[WEB4LIB] RE: What's wrong with virtual reference?

[Dan Lester]

Friday, December 6, 2002, 8:53:18 AM, you wrote:

HJ> "...virtual reference won't replace in-person reference..."

HJ> I see a growing consensus in industry that companies succeed by providing
HJ> what customers want.  No arguments about the enormous value of in-person
HJ> reference, and the complexities of providing virtual reference, but if the
HJ> users really want virtual reference, I'm confused that libraries would try
HJ> to discourage them.

I don't know of any libraries that are trying to discourage the users
from virtual reference.  I think most users would prefer personal
contact, in fact.

What the authors are missing, however, is that there are hundreds of
thousands of students around the country taking courses via distance
education (or whatever other trendy term you like to use).  Those
students don't have the option of getting service face to face if
they're two hundred miles away in a town that has a public library
with 4,000 books and that is open 12 hours a week.  At Boise State we
do the very best we can to provide service to those folks, and we try
to make that service as close as possible to the service they'd get if
they could come into the library.  Since both authors are at quite
small, residential, liberal arts colleges, they probably aren't dealing
with many, if any, distance students.  Their "distant students" are
probably in a dorm across campus who don't want to bother to come to
the library.

HJ> I equate this stance to the assumption that the book is sacrosanct and will
HJ> prevail.  Very hard to predict right now, but I think we should focus of
HJ> assisting our patrons with their needs and supporting their preferred
HJ> behavior.

Yes, of course we should provide what they need in the manner they
prefer to receive it. But the needs of the small residential college
are different from those at the University of Illinois, and the
authors don't seem to recognize that.

HJ> Aren't many reference desk questions the very sort that could be
HJ> resolved through instant messaging interactions..?  If patrons have resolved
HJ> all of their reference needs virtually and only need to drop by the library
HJ> to pick up physical materials then should we say no..?

No, we shouldn't say no.  However, in our experience, the number of
digital reference requests we receive is very small, particularly in
comparison to the size of the university. Most of them come from
distance students.  Despite parking problems, traffic, and so forth,
most students seem to come to the library for reference service,
although they don't come to the library as often for other materials,
since they can obtain them electronically.

HJ> Perhaps I am wrong here.  I'd like to hear more.

You just did.

cheers

dan



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Dan Lester, Data Wrangler  dan at RiverOfData.com 208-283-7711
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