Volume 40, Number 3 - May/June 2016
EDITORIALFrontLines Page 4 Ready reference is now an app rather than a professional job skill. By Marydee Ojala Searcher's Voice Page 25 Info pros no longer hold the keys to the trove of resources available online. As bq ponders what new tasks need doing, at the top of her list are information audits—not of institutional activities, but of individual people's needs. By Barbara Quint DEPARTMENTSPage 8 Search Engine Update By Greg R. Notess Page 51 Conference Corral Research, Innovation, and Imagination at Computers in Libraries FEATURESPage 10 Decisions, Decisions: Questions to Consider When Selecting Video Databases Lights! Camera! Action! If only adding video databases to your library's collection were as simple as those three words. As Mary Wahl points out, you need to consider licensing, usage data, accessibility, discovery, and "cool" features. Video vendors differ significantly, so it's good to be prepared. By Mary Wahl Page 14 The Rowdy Crowd: Disruptive Technologies in the Legal Industry  The longtime stalwarts of legal research are being challenged by the disruptive technologies of newcomers. Legal research expert Constance Ard explains how visualization, analytics, and mobile information delivery from newer companies are changing the nature of legal research. By Constance Ard Page 20 Conveying the Meaning Behind the Data Conducting online searches is only part of information professionals' job skills. Understanding the data retrieved, correlating it with existing information, and reporting it to the requestor is both an art and a science. Barbie Keiser reviews a plethora of tools to help you convey the meaning behind the data. By Barbie E. Keiser Page 30 This well-known pair team up to delve into a question that is as pertinent today as it was more than 20 years ago: "What is to become of the traditional delivery methods of information services within an organization?" While what defines "traditional" has changed in the last 2-plus decades, addressing this issue is more crucial than ever. By James Matarazzo, Toby Pearlstein Page 36 Deciphering top-level domains (TLDs) is not as easy as it used to be. Wallace Koehler looks at the growth of TLDs, as well as the increase of the corresponding character sets, and explains why their proliferation is not exactly cause for celebration within the searcher community. By Wallace Koehler Page 42 Blogging: An Old Format, Still Going Strong Remember blogs? They're been around for more than a decade but have evolved considerably. Veteran blogger Tara Calishain, who started her first blog in 1995, explains blogging platforms and search engines. Even if you aren't a blogger, you can find valuable information in blogs. By Tara Calishain Page 46 The increasing availability of information in digital formats created the need to create new, different, and better methodologies to manage and share all those references attached to scholarly articles. Both established publishers and startup companies have jumped on the bandwagon to provide reference management and sharing tools. By Cynthia Shamel COLUMNSInternet Express Page 27 Archives of the Americas, (Mostly) Free Online Irene McDermott sings the praises (as well as lines from her new obsession, Hamilton the Musical) of online resources that share the annuals of the Americas. From the New York Public Library's Digital Collections, Harvard University's Colonial North American Project, and Digital State Archives, to favorites such as the Library of Congress and Internet Archives, info pros have a variety of go-to options when seeking historical documents. By Irene E. McDermott On the Net Page 54 Advanced Search Techniques: Geolocation and Structured Data Search Google's advanced search features and capabilities are disappearing rather quickly. Greg Notess shares some techniques regarding geolocation, browser-based local searching, and field searching that help replace some "disappeared" features. By Greg R. Notess The Dollar Sign Page 57 Banking on Financial Services Information As an industry under increasing scrutiny, financial services is in the news because of changing definitions, practices, and regulatory requirements. Marydee Ojala looks at websites and subscription databases to include in researching banks and other financial institutions. By Marydee Ojala InfoLit Land Page 60 Playing With Search Platforms Librarians know that some search platforms are better than others. But what constitutes "better"? Information literacy plays a role in keeping big search engines from creating more problems than they solve. By William Badke The Open Road Page 63 The Evolution of Repository Services Repositories, once viewed as a stumbling block on the road to open access, are now an established element, with content and infrastructure in place. Looking ahead, how can institutions increase repositories' visibility, curate content, and work with publishers? By Abby Clobridge Control-Shift Page 66 It's time for webmasters to consider how to deal with IPv6, the longer IP address that is becoming the new standard; with https, the more secure web protocol; and with AMP, the accelerated mobile pages initiative. By Jeff Wisniewski Hard Copy Page 69 Recommended Reading on Digital Photo Editing, Metaliteracy, Government Information, and Data Visualization By Deborah Lynne Wiley Online Spotlight Page 72 Information by the Liter? Information as commodity isn't an ideal situation for information professionals. Mary Ellen Bates reports her survey results of special librarians and information professionals on their biggest concerns in purchasing digital content. By Mary Ellen Bates |
