Ohio Reference
Excellence
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Purpose
Ohio Reference Excellence (ORE)
Contents
 Purpose
What's New
New
Resources
Guidelines
History and
Background
Purpose
The ORE goal is to improve the quality of reference service in Ohio
and to expand training access to include everyone, anytime, at any pace. The emphasis of
ORE on the Web is the reference process, whether service is provided in-house or with
remote technology. Modules include exercises and quizzes, plus Ohio library photos,
stories, and links.
Library 2.0 and
Virtual Reference
What's new? A current catchphrase is "Go where
the users are." New technologies - and new generations - create new demands
for mobile services such as
developing library blogs to promote services, using wiki software to involve
users in creating web site content, creating webcasts (Podcasts), working to
integrate the catalog with other online systems for seamless information
delivery, and subscribing to RSS feeds to keep up with the latest concepts. These technologies are part of Library 2.0, a term
describing use in libraries of Web 2.0, the second phase of development of
the World Wide Web.
The new wave of web technologies is primarily
collaborative. Many library users are dedicated to online communities for
work, recreation, and sharing all aspects of life. Users no longer rely on
big publishers and news corporations for information needs. Libraries should
consider the advantages of the social aspect of these new Internet
applications when planning and marketing reference services.
The mission of the library remains commitment to meeting community needs.
That commitment now requires understanding not just new technologies, but differences between digital
natives and digital immigrants (those who have grown up online and those who
are working hard just to keep up!). Many library users depend
on mobile devices for working and playing. When providing services, it's
critical to consider changing needs and motivations of all user groups.
The different generations have
different styles of getting and using information. Ease
with technology is one outstanding difference. "Millennials, also known as
Generation Y, the Net Generation, the Digital Generation, the Echo Boom
generation were born during the period of about 1980 – 2001 and are in our
schools, universities, and recently have entered adulthood. And while only
the youngest of this Millennial generation, sometimes known as Generation
Z, have been surrounded by digital technology from infancy, the others
have grown up and have extensive experience with the web and other
technologies. These “digital natives” often pose a challenge to
librarians, many of whom are Boomers or Generation X and are “digital
immigrants.”
[Articles about different
generations are summarized in
Digital Native or
Digital Immigrant. UI Current LIS Clips, March 2006. Compiled and annotated by Marianne
Steadley.]
Virtual Reference
New generations are using virtual reference
services. The value versus costs of virtual reference is under debate, but a
recent Library Journal report emphasizes that statewide collaboratives are cost-effective,
well-used, and especially used by teens. "Data from groups such as University of
Southern California's Center for the Digital Future and Pew Internet & American
Life Project indicate that as today's children mature, the trend will be toward
increased use, with younger children added as new users. Statewide cooperatives
set expectations among teens that they will carry with them into college and
adulthood, so the full impact won't be seen for two to five years."
[Virtual Reference: Alive & Well, by Brenda Bailey-Hainer. LibraryJournal.com,
January 15, 2005]
Ohio Reference Excellence remote reference services pages.
Resources
Keeping up with News Sources and Search Engines,
Searching Blogs and Podcasts
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LITA Tool Kit for the Expert Web Searcher is now an ALA wiki! This
site describes and
evaluates different types of search engines. Categories include Subject Guides, Search Engines, News Searching,
Blog Searching, Metasearch Engines and Search Engine Collections, Global Searching, Multimedia Searching,
Podcast Searching, The Invisible Web, and Search Engine News.
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Bloglines RSS feeds
supply news from hundreds of blogs and news sites, allowing you to check
the headlines in a newsreader.
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Technorati tracks
who's linking to you, posts the top topics in blogs at the moment, and
lets you find blogs on particular topics.
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Digg is a technology
news website that combines social bookmarking, blogging, RSS, and
non-hierarchical editorial control. Users submit stories for review, and
users decide which stories go on a page.
New Ways to Promote or Deliver Reference Services
- Virtual Reference: Alive & Well, by Brenda Bailey-Hainer. LibraryJournal.com,
January 15, 2005
- New Ways of Delivering Service: Blogs and RSS.
Ian Baaske, North Suburban Library System, March 31, 2006.
