A survey was conducted to determine the satisfaction level of distance education tutors with the location and physical setup, collection, resources and services being offered at thirty-four regional campuses and centers' libraries network of Allama Iqbal Open University (AIOU) in Pakistan including Azad Jummu and Kashmir territory. A semi…

A funny thing happened while the District of Columbia Public Library (DCPL), already suffering from deteriorated facilities and systems, slogged through stasis (and three interim directors) after the 2003 departure of Director Molly Raphael. Mayor Anthony Williams presided over the city's economic turnaround--or, some charged, cozied up to…

Systematic observation of non-computer seating areas in library and non-library spaces on an urban campus showed an important role for the library in individual and group study area choices. The study provides data on important points to consider in library design, including laptop needs and gender preferences. (Contains 2 tables and 1 figure.)

Public library service is a critical service that must be preserved. Despite a current (FY08) budget cut of $5 million and the threat of reductions of nearly $20 million more in the next budget, the Queens Library has maintained massive and excellent programs of service and incredibly high levels of use by a public that lines up at every one of…

This paper presents the Fort Washakie School/Community Library and Technology Center, cowinner of this year's SLJ/Thomson Gale Giant Step Award. Nearly four years old, this combination school-and-public library is located in the town of Fort Washakie, on the Wind River Indian Reservation, a vast 2.8-million-acre tract about a three-hour drive…

Georgia Tech Library has undergone two learning space renovations in the past six years, with a third in 2009. This work is grounded in techniques that elicit user input. Library staff hope one day to completely renovate the entire 220,000-square-foot main library facility. Until that day arrives, library staff are making incremental improvements…

Many secrets can be told by the physical surroundings of library media centers. Whether the center is kid-friendly is one of the first obvious tell-tale signs. When a library center has Arthur & D.W., Clifford, Pooh & Eeyore, shells, special rocks, etc. hidden by the circulation center or in the back in boxes, it's time to revolt. The movie Free…

Higher education wishes to get long life and good returns on its investment in learning spaces. Doing this has become difficult because rapid changes in information technology have created fundamental uncertainties about the future in which capital investments must deliver value. Three approaches to designing for this uncertainty are described…

As campus renovation projects go, the Ohio State University's plan to turn its main library into "a library for the 21st century" is ambitious. The author describes the decade-long, $109 million transformation of the William Oxley Thompson Memorial Library. The overhaul calls for a complete replacement of all mechanical and electrical…

One of the hubs of campus life at Longwood University--located in the small central Virginia town of Farmville--is the Janet D. Greenwood Library. In fall 2004, reference materials were relocated to free up space, and 15 computer workstations, which had been lined up against a wall, were replaced with 48 new PCs. In 2005, library staff began…

A library media center is the information hub of the school, but it is beginning to look a little frayed at the shelves and it's time for a makeover. In this article, the authors present the steps in the makeover process and provide creative ideas to improve the atmosphere of the library media center. Before the makeover, there should be a plan.…

To the individual, garden areas link to the natural world, offering solace, refuge, inspiration, and purpose. To a low-income neighborhood, where often the only greenery sprouts from between cracks in concrete, their impact can be monumental, signaling sustainability, beautifying, attesting to value and worth--even prompting civic change. A 2000…

Should academic libraries seek to improve general satisfaction with their services, or are some services more important than others? This article asserts that faculty and students mainly want information resources. The research analyzes LibQUAL+[TM] data to determine which other library resources contribute to information satisfaction among users.…

The year in architecture offered grand facades, creative collaborations, and calamities overcome and viewed as opportunities. This article features 168 public building projects and 21 academic facilities completed between July 1, 2006, and June 30, 2007 that provide a glimpse of the future. Many libraries reported here achieved Leadership in…

Texas A&M University has a history of international collaboration, cooperation and global outreach. Texas A&M University at Qatar provides engineering students in the Middle East with an education, and ultimately, a degree comparable to that found on our home campus in College Station. The Texas A&M University Libraries have provided…