Library needs assistance justifying on-site support

[Karen G. Schneider]

A colleague in a large city somewhere in the free world emailed the
following request this Friday.  Note the very short deadline.  Locked in
hand-to-hand combat with proxy servers and databases (and a dumb terminal
hub that started to gasp and wheeze) I really couldn't do any research or
provide more than personal anecdotal info.  But I did promise to pass along
the question.  If you have anything to offer, email me before noon Monday
2-28 EST at kgs at bluehighways.com and I'll a) pass the info back and b) let
you know who it is.  (This is not to dissuade you from list discussion, of
course!)

It makes you wonder if they think all library staff could be located
somewhere other than the library... the librarian is a crucial component to
service, but without real-time working equipment, what's the point?

-------Request---------------

We just learned that our mayor is planning to remove our automation staff
and put them in the general government offices unless we can persuade him
that our systems are more complex and varied than those in, say, assessing
and that moving that function outside the building would present a
management and public services nightmare.

Do you know of any articles or information someplace that might address this
merits of libraries having their own on-site automation folks, rather than
having to rely on general staff?

We have until next Monday at 3 to put something together, and I would be
pathetically grateful if you have any ideas.
------------------------------

Karen G. Schneider kgs at bluehighways.com
Assistant Director of Technology
Shenendehowa Public Library, Clifton Park, NY
http://www.shenpublib.org