context that includes the publishing and information marketplace, changing modalities of scholarly communication, and evolving capabilities in the user community. Information technology has profoundly changed all aspects of higher education and scholarship, and these changes continue to unfold today. Innovation and transformation for academic libraries take place within this broader context; libraries cannot be considered in isolation from this context.

Libraries applied a growing range of information technologies to the management of collections of primarily print information. This was a supremely rational period characterized by the primacy of the systems analysis perspective— careful studies of cost/ benefit tradeoffs in the introduction of technology to modernize library operations. Starting in the late 1980s or early 1990s, academic libraries were confronted with environmental changes driven by information technology, which quickly moved the focus of attention away from automation toward a series of much more fundamental questions about library roles and missions in the digital age. Libraries were forced to react to developments in information technology (and their cultural and economic consequences) rather than methodically exploiting them. The emergence of the World Wide Web in the mid-1990s is perhaps the great symbol of this shift, with all of its implications for scholarly communication; but there is much more: the rise of computational science, the new role of databases in all areas of scholarship. At the start of the new century, libraries are struggling to absorb innovation and to recognize the implications and meanings of transformation.

The three phases discussed above are:

1. The First Automation Age: Computerizing Library Operations

2. The Second Automation Age: The Rise of Public Access

3. The Third Automation Age: Print Content Goes Electronic

What I want to suggest in my approach to the Library and Information Services combined with present era information technology is a new approach to the discipline of Library and Information Services which tries to evolve itself out from the current paradigm with the help of current day technologies.

In other words, this is an attempt to utilize the contemporary information technology trends for the benefit of Library and Information Services.

So, the fourth stage, suggested is:

The Fourth Transformation Age: From Automation to Transformation

The technologies/methodologies which can help LIS unleash its current bounds are – RSS Feed, Blogs, Web 2.0 and Lib 2.0. In the following sections of this paper, a detailed description and the utilization of the same in LIS is done.

1. RSS Feed

RSS (formally "RDF Site Summary", known colloquially as "Really Simple Syndication") is a family of Web feed formats used to publish frequently updated content such as blog entries, news headlines or podcasts. An RSS document, which is called a "feed", "web feed", or "channel", contains either a summary of content from an associated web site or the full text. RSS makes it possible for people to keep up with their favorite web sites in an automated manner that's easier than checking them manually.

RSS content can be read using software called an "RSS reader", "feed reader" or an "aggregator". The user subscribes to a feed by entering the feed's link into the reader or by clicking an RSS icon in a browser that initiates the subscription process. The reader checks the user's subscribed feeds regularly for new content, downloading any updates that it finds.

Making content available through RSS requires adding a small bit of code to a Web site, typically with an accompanying icon that lets users know that the content on the page is available through RSS. Users click on the icon or other RSS link to add a subscription to their aggregators, which allow users to set parameters such as how frequently the application looks for new content and how long downloaded items are kept. Rather than checking 20 or 50 or 100 blogs every day, for example, you can subscribe to the blogs’ RSS feeds and simply check your aggregator to see new content added to any of them. For some content, RSS feeds deliver headlines and short bits of “teaser” text, driving users to the content provider’s site to access the full resource. In other cases, such as podcasts and photos, RSS feeds deliver all of the content to users. If you subscribe to a Flickr feed, for example, new photos added to that feed will be downloaded to your aggregator, where you can access them locally.

In the early days of RSS, users needed separate reader or aggregator applications for their RSS subscriptions. Increasingly, Web browsers and even operating systems incorporate RSS functionality, giving a much wider range of user’s access to RSS feeds through applications they already use. In addition, devices such as PDAs and cell phones now support RSS.

