Random Thoughts at the End of the Semester

The continuing trend of decreasing transactions at the reference desk was the most disappointing issue for me this year. Also, less people have contacted me through e-mail, phone or in person despite many efforts of outreach. What are the possible reasons?

1. Information literacy efforts have succeeded. Students know how to effectively use the resources that we provide.

2. The publishers provide resources that are used with minimal training.

It was frustrating this year to face a limit budget for print and electronic resources. The dollar amount was flat but the costs of books, serials, and databases are rising above the rate of inflation. Since we are a research university a decision was made to spend more on journals and databases than books. I understand this but the book budget is so poor :)

This year I became interested in the VALE OLS (Open Library System) known as VALID. I have done some reading on the new generation of library catalogs and look forward to its implementation. I will be on a panel at the VALE meeting in January to discuss issues relating to the discovery tools.

The QANDANJ chat reference service ends on December 31. I have mixed feelings about chat reference which I have expressed in this blog. I do hope that the libraries in New Jersey will be able to find the funds to participate in a similar service in the future.

My best wishes for a happy holiday season for all of my readers

The NJIT Library Holiday Party

It is said that a picture is worth a thousand words.  The library staff had our annual holiday party at the Spanish Tavern in the Ironbound section of Newark

QANDANJ to Cease on December 31, 2011

The announcement was made on the web site today that the service is ending at the end of the year. It also states "discussions are ongoing regarding future plans for a new service." If readers of NJITBRUCE search this blog under QANDANJ they will find many comments that I have made over the years about specific reference questions and chat reference in general.  I have mixed feelings about its demise.  I have fielded many challenging questions through this service, but many of the patrons were disrespectful as they posed nuisance questions and often demanded an instant answer to a difficult question.

Michael Maziekien, the chair of the NJLA Taskforce on Virtual Reference reports that they are looking into other services and possible funding sources to continue chat reference.  It is obvious that there will be a gap in statewide service.

I would be interested in participating in a new service as long as NJIT does not have to incur a cost.  Over the years very few NJIT students accessed QANDANJ.

Starting to Plan for the 2012 New Jersey Chemistry Olympics

It seems that we just held the 2011 New Jersey Chemistry Olympics , but last night was the first planning meeting for the 2012 event.  For the first time Natalie Macke will be coordinating the competition succeeding Borislaw Bilash.  This year I will am running the Information Search as I've done for many years.  In part one of the event students are judged on the accuracy of a model of a molecule.  This year students will bring in a model of a dye molecule.  Students will use the internet in part two to answer questions about dyes.

Information on the details of each event and instructions on how each high school can register will be issued after the first of the calendar year.  I observe that students have fun in participating in the various events.

Comment on an article in the New York Times About Old Style Books

There is an article in today's New York Times titled Selling Books by Their Gilded Covers.  I must say that in popular and scholarly publishing that e-books are here to stay and that this trend will continue.  There are certainly some bibliophiles out there who still love the printed book.  Fancy covers and book jackets can attract those readers to the traditional tome.  I bought an Amazon Kindle last year and love the convenience of not having to schlep a heavy book in the subway. Of course, a year later there is the Amazon Kindle Fire which is a better e-reader.

Comments on the article "Upheaval at the New York Public Library"

Today Facebook friends Trevor Dawes and Ricky Waller provided a link to an article in The Nation titled Upheaval at the New York Public Library (http://www.thenation.com/article/164881/upheaval-new-york-public-library) . I would like to recall my experiences at NYPL when I worked there from 1983-1990 in the Science and Technology Division and then comment on the article.

The Science and Technology Division (STC) was in Room 121 of what was then known as the Central Research Building at 42nd Street and 5th Avenue. That division were merged with the Economics and Public Affairs division of the library in the 1990s and later moved to SIBL (Science Industry and Business Library) at Madison Avenue and 34th Street. The collection of STC was limited to the physical sciences and engineering disciplines. The biggest problem that I faced as a librarian was locating the items requested by patrons. The archaic Billings call letter system was used for older items while newer materials were shelved on the third floor of the stacks by size. Since the books and periodicals were in stacks not open to the public, patrons had to submit call slips and wait for the materials. The librarian had to determine whether the item was in Room 121 or in storage at the Annex at 521 West 43rd Street. This was often not an easy job and patrons became annoyed when they had to wait or find out that the desired item was in another building.

NYPL, of course is a research library with a non-circulating collection. It was often called the “Library of Last Resort.” Too many patrons perceived it as a popular library and were referred to the Mid-Manhattan Library across the street. A large amount of money was needed to fund resources and staffing to serve independent scholars not affiliated with a university. Sadly, we did get our share of derelicts and other undesirables who used the library. Back then there was no internet, so researchers had to use print resources. In the late 1980s we introduced CD-ROM based databases.

Let’s turn the clock to 2011 and the article mentioned above which discussed the Central Library Plan (CLP) for the landmark building now known as the Schwarzman Building. All libraries including NYPL have faced terrible budget cuts and had to cut staff and resources. The article states that a few specialized divisions were closed. The centerpiece of the CLP would be the construction of a state of the art computer orientated library. This would mean demolishing the stacks that hold 3 million books.

The controversy as stated in the article is to decide if the Schwarzman should remain as a depository for scholarly printed materials or should it become a computer orientated library. At the risk of the ire of some of my librarian colleagues, I choose the latter.
Over the past 20 years more and more popular and scholarly publications have become electronic. I have seen many students refuse to touch a print resource even if it has the information they need. A move to an electronic library will actually bring more people to NYPL which implies more private funds coming in. The printed materials that are displaced can be moved to either the stack extension under Bryant Park or the storage facility in Princeton, NJ. As time passes, these materials will be used less often. If there is a space problem, perhaps some of the research libraries such as NYU or Columbia can adopt them. The article states that there is a pilot program in place that allows certain NYPL users to check out books from Columbia or NYU. In any event, it would be impossible to digitize every scholarly publication.

Just some thoughts from a librarian with over 30 years in the field.