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Librarymarketing.blogspot.com covers current marketing ideas and issues,
has great resource links and lists relevant blog categories.
- "Harness
the Marketing Power of Blogs" from Entrepreneur.com is a short article
about how and why blogs are great marketing tools. It lists how
organizations can benefit from blogs and some tips for being a successful
blogger.
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Some available podcast directory services are www.podcast.net,
www.podcastalley.com,
www.ipodder.org, and
podcastdirectory.com.
Yahoo! has a list of podcast directories) that have top
10, reviews, comments, etc.
Working with Market Segments: Generations and Diversity
Current Guidelines
The following guidelines from ALA and IFLA are a recommended
starting point for any library interested in current reference policies and practices.
Guidelines for Behavioral Performance of Reference and Information Service Providers,
American Library Association Reference and User Services Association (ALA RUSA). Revised
by MOUSS Management of Reference Committee and approved by the RUSA Board of Directors,
June 2004. URL is http://www.ala.org/ala/rusa
/rusaprotools/referenceguide
/guidelinesbehavioral.htm,
visited August 2007.
Professional
Competencies for Reference and User Services Librarians, American Library Association
Reference and User Services Association (ALA RUSA), 2003. URL is
http://www.ala.org/ala/rusa
/rusaprotools/referenceguide
/professional.htm,
visited August 2007.
Guidelines
for Information Services, American Library Association Reference and User Services
Association (ALA RUSA), 2000. URL is http://www.ala.org/ala/rusa
/rusaprotools/referenceguide
/guidelinesinformation.htm,
visited August 2007.
Guidelines
for Implementing and Maintaining Virtual Reference Services. Prepared by the MARS
Digital Reference Guidelines Ad Hoc Committee, American Library Association Reference and
User Services Association (ALA RUSA), 2004. Approved by the RUSA Board of Directors June
2004. Section 3.3, Service Behaviors, et.al. URL is http://www.ala.org/ala/rusa
/rusaprotools/referenceguide
/virtrefguidelines.htm,
visited August 2007.
Digital Reference
Guidelines, Reference and Information Services Section, Standing Committee on
Reference Work, International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA),
2003. Latest page Revision: April 19, 2005. URL is http://www.ifla.org/VII
/s36/pubs/drg03.htm, visited August 2007.
Guidelines for the Introduction of Electronic Information Resources to Users, 2006, are intended to assist librarians who provide and publicize new electronic information resources to users and potential users. URL is http://www.ala.org/ala/rusa/rusaprotools
/referenceguide/guidelinesintroduction.htm, visited August 2007.
History and Background
Ohio Reference Excellence on the Web was based on the ORE
Manual, 2nd Edition, A Self-study Reference Course, developed by the Ohio Library
Council's Reference and Information
Services Division ORE Task Force. The ORE Manual was an adaptation of MORE: Minnesota
Opportunities for Reference Excellence and CORE: California Opportunities for Reference
Excellence. The Manual was used for two years as the basis for ORE workshops around Ohio.
ORE on the Web was adapted for the Web in 2000 and is revised annually, adding new links
and content about the latest developments in reference service.
Project consulting, web adaptation, content authoring, annual
revision, instructional and web design is by Deana
Noack Web Design, edited by Jennyann Noack, 2000-2007. Also see copyright, credits, and contributor information.
Instructions for using the modules
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Project consultant, content authoring, annual revision, instructional
and web design: Deana Noack Web Design, edited by
Jennyann Noack, 2000-2007. ORE on the Web was commissioned by OLC with support from the State Library of Ohio and based on ORE Manual.
Photos of Ohio libraries who contributed to the project are featured on
many pages. Some photos are linked to larger versions. Click linked photos to see the
larger images.
Photos have either a text or a pop-up caption that appears when the cursor hovers over the
image.
Putnam County District Library
London Public Library staff work with individual patrons.
Everyone has reference experiences to share and stories to tell.
Learn from others! Photos and stories reflect the nature of reference work - working
with people.
Reference work comes in two flavors: "I love working with people," and
"This job would be great if I didn't have to work with people!"
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Overview
Interview
People
Strategies
Resources
Ethics
