The emerging role of the library within an information-based global economy

Libraries in a broad sense (whose role is about physical presence, and intellectual content facilitators) are automated and provide access to print and electronic resources, both in the east or the west, are mostly using similar software platforms (irrespective of a function: acquisition, storage, processing), as well similar retrieval solutions (be it standalone pc, integrated computers or web-based solutions), etc..

One may ask, and the answers are not here:

how far this globalization (spirit of global village), is effecting the local (spirit of sustaining the local needs), and vice verse???

If the global village is meant to universal ubiquitous information access to so many bibliographic references / full-text resources, is only between the haves (developed world), or includes all the have-not's (developing, under-developed and not so developed world)? See also: Ethics of access: Globalization, feminism and information society by Gillian Youngs, Journal of Global Ethics, Volume 1, Issue 1, 2005

What standards, if any, are being developed / applied for effective and efficient service delivery

how this virtual library is being taken-over, from the perspective of a traditional library (LIS) by other competing stakeholders (IM, KM, CM, IT, etc.)

What’s really driving & / or intensifying the competitive pressures on the traditional library?

What other long-term options &/or opportunities are available for libraries?

What needs to be done today to change course and restore the image-cum-brand of the library-that-has-to-be?

Reading now:
Globalisation in academic libraries: A reflective comparison of academic libraries at Cork, Ireland, and Chihuahua, Mexico,
McCarthy, James P; Javier Tarango Ortiz. Library Management31. 7 (2010): 505-520

This paper attempts to compare two academic libraries in very different parts of the world. It aims to look at the influences which their local origins have had on them as well as the commonality which the internationalisation of the library profession has brought on them. The paper seeks inferences about the impact of globalisation on the world of academic librarianship. It looks at commonality of experience past, present and future. The process of investigation was to pose a number of questions regarding what academic libraries are, their role in academic landscapes, the impact of globalising technologies and the future of the book. The findings are that there is a commonality of experience and that modern library technologies have changed the nature of professional practice significantly in recent decades; that indigenous traditions of practice at local level are being replaced by an integration of internationally shared experience. The paper should interest those researching the future of academic libraries, comparative developments in academic libraries worldwide, the future of repository storage in the face of digitisation and the future of academic landscapes.

>>James P. McCarthy can be contacted at: jp.mccarthy@ucc.ie, University College Cork, Cork, Ireland
>>Javier Tarango Ortiz, Universidad Autónoma de Chihuahua, Chihuahua, Mexico

On the same shelf:

The Development of Virtual Libraries in Commonwealth Libraries in Commonwealth Libraries in Australia, Amanda Magnussen

A New Era of Education Reform: Preparing All Students for Success in College, Career and Life, click here or here

The Community Library in Our Emerging Knowledge Economy

The disappearing virtual library, Christopher Kelty

AskERIC and the virtual library: lessons for emerging digital libraries, R. David Lanke

Credibility on the internet: shifting from authority to reliability, R. David Lankes

Mess, John A. “I Want An Expert, Not A Librarian”: Expert Advisory Services, Library Reference, And Knowledge Economics On The Internet. Internet Reference Services Quarterly 6.1 (2001): 49-67.

Steal this book? Don't bother, By Candace Lombardi, CNET News

Kaufman, Paula. "It's Not Your Parents' Library Anymore: Challenges And Opportunities In The New Webs Of Complexity." Journal Of Library Administration 46.1 (2007): 5-26.

The 21st century holds the promise of a modern Renaissance in which traditional research library collections and services collide with the promises and realities of digital information and knowledge management. The most intriguing challenges and opportunities for research libraries center on the juxtaposition between the traditional library and digital information and knowledge management, with resultant webs of complexity. This paper examines these challenges and opportunities and raises questions of values and principles, missions and strategies, content and copyright, and methods and ethics. Reprinted by permission of the publisher.

Beinhart, Larry. The Librarian. NY: Nation Books, 2004, 72.

Silicon, Carbon, Culture: Combining Codes Through the Arts, Humanities, and
Technology: Final Report of the Silicon, Carbon, Culture Initiative. Urbana, IL: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2004.

