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This paper summarizes a research program that focuses on how catalogers, other cultural heritage information workers, web/Semantic Web technologists, and the general public understand, explain, and manage resource description tasks by creating, counting, measuring, classifying, and otherwise arranging descriptions of cultural heritage resources within the bibliographic universe and beyond it. A significant effort is made to update the nineteenth- century mathematical and scientific ideas present in traditional cataloging theory to their twentieth- and twenty-first-century counterparts. There are two key elements in this approach: (1) a technique for diagrammatically depicting and manipulating large quantities of individual and grouped bibliographic entities and the relationships between them, and (2) the creation of resource description exemplars (problem-solution sets) that are intended to play theoretical, pedagogical, and IT system design roles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Libraries are increasingly searching for and employing librarians with significant technology skill sets. This article reports on a study conducted to determine how well prepared librarians are for their positions in academic libraries, how they acquired their skills and how difficult they are to hire and retain. The examination entails a close look at ALA-accredited LIS program technology course offerings and dovetails a dual survey designed to capture experiences and perspectives from practitioners, both library administrators and librarians who have significant technology roles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper describes a method to generate ontologies from glossaries of terms. The proposed method presupposes an evolutionary life cycle based on successive transformations of the original glossary that lead to products of intermediate knowledge representation (dictionary, taxonomy, and thesaurus). These products are characterized by an increase in semantic expressiveness in comparison to the product obtained in the previous transformation, with the ontology as the end product. Although this method has been applied to produce an ontology from the "IEEE Standard Glossary of Software Engineering Terminology," it could be applied to any glossary of any knowledge domain to generate an ontology that may be used to index or search for information resources and documents stored in libraries or on the Semantic Web. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The concept of a classified catalog, or using classification as a form of subject access, has been almost forgotten by contemporary librarians. Recent developments indicate that this is changing as libraries seek to enhance the capabilities of their online catalogs. The Western North Carolina Library Network (WNCLN) has developed a "classified browse" feature for its shared online catalog that makes use of Library of Congress classification. While this feature is not expected to replace keyword searching, it offers both novice and experienced library users another way of identifying relevant materials. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of the technology brief is to familiarize library decision-makers with the opportunities and challenges of participatory networks. In order to accomplish this goal the brief is divided into four sections (excluding an overview and a detailed statement of goal): ∎ a conceptual framework for understanding and evaluating participatory networks; ∎ a discussion of key concepts and technologies in participatory networks drawn primarily from Web 2.0 and Library 2.0; ∎ a merging of the conceptual framework with the technological discussion to present a roadmap for library systems development; and ∎ a set of recommendations to foster greater discussion and action on the topic of participatory networks and, more broadly, participatory librarianship. This summary will highlight the discussions in each of these four topics. For consistency, the section numbers and titles from the full brief are used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study describes the life cycle of a library Web site created with a user-centered design process to serve a graduate school of library and information science (LIS). Findings based on a heuristic evaluation and usability study were applied in an iterative redesign of the site to better serve the needs of this special academic library population. Recommendations for design of Web-based services for library patrons from LIS programs are discussed, as well as implications for Web sites for special libraries within larger academic library settings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on how to make a successful production of a scholarly article in librarianship.

The representation of information content by graphical maps is an extended ongoing research topic. The objective of this article consists in verifying whether it is possible to create map displays using Universal Decimal Classification (UDC) codes (using co-classification analysis) for the purpose of creating a graphical table of contents for a library collection. The application of UDC codes was introduced to subject maps development using the following graphic representation methods: (1) multidimensional scaling; (2) cluster analysis; and (3) neural networks (self-organizing maps). Finally, the authors conclude that the different kinds of maps have slightly different degrees of viability and types of application. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Traditionally, standard catalog records have provided bibliographic data that mostly address the basic features of library resources. At the same time, catalogs have offered access to these records through a limited array of names, titles, series, subject headings, class numbers, and a relatively small number of keywords contained within descriptions. Today's catalog users expect access to information well beyond what can be offered by traditional approaches to bibliographic description and access. By pursuing a suite of projects, the Library of Congress (LC) has responded to the challenge of enticing patrons to continue to include the online catalog among the tools they use for information retrieval. Drawing extensively on the power of automation, staff of LC's Bibliographic Enrichment Advisory Team (BEAT) have created and implemented a variety of initiatives to link researchers, catalogs, and Web resources; increase the content of the catalog record; and link the catalog to electronic resources. BEAT's ongoing work demonstrates how, in the electronic era, it is possible to provide new and improved ways to capitalize on traditional services in the digital age. This paper will illustrate these points by focusing on BEAT's tables of contents projects to demonstrate how library automation can make significant bibliographic enhancement efforts quick, easy, and affordable to achieve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author discusses the decision of the American Library Association (ALA) to adopt sustainability as one of the core values of librarianship at the 2019 Midwinter Meeting. Topics mentioned include ALA's deliberations about reinventing the ALA Midwinter in 2021, the merger between the Association for Library Collections and Technical Services and Library Leadership & Management Association, and the plan of the Steering Committee on Organizational Effectiveness to streamline ALA's structure.

