36 libraries of every kind partner with L-net, a reference service that lets Oregonians get live help from Oregon's libraries through online chat and e-mail 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. This guide is intended to give a detailed overview of L-net, its benefits to libraries, what is expected of partner libraries, and how to become a partner. Questions and suggestions should be sent to Caleb Tucker-Raymond, L-net service coordinator.
Reference service is vital for any library to fulfill its mission. No matter how much cataloging, classifying, indexing and sorting we do, systems for organizing information in libraries are complex, and everyone needs a little help now and then. Libraries online are getting easier for patrons to use, and Oregon is home to a number of exciting and innovative projects and services, including Plinkit, LibraryFind, the Orbis/Cascade Alliance, the Sage Library System and digital libraries like the Klamath Digital Waters Project. No matter how well we provide library services online, patrons using them will have the same needs as those that visit our buildings in person - they need a little help now and then. Remote reference service is nothing new. Libraries have provided telephone reference service for decades and many still get reference questions by post. Libraries continue to provide these services because there is demand. But there is also a growing demand for live service through online chat and instant messaging. Traffic on L-net has grown in each of the last fuve years. Patrons may choose online chat over other methods of communication for any number of reasons:
At heart, L-net is not about technology. It is about connecting people to one another, in order to help Oregon's citizens make use of all that our libraries have to offer.
Being a partner with L-net gives a number of benefits to libraries and reference staff.
Emily-Jane Dawson, Librarian, Multnomah County Library
Working on L-net has helped me broaden my communication and reference skills considerably! In most of my job, my patrons are adults with non-fiction related questions and information needs, and though many L-net patrons have a similar profile, my work with chat patrons on L-net has helped me to broaden my readers' advisory skills, and has given me more chance to interact with kids and teens than I would ever have in my brick-and-mortar library. Also, it's incredibly satisfying to help people where they already are -- I can't tell you how many times L-net patrons have told me they were pleased to be able to get answers by chat or email, because they weren't able to physically go to the library.
Lori Moore, Assistant Director, Newberg Public Library
Staffing L-net is valuable to me because I learn so much while I'm helping patrons. I learn more about what is out there to help patrons on the web in general, but I also learn new things about what other libraries are offering such as programs, web tools, and databases. Often I learn about great things I can think about using in my own library!
Mary Bush, Librarian, Multnomah County Library
My experience doing l-net shifts has been invaluable to my growth as a reference librarian here at MCL. I am on many desks at the library and also work at a branch. I don't often get a lot of reference questions when I'm on the desks at Central and reference skills improve as we use them. I welcome the opportunity to sink my teeth into an l-net question, either in live chat or through email reference.
Doing live chat is a great opportunity to think fast using electronic resources. It keeps our brains flexible and energetic. Each new question is a learning opportunity, both for me and for my patron. It's also an opportunity to connect to patrons who are not regular library users and help them become library users. We are there for them whether online or sitting at a desk. Each interaction through l-net, even if the question isn't "deep" or complex, still creates an important relationship between a new library user and us- the librarians or library staff. We can learn a lot from our chat users, about what their information needs are, and subsequently using what we discover to find better ways to serve them.
L-net standards for reference are high, and I appreciate the constant reminder to be a good reference librarian, do a good reference interview, interact with the patron and follow through if I can't find an answer quickly.
Lee Catalano, Librarian, Multnomah County Library
I enjoy being an L-net Librarian because it gives me a chance to work with adults (a group I don't meet with very often in the course of my day), answering questions I don't often get asked (because kids' questions are often really different than adults'). But I also enjoy working with youth in another medium -- I help them in person every day, but exploring answers to their questions in a web-only environment is challenging and rewarding. Students often seem to come to us as a last resort -- "I've looked all over the internet" -- and I enjoy being able to show them how to be better searchers and what makes a better website. Many time, we've both learned something at the end of a chat session and that makes me feel great!
Valery King, Librarian, Oregon State University Libraries
The work of academic librarians is changing. We do fewer hours at the reference desk and instead focus more on teaching classes and providing individual research consultation. What an opportunity, then, that L-net offers! I keep my reference skills fresh, I interact with K-12 students that are the college students of tomorrow, and I have a chance to keep current on some of the communication technologies that young people seem to adapt to so readily. I can also interact with a broader range of Oregon citizens than I might otherwise have the opportunity to do. As our mission statement makes clear, Oregon State University considers the state of Oregon to be its campus, working in partnership with others around the state to best serve the people of Oregon. What better way can a librarian contribute than through the collaborative efforts of L-net?