Lougee, Wendy Pradt. Diffuse Libraries: Emergent Roles for the Research Library
in the Digital Age. Washington, DC: Council on Library and Information Resources,
2002.

Kurzweil, Ray. The Age of Spiritual Machines: When Computers Exceed Human
Intelligence. NY: Viking, 1999.

Murray, Janet H. “The Exhilaration of Access.” Threshold, Winter 2004.

Digital Information and Knowledge Management: New Opportunities for Research Libraries (Journal of Library Administration), Sul H. Lee

The impact of Internet on scientific traditional knowledge Ghobrial, R.A.;
Documentation & Inf. Centre, Khartown, Sudan, Communication Technologies: From Theory to Applications, 2004. Proceedings. 2004 International Conference on Issue Date: 19-23 April 2004

Visions for Fundamental Change in Libraries and Librarianship for Asia Pacific

Googlization of Libraries: Debunking the Internet Godzilla Myth
The Second Follett Lecture, Graduate School of Library and Information Science,
Dominican University, 15 February 2006, Edward J. Valauskas -- reproduced in World Libraries Volume 19, Numbers 1 & 2, February 2012

Haugen, Betty (2005) "The Impact of Globalization on Law Libraries," International Journal of Legal Information: Vol. 33: Iss. 3, Article 8.

"Legal Information Management in a Global and Digital Age: Revolution and Tradition" cited in Impact of Globalization on International and Foreign Law Information

The Impact of Globalization on Libraries and the Role of IFLA, Claudia Lux
SILF 2006, powerpoint

The Impact of Globalization on Library Management and Marketing, by Su, R. Yang, Q., IFLA PUBLICATIONS, 2007, VOL 125, pages 293-302

Google’s Convergence Re-visited

Should librarians be considered professionals?

The MLS Project: An Assessment After Sixty Years by Boyd Keith Swigger

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thought for the day: We’re in the business of giving away knowledge. For free. Come in, please come in, and take some knowledge for free, no, no limit, keep going, gorge on it if you want, no, it’s not a trick, a come on, a free sample and then we’ll bill you later, or we’ll paper your head with banners and pop-ups. Librarians don’t have a lot of status and we don’t make a lot of money, more than poets, but not so much, say, as your more successful panhandlers, so our ideals are important to us and the love of books and the love of knowledge and the love of truth and free information and letting people discover things for themselves . . . –Larry Beinhart, The Librarian

Do We Still Need Libraries? December 28, 2012, The New York Times -- Debaters: a) Failing to Close the ‘Digital Divide’, Susan Crawford; b) More Relevant Than Ever, Luis Herrera; c) It’s Not Just Story Time and Bookmobiles, Buffy J. Hamilton; d) For Gathering and for Solitude, Matthew Battles,

Libraries Try to Update the Bookstore Model / Libraries See Opening as Bookstores Close, By KAREN ANN CULLOTTA, December 27, 2012 NYTimes.com

Is SLA an International Organisation/Organization?

Debaters are: Hal Kirkwood, Candidate for Director, 2012 SLA Board; Constance Ard, Answer Maven, Candidate Chapter Cabinet Chair-Elect; Debbie Schachter: Candidate, Chapter Cabinet Chair Elect; Marilyn Bromley, Candidate for Director, 2012 SLA Board; Deb Hunt - Candidate, President-Elect; Catherine Lavallée-Welch- Candidate, Division Cabinet Chair-Elect; David Cappoli, Candidate, President-Elect; Jane Macoustra - 2011 Candidate for Director; Jane Macoustra - 2011 Candidate for Director; Hal Kirkwood, Candidate for Director

Read the debate here: Special Libraries Association's Blog

International Workshop on Information Literacy 2009

International Workshop on Information Literacy (IWIL) 2009
Date: 22-26 June 2009
Organized byIndependent University, Bangladesh
(IUB)Sponsored byThe International Federation of Library Associations
and Institutions (IFLA)
Venue: Independent University, Bangladesh,
Baridhara, Dhaka

The Key resource person for the workshop is:
Professor Gary Gorman, School of Information Management, Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand

Click here for more details

Europeana ~ On hold

Info courtesy: Dawn Bassett @ A Librarian's ramblings

Please wait, you are in queue, Your Click is Important to Us: "We launched the Europeana.eu site on 20 November and huge use - 10 million hits an hour - meant it slowed to a crawl. We are doing our best to reopen Europeana.eu in a more robust version."

