Reference Renaissance conference August 4-5, 2008

Highlights of notes from the conference Reference Renaissance: current and future trends held in Denver Colorado August 4-5, 2008
Compiled by Debra B Mattingly

For more details see my complete notes of the sessions I attended

OPENING SESSION
Reference in the Age of Wikipedia or Not
David W Lewis, Dean of the University Library, Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis
dlewis@iupui.edu

Today we are not in Renaissance, we are in something new.
New technology makes new things possible.
Wikipedia is a process not a product.

Video - Free! Why $0.00 Is the Future of Business By Chris Anderson

www.wired.com/wired/issue/16-03/

4 questions to think about:
1) What happens if info skills become a mass amateur activity?
Focus on high quality; teach info skills

2) Can we survive with one foot in the world of proprietary content and one foot in open web?
Not well and not for long

3) What is role of institutional level services in world of network level tools?
Create local content that can be used by network level

4) Do we focus on our support of users as if they are consumers or as info creators?
Peter Senge: World's knowledge belongs to the world.

Conclusion: Create tools for open scholarship

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Session 1B

One OLIVE or Two: Shaking (or Stirring) Up Library Service with Videoconferencing: New Approaches to Reference Instruction

Presenters: Julie Ventura and Kathy Sanchez, Orange County Library System, Florida

OLIVE = Orange County Library Interactive Virtual Experience
OLIVE uses video teleconferencing software to answer patrons’ questions remotely. OLIVE has co-browse feature. There are OLIVE stations in several of the branches and even in the main branch where OLIVE is staffed.

It is a self service island.

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Reference Librarians Sharing Space with Information Technology:
Five ways to ensure success
Presenter: Susan Lieberthal, Stony Brook University Libraries, NY

5 planning elements for collaborative projects between reference librarians and information technology

1. Technology
2. Architecture
3. Workflow
4. Policies
5. Personnel

Territorial issues

3 projects – see full notes to see details

Be there or be square!!

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Virtual services librarian: Bridge between the public Desk and IT
Presenter: Laurie Van Court, Douglas County Libraries, Castle Rock, Colorado

"1st in a new job position being made up as we go along"

Future of reference librarian in public service
Now reference librarians are virtual services librarians or digital services librarians
Wanted better way to judge success of the products we purchase
Have ability to craft or purchase products to help patrons - in addition to regular databases

"Didn’t have to promote Rosetta Stone because of their advertising; don't have to promote Ancestry.com; but other vendors don't advertise like these do……

Create and maintain online subject guides

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Session 2E – Everyone is One: Customer Service or Retail Reference?
Diana D Shonrock, Iowa State University

Public service should be fun and patrons should see that

The longest lines in the library at Iowa State are at the Bookends Café.

4 E's of the experience economy - Harvard businessmen wrote this
EDUCATION - provide training, professional development opportunities
ESTHETICS - beauty/art; a new web page -- look at ALA's libraries.com which is for users, not librarians
ENTERTAINMENT - plan a program or seminar
ESCAPISM - allow customer to act a role; escape

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ENVISION - focus on the future
ENABLE - tools to make the vision reality
EMPOWER - involve others in a common goal
ENERGIZE

Maybe the new things will be the carrot to bring new patrons into the library whether in body or virtually

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Session 3C – You Bought it, now sell it! Creating a Reference Renaissance in the Public Library by Merchandising Collections and Services (Panel)

You bought it, now sell it
Merchandising reference Services
Karen Long, Adult Services librarian
Farmington Public Library, NM

Branding your reference services - logos
Put your logo in places where it can be seen by patrons and staff
Make it memorable, short
On the Reference Desk
On the web page
On the JUST ASK web page
Promote internally

Once staff is on board, promote to the patrons
Show the functionality of the service and how it is relevant
Demonstrate the service rather than just telling about it
Provide incentives to use library services
Reinforce / revisit your promotion

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Bernadine Goldman and Lizzie Eastwood
Los Alamos County Public library system, NM

Merchandising reference collections

Goal to make sure that all users are aware of all resources available and are introduced to them all in one place
To integrate the different types of reference material formats by placing signs and lists of online resources next to the books

Future of public library reference collection is content rich, format free.