Beverly Stafford, Librarian, Multnomah County Library
Working on L-net gives me a chance to be a librarian in a whole new way in terms of technology, plus I am part of a library service that can be helpful to people throughout the entire state of Oregon. I like to help provide a library service that makes an immediate connection to those who don't have a library nearby, or who can't easily come in to the library. This includes people of all ages, and expands the idea of what library services are all about, in an age when looking up information on the internet is thought to be sufficient. L-net is also great for networking among other librarians in Oregon, since we can work together to provide a service based upon immediacy of reply. I can't think of any other library service that gives me this sense of connection to both Oregon residents and librarians, that so easily allows for a way to share the wealth of information and resources of Oregon's libraries.
L-net, Oregon's statewide digital reference service, began in January 2003 as a pilot project called Answerland.
The idea for the pilot project came from the Oregon State Library's 2002 E-reference task force and the Oregon Library Association's Vision 2010 Call to Action.
The Vision 2010 Committee believes that the citizens of Oregon are best served if libraries remain at the center of our communities and campuses as primary providers of information services.
The premise for the service is that Oregon's libraries can serve our communities well by connecting Oregon citizens directly to reference librarians online. Collaboration ensures that we do this efficiently and effectively.
Previously, the Oregon State Library funded a library-to-library reference service, Oregon Reference Link, where reference questions asked at small libraries could be "escalated" to regional centers with strong reference collections. Libraries may still use this service by visiting www.oregonlibraries.net/ask.
L-net is funded by a grant through the Library Services and Technology Act from the Oregon State Library.
Multnomah County Library is the fiscal agent for the grant and is responsible for all fiscal and administrative duties.
The Oregon State Library uses LSTA to fund statewide programs, like L-net, as well as competitive grants. L-net's funding is reviewed by the Oregon State Library's LSTA council and approved by their Board of Trustees.
L-net is also made possible by contributions of staffing from our 35 partner libraries. In-kind staffing contributions make up about 30% of the total cost of L-net.
In 2009, the Oregon State Library Board of Trustees voted unanimously to amend the Oregon Administrative Rules so that libraries receiving subsidies for statewide databases will be required to contribute a small amount of cash to L-net.
The board will decide how much the total amount of cash will be each year. For 2009-10, the amount is $0. L-net remains wholly funded through LSTA funds.
L-net is a multi-type collaborative service, meaning that public, academic, school and law libraries all answer questions for each others' patrons.
Some reference questions can be equally well answered by any librarian, but others require a subject specialist or knowledge of a specific institution's collections and policies.
We acknowledge that patrons are best served by their local librarians, but also find that collaborative reference can be excellent given a few shared policies and tools.
L-net libraries share a service philosophy and service guidelines to ensure consistent, high-quality service.
Our service guidelines are based on national and international standards, published research, case studies of our own experience, and feedback from patrons and librarians.
L-net librarians have access to a page summarizing policies and links to library services for each L-net partner library. Librarians use these pages to quickly answer questions about another library.
Patrons are identified as belonging to a particular library through their referring URL, or if that is not available, by asking them which library they use.
24/7 coverage is achieved through partnerships with Ohio's KnowItNow24x7 service and the Northeast Ohio Regional Library System's AfterDark librarians.
Schedule
| Weekends | AfterDark librarians |
| Weekdays, 6am-9am | KnowItNow24x7 librarians |
| Weekdays, 9am-6pm | L-net librarians |
| Weekdays, 6pm-6am | AfterDark librarians |
In exchange, L-net librarians cover Ohio's KnowItNow24x7 service during our regular hours if we have three or more librarians assigned to a shift.
Libraries license resources for their own patrons to use and cannot share those resources with patrons from another library.
We have studied this problem and released a report and recommendations in 2003, Working with Licensed Resources.
Our general policy is to use resources available at the patron's library. We recommend that libraries supply a barcode that L-net librarians can use to help patrons remotely.
About 10% of L-net questions come through our e-mail form. An additional 5-10% of questions can't be answered in chat and get assigned for followup. Sometimes these are circulation questions.
Most questions come from patrons, but a few questions come from Oregon libraries who are seeking additional help for one of their patrons.
L-net librarians collaborate to answer these questions through our e-mail and followup system.
Train with us: L-net provides training for new partner libraries.
For libraries who would like to help staff the chat service, a day-long training will be scheduled. Librarians will receive hands-on training with L-net's chat software, e-mail software, and instruction on techniques for communicating effectively online with patrons and providing reference services online.
