Fred Heath is Director of the University of Texas Libraries (Vice Provost n.d.) described as one of America’s largest (Libraries Replacing Books 2005). In this paper he outlines the changes in these libraries in response to the Web (2007 p.524).
The text is appealing as it is written in the first person, and cheerfully addresses the reader as “you”. It is similar in tone to Heath’s 2011 paper on Library Assessment which was delivered as a speech (2011, p.7). The argument progresses clearly and is reflected in the sub-headings.
Heath considers the impact of the Web on newspapers and other industries, suggesting rather gloomily that the majority of these enterprises are simply now trying to survive the challenges of the digital age without having an effective plan (2007, pp. 520-524). He suggests many academic libraries are in this position, but proceeds to outline the strategies in place at the University of Texas (UT).
He seems to overstate the negative case for other industries, as some have grasped the fact that existing content is not irrelevant to the modern marketplace, it simply needs to be framed and available in new formats[1]. Interestingly this insight, applied to libraries, appears in the conclusion: “Old vessels, such as books and journals, often confused by librarians with the information that they contained…” (Heath 2007, p.531).
Despite the positive steps that UT libraries have taken, a larger problem looms. He refers to the rapidity of change and ability of new ventures to move to pre-eminence in a short time (Heath 2007, p.524). He then observes that “our system of academic library services is instinctively inertial”. As the library is simply massive in terms of holdings, it is inevitably less agile.
The developments in the UT library are significant, though questions arise about some. The library is developing courses for undergraduates that focus on the general skills of locating information and critical analysis. At the time of the paper these appear to still be taught face to face: by 2012 however, students expect to access courses online[2]. It is pleasing to see from a search of the UT Libraries website that students can now do online classes which are recorded (UT Library Lesson 2010).
An apparently simple change to the library’s web page reflects a core change of view: a search box is available from the home page, and this can be directed not only to the university’s collection but also to Google Books. Heath explains this in terms of the library focussing on facilitating access to data. This may be a step towards using Google rather than formal cataloguing (Calhoun, 2006 in Waller, 2008).
The library still has massive holdings. Some collections have been combined, and physical collections are frozen at current levels (Heath 2007 p.527). The space is intended for study and meeting spaces. The point here is to avoid replication while focussing resources on specialised collections (e.g. human rights abuses in the modern world) that will attract academics (2007, p.528). This is consistent with the idea that “in the digital world, libraries are becoming more involved in the creation …of knowledge” (Lougee 2002, p.iv). UT is collaborating with other universities to provide appropriate web publishing for dissertations.
Figure 2 retrieved from http://futuresavvy.net/2011/07/books-are-the-widgets/
Video is a link to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIUX2Qef7Xw
The text is appealing as it is written in the first person, and cheerfully addresses the reader as “you”. It is similar in tone to Heath’s 2011 paper on Library Assessment which was delivered as a speech (2011, p.7). The argument progresses clearly and is reflected in the sub-headings.
Heath considers the impact of the Web on newspapers and other industries, suggesting rather gloomily that the majority of these enterprises are simply now trying to survive the challenges of the digital age without having an effective plan (2007, pp. 520-524). He suggests many academic libraries are in this position, but proceeds to outline the strategies in place at the University of Texas (UT).
He seems to overstate the negative case for other industries, as some have grasped the fact that existing content is not irrelevant to the modern marketplace, it simply needs to be framed and available in new formats[1]. Interestingly this insight, applied to libraries, appears in the conclusion: “Old vessels, such as books and journals, often confused by librarians with the information that they contained…” (Heath 2007, p.531).
Despite the positive steps that UT libraries have taken, a larger problem looms. He refers to the rapidity of change and ability of new ventures to move to pre-eminence in a short time (Heath 2007, p.524). He then observes that “our system of academic library services is instinctively inertial”. As the library is simply massive in terms of holdings, it is inevitably less agile.
(A "how to" video posted by the UT Library on YouTube)
 |
| fig. 1) from the UT Libraries homepage |
An apparently simple change to the library’s web page reflects a core change of view: a search box is available from the home page, and this can be directed not only to the university’s collection but also to Google Books. Heath explains this in terms of the library focussing on facilitating access to data. This may be a step towards using Google rather than formal cataloguing (Calhoun, 2006 in Waller, 2008).
 |
| fig. 2) Extreme archiving at the new Univesity of Chicago Library |
The library still has massive holdings. Some collections have been combined, and physical collections are frozen at current levels (Heath 2007 p.527). The space is intended for study and meeting spaces. The point here is to avoid replication while focussing resources on specialised collections (e.g. human rights abuses in the modern world) that will attract academics (2007, p.528). This is consistent with the idea that “in the digital world, libraries are becoming more involved in the creation …of knowledge” (Lougee 2002, p.iv). UT is collaborating with other universities to provide appropriate web publishing for dissertations.
Heath presents a strong case for action by academic libraries to ensure that their expertise and treasures can be utilised by students who expect much more in the digital age than a catalogue of books. Such ventures may not all work, but even failures based on clearly articulated strategies indicate new opportunities. Paul Anderson suggested libraries needed to “experiment and take risks” (2007, p196) and Heath’s paper suggests a number of ways this is actually happening.
[1] A
current example of this process is the development by the ABC in Australia of
iView, a web portal and iPad app where virtually all programmed content is
available free for two weeks after it is aired.
[2] In
a conversation with Dr James Dalziel of Macquarie University in 2012 he shared
his perception that undergraduate students now expected all lectures to be videotaped
(as they are at Macquarie) and to be able to access them at any time day or
night.
References
- ABC iView (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/iview/
- Anderson, P (2007) ‘All That Glisters Is not Gold’ – Web 2.0 and the librarian. Journal of Librarianship and Information Science 29: 195-198
- Heath, F. (2009) Documenting the Global Conversation: Relevancy of Libraries in a Digital World. Journal of Library Administration 45, 519-532
- Heath, F. (2011) Library Assessment: The Way We Have Grown. The Library Quarterly, 81(1), 7-25. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.1086/657448 .
- Libraries Replacing Books (2005) Libraries replacing books with bytes. Information Management Journal 13, Retrieved from http://go.galegroup.com.ezproxy.csu.edu.au/ps/i.do?id=GALE%7CA134256166&v=2.1&u=csu_au&it=r&p=EAIM&sw=w
- Lougee, W. (2002) Diffuse Libraries: Emergent Roles for the Research Library in the Digital Age. Council on Library and Information Resources Washington, D.C., Retrieved from http://www.clir.org/pubs/reports/pub108/pub108.pdf
- UT Library Lesson (2010) Retrieved from https://meeting.austin.utexas.edu/p52623530/?launcher=false&fcsContent=true&pbMode=normal
- UT Library Lesson Recordings (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.lib.utexas.edu/services/instruction/classes/recordings.html
- Vice Provost (n.d.) Retrieved from http://www.lib.utexas.edu/vprovost/heath_f.html
- Waller, V. (2008) Legitimacy for large public libraries in the digital age. Library Review, 57(5), 372-385. doi:10.1108/00242530810875159
Figure 2 retrieved from http://futuresavvy.net/2011/07/books-are-the-widgets/
Video is a link to http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DIUX2Qef7Xw
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