New Top Technologies Every Librarian Needs to Know: A LITA Guide (2019)

Abstract

One of the truisms of librarianship is that change is constant, no more so than in the area of technology. New Top Technologies Every Librarian Needs to Know attempts to address the rapidly-changing technology environment by informing the reader of the many technologies that are important in libraries today, and likely to continue to be important in the future. This is an update to 2014’s The Top Technologies Every Librarian Needs to Know, both edited by Kenneth Varnum. At 287 pages and 17 chapters, the newer edition is significantly more substantial than the original, with its 152 pages and nine chapters. The book is organized into four parts: Data, Services, Repositories and Access, and Interoperability. Data includes chapters on linked open data, the Internet of Things, link resolvers, and web archives. Services includes privacy-protection technologies, data and information visualization, and virtual reality. Repositories and Access includes digital exhibits, digital repositories, and digital publishing. Finally, Interoperability includes the International Image Interoperability Framework, learning tools interoperability, bots, machine learning, and mobile technology. All chapters have been written by new authors; aside from the editor, there is no overlap between authors of the two editions. Overall, this is a well-written and well-edited book. Many of the chapters contain illustrations, and all of them include a useful notes section and, in some cases, a bibliography. The book also contains an index. Many of the authors share their experiences implementing technologies at their respective institutions, primarily universities and colleges in the U.S. and Canada. Almost all of the authors are library practitioners, so they have hands-on experience, as well as knowledge and expertise in their topics. Most of the technologies addressed in the book would be of interest to librarians from all types of libraries; however, a number of them would be of most interest to academic librarians. The relevance of many of the technologies discussed would also depend on the size of the library and the ability of its staff to devote time and energy to the development or implementation of these technologies. Nevertheless, most librarians would want to be aware of the technologies described in this book, which makes this book a worthwhile acquisition for public, academic, and other libraries.