Public Libraries And Its Users

The International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) is the leading international body representing the interests of library and information services and their users. It is the global voice of the information profession. The series IFLA Publications deals with many of the means through which libraries, information centres, and information professionals worldwide can formulate their goals, exert their influence as a group, protect their interests, and find solutions to global problems.

Public Libraries and Their Communities: An Introduction provide an overview of public librarianship today. It covers library organization, policy development, staffing, fiscal organization including funding sources and budgets, the legal framework, relationships with local and state governments, advocacy, services and service development for different age groups and for different groups of users, development of programming and outreach, collection development, promotion and marketing, and current issues and trends. In addition to context and concepts, the book uses many examples from both large and small public libraries to bring principles to life. Examples include real library policies, case studies, strategic planning, organization charts and library budgets. Many think that public libraries are not complicated to run.This book aims to show that public libraries are very complicated and require much skill on the part of the director, staff, and Board of Trustees to meet the needs of their local users.Advocacy and marketing have become important parts of the work of public libraries. Funding is always challenging so public libraries must constantly be making the local government and its citizens aware of the public library – its programs, collections, and services. This book's focus is on how public libraries reach beyond the walls of their buildings and touch the lives of their citizens.Meeting community interests and needs is essential for 21st century public libraries. For students the book offers discussion questions at the end of each chapter. These questions also provide discussion starters for public library staff development.

This compilation provides a sequential overview of some of OCLC Research's user behavior research findings that articulate the need for the design of future library services to be all about the user.

In the face of rapid change and an ever-widening constellation of challenges, it’s crucial for library leaders to pull back to the question of “why?” Plotting a sustainable way forward depends upon recommitting ourselves to our underlying values, such as customer service and community-building, while fostering the improvements that change makes possible. With passion, patience, and fortitude, libraries can stride confidently into the future. In this book, noted speakers and consultants Bignoli and Stara speak directly to library directors, managers, administrators, and technology staff, offering concrete guidance on setting or resetting strategic priorities. Taking an interconnected and specific approach to planning for and strengthening the library environment as a whole, their book - discusses why libraries should embrace change as a fundamental part of library life; - explores how to harness rapid change to provide more responsive, user-centered library service; - addresses the ways in which libraries straddle the physical and the digital, in areas such as service provision and collections, illuminating how they overlap and can be improved using similar philosophies; - presents both a comprehensive overview of library technologies as well as related team and change management advice, all grounded in user experience principles; - shows how the concepts of sustainability and flexibility apply to physical space planning and design, from furniture selection and arrangement to infrastructure; and - provides sound guidance on project management, problem solving, preparing for future challenges, personal reflection and self-care, and other leadership topics.

This book puts the user at the centre of library activities. The nature of the service process is examined, and the differences between library-based services and other types of information/document supply services is explained. Each aspect of service is examined in chapters on stock, service development, users and user-centred service, types of service, the service chain, staff, types of libraries and the non-library based information service scene. The arguments are rehearsed for and against charging for services and there is a chapter on service evaluation. The problem of setting priorities is considered and the author ends with a look at the future of the library-based service.

While high quality library and information services continue to thrive and strengthen economic and social development, much of the knowledge that exists on user’s needs and behaviors is fundamentally based on the results of users in English-speaking, western developed countries. Information Access and Library User Needs in Developing Countries highlights the struggles that developing countries face in terms of information gaps and information-seeking user behavior. The publication highlights ways in which users in developing countries can benefit from properly implementing LIS services. Researchers, academics, and practitioners interested in the design and delivery of information services will benefit from this collection of research.

Collecting several key documents and policy statements, this supplement to the ninth edition of the Intellectual Freedom Manual traces a history of ALA’s commitment to fighting censorship. An introductory essay by Judith Krug and Candace Morgan, updated by OIF Director Barbara Jones, sketches out an overview of ALA policy on intellectual freedom. An important resource, this volume includes documents which discuss such foundational issues as The Library Bill of RightsProtecting the freedom to readALA’s Code of EthicsHow to respond to challenges and concerns about library resourcesMinors and internet activityMeeting rooms, bulletin boards, and exhibitsCopyrightPrivacy, including the retention of library usage records

With the increasing use of information communication technology in education, new skills and competencies among library science professionals are required for them to effectively disseminate necessary information to users. It is essential to equip educators and students with the requisite digital and information literacy competencies. Literacy Skill Development for Library Science Professionals provides emerging research exploring the roles and applications of information literacy and technology within library science and education. Featuring coverage on a broad range of topics such as electronic resources, mobile learning, and social media, this book is ideally designed for librarians, information and communication technology researchers, academicians, and graduate-level students seeking current research on the ability to find, evaluate, use, and share information in library science.