How should national libraries archive blogs?

November 27, 2008 — Graham Lavender
"I came across an article today at techno-geek site Ars Technica about a new initiative by the German National Library. The Library wants to archive blogs, which is reasonable enough, but through an odd piece of legislation, it appears that they have the authority to require that bloggers deposit their writing in the archives. If bloggers don’t comply, they could face a fine of up to 10 000 euros..." Continue reading

On the same shelf:

MEGA Website for Indian Public Libraries - Is there any?

Blog archives: Web 2.0 tools as sources for social history

German National Library causes blogger uproar

See also books at Amazon.com on related subjects:

The 25 Most Modern Libraries in the World

I found this list of 25 on the Web, and surprisingly it misses, the most important world famous modern library, i.e, Library of Alexandria:
 

The 25 Most Modern Libraries in the World By Christina Laun @ bestcollegesonline.com
Extract: "Libraries aren’t just musty places to store books with librarians shushing anyone who makes a peep. They’ve become much more than that and the modern library is often home to sleek architecture and the latest technology. These 25 libraries, in no particular order, demonstrate how libraries have become part of the cutting edge of information management, design and Web technology, and all of them can help you get some ideas on how to bring your library into the future."

My question: Are these ranked? Answer: no! Are these evaluated, nope!--
Reader: You will have to do it.

• Yes, a few lilbrarians are happy that they are cited:
  The 'M' Word - Marketing Libraries: 25 Most Modern Libraries in ...
  
  UCSD Libraries: Geisel Library Named Among 25 Most Modern Libraries
  
  Only one critique of something related: Tame The Web, Dear Fiona (if that IS your name)

See also on the same shelf:

• 100 extensive Universities Libraries around the World that anyone can access
• National Library Week: Most Beautiful Libraries Around the World, ABC News

  In an effort to highlight the contributions of libraries and library workers, National Library Week kicks off April 14-20. Since its inception in 1958, it has been sponsored by the American Library Association every April . This year's theme is "Communities matter @ your library®."
  
  -- Library of Congress, Washington D.C.; New York Public Library, New York City; Salt Lake City Public Library; Geisel Library; University of California: San Diego; Seattle Central Public Library; Trinity College Library, Dublin, Ireland; Abbey Library, St. Gallen, Switzerland; Vatican Library, Vatican City; Trinity College Library, Dublin, Ireland

Reading now: International and Comparative Studies in Information and Library Science

A Focus on the United States and Asian Countries

Series: Libraries and Librarianship: An International Perspective #3. Edited by Yan Quan Liu and Xiaojun Cheng

Introduction by Dr. Yan Quan Liu.

Contents:
NB. To read the following, point mouse over and scrolling stops!!!

