Ann Curry

American Psycho: a collection management survey in Canadian public libraries

Abstract A survey of issues associated with the collection management of American Psycho in Canadian public libraries reveals that selection and circulation of controversial titles remains a difficult task for many librarians. Book reviews, articles in magazines and newspapers, and presence or absence of patron requests were important factors in both positive and negative purchase decisions. Large libraries were more likely than small or medium-sized ones to acquire the title, and very few complaints about the book were received from patrons. Librarians attempted to manage the interplay of the forces of quality, demand, media attention, community needs, and intellectual freedom when deciding whether to order American Psycho and how to circulate it in the collection.

Reference Librarians' Attitudes Towards the World Wide Web

ABSTRACT The rapid growth and widespread publicity about the World Wide Web has many implications for public reference librarians, but little is known about this groups attitudes towards the World Wide Web and the impact of the Web on reference work. Using face-to-face interviews, this study gathered data on the attitudes of reference librarians working within a large British Columbia public library consortium, focusing on how these information professionals feel about integrating the Web into their duties. The responses indicate that the librarians believe the Web has had a positive effect on their work with regard to efficiency and answer rates, but they still have serious concerns about accuracy of Web information, technical problems, and demands on them for customer training.

Connecting to the Internet: The Challenge for Canada's County and Regional Libraries

A previous survey, in 1995, revealed that only 3% of Canadas regional and county library systems provided public Internet access. The present survey showed that 67% of these libraries provided access and that connectivity was proceeding rapidly despite the geographical, technical, and financial difficulties faced by systems with large geographical areas and numerous members from different municipal or county jurisdictions. Library directors indicated that using the World Wide Web as a reference tool was the most useful staff application of the Internet and that this function was most appreciated in small branches located far from adequate reference collections. Funding for initial connectivity set-up costs came mainly from federal and provincial grants and from existing library budgets. Directors expected library budgets to be the primary funding source for ongoing Internet costs, a potentially difficult situation because of continuing fiscal shortfalls and increasing technical expenses. The Internet has ameliorated some of the long-distance communications problems unique to county and regional systems, but many difficulties remain.

Reaching beyond the reference books in public libraries

An analysis of the URLs from transaction logs obtained from the public access terminals in four Canadian cities revealed that customers accessed a wide variety of web-based communities devoted to diverse subjects. This paper argues that public library reference librarians should include more web-based communities in the sources that they recommend to customers.