Libraries who would like to help staff the e-mail service only will receive training in L-net's e-mail software.
To schedule training, contact
Emily Papagni
L-net Partner Support Librarian
503.988.5433
emilyp@multcolib.org
L-net provides followup training to partner libraries by request.
Train on your own
If you have received training and would like to help train your colleagues, we have a handy curriculum outline that you can use to make sure you cover all the bases.
L-net and partner libraries sign a service agreement so that we can each know what to expect from one another. Partner libraries are expected to be responsible for:
This checklist helps make sure that all the right steps are taken when your library becomes a partner with L-net.
Your Library and L-net: Set up and hold training sessions. Training is one day long and includes software training and virtual reference techniques. If your institution or library doesn't have a training lab, we can find a nearby one or use your public access computers before your library opens or after it closes.
Your Library : Choose an individual to be a liaison with L-net.
L-net : Set up logins for Your Library's staff.
* Your Library Make the necessary computer configuration changes for our Spark instant messaging software.
* Your Library : practice providing virtual reference service with the L-net practice queue.
* Your Library and L-net : choose a weekly shift (or choose a range of shifts you can be available).
* Your Library : view our scheduling software tutorial.
Your Library : join the L-net e-mail discussion list and explore the L-net staff website.
* Your Library : staff virtual reference desk live with a partner library (eventually alone if it is not too busy).
Your Library and L-net : sign a service agreement.
Your Library and L-net : issue press release to local media about Your Library's participation in L-net.
Your Library : edit your library's online profile.
* chat providers only
Every L-net partner library designates a liaison to work with the L-net coordinator. This person is responsible for:
If sometimes a different person needs to be responsible for one or more of these tasks, that is fine - we just want to make sure that all of these things are happening.
L-net's Statement of Shared Understanding is a service agreement that describes what partner libraries and L-net can expect from one another. It is meant to be a formal agreement, but we hope it is simple enough to not need review by legal counsel.
The service agreement is online at http://www.oregonlibraries.net/system/files/serviceagreement_0.pdf.
Different libraries contribute different things to L-net, so in our service agreement, partner libraries choose a level of service accordingly.
| Attachment | Size |
|---|---|
| serviceagreement.pdf | 32.28 KB |
To staff L-net's e-mail service, librarians need a computer with an internet connection.
To staff L-net's live chat service, librarians need a computer with an internet connection and L-net's Spark software.
Information on downloading and installing Spark is at:
Who gets to be on the virtual reference desk? Where does she sit? Who does she sit with? What does she do if a patron needs her attention in person or on the phone?
We've thought a lot about how to staff virtual reference and have put them into a short document, "Ideas for staffing the virtual reference desk".
The link on the staff blog for today's schedule lists the libraries covering shifts today (and for the coming week).
Our scheduling needs page reflects where we need coverage and where we are overstaffed. If you can help with one of the shifts that is not well covered, especially a red shift, please let Caleb know.
Some libraries choose to be available for a range of shifts rather than be assigned to a specific one each week. This allows different staff to answer questions with L-net from week to week.
Scheduling is done at least 4 weeks in advance. During the last week of the month, the schedule is created for the month after the upcoming one. That is, at the end of October, the schedule for December is created.
We use ScheduleSource to create, maintain and report on schedules. Two tutorials are available, one created by L-net (requires PowerPoint), and one created by ScheduleSource (requires Flash). You are also welcome to simply contact the scheduler when scheduling changes are needed.
You can also receive e-mail alerts of the schedule up to 4 weeks in advance. View the L-net ScheduleSource tutorial to find out more.
The daily schedule is always available as a link, Today's chat schedule, on the L-net staff information blog.
An RSS feed of the daily schedule is also available.
You can also receive e-mail alerts of the schedule up to 4 weeks in advance. View the L-net ScheduleSource tutorial to find out more.
It is your library's responsibility to communicate your availability for staffing L-net and to cover shifts you are scheduled for. You will not be scheduled on most holidays.
If you know that your library will unable to cover a certain day or time in the future, request a day off through ScheduleSource or by contacting Caleb.
If you anticipate missing a shift you are already scheduled for, you should ask for a swap on the L-net e-mail discussion list.
It is everyone's job to help promote L-net in Oregon.
The main thing you can do is link to the L-net website or directly to our chat service.
You can also issue press releases, put up posters and discuss L-net as part of your library's services when you reach out to your community.
To get started, visit www.oregonlibraries.net/promote.
Statistics about L-net are generally available at www.oregonlibraries.net/stats, including links to monthly statistics, detailed quarterly reports and a summary of our goals from this fiscal year and in the past.