1.1. Usage of RSS Feed to Library and Information Services

In many ways, RSS answers the question of how to filter and organize the vast amount of information on the Web. Internet users tend to settle on preferred sources of information, whether news sites, blogs, wikis, or other online resources that regularly update content. RSS allows users to create a list of those sources in an application that automatically retrieves updates, saving considerable time and effort. RSS feeds can be offered at varying levels of granularity, further enhancing users’ ability to specify exactly what information they want to receive. For example, a college or university might offer one RSS feed for the institution’s main news page, sharing information that concerns the institution broadly, and other feeds focused on the college of arts and sciences, the history department, or research being conducted by a professor of European history. Users can subscribe to feeds independently, tailoring the content they receive to their unique interests and needs.

Growing numbers of online resources offer RSS functionality. Because applications such as browsers and operating systems increasingly support RSS, the technology has the potential to become the primary vehicle through which users interact with the Internet. Further, RSS can offer an alternative to e-mail newsletters, which raise concerns about privacy and spam.

1.2. Utilizing RSS Feed – Suggestions

More and more libraries have now begun to provide RSS feeds of new books catalogued as they arrive in the libraries. They also subscribe to a number of electronic databases and electronic journals that provide RSS feeds. In order to keep uptodate with new books or new research, faculty and students will need to get familiar with this technology. This will help them to integrate new knowledge learned from other sources into their coursework or in the research project that they are working on.

Tables of contents from variety of journals such as Nature, Nature Biotechnology, Nature Materials and those from the Institute of Physics can be tracked using this new technology.

Academic libraries can use RSS feeds in a variety of ways as listed below:

1. Announce the availability of new books and materials in a given subject are

2. Announce the availability of new electronic resources

3. Promote events organized in the library to faculty and students

4. Enhance Library Instruction for different courses by integrating appropriate resources

5. Announce availability of new research and learning opportunities in academic departments’ blogs

2. Blogs

A blog (web log) is a website where entries are commonly displayed in reverse chronological order. "Blog" can also be used as a verb, meaning to maintain or add content to a blog.

Many blogs provide commentary or news on a particular subject; others function as more personal online diaries. A typical blog combines text, images, and links to other blogs, web pages, and other media related to its topic. The ability for readers to leave comments in an interactive format is an important part of many blogs. Most blogs are primarily textual, although some focus on art (artlog), photographs (photoblog), sketchblog, videos (vlog), music (MP3 blog), audio (podcasting) are part of a wider network of social media. Micro-blogging is another type of blogging which consists of blogs with very short posts.

2.1. Usage of Blogs to Library and Information Services

There are dozens of ways that libraries are using blogs already. The most obvious application is for library news, which you need to be able to update frequently and easily. Blogging software helps make this job easy enough for anyone to do it. Here are other ways to use blogs for advantage:

Promote Library Events:

Create a blog that promotes library events and programs. Reach out beyond the visitors to your regular Web site. Set up an RSS feed for your blog and alert everyone in your community that they can include your headlines on their sites or can use an RSS newsreader to see what's up at the library.

E-commerce sites try to turn each visitor into a repeat customer. Libraries can try this too. Put an e-mail subscription form on the blog site and encourage visitors to sign up. This type of permission-based marketing is your chance to send library news straight to the user's in box on a regular basis. It's an opportunity to invite visitors to come back to the library or its Web site over and over again.

Make your blog stand out from the crowd by including some special content that captures readers' interest. For example, include a "quote of the day" from a famous literary work, run a trivia quiz each Friday, or share an interesting fact about your community each week. Some libraries keep lists of "interesting questions and answers" that could be shared. Don't be afraid to develop a unique voice for your blog, whether it's that of a friendly helper that explains mysteries or an authoritative approach that focuses on giving "just the facts."

Support Your Dedicated Users:

An obvious hit with most library visitors is finding out what new books, videos, CDs, or DVDs have been added to the collection. Think about setting up topics on your blog for each genre: mysteries, horror, science fiction, romance, and so on. In an academic library, prepare special alerts about new resources and Web sites for particular departments or colleges.

Engage Your Community:

Post new book reviews and book award lists. Invite comments and suggestions. Create an online book discussion area by asking readers to recommend books to others.

