The document discusses the Need2Know project, which aims to use instant messaging as a reference service in public libraries to attract young users who are familiar with digital communication. It highlights the challenges faced in providing quality answers in a synchronous format, contrasting it with traditional asynchronous methods. The project emphasizes the evolving relationship between librarians and users, encouraging librarians to adopt new competencies and engage collaboratively in information retrieval.

1. What Librarians Need2Know Instant messaging and chat as reference services in public libraries Hans Jørn Nielsen - hjn@db.dk Marianne Hummelshøj - mhh@db.dk Royal School of Library and InformationScience, Denmark

2. Overview Project and method IM in libraries Presentation of Need2Know Need2Know as ask-the-librarian-service Communication and quality of answers Need2Know and Library 2.0 The librarians’ competences New relationship between librarian and user Future perspectives

3. Project and method The Digital Librarian : a project of the libraries of Aalborg, Denmark A part of this: testing of Instant Messaging Our role: to follow the project, not to make a systematic evaluation Observations, interviews, perspectives from literature studies

4. IM in libraries From special software chat reference services to free popular IM services (MSN, ICQ, AIM etc) IM popular among young users (Report 2004) Instant Messaging primarily in university libraries Purpose: Support of patrons’ searching in the library catalogue Service to remote users Purpose of Need2Know: To find new users in their ”own” virtual environment

5. The Need2Know test 1/3 The motivation: A decreasing number of users visit library web-sites, including ask-the-librarian services The purpose of the Need2Know test: Establish a new channel to the users, especially young users who are familiar with IM Push staff to work with the new technology

6. The Need2Know test 2/3 The challenge was to attract new users on the MSN platform A contract was made with Microsoft – which was extraordinary and innovative in a library context Need2Know was exposed 15 million times in the test period (Spring 2006 – Spring 2007)

7. The Need2Know test 3/3 Questions of interest to the target group (young people at the age of 12-15 years) were provided as banner spots About 700 teenagers became freqent users/or signed up by adding the service to their contacts within the test period The majority of questions was related to school exercises followed by questions about sports and entertainment, including celebrities

8. The Need2Know as an ask-the-librarian service A synchronous communication between the user and the librarian No time for the traditional reference interview No time for evaluation of the suggested web resources Immediate answer was a success factor in the test as it was crucial for the users The quality of the answers was under pressure

9. The ask-the-librarian/reference services on library web sites 1/2 E-mail communication Asynchronous Request form based on the reference interview The librarian has time for evaluation and selection of the appropriate resource The quality of the answers is in focus The situation transfers the traditional reference to the virtual environment The librarian is still the traditional expert

10. The ask-the-librarian/reference services on library web sites 2/2 Chat communication Synchronous No proper reference interview No proper evaluation of resources Less focus on the quality of the answers The situation is similar to IM Chat service is accessed from library web sites Need2Know is exposed on MSN out of the library context

11. Web 2.0 services Common to web 2.0 Platforms to produce, share and communicate ressources Virtual communities, culture of participation Types of web 2.0 services Storage, organization and sharing of individual ressources (Flickr, YouTube, del.icio.us etc) Producing, organizing and sharing of common knowledge (wikis, Wikipedia) Dialogical communication, sharing and debating of information (blogs, IM)

12. Library 2.0 1/2 “ the application of interactive, collaborative, and multi-media web-based technologies to web-based library services and collections” (Maness, 2006) Put the library everywhere The ubiquitous web, the ubiquitous library Need2Know did that The librarian as a “buddy” and a “friend”? What about quality? Can the librarian export the brand of trustworthiness from the library to the virtual community of “buddies”?

13. Library 2/2 The librarians have to write, communicate and make services on several web-based platforms (among them IM) ” Out there” the librarian is in danger of loosing authority ” Out there” the librarian easily becomes an equal among equals Strategy: To risk the authority To create knowledge sharing among users But also to combine it with professionel knowledge of information resources

14. The librarians’ competencies in an ask-the-librarian IM service The new competencies: The ability to work under pressure ”multitasking” Online communication skills Web 2.0 competencies The traditional competencies: Knowledge about the reference interview Knowledge about searching information resources Knowledge about evaluation of information resources

15. New relationship between librarian and user The librarian is no longer ”the expert” who provide the unique answer The user and the librarian find the reliable and appropriate answer in cooperation The librarian’s role can be regarded either as consultant or as friend The librarian is challenged to be more open about his/her personality – limits of intimacy

16. Future perspectives Development of proactive ask-the-librarian service on platforms using the new social technologies Improvement of the librarians’ competencies within the new technologies Focus on the changing relationship beween the user and the librarian Focus on the quality of the answers provided by the librarians as the traditional citeria of quality are challenged

17. Hans Jørn Nielsen - hjn@db.dk Marianne Hummelshøj - mhh@db.dk Royal School of Library and InformationScience, Denmark Thank you  More information in the paper: What Librarians Need2Know Instant messing and chat as reference service in public libraries http://edoc.hu-berlin.de/conferences/bobcatsss2008/nielsen-hans-joern-336/PDF/nielsen.pdf Questions?