The Internet

For the second part of class I will be blogging about the internet, and specifically its use in education. The internet is something we all use (obviously because we are taking this class) but what is it? According to Yale University, the internet is "a worldwide system of interconnected networks and computers." It is a network of networks that consists of millions of private, public, academic, business, and government networks, of local to global scope, that are linked by a broad array of networking technologies. The Internet carries a vast range of information resources and services, such as email and the world wide web. The terms Internet and World Wide Web are often used interchangeably. However, the Internet and the World Wide Web are not one and the same. The Internet is a global data communications system. It is a hardware and software infrastructure that provides connectivity between computers. In contrast, the Web is one of the services communicated via the Internet. It is a collection of interconnected documents and other resources, linked by hyperlinks and URLs. There are many uses of the internet but I will get into that later.

Future of Digital Reference

There are mixed feelings from librarians about what the future of digital reference. According to a reference librarian from the University of Montana, some librarians feel that in general library reference will fade away, while other librarians think that it is here to stay and will evolve. The general feeling is that both digital and traditional reference services will coexist and work with each other. As technology becomes more sophisticated, libraries will use digital reference more and more. It is convenient and many users have Internet access and live in a digital world. The move toward a more digital world has become has apparent in libraries, with digital readers and music downloads. Because of this librarians will need to rely more and more on material found online rather than print sources. The problem with this is that reference librarians providing patrons with online resources will soon not be enough. One of the major requests made by reference librarians to vendors is to have the capability to scan material in print and send a PDF to the user. Also currently and in the future, academic libraries and municipal libraries alike will become part of larger consortium in which information is shared. Besides providing 24/7 service, libraries will be able to decrease their collections budgets and take advantage of special collections provided by other libraries. Soon reference librarians of the future will be able to talk to and see the digital reference users, walk around the library showing resources, and scan and send information from in print materials and online sources. The good thing is that digital referencing is still young and as technology changes, it could only improve.

Ref: http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~mbolin/zanin-yost.htm

Digital Reference Videos

Beside trying to explain all the ins and out of digital referencing. Here are a few videos that can explain how it works.

This is from Syracuse University library and shows using the ask a librarian chat on their website.

Here are other videos that may help.

Libraries and New Technology

I was reading a an Associated Press article on the Washington Post website about how libraries are keeping up with the technology age. The article does not talk about digital referencing but because of technology you would think that people would stay away from the library but the article states different. Here is a link Libraries Launch apps to sync with iPod generation

What are your opinions on this?