Identify an information environment of your choice and write an essay to address the following questions: (3000 words)
• What should be your role within this environment?
• How can the principles of information organization and representation help you in performing this role?
• What are the challenges facing you in performing the role? How will you address these challenges?
DIGITAL INFORMATION ENVIRONMENT
Before getting into the topic, I think it is good to define the terms first. When I read the words “information environment”, the first thing that came up in my mind is that information environment means an environment where information exists; as the name suggests but I doubt it and so I look for its deeper meaning.
In computer science, information simply means processed, stored, or transmitted data while environment means the entire set of conditions under which one operates a computer, as it relates to the hardware, operating platform, or operating system. So those are the meanings of the individual terms but when you combine these two terms its meaning would be converted as the aggregate of individuals, organizations, or systems that collect, process, or disseminate information; also included is the information itself.
In the context of information environment, one may be confuse on what specific meaning is implied in this particular topic and I’m of no exception. However, dealing with the topic a little deeper gives me an idea to choose digital information environment as my choice.
I can compare this information environment as a library in itself but in a digital era.
Libraries inform their users of what materials are available in their collections and how to access that information. Before the computer age, this was accomplished by the card catalog — a cabinet containing many drawers filled with index cards that identified books and other materials. In a large library, the card catalog often filled a large room. The emergence of the Internet, however, has led to the adoption of electronic catalog databases (often referred to as "webcats" or as online public access catalogs, OPACs), which allow users to search the library's holdings from any location with Internet access. This style of catalog maintenance is compatible with new types of libraries, such as digital libraries and distributed libraries, as well as older libraries that have been retrofitted. Electronic catalog databases are criticized by some who believe that the old card catalog system was both easier to navigate and allowed retention of information, by writing directly on the cards, that is lost in the electronic systems. This argument is analogous to the debate over paper books and e-books. While libraries have been accused of precipitously throwing out valuable information in card catalogs, most modern ones have nonetheless made the move to electronic catalog databases. Large libraries may be scattered within multiple buildings across a town, each having multiple floors, with multiple rooms housing the resources across a series of shelves. Once a user has located a resource within the catalog, they must then use navigational guidance to retrieve the resource physically; a process that may be assisted through signage, maps, GPS systems or RFID tagging.
A digital library is a library in which collections are stored in digital formats (as opposed to print, microform, or other media) and accessible by computersThe digital content may be stored locally, or accessed remotely via computer networks. A digital library is a type of information retrieval system.
The DELOS Digital Library Reference Modeldefines a digital library as:
An organization, which might be virtual, that comprehensively collects, manages and preserves for the long term rich digital content, and offers to its user communities specialized functionality on that content, of measurable quality and according to codified policies.
The first use of the term digital library in print may have been in a 1988 report to the Corporation for National Research Initiatives[3] The term digital libraries was first popularized by the NSF/DARPA/NASA Digital Libraries Initiative in 1994.[4] These draw heavily on As We May Think by Vannevar Bush in 1945, which set out a vision not in terms of technology, but user experience. The term virtual library was initially used interchangeably with digital library, but is now primarily used for libraries that are virtual in other senses (such as libraries which aggregate distributed content).
There is now a critical mass of digital information resources that can be used to support researchers, learners, teachers and administrators in their work and study. The production of information is on the increase and ways to deal with this effectively are required. There is the need to ensure that quality information isn’t lost amongst the masses of digital data created everyday. If we can continue to improve the management, interrogation and serving of ‘quality’ information there is huge potential to enhance knowledge creation across learning and research communities. The aim of the Information Environment is to help provide convenient access to resources for research and learning through the use of resource discovery and resource management tools and the development of better services and practice. The Information Environment aims to allow discovery, access and use of resources for research and learning irrespective of their location.
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/themes/informationenvironment.aspx
However, with the sets and collection of media and of media other than books for storing information, many libraries are now also repositories and access points for maps, prints, or other documents and various storage media such as microform (microfilm/microfiche), audio tapes, CDs, cassettes, videotapes, and DVDs. Libraries may also provide public facilities to access subscription databases and the Internet.