The statistics page also has links to statistics broken down by County and Library.
Summaries of patron exit surveys are also included in quarterly reports.
If you have any specific statistical needs about the questions you answer or the questions patrons from your service area ask, please ask Caleb.
L-net treats all patron information, questions, answers and transcripts as confidential.
Questions and answers stored on L-net's server are deleted once they have not been updated for 7 days. Copies of the questions and answers are "scrubbed" to remove patron information and stored on the L-net server, www.oregonlibraries.net. Staff can access transcripts by visiting www.oregonlibraries.net/buzz. A username and password are required.
As fiscal agent for the project, Multnomah County Library is custodian of all public records related to L-net. Parter libraries are asked to refer requests for the release or preservation of L-net records to L-net coordinators, even if it is something they have access to themselves.
Answers sent to L-net patrons may be exempt from public records requests, but a publicly-funded library's e-mail transactions are usually not. We ask that partner libraries use the L-net e-mail software when sending answers to patrons so that the answers will not be mixed in with non-exempt public records. In the event of a public records request, it may be difficult to separate the two types of records.
Because we do not control records stored on partner library's computers, we ask that libraries delete e-mails and files that contain patron information or copies of chat session or e-mail transcripts.
L-net's official privacy policy is available at www.oregonlibraries.net/privacy.
There are several ways to stay in touch with the L-net community.
The L-net e-mail discussion list is open to everyone. Traffic is minimal, but we'd love to change that. Most of the messages are announcements from L-net, but everyone is welcome to bring up any L-net related topic. If you have trouble signing up, ask Emily or Caleb to add you.
L-net goings-on is a bi-weekly newsletter sent to the e-mail discussion list, and is also posted to this website.
The L-net blog covers virtual reference in Oregon and beyond. Caleb does most of the writing, but you can contribute too! Just ask.
The Oregon Virtual Reference Summit is an annual conference held somewhere in Oregon dedicated to helping us meet one another and to hearing from national experts on virtual reference in our own backyard.
If you're interested in the national conversation about virtual reference, a number of blogs and e-mail discussion lists exist.
DIG_REF is an e-mail discussion list for digital (aka virtual) reference. There are a few messages every day. Topics range far and wide from virtual reference, but discussion frequently includes best practices for virtual reference, software, and online resources.
There are fewer and fewer blogs dedicated to only virtual reference, except for those, like ours, that are dedicated to or sponsored by specific services. Digital Reference is an exception, but for news and discussion from blogs, try a blog search service like Technorati for virtual reference, digital reference, or instant messaging reference.
Librarians using del.icio.us use the tags virtualreference and digitalreference as they find interesting articles and web pages on the subject.
L-net has also compiled a brief bibliography of important books and articles on virtual reference. For a longer list, see Virtual Reference Bibliography at the Rutgers School of Communication and Information.
Everyone staffing L-net is issued a handbook, which is updated at least once per year (and re-issued to staff). The handbook is also online at www.oregonlibraries.net/handbook. You will need a username and password for this site to download the handbook - contact Emily or Caleb for more information.
Many documents created in the past are available by using the search feature of this site or by visiting the documents page.
L-net's staff information blog and L-net goings-on newsletter offer timely information about updates, policies and procedures.
Emily Papagni
L-net partner support librarian
emilyp@multcolib.org
(503) 988-5433
Caleb Tucker-Raymond
L-net service coordinator
calebt@multcolib.org
(503) 988-5438
The role of the L-net Advisory Board is to set the mission, goals, and direction of L-net program. The ultimate vision is to create, maintain and continually improve a high-quality E-reference program that succeeds in serving the needs of all residents of Oregon.
The primary responsibility of the L-net Advisory Board is to advise the L-net Program Coordinator and the Fiscal Agent regarding the development, implementation, promotion and evaluation of L-net.
To do this, the Board may advise on the following:
General policy and budget issues
Collaboration among provider libraries
Service standards, benchmarks, and guidelines
Promotion of L-net to the public and the Oregon library community
Staff training and best practices
Evaluation and assessment of the program
Software and vendor selection
The L-net advisory board meets 3 times per year in person, and has occasional teleconferences as necessary.
Each member serves a term of two years. New members are recruited in the fall.
L-net teams meet regularly or irregularly to focus on one aspect of L-net. Many teams are ongoing, but membership is neither permanent nor compulsory. Ad-hoc teams may be formed to address specific issues, such as revising the L-net Privacy Policy or drafting the L-net service agreement.