'
Part 1: Research Methodologies
1. Comparative Librarianship Lalitha K. Sami
2. International Library and Information Science Research: A Comparison of National Trends Maxine Rochester and Pertti Vakkari
3. Comparison between the People's Republic of China and the United States in the Field of Library and Information Science Weina Hua
4. Introducing an International Cooperative Research Method Employed in Cross-Country Studies in Information and Library Science Yan Quan Liu
Part 2: Information Policy
5. The Impact of National Policy on Developing Information Infrastructure Nationwide: Issues in the People's Republic of China and the United States Yan Quan Liu
Part 3: Professional Education
6. Is the Education on Digital Libraries Adequate? Yan Quan Liu
7. An Investigation of LIS Qualifications throughout the World Pete Dalton and Kate Levinson
8. A Comparative Study of Library and Information Science Education: China and the United States Ziming Liu
9. A Comparison Study on the Confusion and Threat of the United States and Chinese Library Education Xudong Jin
10. Motivation to Manage: A Comparative Study of Male and Female Library and Information Science Students in the United States of America, India, Singapore, and Japan Sarla R. Murgai
Part 4: Information Organization and Services
11. Digital Library Infrastructure: A Case Study on Sharing Information Resources in China Yan Quan Liu and Jin Zhang
12. Cataloging Nonprint Resources in the United States and China: A Comparative Study of Organization and Access for Selected Electronic and Audiovisual Resources Yan Ma, Steve J. Miller, and Yan Quan Liu
Part 5: Academic Libraries
13. A Comparative Study of the Use of the Academic Libraries by Undergraduates in the United States and Taiwan Ting-Ming Lai
Part 6: Public Libraries
14. International Public Library Trends Nerida Clifford
15. The Use of the National Library Statistics by Public Library Directors Yan Quan Liu and Douglas L. Zweizig
16. National Public Library Statistics and Management: A Comparison between the United States and People's Republic of China Yan Quan Liu
Part 7: School Libraries
17. Teachers' Perceptions of School Libraries: Comparisons between Tokyo and Honolulu Yuriko Nakamura
18. An International Study on Principal Influence and Information Services in Schools: Synergy in Themes and Methods James Henri, Lyn Hay, and Dianne Oberg
Appendix A: Schools Offering International and Comparative Librarianship Related Courses
Appendix B: Journals Pertaining to International and Comparative Studies in ILS
Appendix C: International Conferences on Information and Library Science
Appendix D: Web Resources Relating to Information and Library Science Worldwide
Bibliography
Index

Picturing the Global Library: A Call for Photos of Libraries Around the World

Calling all globetrotting librarians!

Super Conference 2008 is lookingat the library experience around the world. Do you have pictures ofphotos of libraries you've snapped in your travels? If you’ve got somehidden away on your hard drive or in a photo album please help us bysubmitting them to OLA. Photos of any kinds of libraries (or librarians)in any location are good: modern, classic, grand, humble, old, new,familiar, exotic, famous, obscure...all are good!Photos will be used in a gallery on the OLA Super Conference Web site,at plenary sessions throughout the conference and, most particularly, atthe closing plenary on Saturday, Feb. 2nd during the luncheon in whichincoming IFLA President Ellen Tise from South Africa will be speaking.Photos can be submitted in any of the following ways:

* Send digital photos to superconference@accessola.com (in any format but as high a resolution as possible).

* If you are a Flickr (http://www.flickr.com) member, you may submit photos to the “Libraries of the World – OLA Super Conference Pool” Flickr group: http://www.flickr.com/groups/ola_worldlibraries//.

Again, as high a resolution as possible.

* Send print photos to OLA, 50 Wellington St. East, Suite 201, Toronto M5E 1C8.

Photos can be picked up at Super Conference from the Information Desk in the Registration Lobby. Any photos not picked up will be mailed to their owners following the Conference.For each photo, please provide your name, e-mail, the location of thelibrary, its name if appropriate and a sentence or two about anythingyou want to point out, either about the library or about what is in thephoto.----------------------------------------

Mark Robertson, OLA Super Conference 2008 Coordinator

Good old Indian folk tales need a magic genie

New Delhi: Once upon a time, traditional folk tales from the Panchatantra or, say, stories of Akbar and Birbal used to be hugely popular with Indian children. But ask a kid today about her favourite book, and chances are she will name an Enid Blyton, a Nancy Drew, a Hardy Boy and - even more likely - a Harry Potter.

To give an example, the pre-bookings for the seventh edition of the Harry Potter series to be released July 21, is escalating at a rapid rate. The sixth in the series sold a smashing 160,000 copies in India last year.

The story is entirely different for Indian folk tales and other children's books. A predictable storyline, monotonous illustrations, lots of moral baggage and more importantly sloppy marketing have led to their taking a beating. continue

Thought for the day - “Too Asian to be American, too American to be Asian?”