Support Your Community:

Librarians are always looking for ways to offer value-added services. Can you offer a special service with the blog and reach a new audience? A local election news blog that posts announcements about candidate Web sites, nominations, and meetings might be a natural project for libraries that are mandated to make local council minutes and agendas available to the public.

Building New Ties:

Are you trying to reach a new area of your community? What about offering a blog in another language to provide short entries on upcoming programs and new resources? Perhaps you are trying to reach out to teachers in order to market library services and to make sure that school visits work effectively for the library and the schools. What about starting a blog-style newsletter that's just for teachers? You can focus on special services for teachers, programs for schools, new research resources, book lists, and seasonal Web sites of interest. Some blogs allow you to have extended entries and include feature articles.

Promoting your library's services, resources, and programs online can be a lot easier with the help of a blog. A great library blog requires three ingredients: inspiration, motivation, and dedication. Inspiration is that "ah-ha" moment when your new marketing idea meshes perfectly with a blog as the delivery vehicle. Motivation is the energy to put good ideas into practice and helps launch the new blog. Dedication is what comes next. It's the hard work that keeps the blog updated with pithy, lively posts on a constant basis. Blogs can be very effective tools for reaching online audiences.

2.2. Utilizing Blogs – Suggestions

Academic blogs that provide RSS feeds help students in keeping up to date with new information tools as they become available. Collaboration between faculty and information professionals can play a vital role in transmitting new information to students. Biomaterials and Tissue Engineering resource link included in the Engineering Resource blog is an example of how just one page all major resources are represented while also providing links to use blogging and RSS feeds. During the Instruction session, a variety of feeds from hubmed and (Ei Compendex) Engineering Index were shown raising the awareness of how different type of information can be accessed. Using the sample public access bloglines compilation of RSS feeds, students in the class became aware of variety of available feeds.

Librarians have had to learn how to do a lot with just a little in order to promote awareness of their programs and services. They have seized the opportunities to market libraries in the real world via traditional media: newspapers, corporate newsletters, radio, and TV. Many libraries produce brochures, pathfinders, and their own newsletters. So it is no surprise to see librarians stepping up to the plate and spreading the word online with blogs. Savvy librarians have identified blogs as another means to market libraries and their services.

Web 2.0

Web 2.0 can refer to a perceived second generation of web-based communities and hosted services — such as social-networking sites, wikis, and folksonomies — which aim to facilitate creativity, collaboration, and sharing between users. The term gained currency following the first O'Reilly Media Web 2.0 conference in 2004. Although the term suggests a new version of the World Wide Web, it does not refer to an update to any technical specifications, but to changes in the ways software developers and end-users use webs.

The idea of "Web 2.0" can also relate to a transition of some websites from isolated information silos to interlinked computing platforms that function like locally-available software in the perception of the user. Web 2.0 also includes a social element where users generate and distribute content, often with freedom to share and re-use. This can allegedly result in a rise in the economic value of the web as users can do more online.

Usage of Web 2.0 to Library and Information Services

Following points hint at the underlying concept for the use of Web 2.0 to LIS:

· Web 2.0 presages a freeing of data, allowing it to be exposed, discovered and manipulated in a variety of ways distinct from the purpose of the application originally used to gain access.

· Web 2.0 permits the building of virtual applications, drawing data and functionality from a number of different sources as appropriate. These applications tend to be small, they tend to be relatively rapid to deploy, and they bring power that was previously the preserve of corporations within the reach of suitably motivated individuals.

· Web 2.0 is participative. The traditional Web has tended to be somewhat one-sided, with a flow of content from provider to viewer. Figures from last year suggested that 44% of Internet-using American adults had actively participated online, by blogging, sharing files, or equivalent.

· Web 2.0 applications work for the user, and are able to locate and assemble content that meets our needs as users, rather than forcing us to conform to the paths laid out for us by content owners or their intermediaries.

· Web 2.0 applications are modular, with developers and users able to pick and choose from a set of interoperating components in order to build something that meets their needs.

· Web 2.0 is about sharing: code, content, ideas. That does not mean there is not money to be made.

