The Inglewood, California Public Library provides a paraprofessional information service to assist its patrons in their initial encounters with the library. Persons staffing the information desk are specially trained to answer the telephone, orient patrons to the library, screen information requests, and provide ready reference service. These…

Describes an instructional model for teaching the optimization of search strategies based on a small group of related reference tools. (PF)

As manager of Education Systems at Addressograph Multigraph Corporation, the author undertook the task of keeping his staff and clientele abreast of training information. (Author)

Presents book reviews of recently published scholarly and general works of interest to reference workers in university libraries. The listing includes a brief roundup of new editions of standard works, continuations, and supplements. (RAA)

Analysis of data collected from 3,000 academic libraries by the 1977 Library General Information Surveys reveals that library operating budgets, institutional enrollment, and library circulation are the best predictors of reference and directional transactions. Fifty-five percent of the transactions at reference service points are directional,…

The types of reference question considered most difficult by the staffs of Northern California public library systems were the subject of a workshop conducted by the Bay Area Reference Center (BARC). The topics included: antiques and collectibles; identifying a poem from its middle line; how to make practically anything; how to repair various…

For the reference librarian, who has more to work with than ever before, a review of purposes and uses of general and specialized dictionaries, bibliographies, and indexes. (JS)

A list of reference books is presented as a basis for a Canadian newspaper library. (Author)

Describes an experiment that compared the performance of online and print tools in answering two types of ready reference questions: conceptual questions (requests for citations) and factual questions. The results show that online tools perform best for conceptual questions, but simple factual questions can be answered more quickly using print…

Examines the role of library reference services in the enhancement of cultural literacy. The discussion covers the relationship between the extent of cultural literacy possessed by reference librarians and the quality of librarian patron interactions, and the role of reference sources in the cultural literacy of librarians and patrons. (53…

The number of electronic resources has climbed up steadily in recent times. Some of these e-resources are reference sources, mostly in Science, Technology and Medicine (STM), which publishers convert to electronic for obvious reasons. The library budgets for materials usually have two main lines, budget for one time purchase (monographs) and…

This paper argues that the first order of the day in reference collection development is to cope with the problems that developing user-responsive, client-centered reference collections always incur. It is suggested that the responsiveness of reference collections can be measured largely by the currency of the materials in the collection and by…

This document is a manual of the official guidelines, policies, standards and procedures for reference service in the Harold B. Lee Library of Brigham Young University. The manual serves as a reference source for answering questions raised by reference personnel or patrons about reference policies and procedures of the library, and will also be…

The separate undergraduate library was originated to provide students with the same quality of library services as are available in a good liberal arts college library. This paper deals with how reference librarians have used this opportunity to provide reference services for the undergraduate student. The major emphasis is on case studies of…

This manual is intended to help library staff maximize their work by providing information and references to many of the "frequently asked questions." There are two parts to the manual. The "Overview" is an introduction to school librarianship in Alaska that discusses putting school libraries in perspective; managing the school…