The E-rate program has provided tremendous benefits to libraries, allowing many libraries and library systems to acquire technological equipment and services that would otherwise be too expensive, increasing the availability of public Internet access through libraries. This article analyzes the data related to the E-rate program and the discounts that it has provided to libraries and library systems between 2000 and 2004. By examining the E-rate data in a longitudinal manner, this article explores the trends in the application for and the provision of E-rate discounts to libraries and library consortia at national and state levels. The data suggest that, despite a number of controversies over the years, the program has provided a significant level of support for libraries and library consortia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For more than a decade, a consortium of academic libraries in southern Nevada has shared a central integrated online library system (IOLS), Innovative Interfaces' Innopac (Innovative when referring to the vendor, Innopac when referring to the software). At present, this consortium includes the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) (both the main university library system and the UNLV law library), the Community College of Southern Nevada, Nevada State College, and the Desert Research Institute. The last central-site server was purchased and installed in 1997. In the four intervening years, tremendous growth occurred with the system, necessitating a hardware upgrade. Prior to committing to a fiscally significant hardware upgrade, library management felt it prudent to conduct an analysis of the library-system-vendor marketplace in general, to validate the consortium's continued commitment to the existing vendor. This article discusses background assessment work and the subsequent planning and installation of the consortium's new central-site hardware. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Internet was first created as a communications net- work, but it has produced myriad effects in many sectors of technology, business, and society. Among these important changes are the growth of electronic publishing and the increasing use of the Internet as a medium for disseminating diverse documents, literature, art, journal- ism, commentary, and miscellaneous expressions of information and thought. Digital media, and the rise of Internet distribution of it, has caused profound changes in librarianship as well. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bibliomining, or data mining for libraries, is the application of data mining and bibliometric tools to data produced from library services. This article outlines the bibliomining process with emphasis on data warehousing issues. Methods for cleaning and anonymizing library data are presented with examples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a study that seeks to apply data warehousing and data mining technologies in the development of a Library Decision Support System to aid the library management's decision making. Local environment; Library data sources; System architecture; Data cleansing and extraction; Graphical user interface; Data mining tool; Decision support by querying the warehouse.

The article focuses on the concept of grassroots leader librarianship and the characteristics and responsibilities associated with it. Topics include the author's personal journey and realization of the importance of thinking critically and questioning the status quo, the three prominent characteristics of bottom-up leadership, and the principles and practices of grassroots leader librarianship.

Presents a survey conducted to measure the performance of the merging algorithm used to generate the now defunct Union List of Monographs file. Results showing a greater proportion of missed-matches than was anticipated, especially in the matching of Hebrew bibliographic records; Conclusions and recommendations.

In 2007, a web-based survey of book conservation practices was conducted to document standard-practice, moderate-use, and low-use book conservation treatments for general and special collections in research libraries in the United States. This paper reports on the findings of a ten-year follow-up survey conducted in 2017 to determine whether and how book conservation treatment practices have changed over the last ten years. Overall, the data indicate that while general collections treatment practices have remained consistent, special collections practices continue to evolve, with many treatments newly qualifying as standard practice in the special collections context since 2007. The data also suggest areas of further research, including how demographic factors may correlate with particular treatment practices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study surveyed the current state of knowledge about, and application or use of, Resource Description and Access (RDA) among American public library catalogers. In 2017, an online survey request was e-mailed to four thousand libraries for the person or persons most responsible for cataloging to complete the questionnaire. More than three hundred libraries responded. The data expose serious concerns with RDA adoption within the public library sector. While a majority of catalogers know about RDA, their working knowledge about it differs substantially depending on whether they work in rural or urban library settings. Regardless, 22 percent of respondants still had not heard of the RDA standard until completing this survey. While further training and educational opportunities (along with funds) for catalogers nationwide would help minimize this disparity, LIS schools also can play a role by educating more thoroughly the next generations of catalogers in this newer descriptive standard. Coming on the brink of a shift in the theoretical framework of the RDA standard, from the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) model to the IFLA Library Reference Model (LRM), public library catalogers risk falling even farther behind in their knowledge and compitency with the RDA standard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents an analysis of e-book usage in one interdisciplinary research collection, for library and information science (LIS), at a large research institution. Drawing from the social sciences, humanities, and computer science, LIS exemplifies the challenge of analyzing use of interdisciplinary collections that cut across Library of Congress (LC) class ranges normally used to analyze disciplinary differences in the existing literature. The analysis also explores use factors beyond LC class that usage studies rarely examine, including genre and audience level, and changes in use over time across categories. This study contributes both to understanding the usage of LIS e-books as an exemplary interdisciplinary collection and to developing options for analyses of e-book collections that maximize the utility of usage reports despite their challenges. As e-book collections mature and the utility of comparing used versus unused titles wanes, such strategies will become necessary to make more nuanced decisions for e-book collections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Academic libraries use two common methods to reach first-year students: outreach activities and library instruction. The purpose of this study was to discover if curriculum mapping techniques commonly used in library instruction could be applied to outreach to explore the synergies and differences between programs. The project demonstrated that mapping was an effective tool for gaining insight into interrelated outcomes, resource allocation, consistency of library messaging, and students reached by each program. Curriculum mapping proved a useful method for creating strategic and intentional instruction and outreach programs that complement rather than compete with each other. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over the past decade, evidence from disciplines ranging from biology to economics has suggested that many scientific studies may not be reproducible. This has led to declarations in both the scientific and lay press that science is experiencing a "reproducibility crisis" and that this crisis has consequences for the extent to which students, faculty, and the public at large can trust research. Faculty build on these results with their own research, and students and the public use these results for everything from patient care to public policy. To build a model for how academic libraries can support reproducible research, the authors conducted a review of major guidelines from funders, publishers, and professional societies. Specific recommendations were extracted from guidelines and compared with existing academic library services and librarian expertise. The authors believe this review shows that many of the recommendations for improving reproducibility are core areas of academic librarianship, including data management, scholarly communication, and methodological support for systematic reviews and data-intensive research. By increasing our knowledge of disciplinary, journal, funder, and society perspectives on reproducibility, and reframing existing librarian expertise and services, academic librarians will be well positioned to be leaders in supporting reproducible research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although studies related to diversity within librarianship as a profession are increasing, few have examined librarians with disabilities--and none so far have included their voices or perspectives. This qualitative study involved interviews with ten academic librarians with disabilities in Canada. With a grounding in the social model of disability, it examines their workplace experiences and concerns and the barriers they face within the context of cultural assumptions about disability and work, finding that the major barriers encountered are lack of awareness of disability issues and negative cultural stereotypes of disability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An editorial is presented on authorship norms across disciplines in academic libraries. Topics discussed include importance of authorship in librarianship; list of several authorship guidelines developed by editorial groups like American Bar Association, American Chemical Society, and American Mathematical Society; and views on ethical issues in authorship practices.

