Case%20Study:

1
Hillingdon Libraries' Website

• Case Study
• Promoting Literature through the Internet using
  the Public Library Web-site

2
Case Study

• During the Case Study I will cover
• Brief introduction to Hillingdons Web-site and
  how long it has taken to develop
• Why we offer this service
• The services we do offer (inc. promoting
  literature) with examples
• How well the site is used
• Difficulties / Problems encountered
• What wed do differently if doing it again
• Future Developments
• List of Web-sites worth visiting

3
Brief Introduction

• Hillingdon Councils Web-site first launched in
  1997
• Prior to this Library Services Leaflet on
  Project Earl
• Brochure-ware web-site
• Re-development of Library Web-site launched in
  November 1999, together with Web Front-End to the
  Library Catalogue/Community Information Database
  (GeoWeb) and Free Access to the Internet in all
  17 libraries

4
Why offer the service?

• Social Inclusion
• Part of our contributions to the Peoples
  Network
• Making information about Library Service
  available to everyone
• Providing Free Internet Access to everyone
• Organising the content of the Internet by
  pointing to useful links
• Encouraging Lifelong Learning
• Part of Hillingdons Strategy for meeting
  government targets to make all government local
  government services available electronically
• It allows interactivity in line with Council
  policy
• Provides a modern way of communicating with the
  Service

5
Why offer the service?

• Accessibility
• Web-site provides access to some of the
  Librarys Services 24 hours a day
• Pointers to information through Useful Links
• Provides information about the Library Service
• Access to GeoWeb - renew / reserve items as well
  as the Local Community Information Database
• Promotion of Library Services
• Web-site promotes Hillingdons Library Services
  within library buildings, the borough generally
  and anywhere

6
Our Web-site

• User-friendly and welcoming Home Page
• Pulls together the strands of why were offering
  the service
• Provides a useful starting point for training
  purposes
• Moving away from brochure-ware towards
  interactivity-ware providing
• Details of Librarys Services
• A Gateway/Portal of Useful Links
• Making content available
• Seamless integration with other Council
  Services - the fact that our web-site is firmly
  embedded into the Councils frame-based web-site,
  allowing easy access to information

7
(No Transcript)
8
(No Transcript)
9
(No Transcript)
10
(No Transcript)
11
(No Transcript)
12
(No Transcript)
13
Useful Book Links

• General Resources
• Fiction Poetry Sites
• Online Bookshops
• Publishers
• Internal Links
• Write a Review
• Help choosing your next book
• Book Promotions in Hillingdon
• Search the Library Catalogues
• Hillingdons Home Page

14
Morton Grove Public Library - http//www.webrary.o
rg/rs
15
Making Content Available

• Building the Peoples Network - Creating
  Content and interactivity-ware
• Online Review Form
• Help Choosing Your Next Read
• Summer Reading Activities - Children Adults
• Monthly New Fiction Titles
• Any Book Events

16
(No Transcript)
17
(No Transcript)
18
(No Transcript)
19
(No Transcript)
20
(No Transcript)
21
Examples

• Author Voting Form for Children - some of the
  top authors included
• Rowling, J.K Harry Potter books
• Jacqueline Wilson books
• Lucy Daniels books on Animal Stories
• Help Choosing Your Next Read - (relatively new
  area of web-site)
• For John Grisham/Richard North Patterson
  Readalikes we recommended
• Scott Turow, Steve Martini, William Diehl,
  Dexter Dias, Alan Derschowitz, Patricia Cornwell,
  David Baldacci, Kathy Reichs, Phillip Friedman

22
http//www.tased.edu.au/library/readalik/index.htm
23
How well is it used?

24
Problems

• Technical problems encountered
• Constraints imposed by Councils Policy to use
  frames and Flash software, which older browsers
  do not support
• MS Frontpage 98s proprietary coding not
  compatible with older versions of Netscape
  browsers
• Technical understanding of how to make forms
  interactive
• Practical problems encountered
• Some staff resistant to use ICT to help promote
  literature, even though it is seen as a benefit
• Resistance from public using Internet
• Difficulty in contacting publishers over use of
  book covers
• Keeping content constantly up-to-date

25
Solutions

• What would we have done differently?
• Involve different teams within the Library
  Service in the development of Web-site as early
  as possible
• Web page development is still a relatively new
  skill to many librarians so training needs to be
  undertaken, for individuals, on HTML for content
  creation
• Involvement Training Interest Motivation
  -)

26
Future Developments

• Literature Promotions
• Develop Childrens Area
• Make it more interesting and more child
  orientated
• Interactive-ware - child feedback forms and the
  Library Service responding to their
  comments/reviews - best author/title of month etc
• New additions to book stock - monthly for diff.
  age groups
• Include activities - Half-term, Christmas,
  Easter, Summer
• Continue to develop adult promotion area
• New stock purchased - Videos/DVDs/Books etc
• Promote the interactive forms / links with
  Catalogue
• Develop Themed Lists - (from Help Choosing Next
  Book to Read idea) - expand to non-fiction/non
  book materials

27
Future Developments

• Other Developments
• Local History Museum Photos
• Various views of different areas of Borough -
  now and then
• Potential changes to fit in with the new
  Corporate Style, for example
• Contact information of Manager responsible for
  each Service Area
• Each page should have contact details and a
  refresh date
• Develop Community / Tourist Information
• Links to neighbouring councils Community
  Information Databases

28
Websites worth visiting

• Useful Resources Guidelines / Tips for
  Successful Web-sites
• Net Notions for Librarians - Guidelines of
  Imaginative Web Content for Public Libraries -
  http//www.ds.dial.pipex.com/harden/netnotes.html
• Website design guidelines for public libraries -
  http//www.tiac.net/users/mpl/guidelines.html
• Tips for a successful website -
  http//www.headstar.com/egb/tips.html
• 1999 UKOLN Report of a Workshop Running a
  Public Library Website - http//www.ukoln.ac.uk
  /public/events/running/report.htm
• Earl - http//www.earl.org.uk - Best of the Web
  Awards
• Collecting Internet Resources the issues for UK
  Public Librarians - http//www.earl.org.uk/policy/
  issuepapers/collect.html
• The Big Idea feature from the LA Putting
  imagination online - http//www.la-hq.org.uk/recor
  d/r199809/litdev.htm

29
Websites worth visiting

• Some Useful Book Related Web-sites
• Hillingdons Book Promotion Area of Web-site-
  http//www.hillingdon.gov.uk/library/books.htm
• UKOLNs Stories from the Web -
  http//www.storiesfromtheweb.org
• Branching Out - http//www.branching-out.net
  (Reader Development)
• Lit-Nets List of Literature Sites -
  http//www.lit-net.org/extsites.htm
• Public Library Web-sites - UK and American
• Hillingdons Web-site - http//www.hillingdon.gov
  .uk/library/index.htm
• Robert/Sheila Hardens List of Public Library
  Websites - http//www.ds.dial.pipex.com/harden/web
  libs.html - in particular the Winners of Earls
  Best on the Web Awards 1999
• Morton Grove Public Library - http//www.webrary.
  org/rs
• Readalikes - http//www.tased.edu.au/library/read
  alik/index.htm