Collection practices for nontraditional online resources among academic health sciences libraries.

OBJECTIVE: In recent years, individuals and small organizations have developed new online learning and information resources that are often marketed directly to students. In this study, these nontraditional online resources are defined as apps or other online resources that are not available through large and well-known publishers. The purposes of this study are to determine if academic health sciences libraries are licensing nontraditional online resources and to provide a snapshot of current collections practices in this area. METHODS: An online survey was designed and distributed to the email lists of the Collection Development Section of the Medical Library Association and Association of Academic Health Sciences Libraries directors. Follow-up phone interviews were conducted with survey participants who volunteered to be contacted. RESULTS: Of the 58 survey respondents, 21 (36.2%) reported that their libraries currently licensed at least 1 nontraditional online resource, and 45 (77.6%) reported receiving requests for these types of resources. The resources listed by respondents included 50 unique titles. Of the 37 (63.8%) respondents whose library did not license nontraditional online resources, major barriers that were noted included a lack of Internet protocol (IP) authentication, licenses that charge per user, and affordable institutional pricing. CONCLUSIONS: Evaluation criteria for nontraditional online resources should be developed and refined, and these resources should be examined over time to determine their potential and actual use by students. There is a growing demand for many of these resources among students, but the lack of financial and access models that serve libraries' needs is an obstacle to institutional licensing.

Ontology, Epistemology, Methodology, and Methods: Information for Librarian Researchers.

This article will help librarians understand how different philosophical stances influence the process of developing a research question and the different methodologies and methods available to help answer that question. Understanding this will help librarian researchers make appropriate choices regarding methods and methodology for the research questions they are seeking to answer. Also included is a table showing the two main types of inquiry (qualitative and quantitative) with their associated methodologies and methods, the basic assumptions underlying each, and the pros and cons of each methodology.

Evaluation: theoretical underpinnings and web resources.

Librarians may benefit from understanding research theory more fully, looking at the services they offer as a program, and using program evaluation to understand the program value more completely. The process of program evaluation is research, and, as such, it should be situated within theory. This article reviews two of the basic theoretical concepts of research: ontology and epistemology. These concepts work together to help craft the research questions, and the questions drive the selection of methodology. The article also provides a list of web resources useful for understanding research theory in evaluation.

Augmented reality: a review.

Augmented reality is a technology that overlays digital information on objects or places in the real world for the purpose of enhancing the user experience. It is not virtual reality, that is, the technology that creates a totally digital or computer created environment. Augmented reality, with its ability to combine reality and digital information, is being studied and implemented in medicine, marketing, museums, fashion, and numerous other areas. This article presents an overview of augmented reality, discussing what it is, how it works, its current implementations, and its potential impact on libraries.

Reference and PDF-manager software: complexities, support and workflow.

In the past, librarians taught reference management by training library users to use established software programs such as RefWorks or EndNote. In today's environment, there is a proliferation of Web-based programs that are being used by library clientele that offer a new twist on the well-known reference management programs. Basically, these new programs are PDF-manager software (e.g., Mendeley or Papers). Librarians are faced with new questions, issues, and concerns, given the new workflows and pathways that these PDF-manager programs present. This article takes a look at some of those.

Learning to drive: developing a workable awareness plan for monitoring new technology.

Technology is constantly driving forward, and information professionals need to be informed about developments in order to work more effectively, provide new services, understand what users need and want, and to develop professionally. Learning how to monitor these developments in technology is a skill, just like learning to drive. This article provides information about developing a workable awareness plan and provides some suggested sites to monitor and tools to use.