Growth in online course delivery has created challenges and opportunities for academic librarians. Working with an online undergraduate course for adult students, three academic librarians revised their model for embedded practice, focusing on high touch and quality contact with the students. Using a citation analysis of final papers collected over several quarters, we compared sufficiency of sources, quality of sources, selection of sources, and diversity of perspectives in bibliographies created before and after our revised curriculum. Findings show that our added attention to this cohort resulted in improvements across all of these metrics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses new roles in which librarians are involved in past 10 years and examines the current state of reference and liaison librarianship. It discusses the roles of liaison librarians that include building relationships, listening to people's information needs, and making the connection to an information sources. It also discusses the role of reference librarians as makerspace who conducts programming for students and faculty on the possibilities of new and emerging technologies.

An important component of the academic health librarian role is the establishment of interventions to support the development of student skills in evidence-based practice. It is important for practicing librarians to evaluate their activities to determine effectiveness and to inform decision making and best practice in librarianship. A series of six online modules was developed for a core first-year Bachelor of Nursing unit. Modules were subsequently investigated for impact on student learning of evidence-based practice by determining any correlation between students' completion of the modules and their academic performance. The level of students' interest and engagement was also examined through a survey about their experiences of and attitudes toward the modules. A positive correlation was found between module completion and attainment of higher grades by students. Feedback from the survey indicated that students engaged positively with the modules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article reports the results of a 2015 survey that updates and extends the authors' 2010 survey of academic librarians, to learn of the current state of their attitudes, involvement, and perceived capabilities in the research process. A key change in the 2015 survey is the use of an expanded research confidence scale, designed by the authors. They also added questions on research training and institutional support for research. The results of this survey add to the growing body of research examining the success factors for librarian-researchers. Research selfefficacy continues to be a predictor of research success. Institutional support for research, including both formal and informal mentorship, is increasing and associated with research success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article identifies variations that are within the credit-bearing information literacy (IL) programs of a group of similar libraries: Idaho State University's peer institutions that have been formally designated by the Idaho State Board of Education. This group of institutions shares two common characteristics-that is, they are public and are doctoral-granting schools-and vary in many others, according to Carnegie classification system data. Motivated by a desire to evaluate the current status of their own instruction program within the context of the university's official peer institutions, the authors gathered reported data from their peers and coupled these data with information from personal interviews with the coordinators of instruction at peer institutions. This method of collecting the data provided context for the interview questions that would follow and revealed nuanced qualitative ideas and issues such as best practices within this cohort. The process of scoping the study, identifying comparisons with peers and analysis of results, will be useful to other libraries making decisions about the impact and directions of their instruction programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Conservation documentation provides important information about a library's collections, including condition assessments and treatment decisions. Paper files or local databases, however, can make this information unavailable to most library staff and create problems for searching and preservation. To avoid these problems, in 2016, Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) started using the MARC 583 field to record conservation documentation for items in the Special Collections Library. By placing this information in the catalog record, conservation information was publicly viewable, searchable, and protected by regular database backups. This article describes the process of implementing the MARC 583 field at Penn State for conservation documentation, including selecting standards, encoding the field, and outcomes from the project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article the author talks about the digital platform which provided editors and readers with a download count, the first hard look at how the journal contents reach readers. It mentions that the journal advertised the pending vacancy and invited applications and a genuinely open search, a committee of editorial board members interviewed all of the applicants.