Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
It is arguable that many people are simply unaware that there is
content available on what is known as the 'invisible web' or 'deep web'.
The invisible web contains the content not surfaced by the search
engines, content that is often only accessible on payment of a toll or
subscription fee. Even those who are aware of the invisible web, and
who have access to subscription content through an affiliation to a
library, are unlikely to start their search there. Google is ubiquitous and,
indeed, the use of Google is so popular that 'to Google' is now a verb,
and entered the Oxford English Dictionary in 2006. This means that
information professionals have a huge task in helping users to find and
use the content on the invisible web. It is a core belief of the information
professional that access to high-quality information is at the heart of
research and the knowledge economy. Graham Stone, in Chapter 6,
further examines the complexities and challenges of resource discovery
in the digital era and asks what the future holds for libraries and
librarians.
The academic library of the future
There is little doubt that the role of the academic library is changing in
the digital age. A recent feature on the future of libraries in the
Guardian newspaper stated: 'Academic libraries are changing faster
than at any time in their history. Information technology, online
databases and catalogues and digitised archives have put the library
back at the heart of teaching and learning and academic research on
campus' (JISC, 2009).
Such media attention is welcome and raises the profile of libraries.
Over the last decade huge strides have been made in the provision of
and access to information by libraries. Most major journal publishers
now provide their entire portfolio in digital format and the transition by
libraries from printed journal holdings to electronic journals (e-journals)
is rapid. The traditional journal package as we know it is also evolving.
Blogs and wikis, links to research data, RSS feeds and online peer review
are all becoming commonplace. Topic publishers are catching up, and
electronic topics (e-books) are becoming an important element of
library collections. Scholarly topic publishers increasingly publish both
print and electronic versions of their topics, although this does not
generally apply to textbooks. Amazon - a major player in the mass
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