How we rearranged the Reference Collection

Didn't abandon Dewey
Put subject signs up on end of shelves

Brought subjects together
- aging
- health
- weapons
- environment
- culture
- jobs

Made a one page sheet to tell staff what they did and where things are now - for circ and info
Made subject signs for end of shelves
Did Reference book displays
Designed new brochure with RUSA best reference websites.
Patrons get 10 pages copied for free from any reference book - sign made to say this
Keep arrangement at least a year to see what happens

Still a 'work in progress' at Los Alamos PL
Bernadine.goldman@lacnm.us
Ej.eastwood@lacnm.us
Library.losalamosnm.us

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Session 4B – Sculpting Services: Models for Creative Change

Studying Services Models for Creative Change
Susan Beatty and Helen Clarke, University of Calgary, Canada

Reference statistics falling in academic libraries in Canadian academic libraries but off campus use of e-resources rising

My assertions for reference collections I need to build to meet needs of new users:
Digital is better [bar is higher for print than for digital in terms of purchasing]
Don't replicate print ref collection in digital - not necessary
We should focus on what is hard to find/use but of high value

Discoverability issue is huge -- how to help users FIND these resources

Focus is on the USER

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Meeting Users' needs through new reference service models
Kay Ann Cassell, Rutgers University

New Models of Reference

¨ Roving

¨ Reconfiguring ref desk - maybe no ref desk
¨ No reference desk
¨ Consolidating service points
¨ Tiered Reference - been around a long time ; still used some
¨ Outreach Reference - coming back
¨ Virtual Reference
¨ Use of Technology
¨ Use of the Web

Future:

Libraries need to keep up with user needs
Best news is we are trying new models
Best models are tailored to individual library and its patrons
Librarians must be more visible and marketing is essential

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The Medium is NOT the Message:
A model of networked reference for the 21st century
Bruce Brigell, Skokie Public Library

Networked reference

QuestionPoint - good example

New media alters the environment; environments are not passive wrappings but active processes; it affects our experience but does not determine it

iPhone has email, text, web browser. There is no debate about integration of a new media. It is here today.

It's about the SERVICE not the intake medium

Maintain professional standards & values

Play to our strengths

Use the network to better collaborate with our users

Good reference is networked reference - it isn't digital or virtual - its reference

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Session 5B – Loving Library 2.0

Wikis, Blogs and Add-ons: taking advantage of online Tools
Todd Quinn, Northern State University

6 different FREE web tools

Googledocs - wiki

Wiki's used in classroom and librarian could see student's research and suggest new / other sources

Googledocs - share documents internally with staff

Zoho.com

Add on to Firefox - iMacros - automates repetitive things

Can program it to search several databases, search engines, sites, etc. at one time

RSS

Really Simple Syndication

One reader: Pageflakes - the one presenter uses

Delicious

Yahoo pipes

http://ipipes.yahoo.com/pipes

creates one RSS feed from several RSS feeds

Then puts this one 'pipe' feed in your reader like pageflakes

Can create feeds for different faculty

http://grazr.com

Take any feed or multiple feeds and create a widget

Then you can publish the widget into any page - it gives you the code to paste into the body of a web page

Handout will be on the conference site

Also on: research.northern.edu

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Becoming Ambient: finding reference services and Me
(or How I learned to stop worrying and love Library 2.0)
Lance J Heidig, Cornell University

Using a library guide online live
http://guides.library.cornell.edu/refren

Web 2.0 are giving us opportunities to interact with our patrons in new ways

Findability - we will have the ability to find anyone or anything from anywhere at anytime - in the future

Ambient librarianship - The ability to find human mediated assistance from anywhere at anytime www.ambientlibrarian.org

Librarian can be found:

Emailing
Chatting
Blogging
Wiki-ing
Podcasting
link to Facebook

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Reference & information services for library customers you may never meet
Christine Clifford, Hennepin county Library System, Minnetonka, MN

Web sites are now possibly the only library our customers will see

Subject guides in 2005; Librarian blog for each subject heading page - 40 staff are selectors for these sites and is part of their job duties; have web tools for them to put content into

There are guides and procedures and forms for staff to use to be consistent.

Add widget of library catalog search to anyone's MySpace page at their request

Comments on titles in the catalog are 'biggest' thing - they are checked before posted by a staff person; blogs are not blocked at first but can be deleted if not wanted

Put the askalibrarian link everywhere they can on all the web pages

Try to do consistent branding

Go buy domain names - i.e. bookspace.org

cclifford@hclib.org Christine Clifford