IPL Internet Public Library

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IPLInternet Public Library

• http//www.ipl.org
• Prepared by Catherine Van Buren
• Drexel University Student Chapter
• American Library Association
• October 21, 2008

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Internet Public Library

• Started in 1995 at University of Michigan
• Moved to Drexel in 2006
• Now hosted on Drexel servers
• Some staff are based at Drexel
• Offers links, original content, and an email
  reference service

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Internet Public Library
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Internet Public Library

• Subject Collections provide links and quick
  descriptions in various categories

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Internet Public Library

• Ready Reference provides links to reference
  resources (dictionaries, grammar, etc.)

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Internet Public Library

• Reading Room provides links to free books,
  magazines, newspapers, etc.

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Internet Public Library

• KidSpace

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Internet Public Library

• TeenSpace

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Internet Public Library

• Special Collections are original resources
  developed or hosted by the IPL

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Internet Public Library
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Internet Public Library

• Exhibits are multimedia collections, e.g.
  photographs and music

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Internet Public Library

• FAQ is Frequently Asked Questions, e.g. salary of
  the president, publish or perish, plots in
  literature

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Internet Public Library

• Pathfinders are like subject guides each has an
  introduction to the subject, print sources, and
  internet sources, with a short description of
  each source

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Internet Public Library

• Student Involvement
• I view the IPL as a sort of teaching hospital
  for library and information science students. It
  calls itself a laboratory.
• Students work on reference service and
  pathfinders.
• Internship and practicum opportunities.

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Internet Public Library

• Ask an IPL Librarian

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Internet Public Library

• Volunteers (students, former students, MLIS,
  experience in reference) answer the questions
• There is an extensive training manual - it has
  the technical details, as well as content and
  format standards
• You sign up and get your logon information after
  checking out the training manual
• Then the first step is the practice question,
  which is just like a real question, but the
  answer goes to IPL staff instead of a patron

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Internet Public Library

• Real Questions
• Reviewed by IPL reference administration - fake
  email addresses and unanswerable questions
  identified
• Split up into reference and factual, categorized,
  youth questions labeled
• Sometimes admin will give advice on what the user
  might really want or where to look for resources
• Patron information is included location and age
  of the patron can help you with the answer, just
  like face-to-face reference
• Patrons can specify when they need the answer,
  they are told they will get an answer in one week
  if their question is accepted

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Internet Public Library

• Answering Questions
• You claim a question when you want to answer
  it, thus two or more people are not working on
  the same thing
• You have 24 hours to respond once you claim a
  question
• You can unclaim a question if you decide you
  cant answer it

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Internet Public Library

• Answering Questions
• You can give the actual answer if its a factual
  question, but youre mostly identifying resources
  generally ones that are free, online, and
  authoritative
• Can use Wikipedia, etc., but you must include a
  disclaimer, which the IPL provides
• Three resources minimum
• Explain why they are authoritative and how you
  found them, cite them correctly
• You have the option to include your name in the
  response to the patron

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Internet Public Library

• Answering Questions
• You can post and ask for help from other
  volunteers
• You can ask patrons for clarification (reference
  interview), but the IPL warns against this
  because patrons often dont respond
• Sometimes you get feedback from users after
  answering their questions

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Internet Public Library

• Answering Questions
• For INFO 511, we had to answer seven questions
  and then write up a self-evaluation for each
• One thing I forgot to do was keep track of sites
  I didnt use in my responses, which my professor
  wanted me to include

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Internet Public Library

• What I liked
• Chance to answer real reference questions
• Some of the pressure (time crunch)
• Much less pressure than if dealing with people at
  a face-to-face reference desk
• Forced to reflect for final project

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Internet Public Library

• What I didnt like
• Reference interview not really feasible
• Can be cumbersome to format questions hard
  and/or tedious to explain to patrons how you
  found the resources
• Sometimes I worried no one would bother to read
  what I wrote

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Internet Public Library

• Advice for Answering IPL Questions
• Start early and check the questions often, then
  you can pick questions that interest you or at
  least questions that you know where to find
  authoritative, free resources for (What is a
  reference interview?)
• Use the IPL for resources! If youre familiar
  with the IPLs own resources, you can pick
  questions that you know will be easy to answer.

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Internet Public LibraryAsk an IPL
LibrarianReference Questions Answered

• 1995 1,116
• 1996 4,007
• 1997 8, 281
• 1998 13,850
• 1999 20,850
• 2000 27,910
• 2001 35,060
• 2002 40,462
• 2003 46,721
• 2004 52,383
• 2005 57,521
• 2006 62,186
• 2007 71,723
• 2008 77,686 (July 2)