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Since their inception, virtual reference services have evolved considerably and are now a significant component of library services in many types of library environments. The current paper reports on a study undertaken at a researchintensive academic library that analyzed and evaluated a decade-old virtual reference service. The main goal of the study was to obtain a broad and comprehensive picture of the current service, grounded in the actual day-to-day provision, usage, and organization of the service. The group of librarians involved in the study developed a feasible, efficient, and adaptable methodology for assessing and evaluating a virtual reference service. The developed methodology that combines qualitative and quantitative methods can be used and applied for a similar evaluation of the service in any type of library environment.

Interacting with patrons is the heart of reference services, but it is not always possible to meet face-to-face. This paper details the results of the testing of a telepresence robot for reference services. Telepresence systems allow for two way audio and video communication between remote parties; by combining telepresence with robotics this two way communication can happen anywhere. Adding telepresence capabilities to the existing suit of reference services on offer was meant to expand the reach of librarians throughout the building. However limitations in hardware and software mean the platform is not currently sufficient for reference services.

Although much has appeared in the literature regarding the initiation of virtual reference services, to date a case study discussing online reference service's integration into an academic library's current suite of reference services has not been written. At the University of Saskatchewan, the integration process forced the library to take a broader look at reference services as a whole and address several questions: What is reference? How should it be delivered? Who should provide it? On what reference service values are decisions being based? To facilitate the integration, it was necessary to identify the needs of our users and re-examine the core values of our reference service accordingly. This analysis resulted in system-wide changes to all of the library's reference services. The paper concludes with a set of planning recommendations that will be useful for college and university libranes currently considering, or presently offering, a virtual reference or instant messaging service and aspinng to incorporate the service permanently into their suite of reference services.

Reference service, the idea that librarians provide direct assistance to users, has been a central function of libraries for over a century. Today’s libraries are even more complex and intimidating to new users than libraries of the past, and the technical and social contexts in which users experience their library’s resources add to this complexity. The availability of a friendly librarian who helps users find materials, search for information on a topic, interpret citations, identify quality information, and format bibliographies has become a standard component of what libraries do. However, changes in technologies, economics, and user populations are causing many libraries to question the need and function of traditional reference services. This book examines how library services meet user needs in the twenty-first century. Many libraries are asking key questions about reference services, such as: Should librarians be on call waiting for users or out in the community promoting the library? Should we assign staff to help users one-on-one or is it more effective to assign them to build and use tools to teach users how to find and evaluate information? Will we continue to purchase commercial reference sources or just use Wikipedia and other free resources on the web? With the proliferation of information available today, how can we help users evaluate search results and select the best resources that they can find? And how do we evaluate the effectiveness of reference services? Through contributions from the leading scholars and practitioners in the field, this volume addresses such issues and how they affect practices in public and academic libraries. In addition, it presents perspectives from the publishing community and the creators of discovery tools. Each section is enhanced by short case studies that highlight real-world practices and experiences.

The purpose of this study was to determine the effective behaviors of reference librarians during the chat reference interview, with particular emphasis given to whether the service users would feel more satisfied when librarians adopt the behaviors recommended in the revised \"RUSA Guidelines for Behavioral Performance of Reference and Information Services Providers.\" The data analyzed for this study consisted of 422 chat reference transaction transcripts and corresponding user surveys obtained from a public library system that participated in a nationwide chat reference consortium. In six of the ten behavioral types observed, the users perceived the service as more satisfying when librarians demonstrated the behaviors suggested in the revised guidelines than when they did not. Five of these behaviors—receptive and cordial listening, searching information sources with or for the patrons, providing information sources, asking patrons whether the question was answered completely, and asking patrons to return when they need further assistance—were revealed as strong predictors of user satisfaction. These findings demonstrated that the RUSA behaviors are effective in increasing user satisfaction, suggesting that the guidelines can continue to be used as an effective tool for both staff training and service assessment in chat reference services. This report concludes with recommendations for further improvement of the guidelines and agendas for future research.

As virtual reference services (VRS) have become vital alternatives to traditional face-to-face (FtF) and phone reference, guidelines for best practices emerged to ensure that users are being well served across different modes of service delivery. Yet much remains to be understood about whether and how the essential process of query clarification occurs in the live chat reference environment. This study is among the first large-scale analyses of chat transcripts from libraries of different types, sizes, and world-wide geographic regions. It reports results from a qualitative analysis of a random sample of 850 transcripts from Question Point, a 24/7/365 cooperative reference service administered by OCLC Online Computer Library Center with one thousand plus member libranes across the world. A Query Clarification Coding Scheme was developed as part of the analysis by using the constant comparative method. Close reading and evaluation of the transcripts revealed that librarians ask clarifying questions heavily before searching, while users generally offer clarification of their information need more often during the searching process. Both groups clarify to seek or offer information about the query topic and background; search history; and extent, depth, and type of resource needed. They also clarify to verify understanding and correct misunderstanding. Results indicate that accuracy was enhanced for librarians who used clarifying questions in answenng ready reference (factual) questions. Although highly recommended query clarification techniques, especially using the follow-up question before logging off, are generally prescribed to improve accuracy, only 50 percent of libranans used follow-up questions and 33 percent of all questions asked to users were open questions. These findings suggest that emphasis on increasing these two techniques during VRS librarian training will improve the effectiveness of chat reference. Additionally, users with queries related to school, academic, or work-related information seeking were found to compuse 26 percent of the analyzed transactions, suggesting important implications for further research efforts as well as VRS librarian training and practice.

Users want real-time answers to their reference questions wherever and whenever they are. Increasingly, that means SMS and IM services. Providing those is easier than you might think!

Uniquely positioned to connect library users to the information they seek, and thus to the wider world, library staff who serve on the front lines of reference have both the power and responsibility to position the library as an institution that remains relevant and responsive. This collection takes a critical look at the overarching trends that affect current library policy and practice regarding the process of delivering information services, and how factors such as public policy, economics, and popular culture will continue to affect those trends in the future. Library leaders and visionaries from across the spectrum of institutions address such topics as The history of reference librarianship and how it relates to the current landscape Privacy, censorship, and reference ethics The effects of the \"born digital\" library user on the purpose and function of reference Strategic challenges for reference in the coming decade A reference forecast for 2025Placing these issues in historical and cultural context, this book offers practical solutions for new paradigms of reference service for all users.

Traditionally, library professionals have used a variety of ready reference technologies to assist in providing reference and user services. Technologies such as card files, vertical files, and reference notebooks are frequent components of library service desks. Ready reference technologies serve many purposes, most notably, helping staff to answer frequently asked questions and facilitating the sharing of information between library staff. This paper traces the development of the Virtual Notebook, a wiki-based ready reference technology, at Purdue University. The tool is placed within the historical context of ready reference technologies within the library profession and at Purdue. The authors present preliminary results from the implementation of the Virtual Notebook and discuss the tool's future. The manuscript is an outgrowth of a presentation at the 2008 Brick and Click Symposium at Northwest Missouri State University.