How to evaluate?

Evaluation is an important issue in process of maintain digital reference service as well as any service!

Amazing libraries

Just see what libraries are already exist all over the world! After these pictures I understand that there is a lot of job to do and time to work to achieve such results!

Careers in Information services

I understood that there are many different opportunities to find a job that you will certainly like to do, according to your personalities and wishes. If we can say firmly that profession of a mathematician is purely technical, and a linguist - refer to humanitarian science, than a librarian, perhaps, should be one of the most flexible profession, that could be applied both in technical and humanitarian area.

Today we live in an information era, where information become a product that can be sell. In this conditions of our modern world no one but librarian should be a central object, a guide in this world full of enormous amount of information. That is why you, being a librarian, can apply yourself not only in library, but in wide range of activity scopes.

There are many new career paths that have opened up in various areas such as: the book industry, communications, the arts, education and government, information management, indexing and research, web design and management, information technology sales and customer support, corporate information management, publishing and database licensing, fundraising research, marketing for non-profit agencies, corporate intelligence.

Even in library there are different various of type of work such as: reference services, reader's advisory services, cataloguing, collections management, computing and library systems, information literacy, public outreach and programs, library management.

(The University of Western Ontario, Faculty of Information and Media Studies. (2009). Professional Careers in Library and Information Science. Retrieved 26 August 2010 from http://www.fims.uwo.ca/mlis/careers/index.htm).

1. Librarian

Even among the librarians are distinguished such types of librarian as Cataloguing Librarian, Metadata Librarian, Collections Librarian, Electronic Resources Librarian, Research Instruction Librarian, Reference Librarian, Law Librarian.

But all of them share the same features of profession. Concept of their job can be divided on three branches: user services, technical services, and administrative services.

In users service librarian's task to help patron in finding appropriate information, to instruct how to use search tools. In technical service librarian responsibilities are to acquire, to classify, to catalogue resources so patrons can find them easy. Administrative service closely connected with management of library. Administrative librarian's responsibilities are to control library process, to plan, to make decisions about contracts, to plan budget.

Career development could be achieved on third position. Also librarians with administrative duties have higher salary.

Besides the degree in librarianship In special libraries, like law or medicine library, librarian suppose to be aware of this special area.

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor. (2010). Occupational Outlook Handbook (11 ed.). Retrieved 30 August 2010 from http://www.bls.gov/oco/ocos068.htm.

2. Information architect

Such skills of experienced librarian as ability to organize information in accordance to user's search behavior allow them to be an information architect.

Information architecture can be applied in such areas as library systems, web development, user interactions, database development, programming, technical writing, enterprise architecture, and software design. For example in database development, Information architect can design structure of database (define tables, fields, relationship between tables and etc.), can be a consultant in any application area to help organize data and information. In software design, Information architect can project a structure of certain software (which functions, which procedures will be consisted in the program module, design an intuitively understandable interface and etc.). In web-design, Information architect can be a consultant in creating a web-sites (in determine of structure of web-site, information content).

Type of this work required from you to be not only a good analyzer, and ability to describe materials, but "it requires a practical understanding how user search information". Also information architect applied in IT sphere should be aware of all main technologies and software frameworks.

Information architecture. (2010). Retrieved 30 August 2010 from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Information_architect

Crosby, O. (2000). Librarians: information experts in the information age. Occupational Outlook Quarterly. 44 (4). Retrieved 30 August 2010 from http://www.bls.gov/opub/ooq/2000/winter/contents.htm

3. Information broker

Sometimes we can say Information professional or Info-entrepreneur. Anyway, all of them are professionals who get "information-on-demand".

Today some firms find it chipper to pay third-party experts for collecting particular information, than to have a full-time staff.

Information broker business can be a not big office (1, 2 or more people) where information professionals, people that posses particular high-level skills in understanding what information is required, defining where it will be found, in finding and managing of it, in presenting of it to client and in doing all of those tasks fast. Information brokers should be always on the crest of a wave of the information ocean.

The main aim such firms is to save time and money of clients, allowing them "to focus on what they do best: running their company or organization, making sales, making decisions, and creating their product." Information brokers want their clients not "to spend valuable time looking for crucial information to move their business forward - but spend time USING information."(Association of Independent Information Professionals, 2009)

Payment for this work can be hourly if it is research, fixed tax - if it a certain kind of information, for example "AMERICANADA Information Broker" suggest service with the price of 60 USD to find out unlisted telephone number from a particular address. Another way of Information brokering is to compile an information directory on a particular subject or region, to publish it and to sell.

