Online Reference

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Online Reference

• Academic Senate
• 2009 Counseling and Library Science Faculty
  Development Institute
• February 20-22, 2009 San Jose Marriott

Shirleigh BrannonReference Instruction
Librarian Butte College Library, Oroville CA 95965
Phyllis UsinaReference Instruction Librarian
Santa Rosa Junior College, CA 95401
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Online Reference Overviews and Comparisons BCL
and SRJC

• Why?
• How?
• Who?
• Issues and challenges
• Is it working?
• Sample workshop presentation on online reference
  - Butte

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Online Reference at BCL Why?

• 3 campuses
• Main Campus (near Oroville) open 49 hours per
  week M-F, no late eves or weekend hours classes
  8 am-10 pm and Saturdays
• Chico Center (Chico) library open 20 hours per
  week M-Th pm only, CMDL open 8 am-8 pm no
  librarian classes from 8 am to 9 pm
• Glenn Center classes, no library presence
• Staffing
• 2.5 FT Librarians, 1 ref paraprofessional in
  budget to cover all 3 locations maintain web
  site schedule BIs
• 35 hours additional part time staffing on soft
  money to help with BIs, ref desk coverage still
  not enough for demand for evening weekend
  reference BI
• Increase in distance ed/online classes
• Increase in online book and article resources,
  but not reference instruction staff

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Online Reference at SRJC Why?

• 2 campuses 1 center
• Santa Rosa Campus (Main) open many hours per
  week.
• M-Sa, 4 eves until 10 pm and 5 weekend hours on
  Saturday
• Petaluma Campus library open slightly less hours
  per week
• Windsor Center no library presence
• Staffing
• 6 FT Librarians to staff ref desks provide
  eReference maintain web site Library Guides
  collection development schedule deliver BIs
  etc.
• 39 hours additional part time staffing for ref
  desk coverage
• Increase in distance ed/online classes four
  online degrees
• Increase in online book and article resources
• Multi-Floor buildings students unable to leave
  other floors

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Online Reference at BCL How?

• E-mail (link from Butte College Library web
  site)
• 24/7 Ask-A-Librarian chat service (we provide 4
  hours per week of service as part of agreement)
• Referral to additional online reference services
• Part of overall push for online information
  competency program advertised in BIs, on web
  site, and in all workshops

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Butte College Library Web Main Page
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Ask-A-Librarian Page
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Click on this link to launch a chat session
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Ask a Librarian Via E-Mail
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Online Reference at SRJC How?

• Meebo IM (no E-mail at this time)
• Meebome - free widget embedded into webpage code
  appears as chat window to allow real-time
  interactions no student account necessary
• Page design considerations times, instructions,
  guidelines
• Training
• Essential to establish eReference competencies
  and provide practice to ensure consistent service
• Expand skills for example, chatspeak keyboard
  shortcuts
• Increase knowledge of online resources available
• Support
• All work collaboratively using pbwiki to provide
  technical tips and scripts of common interactions
  to speed up transactions

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Santa Rosa Junior College Library
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Santa Rosa Junior College Library
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Santa Rosa Junior College Library
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Santa Rosa Junior College Library
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Santa Rosa Junior College Library
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Online Reference at BCL Who?

• 1 FT and 1 PT librarian currently share 4 hour
  per week commitment for AskNow! 24/7
• Morgan Brynnan (FT) brynnanmo_at_butte.edu
• Jacquie Foster (PT) fosterja_at_butte.edu
• Time is integrated as part of overall reference
  desk schedule and counts toward public service
  hours
• Librarians check Reference e-mail every morning
  and periodically throughout the day.
• FT Librarian tracks and provides follow-up when
  needed for all of our student requests handled by
  other libraries.

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Online Reference at SRJC Who?

• All Librarians participate
• Fosters broader commitment to the service
• Time is integrated as part of overall reference
  desk hours.
• Provide eReference only when have back-up
  coverage and during slower evening hours

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Online Reference at BCL Issues and Challenges

• Cannot do 24/7 on the reference desk
• too busy, so adds another 4 hours to open hours
  from a production hour POV hard for management
  to understand
• Illness of librarians who normally provide 24/7
  poses challenges
• Hours available for coverage do not always mesh
  with our available service hours
• OCLC rep has been very flexible
• Nuances of F2F and push technology requires
  ongoing skills sets, incl keyboarding skills
• There are scripts that can be imported to help
• Morgan and Jacquie can tell you more!

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Online Reference at SRJC Issues and Challenges

• Providing eReference while on the reference desk.
• During the day, librarians feel it is too busy
• Trying it in the evenings which are slower
• Illness of eRef librarians results in no eRef
  service
• Training
• Ongoing need but difficult to schedule
• Meebo ads, dropping connection, interface
  changes, notification
• Surviving Budget Cuts

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Online Reference at BCL Is It Working??

• Yes!
• Yes!
• And YES!!!!
• Each semester we see an increase in student 24/7
  and e-mail use
• Increase in faculty use
• Popular response in student and all-campus
  surveys
• Librarians continue to promote via BIs, reference
  desk, faculty, staff student orientations and
  workshops

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Online Reference at SRJC Is It Working??