Thus, modern libraries are increasingly being redefined as places to get unrestricted access to information in many formats and from many sources. They are understood as extending beyond the physical walls of a building, by including material accessible by electronic means, and by providing the assistance of librarians in navigating and analyzing tremendous amounts of knowledge with a variety of digital tools.
Patrons may not know how to fully use the library's resources. This can be due to some individuals' unease in approaching a staff member. Ways in which a library's content is displayed or accessed may have the most impact on use. An antiquated or clumsy search system, or staff unwilling or untrained to engage their patrons, will limit a library's usefulness. In United States public libraries, beginning in the 19th century, these problems drove the emergence of the library instruction movement, which advocated library user education. One of the early leaders was John Cotton Dana. The basic form of library instruction is generally known as information literacy.
ROLE
The digital information environment has dramatically changed the way that faculty and students access information offered by academic libraries.
My role in the digital information environment is merely on the user side. I am the user of the information in the environment. I am the client who requests certain information from the server who in turn uses it for my helpful purpose. This kind of information technology made me use of the information I wanted by just a click on the mouse or by the press of the keys. The world is really flat in the sense that I don’t have to go anywhere else just to gather the information I needed. As long as there is a connection between me and the server, I have no problem.
In school, I am a student who is a patron in our library but usually I don’t hold books when I have to research certain things. Instead I use computers. Our school library really has a scarcity of books. So, what do you expect me to do? Instead of having high blood pressure of searching the books which is in the database but is nowhere to find in the actual, a very tiring stuff to do, all I have to perform is to go to our so called “virtual library”. But when our virtual library is full of my fellow schoolmates and when the information is badly needed, I just go to internet cafes, searching for the information I really needed.
In an overview of performance measures in higher education and libraries, Kyrillidou ( 1998) identified three issues that should be taken into account when assessing the reliability and validity of academic library data: consistency across institutions and time, ease versus utility in gathering data; and values, meanings, and measurement. The last issue refers to the interpretation of data as guided by local conditions. The methodology for Web surveys demonstrated in this study, given the appropriate networking topology, meets all three of these issues. It can be meaningfully applied with consistency across institutions and time. It is easy to implement and gathers useful data quickly. The data can be interpreted locally, and indeed, local questions can be asked to guide specific service decisions about networked electronic resources.
The vast majority of networked services use occurs on-campus, either in the library or from other locations on-campus, although resources in the electronic information environment are available to authorized faculty and students anywhere they have access to a computer and a network connection. Interestingly the purpose of use (sponsored research, etc.,) varied far more dramatically in both medical and academic libraries when comparing in-library use to remote use, than did the categories of users (graduate student, etc.). The categories of users, to generalize, are similar in the library and outside of the library, but the purpose of use is very different. Use of networked electronic resources for sponsored research occurs outside of the library. Since it is unlikely that faculty would divide their time in such a way, or would come into the library for instructional purposes but not for research, one might speculate that the faculty who come into the library are different people from those who do not, despite the similar percentage distributions.
These data support the conclusion that patrons who log into networked electronic resources from outside the library are different from those who come into the library, a point that came up frequently in discussions with medical librarians. Yet, many libraries make service decisions based upon activity at service points, for example, the reference desk. These service point data are often extended inferentially to represent the library population, for example, in collection development decisions. Although the vendors supply usage statistics for their networked electronic resources, they do not distinguish between usage inside or outside the library. Librarians may incorrectly assume that the usage of networked electronic resources in the library resembles the usage outside of the library.
Further, many libraries are re-inventing their library as a place to attract grant-funded researchers and scientists into the library. It may be felt that the lack of researchers or grant-funded scientists physically present in the library is a result of dissatisfaction with or disinterest in library services. The data presented here support the notion that the library is indeed doing its job, and delivering resources electronically to its patrons, even though they do not come into the library. To reach funded researchers, the library should offer more electronic services in a virtual library, and not worry about their lack of attendance in the physical library.
INFORMATION ORGANIZATION
The concept of information organization lies from the fact that information really needs to be organized. We organize information – in our minds and in information systems – in order to collect and record it, retrieve it, evaluate and select it, understand it, process and analyze it, apply it, and rearrange and reuse it. We also organize things, such as parts, merchandise in a store, or clothes in a closet, using similar principles for similar purposes.
