Marilyn Parr, Library of Congress
Susan McGlamery, OCLC
Joe Thompson, Maryland Ask Us Now!
Laura Maldonado, Deborah Gaspar, and Sarah Palacios-Wilhelp, Gelman library, George Washington University
4:15-5:00pm
LC
- LOC Web site
- Ask a Librarian link
- people want sketch of patents
- questions on photographs (American Memory)
- Thomas Jefferson’s papers
- What is QuestionPoint
- developed by OCLC and LC
- supports both local and global online refernce
- local component: Web-based question submission, email, chat, local KB
- Global component: world-wide network of ref librarians sharing via best-fit routing, global KB
- LC exempt from PATRIOT Act due to being part of the legislative branch
- Use QP to:
- interact
- cooperate
- build
- manage
OCLC: Collaboration for Success
- Be there when they need you
- coverage around the clock
- expand hours of service without adding staff
- failsafe coverage
- staffed by librarian like you
- 2 cooperatives
- public
- academic
- 24/7 reference is
- > 800 libraries in US, Canada, and England
- staffing cooperatively
- contract staff for hours when no libraries are online
- Merged w/ QP in August 2004
- Who participates
- single library
- libraries w/in a region
- statewide service
- CA, DE, IL, MD, MA, MT, NJ, NC, OR, WA, WI
- countrywide service
- England
- How do they know: Answering on behalf of other libraries
- library policy pages
- scripted messages
- communication
- conference/transfer
- IM
- Follow-up/referral
- Local FAQ
- send to patron’s library
- Referral networks
- 24/7 subject experts
- medical
- art
- business
- genealogy
- spanish
- next: multi-lingual cooperatives
- global reference network
- quality control
- session review
- QC staff
- training
Maryland: AskUsNow
- Service
- launched March 2003
- 27 partnet library systems
- staffed by > 250 librarians
- first state-wide participant in 24/7 cooperative
- Maryland was 25% of all 24/7 questions
- now part of QP 24/7
- LSTA funded
- 85% positive feedback
- 120k questions to date
- InfoEyes project
- launched Jan 2004
- specific for those with visual imparements
- e-mail mostly
- VoIP also available
GWU: IM reference implementation
- Introducing IM to GW
- millenials and the Pew Internet study
- IM? We already have VR!
- Research
- Training
- Pilot studies
- Next?
- IM Generation
- Teens use e-mail but prefer IM
- 75% of 12-17 year-olds send or receive instant messages
- VR vs. IM
- Has had VR for over 4 years
- only 1.5% of GW students used VR
- how do we serve students in their preferred medium of communication
- Getting started
- study phase
- software requirements
- lit search
- potential IM usage
- surveyed other universities going it
- pilot for librarians
- introduce ref ream to IM
- is IM a good fit for the library?
- training opportunity
- Fall 2005
- patron pre-pilot pilot
- offered for 10 days
- designed advertising
- designed web page for spring pilot
- tested patron experience
- standardized usage procedures
- Spring 2006 – Patron pilot
- documented student use
- logs and statistics
- preferred hours of service
- documneted APL guidelines
- reference questions
- directional questions
- “best practices”
- drafted and implemented
- continuous service assessment
- …and beyond
- student feedback
- expanded advertising
- evening hours
- inclusion of other library staff
- evaluation of service