As well as other information professionals information broker should to possess such qualities as ability to analyze information, to understand and to define fast what this information is about, ability to classify it. Good communicative skills to find out what information client demands as well as during process of getting information. And because of globalization, information broker must know English language excellent.

"The merging and overlapping sectors of the developing information chain require information professionals with a broad range of skills and qualifications. Therefore, the information professional will not combine his skills with certain sectoral skills (publisher, librarian, bookseller, archivist), but will instead have a portfolio of skills. This implies that the competencies of information professionals are converging towards a unified range of skills which can be applied in many contexts and environments. Thus, information professionals will have a broad range of key qualifications in common, primarily depending on convergence and the fact that all information professionals are working as mediators between users and systems, using the same kind of technology. Thus, technical know-how, certain social competencies, economic knowledge and artistic and creative abilities will be met in the same person." (Schmidt-Braul, Ingo-Eric M. (1999).)

AMERICANADA Information Broker. (n.d.). Unlisted Telephone Numbers in the USA and Canada. Retrieved 29 August 2010 from www.americanada.com.

Association of Independent Information Professionals. (2009). Info-Entrepreneurship: A Resource Guide for the Independent Information Professional. Retrieved 29 August 2010 from www.aiip.org.

Heim, K., & Myers, M. (1992). Opportunities in library and information science careers. Lincolnwood, Ill.: VGM Career Horizons.

Schmidt-Braul, Ingo-Eric M. (1999). Does culture create new jobs in the information society? Strategic issues and new professional profiles. Librarian Career Development, 7(12).

4. Head of Library Technology and Systems

Nature of this work is "in the management of library systems that support the essential functions of the library, including the library’s integrated system and resource sharing software and systems. .. He/she will be responsible for design and development of a dynamic web presence for the library that integrates resources and technology to achieve a user-friendly environment and efficient access to the library’s services and resources." The candidate should be aware of all emerging technologies. Also additional responsible is to train the staff.

Common Requirements besides the librarian or information science degree are: "a minimum of three (3) years of progressively responsible experience in library systems; experience with web design and development (HTML, CSS, Javascript, PHP, and SQL); knowledge of protocols, standards and best practices in library technology and systems and web development including XML and XSLT; metadata standards (MARC and Dublin Core); knowledge of library technology protocols such as OpenURL; demonstrated knowledge and experience with project management; knowledge of and experience with data collection and assessment of library systems,

Preferred Qualifications are: supervisory experience including hiring, training, and evaluating library staff; experience with strategic planning, budgeting and assessment;"

ALA job list. (2010). Head of Library Technology and Systems. Retrieved 1 September 2010 from http://joblist.ala.org/modules/jobseeker/Head-of-Library-Technology-and-Systems/15571.cfm

5 Assistant director of Art Gallery

"Working in an art gallery is not without glamour. One meets the upper echelons of society: wealthy art collectors, museum directors, trustees, and famous personalities." (Seeman,1980)

If you feel in yourself the potential of undiscovered creative abilities, if you interested in the art, this work is for you.

Helene Zucker Seeman, with librarian education, an assistant director of the Louis K. Meisel Gallery in SoHo, New York city tells about her first days and typical days in gallery. "Sitting at the front desk in the gallery, I was receptionist, bookkeeper, librarian, and a secretary, as well as salesperson. ... The person who occupies the gallery's front desk is the major source of information for the gallery-goer and I was continuously deluged with questions."

Among her duties were such as gathering information on each gallery artist, to catalogue it, contribute in creating and publishing catalog for exhibitions. She established a gallery library and strive to keep records of every art work which comes through the gallery. One of phase of the job is the organization and coordination of loans to museums for exhibitions.

Another branches of job were a public relations and, perhaps "the most interesting aspect, was dealing on personal basis with each artists".

Exciting phase of that job was also the record-keeping (the bookkeeping, including checkbooks, inventory lists, sales sheets, and payments due).

The basic skills required at the gallery "is that of organization and management. A librarian is a resource person and should be able to disseminate information quickly and accurately. ...to give information about auctions and catalogs, ownership of works, cost, exhibitions they were included in, where they have been published, and what client is interested in purchasing said work."

Seeman, H. Z. (1980). Working in an Art Gallery. In B.-C. Sellen (Ed.), What else you can do with a library degree (pp. 238-244). New York: Gaylord Professional Publications & Neal-Schuman Publisher, Inc.

I hope this blog will be a platform for discussion current issues of Library Science and Information Technologies!