I don't really see the point of "slamming the boards". It's another case of librarians trying to justify their existence and obtain some social kudos. I think it would be better to gain recognition for doing your job well.
And unfortunately in my limited experience librarians aren't particular good at answering questions. And they don't do much of it, frankly. The "reference question" is almost a mythical beast of library legend. OK, you might get a genuine reference question once every blue moon, but you're more likely to be asked if your library has a copy of The Kiterunner. If it's anything more complicated the experienced librarians that I have observed rank below an educated library users. (Partly because they're not very sophisticated library users themselves.)
In terms of practical use of something like answer boards for local libraries, I can see the value of having an "ask a librarian" service on your website. General use answer boards would only be useful for "local studies" type enquiries - otherwise the enquirer is better off going to Yahoo etc, aren't they?
2 comments:
No reference question? Oh can I come and work at your library please???
I actually love getting those reference questions thrown at me, give me a chance to do a bit of research and maybe learn something new, and we do get a few of them at our library. As for ask your library sections to your website, they can be great but oh so much work....good luck with finding the time, personally I'm pushing for slamming the boards as you can put in as much or little time as you want and still be able to help people.
But seriously, no reference questions....Can I please come and work with you for a week :o)
I think the important thing about answer boards is that libraries use them to remind people to seek quality information at their local public library. More of a marketing exercise than a targetted reference service.
Mylee (PLS)
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