electronic trails”. A focus on the remote user would contribute to more effective collection building and user service.

This volume is a rich mixture of refereed articles by 16 experts from the USA, the UK, Denmark, Singapore, Australia and New Zealand. I can think of no part of a library service and no librarian that would not benefit from these inspirational and highly competent essays. My task is now to alert my colleagues to the contents of this book and keep track of it – electronically, of course! The book is excellently edited and produced. It is indexed.