"What I had wanted to impart was my conviction that a plurality of cultures and contexts, while initially confusing, brings the world closer, since it is already very much in us. In my own life as a writer, I like to think that I can navigate cultural rivers with distinct and powerful currents, rivers at once glorious and dark, smooth and tricky, with rapids, unexpected twists and beautiful vistas, with benign and dangerous creatures." says Luis H. Francia
The Country of Elsewhere
June 06, 2007
Updated 11:51:55 (Mla time)
Luis H. Francia
Inquirer

see also:

asian canadian

An Indo-American Odyssey, 15 Jan 2000, K.S. Venkataraman, [K-S-Venkataraman.sulekha.com] @ Sulekha.com

Library Open House - Maurice M. Pine Free Public Library

Maurice M. Pine Free Public Library
10-01 Fair Lawn Ave., Fair Lawn, NJ 07410 (201)796-3400


Gail standing next to Miss Harneet Singh

Japanese man runs library on a bicycle

"And you thought you were committed to your profession" [Thanks to LibraryStuff for this quote]

Tokyo, May 02: Kazuhiro Doi is on a one-man mission to change the world by pulling a mobile library on a bicycle around Japan.

For more than two years, the 28-year-old has been distributing books on the environment, civil disputes and other social issues on a custom-made bicycle with a waterwheel-shaped bookshelf across his native Japan.

Doi left his home in the central prefecture of Aichi in January 2005, initially to ask libraries around the country to carry a book published by a non-profit organisation 'Think the Earth'.

The book documents the gravity of environmental destruction with about 100 photographs, including those of a mountain of industrial waste, children injured in a chemical factory accident in India and penguins covered with crude oil. Full news story @ Zee News, May 03, 2007;

See also: Japanese man on one-man mission to distribute books by bicycle EARTHtimes.org

What the Ancient Egyptians Taught me about Blogging

You may think there can be no way in the afterlife that there is a link between one of the oldest civilisations on earth and one of the most modern pastimes, but you would be wrong. The Ancient Egyptians blogged in Stone. Continue reading MATT JONES

See also:

Blogs and visual innovation

Blog As A Teaching Tool

National Library Week April 15 - 21, 2007

New data on U.S. libraries shows almost two billion served
Predicted demise due to Internet fails to materialize
For Immediate Release, April 16, 2007

"Ten years after some experts predicted the demise of the nation's system of libraries as a result of the Internet explosion, the most current national data on library use shows that the exact opposite has happened. Data released today by the American Library Association (ALA) indicates that the number of visits to public libraries in the United States increased 61 percent between 1994 and 2004. According to the 2007 State of America's Libraries report, there were nearly two billion visits to U.S. libraries in fiscal year 2004. The study was released today by the ALA as the nation begins its observance of National Library Week, April 15-21. In the case of academic libraries, the number of visits exceeded more than one billion for the first time in 2004, up more than 14 percent in just the previous two years." More Info courtesy Thadakamalla Sujatha

Communities “Come together @ your library” to celebrate the changing role of libraries

National Library Week Sites

The American Library Association NLW Site

PLL's National Library Week Resources

@ Your Library

LLRX's Guide on the Side Column, "National Library Week: What's the Point?"

AALL RIPS 2007 Teach-in kit

MUCH MORE

NB. This post is dedicated to a user-friendly librarian, Gail, who knows about India and India's libraries much more than me!

See also:

My book review in ARBA: Cyber Worship in Multifaith Perspectives

Fulbright Awarded to Librarian Mengxiong Liu

Fulbright Awarded to Librarian
Nick Veronin
Issue date: 4/12/07 Section: News
Spartan Daily Online
A San Jose State University faculty member has been selected to travel to Uruguay this year in order to engage in a U.S. sponsored educational and cultural exchange program with the South American country.

Mengxiong Liu, an engineering librarian and professor of library and information science at SJSU, will be among hundreds of U.S. faculty and professionals traveling abroad this year under the Fulbright Senior Specialist Program, according to a Fulbright press release. Full story

Thanks to David Dillard for the above info.

