Page 77 - DLIS105_REFERENCE_SOURCES_AND_SERVICES

Reference Sources and Services

Notes of virtual reference software. Representative members of the target audience should be involved in
planning and promotion of virtual reference.
Relevant computing staff should be involved in the planning, implementation, and maintenance of
the infrastructure needed, and in the software selection and purchase decision, particularly with
regard to compatibility with existing library software and infrastructure.

Virtual reference service should be a consideration in collection development
decisions, selection of electronic reference sources, and especially licensing issues
that might affect the use of resources to serve off-site patrons.

Library staff and administration should facilitate regular assessment of the program’s effectiveness
and commit to adjustments as needed. Assessment should be comparable to the assessment of other
reference services.

Self Assessment

Fill in the blanks:
1. Virtual reference is reference service initiated ...... .
2. Representative members of the target audience should be involved in ..... and promotion of
..... reference.

7.3 Provision of Service

Clientele
• The library should define the patron population and publicize this policy on the service’s
Web site, or other places where patrons may access it.
• Technical issues of patron authentication or proxy server login should be addressed as they
apply to various groups within the patron population.
• If there are persons excluded from this service by institutional policy, enforcement should be
uniform.
• Guidelines for appropriate behaviour while using the service should be made available to
patrons.
• Marketing of the service should clearly define the target audience.

Parameters of Service
• The level of service to be provided should be defined and announced, so that staff and patrons
will understand the mission of the service. Level of service includes the types of questions the
service will answer (perhaps easier to define in the negative), as well as the patron population
the service will serve.
• Guidelines should be established for determining which queries fall outside the parameters
of service, and how to respond in those cases.
• Before the service begins, it should be decided if document delivery will be included and
whether patrons will be charged for document delivery.
• Parameters of time should be determined and announced to both patrons and staff. For
synchronous virtual reference, the times at which the service is staffed should be indicated.
For asynchronous virtual reference, guidelines for how frequently queries will be checked, or
how soon an initial response can be expected, should be given.

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