Information organization can be understood from four perspectives: a data perspective, a relationship perspective, an operating system (OS) perspective, an application architecture perspective. But I chose the first perspective as the specific information organization I really needed
Data perspective of information organization
• the information organization of geographic data must be considered in terms of their descriptive elements and graphical elements because
o these two types of data elements have distinctly different characteristics
o the have different storage requirements
o they have different processing requirements
• for descriptive data, the most basic element of information organization is called a data item
o a data item represents an occurrence or instance of a particular characteristic pertaining to an entity (which can be a person, thing, event or phenomenon)
• a group of related data items form a record
o by related data items, it means that the items are occurrences of different characteristics pertaining to the same person, thing, event or phenomenon (e.g. in a forest resource inventory, a record may contain related data items such as stand identification number, dominant tree species, average height and average breast height diameter)
o a record may contain a combination of data items having different types of values (e.g. in the above example, a record has two character strings representing the stand identification number and dominant tree species; an integer representing the average tree height rounded to the nearest meter; and a floating-point number representing the average breast height diameter in meters)
• a set of related records constitutes a data file
o by related records, it means that the records represent different occurrences of the same type or class of people, things, events and phenomena
o a data file is individually identified by a filename
o a data file may contain records having different types of data values or having a single type of data value
o in data processing literature, collections of data items or records are sometimes referred to by other terms other than "data file" according to their characteristics and functions
• the concept of database is the approach to information organization in computer-based data processing today
o a database is defined as an automated, formally defined and centrally controlled collection of persistent data used and shared by different users in an enterprise (Date, 1995 and Everest, 1986)
? above definition excludes the informal, private and manual collection of data
? "centrally controlled" does not mean "physically centralized" --- databases today tend to be physically distributed in different computer systems, at the same or different locations
? a database is set up to serve the information needs of an organization
? data sharing is key to the concept of database
? data in a database are described as "permanent" in the sense that they are different from "transient" data such as input to and output from an information system
o the use of database does not mean the demise of data files
? data in a database are still organized and stored as data files
? the use of database represents a change in the perception of data, the mode of data processing and the purposes of using the data, rather than physical storage of the data
o databases can be organized in different ways known as database models
? the three conventional database models are: relational, network and hierarchical
? the emerging database model is object-oriented
• data are uniquely identified as individual objects that are classified into object types or classes according to the characteristics (attributes and operations) of the object
CHALLENGES
When we say challenge, what does it really mean in the context of my role in the information environment? Is it about confrontations? Problems? Tests? In some sense, all of these things.
Lack of ICT Training
There is lack of such expertise in working librarians. All participants viewed it as a major challenge. Establishing a digital library without refreshing the information technology and information retrieval skills of library professionals is a difficult task. A breed of experts and continuous training programmes to handle and operate the latest technology in libraries is a dire need.
Lack of Awareness
Many studies have found that a lack of awareness is associated with lower use of electronic collections (Ibrahim 2004; Said, 2006; Warraich, 2007; Bashir, 2008). Hussain (2006) explores the perception of LIS professionals regarding digital libraries. He found the low IT literacy rate in Pakistan to be a barrier to digital libraries (pp. 50-56). Sadique (2005) found that lack of awareness about Information Resource Center (IRC) in PUL and low digital literacy were the main causes of lower use of electronic services. In a similar vein, a low level of understanding and awareness of available sources and services by the science and technology teachers of Punjab University limit the use of information systems (Muzammil, 2008).
User Orientation
Orienting users to modern library services is another challenge. Mahmood, (2003), Ameen, (2006) and Rehman, (2008) warn LIS schools that they must produce graduates who are up to the demands of the changing and challenging information market place. A study by Naz (2007) depicts significantly lower use of OPACs due to lack of orientation by librarians and low level of IT information literacy among students. Bashir (2008) asserts that training needs attention from university authorities and HEC for better service in libraries.
Bandwidth and Infrastructure
Developing countries may have limited bandwidth available. Universities were faced with purchasing dedicated bandwidth, but HEC provides shared bandwidth via Pakistan Telecommunication Limited (PTCL). Poor connectivity has been a big challenge for accessing and downloading information especially large files.
