The reference desk or information desk of a library is a public service counter where professional librarians provide library users with direction to library materials, advice on library collections and services, and expertise on multiple kinds of information from multiple sources.
A librarian is a person who works professionally in a library providing access to information, and sometimes social or technical programming, or instruction on information literacy to users.
An online school teaches students entirely or primarily online or through the Internet. It has been defined as "education that uses one or more technologies to deliver instruction to students who are separated from the instructor and to support regular and substantive interaction between the students. Online education exists all around the world and is used for all levels of education. This type of learning enables the individuals to earn transferable credits, take recognized examinations, and advance to the next level of education over the Internet.
Digital reference is a service by which a library reference service is conducted online, and the reference transaction is a computer-mediated communication. It is the remote, computer-mediated delivery of reference information provided by library professionals to users who cannot access or do not want face-to-face communication. Virtual reference service is most often an extension of a library's existing reference service program. The word "reference" in this context refers to the task of providing assistance to library users in finding information, answering questions, and otherwise fulfilling users’ information needs. Reference work often but not always involves using reference works, such as dictionaries, encyclopedias, etc. This form of reference work expands reference services from the physical reference desk to a "virtual" reference desk where the patron could be writing from home, work or a variety of other locations.
The California Digital Library (CDL) was founded by the University of California in 1997. Under the leadership of then UC President Richard C. Atkinson, the CDL's original mission was to forge a better system for scholarly information management and improved support for teaching and research. In collaboration with the ten University of California Libraries and other partners, CDL assembled one of the world's largest digital research libraries. CDL facilitates the licensing of online materials and develops shared services used throughout the UC system. Building on the foundations of the Melvyl Catalog, CDL has developed one of the largest online library catalogs in the country and works in partnership with the UC campuses to bring the treasures of California's libraries, museums, and cultural heritage organizations to the world. CDL continues to explore how services such as digital curation, scholarly publishing, archiving and preservation support research throughout the information lifecycle.
A reference interview is a conversation between a librarian and a library user, usually at a reference desk, in which the librarian responds to the user's initial explanation of his or her information need by first attempting to clarify that need and then by directing the user to appropriate information resources. Library user's need must be satisfied in any case on Reference interview.
An academic library is a library that is attached to a higher education institution and serves two complementary purposes: to support the curriculum and the research of the university faculty and students. It is unknown how many academic libraries there are worldwide. An academic and research portal maintained by UNESCO links to 3,785 libraries. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, there are an estimated 3,700 academic libraries in the United States. In the past, the material for class readings, intended to supplement lectures as prescribed by the instructor, has been called reserves. Previously before the electronic appliances became available, the reserves were supplied as actual books or as photocopies of appropriate journal articles. Modern academic libraries generally also provide access to electronic resources.
The Texas A&M University Libraries support the teaching, research, and outreach missions of Texas A&M University through leadership in acquiring, managing, and delivering information in an environment that fosters learning and inquiry. In particular, Texas A&M is nationally and internationally recognized for many research collections, including:
An open textbook is a textbook licensed under an open license, and made available online to be freely used by students, teachers and members of the public. Many open textbooks are distributed in either print, e-book, or audio formats that may be downloaded or purchased at little or no cost.
The University of North Carolina at Greensboro University Libraries system has two branches on campus, both located in Greensboro, NC. These include the Walter Clinton Jackson Library and the Harold Schiffman Music Library. Affiliated campus libraries include the Teaching Resource Center and SELF Design Studio in the School of Education, the Interior Architecture Library in the Gatewood Studio Arts Building, and the Intercultural Resource Center located in the Elliot University Center. During the fall and spring semesters, Jackson Library provides a 24/5 study space for UNCG students, faculty and staff with UNCG ID from 12 am Monday – 7:00 am Friday. Michael A. Crumpton is the current Interim Dean of the libraries.
A virtual assistant (VA) is a software agent that can perform a range of tasks or services for a user based on user input such as commands or questions, including verbal ones. Such technologies often incorporate chatbot capabilities to simulate human conversation, such as via online chat, to facilitate interaction with their users. The interaction may be via text, graphical interface, or voice - as some virtual assistants are able to interpret human speech and respond via synthesized voices.
Knowledge Ontario was a non-profit organization supporting a number of related province-wide initiatives in Ontario, Canada, providing library and information resources, learning experiences and related services to people across all ages, locations, education levels and cultural institutions. Knowledge Ontario comprised five projects: Ask Ontario, Connect Ontario, Learn Ontario, Our Ontario and Resource Ontario, as well as the eResources Portal, which was launched in 2010. Knowledge Ontario has ceased operations, effective December 31, 2012.
A virtual learning environment (VLE) in educational technology is a web-based platform for the digital aspects of courses of study, usually within educational institutions. They present resources, activities, and interactions within a course structure and provide for the different stages of assessment. VLEs also usually report on participation and have some level of integration with other institutional systems. In North America, VLEs are often referred to as Learning Management Systems (LMS).
The Balme Library, established in 1948 is located on the main campus of the University of Ghana. The Balme Library was named after David Mowbray Balme, the first Principal of the University of Ghana. The Balme Library is the main library of the University of Ghana and is also the largest within the University of Ghana Library System (UGLS). It is endowed with information resources, IT infrastructure and expert staff. Since its establishment in 1948, the library has gone through successive growth with its printed book collection totaling over 400,000 volumes. The library subscribes to an increasing number of online databases including electronic journals (e-journals) and electronic books (e-books).
The University Library at the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign is the network of libraries, including both physical and virtual library spaces, which serves the university's students, faculty, and staff, as well as scholars and researchers worldwide. The University Library continues to evolve to serve the needs of the University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign campus.
The Harold Andersen Library is the university library of the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater. The building was named after Harold Gilbert Andersen, and ground breaking and construction for the building began on April 9, 1951.
Libraries in virtual worlds are part of an immersive 3D environment that can be used for entertainment and educational purposes. Due to increasing interest in digital services, some libraries and librarians have established virtual services in Second Life and other virtual worlds.
The Florida Electronic Library (FEL) was founded in 2003 to provide nearly 200 million articles, ebooks, and other digital resources to the citizens of Florida. The FEL partners with Florida's public libraries in order to enhance the availability of resources and services to patrons.
The University of Manitoba Libraries (UML) is the academic library system for the University of Manitoba. UML is made up of over a dozen libraries across two campuses—the main campus and the urban, health sciences campus (Bannatyne)—as well as one virtual library, the Winnipeg Regional Health Authority Virtual Library. It is also a member of the U15 Group of Canadian Research Universities.
The Library of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean was established in 1948 as part of the creation of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean; this coincided with the inauguration of the Economic Commission for Latin America by the United Nations, in support of its mandate in the region. The Library has four branches: the Hernán Santa Cruz Library in Santiago, the Centro de Recursos de Información y Distribución de Documentos in México D.F., the Raúl Prebisch Library in Brasilia and the Caribbean Knowledge Management Centre in Port of Spain. These four form the ECLAC Library.