See also:

Awards in India

Fulbright Programs for U.S. Scholars and others, Fulbright Global Programs for U.S. and non-U.S. Scholars, Fulbright Programs for Visiting (Non-U.S.) Scholars & U.S. Institutions, and Fulbright Scholar Grants for Institutions

Fulbright award in Egypt, 2008-09
"I write to bring your attention to a Fulbright Scholar award for a professional librarian or higher education faculty member in library management and library science education during the 2008-09 academic year at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina in Egypt. This new award is for an experienced person to conduct research and lead seminars and workshops for librarians, faculty and administrative staff as well as assist in developing and assessing academic curricula and educational materials.

A Ph.D. or M.L.S. and strong administrative, organizational, and communication skills are required. English is the primary working and teaching language, and knowledge of Arabic is desirable, though not required.

The award may be for a period of from four to nine months during the academic year.
I would appreciate your distributing news of this Fulbright award to members of the MELA and other individuals who would be qualified for the award. The deadline for receipt of applications is August 1, 2007.

The Fulbright Program in the Middle East and North Africa will accept applications for this award and for awards in other countries that are interested in faculty to teach in library science programs in 2008-09 in Bahrain, Oman and Morocco.
Contact:
Gary L. Garrison
Asst. Director, Asia/Middle East
Council for International Exchange of Scholars
Suite 5L
3007 Tilden Street, NW
Washington DC 20008
tel. 202-686-4019
fax. 202-362-3442
ggarrison@cies.iie.org
www.cies.org

Info courtesy: Dr. Ali Houissa
NB. Long live my affiliation with Fulbright Scholarship and the Fulbright alumni association.

Is this yet another Wiki in Library and Information Science

My guess: that this "Wiki" is not open to all and free for all to hack, whack and crack. And, I see that it is limited by registeration and subject.
But, my librarian buddy, Baby Boomer Librarian, i.e, Wilfred Drew questions its credibility:

I was going to blog about this but had forgotten about it. As Sarah points out in her post at LibrarianInBlack, it is a wiki or wiki wanna be that is supposed to look at librarianship with a global focus. Don't waste your time. It is not even clear as to who actually owns the wiki when you look at it. There is no ownership information at all. A WHOIS query gets this information: ... READ MORE

There are others who are looking to find more authentic, authoritative info about this new foundland:

Librariansworld.com was sent to me by Amol, who tells me that it is a popular site in India, Pakistan, and the Far East. It’s the only site that I know of (please let me know if I’m wrong) that offers a social networking tool for librarians. It’s not a pure SN site, but it’s not that bad either. A good start.
Is anyone working on something like this in the states? One would think with all of the discussion about social software in our profession, it would be in the works. Steve

Librarians World
"Librarian's World is a network of Librarians & Information Scientists . It is a democratically managed site without any editor. It offers Social bookmarking, Expertise Exchange, Discussion Forums, Librarians Webpages and many other facilities with an objective of better networking & knowledge sharing amongst Librarians."

What others say:

Here is an interesting website for Library Professionals, gokhalesharad012 20 Feb 2007

Lets join and share, Iam Saravanan, Information Manager

I have read many topics on digital libraries on www.librariansworld.com, go ahead and get benefit. Venusgoody1 10 Mar 2007

Hello All, I have come across a very Interesting website www.librariansworld.com hope it will intrest you too. Thanks & Regards, Pranaykumar Soft-AID

Useful info on document preservation on www.librariansworld.com, Venusgoody1 pdflib 2007-02-21

P.S. I just received another update about the IASLIC website:
New IASLIC WEBSITE : http://www.iaslic1955.org.
Send your uggestion for its improvement
Regards
Dr Pilusjkanti Panigrahi
Dr Pijushkanti Panigrahi, Reader, Dept of Lib and Inf Science, University of Calcutta, 87/1 College Street,Kolkata - 700 073, West Bengal, India, email : panigrahipk@yahoo.com, (M) : +91 94342 43522. Secretary, Education Division, IASLIC; Associate Editor, IASLIC Bulletin, IASLIC, Kolkata-700 054

My most recent posts:

Copyrights and Copywrongs - Responsibility of Media and Academia

Wikipedia and Academia Hit News Headlines Again

Health Information and Libraries Journal 24:1 (March 2007)

Reviewing a blog - benchmarks?