The Library and Information Show (LIS), an annual event for the UK library and information community, took place over two days in April at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham. Over 100 exhibitors were there to ply their wares. There was also a lively stream of free talks and presentations which, for those unable to attend ‘The Future of Public Libraries' conference occurring elsewhere in the NEC, was a valuable way to learn of topical concerns and potential developments.
Although overall there was a definite leaning towards the public library world, some of the issues raised and resources exhibited were highly relevant to other sectors too.
I have noted some of the more noteworthy exhibitors, but it should be borne in mind that there were usually a number of competitor companies also displaying, so it would be wise to examine more precisely what they each have to offer. A full list of the exhibitors with websites is at http://www.lishow.co.uk.
Vendor Highlights
A striking aspect of some of the most interesting stands was the theme of user empowerment, and the employment of presentation techniques familiar from the Internet to achieve this. For example, Encore, the ‘discovery services platform' produced by Innovative uses tagging and spell check (the ‘Did you mean?' question generated by Google and other search engines). In a manner similar to the search engine Clusty, it also groups catalogue searches into facets, e.g.: Search found in Subject, Title or Author Format Collection (useful for multi-site libraries), Languages or Publication Date. This faceting provides a straightforward route into more refined versions of the original enquiry.
The Enterprise Portal Solution, from Sirsi Dynix has user reviews of resources and will also be adding tagging. Its aim is to present a single interface to an institution or organisation's information resources, whether printed or electronic. Enterprise also has an interesting feature whereby resources can be gathered into subject-based ‘Rooms'. Thus with both Encore and Enterprise, there is the trend to try and expose as much as possible of a library's information resources in one place, and incorporating some Web 2.0 methods in doing so. Valuable though this approach is, I wonder how much some users might find this myriad of sources and links overwhelming.
The theme of enhanced freedom for library users was also seen in the introduction of Wi-Fi hotspots into a small number of public libraries. This was demonstrated through Insight Media's iCAM Wireless Access Control which allows members to use their laptops in the library. This can be an added attraction for some potential users, and simultaneously makes a library's own public access computers more readily available.
Other examples of technology making users more independent of library staff were the self-service e-booking systems for library computers (as produced by Lorensbergs and the demonstrations in the exhibition's RFID Theatre. In the latter case, a notable example was Intellident‘s Smartblade system. In this, the RFID tag in a book can transmit its location to a computer-based map, and an LED will flash on the book itself to help the user find it.
Electronic Information Resources
Electronic information resources were but a part of an exhibition which was equally focused on books (a number of publishers were exhibiting) and developments in the technical means to catalogue and locate them. Nonetheless, for information professionals who primarily work electronically, a number of in-depth resources look worthy of consideration.
The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) has created Inspec Direct, a bibliographic database for the fields of Physics; Electrical Engineering and Electronics; IT for Business; Computers and Control; and Mechanical and Production Engineering. These are, of course, cutting edge subject areas in which research is going on continually, making it especially important to keep up. Besides its comprehensiveness, Inspec Direct can be searched with increasing levels of precision. Quick and Advanced Search offer typical features (e.g. Boolean operators and truncation in Advanced), and there is a further Expert Search level which uses a controlled vocabulary for extra refinement.
Research for Libraries offer a spectrum of business information, usually embracing both reports and news stories. Among the most useful are Marketline, which has more than 2,500 market research reports, 50,000 company profiles and over 200 country profiles. Both its international perspective (evident in the title ‘Business Insights'), and the constant supplementing of the profiles with news and analysis are impressive. As well as professional researchers and students, the company suggests that jobseekers can also benefit from this title by learning about specific companies or the trends in particular sectors.
Justis specialises in legal information for both the UK and the European Union. The extensive archives of their various databases (e.g. The Law Reports, 1865-present; CELEX,1951- present) are critical in a field where precedent and interpretation can be so important. Pre-eminently this is seen in UK Statutes, which extends from 1235 to the present, and covers Acts of Parliament from the time of the English Parliament. It now includes the Acts of the Scottish Parliament and Northern Irish Assembly as well as the current UK Parliament. The Acts are set in context through links to amended and amending legislation.
A Shot in the Dark: Information Literacy in the 21st Century
This was the title of a stimulating talk given in one of the seminar theatres by Peter Godwin, Academic Liaison Librarian at the University of Bedfordshire. He is also co-editor of the book "Information Literacy Meets Library 2.0", which appropriately is complimented by a blog at http://infolitlib20.blogspot.com. Although his talk was rooted in his experience with students, it had implications for information professionals in all sectors both in terms of spreading awareness of the kind of tools now available, and the expectations of our users/customers that these encourage.
He first set the contemporary scene by citing reports on the current and likely future behaviour of researchers. According to ‘Researchers' use of academic libraries and their services', published in 2007 by the Research Information Network, Google is regularly used by 70% of such researchers. This behaviour underpins the attitude ‘If it isn't on Google, it doesn't exist'. A similar point is made by the 2008 CIBER report, ‘Information behaviour of the researcher of the future' that researchers don't understand the structure of the Web, and limit themselves to a particular search engine because they regard it as their favoured ‘brand'.
Such blinkered behaviour can be improved upon through Information Literacy (IL). Godwin pointed to the principles of the Seven Pillars of Information Literacy model developed by SCONUL, focusing on ‘comparing and evaluating' sources as the most important principle because it leads to an understanding of which sources can be trusted. In a digital world in which, as he said, ‘Content has left the container', we as professionals have to adapt.
The change in the way libraries or learning centres must adapt to engage their users was illustrated by examples from British universities. Their very design has changed, as in the Information Commons at Sheffield, or the Business School ‘pods' at Bedfordshire, to encourage collaboration as in the Web 2.0 world where students (and, by analogy, other Internet users) are becoming collaborators, synthesisers and adaptors. Information professionals need to take on similar roles, while also promoting IL. In the Bedfordshire example, some rooms are designated as ‘caves' where librarians involve themselves with students' projects in a practical way, demonstrating databases and advising how to assess the types of information found in searches. Godwin himself likes to use Wikipedia as a case study to raise such issues as reliability and authority.
Perhaps seeing librarians as having been too controlling in the past, key principles he set out for ‘Library 2.0' were:
Find out your users' changing needs
Believe in your users
Be rid of the culture of perfect
Become aware of emerging technologies.
Concentrating on the last principle and some of the most popular Web 2.0 examples, he advocated libraries getting links to their resources on Facebook, and similarly participating in Del.ic.ious and Second Life. He also noted the rise in popularity of visual applications for grasping information, as in the application Aqua Browser.
He concluded that the way forward in working with students is to change their Internet-created habits rather than their skills, and to help improve the quality of the questions they ask. These ideas are readily transferable to working with users in many other contexts.
Importance of information literacy
The Library and Information Show evidenced the continuing effort of information professionals to make information available, and of companies to create rich resources, or more comprehensive means of accessing resources. But information literacy is critical. Otherwise many of these efforts will be short-circuited by the tendency of many people to Google, literally and exclusively.
Having begun his career in academic libraries, Adrian Janes is currently an Information Services Librarian with the London Borough of Havering. In this role, he has particular responsibility for information from both the UK Government and the European Union. He wrote a detailed report on sources for the latter which was published by Free Pint in 2007. He is also involved in training and publicising online reference resources.
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