Improve the Use of Electronic Resources
HEC databases are great source of electronic access for Pakistani universities, and are very costly. Overall use statistics show relatively more use by public universities users than private. The use statistics compiled for 2005 show that the cost per article is less than $2.30, and the cost is borne by the HEC (Said, 2006, p.20).
Universities whose use of e-resources is low have their subscriptions automatically canceled by the NDL programme. Use statistics justify the subscriptions and their effective use. Increasing the use of the databases is essential for maintaining institutional access and requesting subscriptions to more sources. Increased use of resources is the result of user awareness and orientation. Creating awareness and increased use is important for increased research productivity.
Preservation
Due to financial problems and poor infrastructure, it is a concern that digital libraries may lack their current resources in the future. Ameen (2005) and Haider (2004) anticipate the future of digital collections and state that subscriptions to online resources often provide only access rather than ownership. The library may be emptyhanded after the subscription ends.
Technical Support and Security
Security for digital information is a demanding challenge for librarians. Piracy, virus inversions, and parallel satellite networking stress are some of the problems for which solutions are needed. Information technology skills and applications are changing and developing quickly. To endure, digital libraries need the latest technology and more technical staff or experts for this purpose.
New Field of Research
This is new field of research for library and information professionals and researchers. User satisfaction, perception, use, and usability studies regarding digital library sources will be helpful for improving this programme.
Myths about Digital Collections
It is a challenge to combat the myths about electronic resources and libraries. Library users think that the web is a substitute for the library and that there is no need of librarians in the digital environment. In fact, the librarian is a mediator between the huge sea of information and its users, and the need for a trained mediator is more apparent than ever. Ameen (2005) rightly points out that library patrons have confusion. These confusions include the belief that the web is the equivalent of a library and feelings of fear and anxiety.
ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES
Opportunities
It is a common saying that challenges are also opportunities. There are definitely opportunities for librarians at PUL and elsewhere.
Learning and Improvement of ICT Skills
Library professional can now get informal online education regarding about trends in librarianship on their desktops. They may improve their ability to retrieve information and serve users. Self learning regarding the use as well as understanding of new tools, acquisition of e-resources, and efficiency of retrieving information, dissemination, leadership qualities, and better use of human and financial resources can help meet digital library challenges.
Digital library services can play an increasing role in practical and specific tasks in teaching, learning, and research.
Marketing Strategies
Said (2006) points out that HEC allocated 7 percent of the NDL budget to marketing and promotion of e-resources and 12 percent for training researchers. This is great opportunity for LIS professionals to learn about marketing, develop marketing plans for better promotion , develop a marketing strategy to justify subscriptions to more databases or continuing existing sources, and learn about methods for internal and external communication. Marketing research, strategic analysis, and user segmentation can help librarians know their customers and develop a user-centered approach. Customer- centered services could enhance the use of electronic databases using marketing and promotion. Because of the market demand for more orientation, the LIS Department of the University of the Punjab conducted a workshop on this topic for working librarians. Such continuing education activities can help working professionals.
Improve the Image of Library
Punjab University librarians have a positive attitude towards the NDL. They are providing better services because of these digital sources. This programme not only improves the image of library but also the image of library professionals.
Awareness of Use of E-Resources and Researchers' Orientation
Library orientation can take place at the time of new enrollment, which is the practice at PUL. The role of departmental librarian is crucial. Hands-on exercises are helpful in introducing new students to electronic resources and services. Promotional material should also be distributed among all types of users. Said (2006) mentions that 8,850 faculty members and students were trained at the various seminars across the country from 2003-2006. The short courses and workshops conducted by HEC for library professionals can be a great opportunity for librarians to improve their IT literacy.
Design of Library Web Page
The library web page is used to promote library services and especially to provide access to e-resource links through ELIN. The library web page is an effective tool and should also be used to provide tips to researchers on search strategies and effective use of resources. LIS professionals have the opportunity to learn web page design and develop other ICT skills to help users.
REFERENCES:
http://www.thefreedictionary.com
http://www.clir.org/pubs/reports/pub110/introduction.html
http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~cyberia/PIE/
http://www.informationenvironments.org.uk/
http://www.google.com.ph/#hl=en&source=hp&q=information+environments&btnG=Google
+Search&meta=&aq=0&oq=information+environment&fp=cec5a45a8751de0f
http://informationr.net/ir/9-4/paper187.html
http://www.ncgia.ucsb.edu/giscc/units/u051/
http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~mbolin/wairrach.htm
• What should be your role within this environment?
