Category: ITAL

The June 2019 issue of Information Technology and Libraries (ITAL) is available now. Our regular content includes Bohyun Kim’s final LITA President’s Message as her term concludes, “Moving Forward with LITA,” summarizing the work that has gone into the planned division merger that would combine LITA, ALCTS, and LLAMA. Editorial Board member Cinthya Ippoliti discusses the role of libraries in fostering digital pedagogy in her Editorial Board Thoughts column, “Digital Faculty Development.” And, in the second of our new Public Libraries Leading the Way series, Jeffrey Davis discusses the technologies and advantages of digital pass systems in “Online Ticketed-Passes: A Mid-Tech Leap in What Libraries Are For. In this issue: No Need to Ask: Creating Permissionless Blockchains of Metadata RecordsDejah Rubel This article describes how permissionless metadata blockchains could be created to overcome two significant limitations in current cataloging practices: centralization and a lack of traceability. The process would start…

Information Technology and Libraries [ITAL] is LITA’s quarterly, open-access, peer-reviewed journal. If you are a LITA member who is interested in furthering the scholarly record for library technology, apply to serve on the ITAL Editorial Board. The Board has a critical role to play in building the foundation for the journal’s next 50 years and as such, we try to make it reflect the broad diversity of the LITA membership. Members of the Board have several key responsibilities: Reviewing articles submitted to the journal and providing guidance to the editor on suitability for the journal and contribution to the field; Shaping the direction and strategy for the journal; and Soliciting and developing articles from your peers. Subject Expertise: In particular, we need editorial reviewers in the areas of user experience, library services platforms and metadata management, and discovery systems. However, individuals with expertise in all areas at the intersection of…

The March 2019 issue of Information Technology and Libraries (ITAL) is available now. With this issue we begin a new regular column, “Public Libraries Leading the Way.” The column will highlight technology-based innovations from a public library perspective. The inaugural piece is The Democratization of Artificial Intelligence: One Library’s Approach, by Frisco (Texas) Public Library’s Thomas Finley. If you work in a public library and have an idea for a column to share, please check out this LITA blog post with details on how to submit your idea. In this issue: Library Services Navigation: Improving the Online User Experience Brian Rennick While the discoverability of traditional information resources is often the focus of library website design, there is also a need to help users find other services such as equipment, study rooms, and programs. A recent assessment of the Brigham Young University Library website identified nearly two hundred services. Many…

ITAL’s look back at the last 50 years is complete, and we’re taking the opportunity to start something new in 2019. There will be a regular, quarterly, column in Information Technology and Libraries (ITAL), the open-access LITA journal titled “Public Libraries Leading the Way” that will highlight technology-based innovation from a public library perspective. Submit your idea proposal now! Topics we’re interested in include the following, but proposals on any other technology topic are also welcome: Virtual and augmented reality Artificial intelligence Big data Internet of things 3-D printing and makerspaces Robotics Drones Geographic information systems and mapping Diversity, equity, and inclusion and technology Privacy and cyber-security Library analytics and data-driven services Anything else related to public libraries and innovations in technology Columns are in the 1,000-1,500 word range and may include illustrations. These will not be research articles, but are meant to share practical experience with technology development or uses…

The December 2018 issue of Information Technology and Libraries (ITAL) marks the end of the journal’s 50th anniversary review with a summary of articles published in the 1990s by Editorial Board member Steven Bowers. That was the decade that introduced the Internet age and many technologies — including the graphic web browser — that laid the foundation for so much of technological progress in libraries ever since. In this issue: Gaps in IT and Library Services at Small Academic Libraries in Canada Jasmine Hoover Modern academic libraries are hubs of technology, yet the gap between the library and IT is an issue at several small university libraries across Canada that can inhibit innovation and lead to diminished student experience. This paper outlines results of a survey of small (<5,000 FTE) universities in Canada, focusing on IT and the library when it comes to organizational structure, staffing, and location. It then…

In the September 2018 issue of Information Technology and Libraries (ITAL), we continue our celebration of ITAL’s 50th year with a summary of articles from the 1980s by former Editorial Board member Mark Dehmlow. In Mark’s words, “The 1980s were an exciting time for technology development and a decade that is rife with technical evolution.” As personal computers became commonplace through the decade, the Internet age was just around the corner. In this issue: Enhancing Visibility of Vendor Accessibility Documentation Samuel Kent Willis and Faye O’Reilly As accessibility of online resources becomes an increasingly visible priority for libraries, ensuring that our licensed content vendors meet the same standards is more important. This article describes a method of increasing the visibility of vendor accessibility documentation for the benefit of our users. Efficiently Processing and Storing Library Linked Data using Apache Spark and Parquet Kumar Sharma, Ujjal Marjit, and Utpal Biswas Many library…

The June 2018 issue (volume 37, number 2) of Information Technology and Libraries (ITAL) has been published. With this issue, we introduce a new look for the journal — thanks to the work of LITA’s Web Coordinating Committee, and in particular Kelly Sattler (also a member of the Editorial Board), Jingjing Wu, and Guy Cicinelli. The new design is much easier on the eyes and more legible, and sports a new graphic identity for ITAL. In this June 2018 issue, we continue our celebration of ITAL’s 50th year with a summary by Editorial Board member Sandra Shores of the articles published in the 1970s, the journal’s first full decade of publication. The 1970s are particularly pivotal in library technology, as it marks the introduction of the personal computer, as a hobbyist’s tool, to society. The web is still more than a decade away, but the seeds are being planted. The…