|
|
Tough Choices at the Ref Desk
3:02 PM EDT 6/20/04
Providing public access is certainly something that I believe in and have a lot of passion for; that's why we're all here, right? But I'd like to start a conversation about some things that come up for librarians in providing public access that are difficult, or that we don't have a lot of experience dealing with (until recently!). What are some of the things that come up now that we provide public access to computers and technology in our libraries? I'm hoping we can share ideas to help smooth over some of the rough spots, or think forward to policies that need to be created where they do not yet exist.
One thing I know of is the enormous amount of time it takes to train or help patrons when asked technical questions at the reference desk...
|
|
|
|
|
|
RE: Tough Choices at the Ref Desk
3:02 PM EDT 6/20/04
as a reply to Nikki Collins.
Great question and I look forward to seeing what the replies as well. This is a particularly tough question for staffing levels, continuing education training, how in-depth should your response be, are you qualified to give a technical answer [particularly if the patron could possibly damaging their system or have to spend dollars]and many more.
Personally, as a small public Library administrator, we attempt to spend as much time as needed with each patron. If some one has in-depth needs we refer them to the person on-staff with the expertise and then we try to take the time so they understand the solution or get the reference works/web sites to resolve their situation. If we cannot spend as much time as needed, we'll set up a later appointment, ask if they can wait a bit until we are less busy and other similar tactics. If the staff does not have the expertise, we try to refer them to someone who does. In some ways it comes down to do you have enough well trained staff on to spend the necessary time. We have been able to.
|
|
|
|
|
|
RE: Tough Choices at the Ref Desk
3:02 PM EDT 6/20/04
as a reply to Nikki Collins.
Just joined and am enjoying reading all the discussions! This on is particularly interesting to me, being the Technology person in our public librar, but also part-time Reference librarian. With the addition of many computers the Ref Staff was often frustrated by assorted problems, especially if the Techie wasn't available to assist. We've worked on staff training to help them deal with those little annoyances, like printer issues, floppy problems, etc. so they don't feel they have to call for help every time a problem comes up. But if they are swamped and I'm available, calling is a good option. This leads to another tough choice: if I'm working as Reference Librarian but a tech problem comes up, it's frustrating to me to not be able to fix it right away!
Hope to see some more replies soon.
|
|
|
|
|
|
RE: RE: RE: Tough Choices at the Ref Desk
3:02 PM EDT 6/20/04
as a reply to Nikki Collins.
It's true - I don't think there is a good way to resolve this conflict! When I am working as a Reference Librarian I try to keep that as my primary focus, and if I happen to have the knowledge to quickly resolve a tech question/issue, I'll go ahead and do it - maybe I know just a little more about the printer than others on the Ref staff, for example. But if it's something more involved (why doesn't the CD-Rom work, or someone changed the homepage) I may have to leave it until I am a tech again. Or call the other tech staff member. Often it depends on how busy the Ref desk is at the time - maybe I do have time to change a mouse without calling another tech person. But I'm afraid it leads to confusion on the patron's part when they may know I've done something in the past (as a tech) but can't do it when playing the part of a Reference Librarian. But, working both sides of library service has been interesting - seeing how patrons use the catalog and equipment has helped me understand why some technical issues arise!
|
|
|
|
|
|
RE: RE: Tough Choices at the Ref Desk
3:02 PM EDT 6/20/04
as a reply to Nikki Collins.
I think this is one of the rewards of working in two departments - you really get an appreciation for the problems in each. So often we in Tech come up with a great idea, forgetting the public doesn't always think the same way we do!
And, being called on to help individuals is another part of being a Tech I really enjoy. Since I don't have the time constraints the librarians at the Ref Desk have, I can be a little more patient with those who aren't as computer-savvy as we might want. But being able to show someone a new trick - usually something simple like copying part of an email message into Word so they can print it - is a simple reward that helps make my day!
|
|
|
|
