Digital Library Services

This article reviews available cost-effective options libraries have for updating and maintaining pathfinders such as subject guides and course pages. The paper discusses many of the available options, from the standpoint of a mid-sized academic library which is evaluating alternatives to static-HTML subject guides. Static HTML guides, while useful, have proven difficult and time-consuming to maintain. The article includes a discussion of open source database-driven solutions (such as SubjectsPlus, LibData, Research Guide, and Library Course Builder), Wikis, and social tagging sites like del.icio.us. This article discusses both the functionality and the relative strengths and weaknessess of each of these options.

Panelists from academic computing and the library in three different types of institution will discuss the approaches their organizations have taken as they foster digital humanities research projects. Discussion will focus on the particularities of digital research projects in the humanities, the collaborative relationship of the contributors, and sustainability and scale.

Providing library resources to the learner, at the point of need, is the focus of the University of Wisconsin Colleges Library Course Page Project. Each course has a dynamically created library course page, which provides learners with these materials. We will present features and implementation information, as well as how the program has been received.

Libraries are successful to the extent that they can bridge communities and can leverage the diversity of the quest, the research, and the discovery. By building bridges among various sectors, libraries will be able to define themselves in the next generation.

McMaster University Libraries, one of Canada’s most innovative university libraries, is bringing together librarians, faculty, information technologists, and students in new and exciting ways. By focusing on emerging technologies, student success, and collaboration, the library is transforming from a "book warehouse" to the center for teaching and learning.

Lulu is a web-based self-publishing service, providing online access to the tools an individual needs to design, publish, and print original material, including books, brochures, reports, calendars, and posters. Self-publishing offers an alternative to traditional publishing by allowing authors and creators of content to decide what gets published and in what form, allowing anyone to publish a book inexpensively and much more quickly than with traditional publishing. Faculty can use the service to publish more timely textbooks and other material for courses, and by having access to the tools of production, students can see and understand the processes involved.

The "7 Things You Should Know About..." series from the EDUCAUSE Learning Initiative (ELI) provides concise information on emerging learning technologies. Each brief focuses on a single technology and describes what it is, where it is going, and why it matters to teaching and learning. Use these briefs for a no-jargon, quick overview of a topic and share them with time-pressed colleagues.