· Web 2.0 is about communication and facilitating community. People communicate. The Web facilitated that to a degree, but presented a barrier that hindered the back-and-forth of true communication.

· Web 2.0 is about remix. For too long, we have jumped from one area of the Web to another, struggling with different interfaces, ignoring endless advertisements, and wading through uninteresting content on a site in order to locate the service, document, or snippet that meets our needs.

Web 2.0 + Library = Library 2.0?

Leveraging the approaches typified by Web 2.0's principles and technology offers libraries many opportunities to serve their existing audiences better, and to reach out beyond the walls and Web sites of the institution to reach potential beneficiaries where they happen to be, and in association with the task that they happen to be undertaking.

With these approaches, we take our existing wealth of data, and we make it work much harder. We begin to break down the internal silos of the separate systems within a single library, and we connect those components to one another, and to related components and services far beyond the building. At a technical level, we make it possible for searchers to be presented with choices to view online, borrow locally, request from afar, buy or sell as appropriate to their needs and circumstance. Technically, it is possible, and we are doing it with standards and specifications shared across a range of sectors, rather than inventing our own library-specific standards once again.

Utilizing Web 2.0 – Suggestions

Libraries were once the guardians of knowledge, and the point at which those seeking existing knowledge would engage with it. With the rise of Google, Amazon, Wikipedia and more, there is an oft-stated fear that many users, much of the time, will bypass processes and institutions that they perceive to be slow, unresponsive, unappealing and irrelevant in favour of a more direct approach to services offered by others that just might be 'good enough' for what they need to do.

Libraries should be seizing every opportunity to challenge these perceptions, and to push their genuinely valuable content, services and expertise out to places where people might stand to benefit from them; places where a user would rarely consider drawing upon a library for support.

The streaming of video and audio media is another application that many might consider Web 1.0, as it also predates Web 2.0 thinking and was widely employed before many of the following technologies had even been invented. But for reasons similar to synchronous messaging, it is here considered 2.0. Certainly, for libraries to begin maximizing streaming media's usefulness for their patrons, 2.0 thinking will be necessary.

Lib 2.0

Implications of this revolution in the Web are enormous. Librarians are only beginning to acknowledge and write about it, primarily in the "biblioblogosphere" (weblogs written by librarians). Journals and other more traditional literatures have yet to fully address the concept, but the application of Web 2.0 thinking and technologies to library services and collections has been widely framed as "Library 2.0".

“Library 2.0” is a term coined by Michael Casey on his LibrayCrunch blog. Though his writings on Library 2.0 are groundbreaking and in many ways authoritative, Casey defines the term very broadly, arguing it applies beyond technological innovation and service. In addition to Casey, other blogging librarians have begun conceptually exploring what Library 2.0 might mean, and because of this disparate discussion with very wide parameters, there is some controversy over the definition and relative importance of the term. The nature of this controversy Lawson, Peek, and Tebbutt explore and begin to adequately rectify, and Crawford provides a very thorough account of the ambiguity and confusion surrounding the term, partially suggesting that there is nothing inherently novel about the idea.

Library 2.0 is the application of interactive, collaborative, and multi-media web-based technologies to web-based library services and collections.

Usage of Lib 2.0 to Library and Information Services

A theory for Library 2.0 could be understood to have these four essential elements:

1. It is user-centered. Users participate in the creation of the content and services they view within the library's web-presence, OPAC, etc. The consumption and creation of content is dynamic, and thus the roles of librarian and user are not always clear.

2. It provides a multi-media experience. Both the collections and services of Library 2.0 contain video and audio components. While this is not often cited as a function of Library 2.0, it is here suggested that it should be.

3. It is socially rich. The library's web-presence includes users' presences. There are both synchronous (e.g. IM) and asynchronous (e.g. wikis) ways for users to communicate with one another and with librarians.

4. It is communally innovative. This is perhaps the single most important aspect of Library 2.0. It rests on the foundation of libraries as a community service, but understands that as communities change, libraries must not only change with them, and they must allow users to change the library. It seeks to continually change its services, to find new ways to allow communities, not just individuals to seek, find, and utilize information.

