At the University of California at Merced’s library, there is no reference desk and there never has been. The way reference services are delivered there would intrigue some and disturb others. At the ...

It was with great interest that I read Scott Carlson’s “Are Reference Desks Dying Out?” (The Chronicle, April 20). While the beginning of the article gave a true picture of the work being done by ...

For years, we’ve been hearing that traditional library reference service is dead. In reality, reference just disappeared, like Jimmy Hoffa. But unlike in the case of Hoffa, no one in the library field ...

Many times I have been at the front desk of our library and have had someone ask a detailed question for information that I know is available at the reference desk. When I explain where the reference ...

As of yesterday morning, students can ask a reference librarian questions about research at any time of the day (or night) through a new online service offered by the Boston Library Consortium (BLC).

National Library Week begins Sunday with the theme “Communities thrive @ your library,” but the Rocky River Public Library is already ahead of the occasion’s tech-savvy theme. Their new Text A ...

I grew up without a local public library. The Ramapo Catskill Library System in New York provided bookmobile service to my small town, so I at least had access to recreational reading, but it was ...

QUINCY -- Retired high school English teacher Betty Lillard shudders to think of what the Quincy Public Library would be like if portions of the library's staff were laid off due to budget cuts. "I ...

BUFFALO, N.Y. - University at Buffalo librarians are offering real-time, online reference assistance to students, some as far away as China, using AOL Instant Messenger software (AIM) in the popular ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about the broad intersection of data and society. Perhaps the greatest irony of the digital era is that while Silicon ...

Dear Abby: I work at a public library and live not far from where I work. A lot of people who use the library live in my apartment building and I run into them often. These people never hesitate to ...