• Yes
• In pilot stage no marketing has been done
• Use has been low but is increasing
• Future funding for staffing is unsure

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Questions/more info about Butte

• Shirleigh Brannon (FT) brannonsh_at_butte.edu
• Coordinator, reference, instruction
  information competency programs
• Instruction, LIS 11, LIS 126 and via BlackBoard
• SLOs
• Morgan Brynnan (FT) brynnanmo_at_butte.edu
• Web page and online database management
• 24/7 primary contact point for OCLC western
• Jacquie Foster (PT) fosterja_at_butte.edu
• Background in various aspects of distance
  education and online reference
• 24/7
• Camtasia-based Flash and video workshop
  components leelo_at_butte.edu
• Louise Lee (PT) leelo_at_butte.edu
• Chico Center Library services

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For more info QuestionPoint http//www.questionpo
int.org
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Questions/more info about SRJC

• Phyllis Usina (FT) usina_at_santarosa.edu
• Co-coordinator of reference
• Instruction, LIR 10 Online via SRJC Course
  Management System
• Nancy Persons (FT) npersons_at_santarosa.edu
• Department Chair Co-coordinator of reference
• Instruction, LIR 10

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For More Info Meebo http//www.meebo.com/
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For More Info

• ALA-RUSA Guidelines for Implementing and
  Maintaining Virtual Reference Services
• http//www.ala.org/ala/mgrps/divs/rusa/archive/pro
  tools/referenceguide/virtrefguidelines.cfm
• Luo Lili. Chat Reference Competencies.
  Reference Services Review 35.2 (2007) 195-209.
• Competencies set standards and provided a
  foundation for training

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BCL Workshop Online Reference

• Recently revised to reflect BCL web makeover
• Currently 13 slides, presentational only. Goal is
  to incorporate assessments and offer as part of ½
  unit online course
• Will be available in multiple formats
• F2F drop-in workshop and televised workshops
  (ready now)
• Video streaming online (end of Spring 09)
• PPT and Flash Online (end of Spring 09)
• Video recorded workshops available for check-out
  via Media Services (end of Spr 09)
• BlackBoard unit with quizzes assessments (end
  of Spr. 09)

• Recently revised to reflect BCL web makeover
• Currently 13 slides, presentational only. Goal is
  to incorporate assessments and offer as part of ½
  unit online course
• Will be available in multiple formats
• F2F drop-in workshop and televised workshops
  (ready now)
• Video streaming online (end of Spring 09)
• PPT and Flash Online (end of Spring 09)
• Video recorded workshops available for check-out
  via Media Services (end of Spr 09)
• BlackBoard unit with quizzes assessments (end
  of Spr. 09)

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Online Reference Help

• Getting research help from home or after regular
  Library hours

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E-Mail (Butte College Library)

• Answered by Butte College Librarians
• Access from Butte College home page
• http//www.butte.edu/library/

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Live Chat - 24/7 Ask Now

• Answered by librarians throughout the U.S.
• Can be followed up by Butte College Librarians.
• http//www.butte.edu/library/

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Live Chat - 24/7 Ask Now

• Can also be accessed via other library web sites,
  such as
• Butte County Library http//www.buttecounty.net/BC
  Library/
• California State University, Chico Meriam
  Library http//www.csuchico.edu/library/

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Live Chat Research Help Now

• Virtual reference service for research questions.
• Priority given to users of participating
  libraries. (Butte College is not a participating
  library)
• http//researchhelpnow.org/

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E-Mail Internet Public Library

• Service is free to allquestions from around the
  world and people of all ages
• Questions answered by trained graduate students
  in library schools and professional volunteers
  (mostly librarians)
• Use free sites and sometimes refer to print or
  subscription sources (local resources when
  possible)
• Access from Internet Public Library home page
  http//www.ipl.org/
• Use other resources if answer is needed within 3
  days

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What Is the IPL?

• A website (http//www.ipl.org/) containing
• Collections of nearly 45,000 links
• E-mail reference service
• An educational and research laboratory for
  librarians
• Majority of work is student-driven

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Collections at the IPL

• Link to free online sites
• All links selected and reviewed by library
  science graduate studentsmust meet our
  collection policies
• Sites indexed and abstracted
• Subject collections as well as special features
  and exhibits

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Online Reference Sites

• Reference sites recommended by Butte College
  Library Home Page ? Reference Links
• http//www.butte.edu/library/
• Internet Public Library Ready Reference
  http//www.ipl.org/div/subject/browse/ref00.00.00
• Best Free Reference Sites (Recommended by
  American Library Association) http//www.ala.org/
  ala/rusa/rusaourassoc/rusasections/mars/marspubs/M
  ARSBESTIndex.htm
• Best Online Reference Sites http//www.rcls.org/d
  eskref/

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Handy Reference Sites

• Wikipedia http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
• Dictionary Subject Dictionaries
  http//www.yourdictionary.com/
• Statistics Statistical Abstract
  http//www.census.gov/compendia/statab
• AllRefer.com http//www.allrefer.com (Online
  directory of resources by subject.)
• Bartleby.com http//www.bartleby.com (Online
  literature and reference including biographies,
  quotes, encyclopedias and other reference books.)

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Library Databases

• Collections of the electronic version of
  scholarly journals, magazines, and resources
  provided by database providers, such as GALE,
  H.W. Wilson.
• Users access the Library databases via the
  Internet but most resources found in these
  research databases cannot be found on the World
  Wide Web. The Library pays subscription fees to
  access the databases.

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Off-Campus Access
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Off-Campus Access