The trends in library systems today is to utilize Web resources and services that the library does not own to provide services and useful innovations for library users. This paper aims to explore the two concepts behind this new trend. Explored will be the concept of cloud computing and Web collaboration, the ideas that are revolutionizing library automation in the 21st century.
The paper focuses on the two ideas driving library automation innovations, Web collaboration enabled by cloud computing.
Cloud computing facilitates external collaboration, which in turn causes libraries to provide innovative Web services for users.
The paper showcases how library managers can provide new useful library services for users using Web software that are not necessarily owned by the library. The author also advocates a new approach to the online public access catologue (OPAC) utilizing the new library automation trends.