• How can the principles of information organization and representation help you in performing this role?
• What are the challenges facing you in performing the role? How will you address these challenges?
DIGITAL INFORMATION ENVIRONMENT
Before getting into the topic, I think it is good to define the terms first. When I read the words “information environment”, the first thing that came up in my mind is that information environment means an environment where information exists; as the name suggests but I doubt it and so I look for its deeper meaning.
In computer science, information simply means processed, stored, or transmitted data while environment means the entire set of conditions under which one operates a computer, as it relates to the hardware, operating platform, or operating system. So those are the meanings of the individual terms but when you combine these two terms its meaning would be converted as the aggregate of individuals, organizations, or systems that collect, process, or disseminate information; also included is the information itself.
In the context of information environment, one may be confuse on what specific meaning is implied in this particular topic and I’m of no exception. However, dealing with the topic a little deeper gives me an idea to choose digital information environment as my choice.
I can compare this information environment as a library in itself but in a digital era.
Libraries inform their users of what materials are available in their collections and how to access that information. Before the computer age, this was accomplished by the card catalog — a cabinet containing many drawers filled with index cards that identified books and other materials. In a large library, the card catalog often filled a large room. The emergence of the Internet, however, has led to the adoption of electronic catalog databases (often referred to as "webcats" or as online public access catalogs, OPACs), which allow users to search the library's holdings from any location with Internet access. This style of catalog maintenance is compatible with new types of libraries, such as digital libraries and distributed libraries, as well as older libraries that have been retrofitted. Electronic catalog databases are criticized by some who believe that the old card catalog system was both easier to navigate and allowed retention of information, by writing directly on the cards, that is lost in the electronic systems. This argument is analogous to the debate over paper books and e-books. While libraries have been accused of precipitously throwing out valuable information in card catalogs, most modern ones have nonetheless made the move to electronic catalog databases. Large libraries may be scattered within multiple buildings across a town, each having multiple floors, with multiple rooms housing the resources across a series of shelves. Once a user has located a resource within the catalog, they must then use navigational guidance to retrieve the resource physically; a process that may be assisted through signage, maps, GPS systems or RFID tagging.
A digital library is a library in which collections are stored in digital formats (as opposed to print, microform, or other media) and accessible by computersThe digital content may be stored locally, or accessed remotely via computer networks. A digital library is a type of information retrieval system.
The DELOS Digital Library Reference Modeldefines a digital library as:
An organization, which might be virtual, that comprehensively collects, manages and preserves for the long term rich digital content, and offers to its user communities specialized functionality on that content, of measurable quality and according to codified policies.
The first use of the term digital library in print may have been in a 1988 report to the Corporation for National Research Initiatives[3] The term digital libraries was first popularized by the NSF/DARPA/NASA Digital Libraries Initiative in 1994.[4] These draw heavily on As We May Think by Vannevar Bush in 1945, which set out a vision not in terms of technology, but user experience. The term virtual library was initially used interchangeably with digital library, but is now primarily used for libraries that are virtual in other senses (such as libraries which aggregate distributed content).
There is now a critical mass of digital information resources that can be used to support researchers, learners, teachers and administrators in their work and study. The production of information is on the increase and ways to deal with this effectively are required. There is the need to ensure that quality information isn’t lost amongst the masses of digital data created everyday. If we can continue to improve the management, interrogation and serving of ‘quality’ information there is huge potential to enhance knowledge creation across learning and research communities. The aim of the Information Environment is to help provide convenient access to resources for research and learning through the use of resource discovery and resource management tools and the development of better services and practice. The Information Environment aims to allow discovery, access and use of resources for research and learning irrespective of their location.
http://www.jisc.ac.uk/whatwedo/themes/informationenvironment.aspx
However, with the sets and collection of media and of media other than books for storing information, many libraries are now also repositories and access points for maps, prints, or other documents and various storage media such as microform (microfilm/microfiche), audio tapes, CDs, cassettes, videotapes, and DVDs. Libraries may also provide public facilities to access subscription databases and the Internet.