Utilizing Lib 2.0 – Suggestions

The best conception of Library 2.0 at this point in time would be a social network interface that the user designs. It is a personalized OPAC that includes access to IM, RSS feeds, blogs, wikis, tags, and public and private profiles within the library's network. It is virtual reality of the library, a place where one can not only search for books and journals, but interact with a community, a librarian, and share knowledge and understanding with them. Library 1.0 moved collections and sparse services into the online environment, and Library 2.0 will move the full suite of library services into this electronic medium. The library has had a web-presence for many years, and with Library 2.0, its patrons will be joining it.

While Library 2.0 is a change, it is of a nature close to the tradition and mission of libraries. It enables the access to information across society, the sharing of that information, and the utilization of it for the progress of the society. Library 2.0, really, is merely a description of the latest instance of a long-standing and time-tested institution in a democratic society. Web 2.0 and libraries are well suited for marriage, and many librarians have recognized so.

Looking Ahead – Technology & Innovation

Large scale digitization projects are underway at Google, the Million Book Project, MSN, and Yahoo! With continued improvements in book handling and presentation technologies such as optical character recognition and ebooks, and development of alternative depositories and business models, digital libraries are rapidly growing in popularity as demonstrated by Google, Yahoo!, and MSN's efforts. Just as libraries have ventured into audio and video collections, so have digital libraries such as the Internet Archive.

There are many other electronic resources such as ScienceDirect, Web of Science, ACM Digital Library, and Google Scholar that do not provide RSS feeds of search queries at present. It is crucial that when they begin to provide RSS feeds, our faculty and students are informed, so that they begin to use them effectively in their research or in courses they are associated with. Resource blog can be a key resource to promote these newer services in addition to regular channels such as Library News articles, emails, and instruction during library seminars. Students working in a group project can set up a group account in Bloglines and subscribe to feeds based upon the group’s area of interest. Refworks, a bibliographic management tool, can also be used as a group account for students working in a group project. It needs to provide RSS feeds of the citations added in the group account so that other members of the group can keep up to date with newer citations added by their group members. Innovative ways, in which blogs can be promoted on campus, need to be envisioned so that their utility is recognized by our faculty and students.

New initiatives like New JISC (Joint Information Systems Committee, University of Derby) project will feed tables of contents into library catalogues.

JISC’s project of new RSS news feed services will automatically feed publisher and e-journal information into library catalogues. It is led by the publisher Emerald, supported by library supplier Talis. More and more electronic resources will be providing RSS feeds and it is likely that more libraries will be developing blogs with RSS feeds to announce new resources to their faculty and students. New developments will require more outreach, promotion and announcements while also requiring increased training for the library staff, faculty and students. In summary, the future lies in the creative integration of existing and emerging academic blogs and RSS feeds to enhance information access and, in the process, contribute to quality research and teaching in higher education.

REFERENCES:

Papers

1. Library 2.0 Theory: Web 2.0 and Its Implications for Libraries, Jack M. Maness, MLS, University of Colorado at Boulder Libraries, 1720 Pleasant St., Boulder, CO, USA.

2. From Automation to Transformation – 40 years of LIS, Clifford Lynch

Websites

1. http://www.igidr.ac.in/lib/paper1.htm

2. http://www.webology.ir/2006/v3n2/a25.html

3. http://www.educause.edu/pub/er/erm00/pp060068.pdf

4. https://drtc.isibang.ac.in/bitstream/1849/361/1/Lib%20Automation-RPkumar%20festscrift.pdf

5. http://www.higheredblogcon.com/index.php/using-rss-to-increase-user-awareness-of-e-resources-in-academic-libraries/

6. http://209.85.175.104/search?q=cache:NQP-GHPtQ18J:www.educause.edu/pub/er/erm00/pp060068.pdf+library+automation+transformation&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=in

Received on 03.11.2010

Accepted on 16.11.2010