Thus, modern libraries are increasingly being redefined as places to get unrestricted access to information in many formats and from many sources. They are understood as extending beyond the physical walls of a building, by including material accessible by electronic means, and by providing the assistance of librarians in navigating and analyzing tremendous amounts of knowledge with a variety of digital tools.
Patrons may not know how to fully use the library's resources. This can be due to some individuals' unease in approaching a staff member. Ways in which a library's content is displayed or accessed may have the most impact on use. An antiquated or clumsy search system, or staff unwilling or untrained to engage their patrons, will limit a library's usefulness. In United States public libraries, beginning in the 19th century, these problems drove the emergence of the library instruction movement, which advocated library user education. One of the early leaders was John Cotton Dana. The basic form of library instruction is generally known as information literacy.
ROLE
The digital information environment has dramatically changed the way that faculty and students access information offered by academic libraries.
My role in the digital information environment is merely on the user side. I am the user of the information in the environment. I am the client who requests certain information from the server who in turn uses it for my helpful purpose. This kind of information technology made me use of the information I wanted by just a click on the mouse or by the press of the keys. The world is really flat in the sense that I don’t have to go anywhere else just to gather the information I needed. As long as there is a connection between me and the server, I have no problem.
In school, I am a student who is a patron in our library but usually I don’t hold books when I have to research certain things. Instead I use computers. Our school library really has a scarcity of books. So, what do you expect me to do? Instead of having high blood pressure of searching the books which is in the database but is nowhere to find in the actual, a very tiring stuff to do, all I have to perform is to go to our so called “virtual library”. But when our virtual library is full of my fellow schoolmates and when the information is badly needed, I just go to internet cafes, searching for the information I really needed.
In an overview of performance measures in higher education and libraries, Kyrillidou ( 1998) identified three issues that should be taken into account when assessing the reliability and validity of academic library data: consistency across institutions and time, ease versus utility in gathering data; and values, meanings, and measurement. The last issue refers to the interpretation of data as guided by local conditions. The methodology for Web surveys demonstrated in this study, given the appropriate networking topology, meets all three of these issues. It can be meaningfully applied with consistency across institutions and time. It is easy to implement and gathers useful data quickly. The data can be interpreted locally, and indeed, local questions can be asked to guide specific service decisions about networked electronic resources.
The vast majority of networked services use occurs on-campus, either in the library or from other locations on-campus, although resources in the electronic information environment are available to authorized faculty and students anywhere they have access to a computer and a network connection. Interestingly the purpose of use (sponsored research, etc.,) varied far more dramatically in both medical and academic libraries when comparing in-library use to remote use, than did the categories of users (graduate student, etc.). The categories of users, to generalize, are similar in the library and outside of the library, but the purpose of use is very different. Use of networked electronic resources for sponsored research occurs outside of the library. Since it is unlikely that faculty would divide their time in such a way, or would come into the library for instructional purposes but not for research, one might speculate that the faculty who come into the library are different people from those who do not, despite the similar percentage distributions.
These data support the conclusion that patrons who log into networked electronic resources from outside the library are different from those who come into the library, a point that came up frequently in discussions with medical librarians. Yet, many libraries make service decisions based upon activity at service points, for example, the reference desk. These service point data are often extended inferentially to represent the library population, for example, in collection development decisions. Although the vendors supply usage statistics for their networked electronic resources, they do not distinguish between usage inside or outside the library. Librarians may incorrectly assume that the usage of networked electronic resources in the library resembles the usage outside of the library.
Further, many libraries are re-inventing their library as a place to attract grant-funded researchers and scientists into the library. It may be felt that the lack of researchers or grant-funded scientists physically present in the library is a result of dissatisfaction with or disinterest in library services. The data presented here support the notion that the library is indeed doing its job, and delivering resources electronically to its patrons, even though they do not come into the library. To reach funded researchers, the library should offer more electronic services in a virtual library, and not worry about their lack of attendance in the physical library.
INFORMATION ORGANIZATION
The concept of information organization lies from the fact that information really needs to be organized. We organize information – in our minds and in information systems – in order to collect and record it, retrieve it, evaluate and select it, understand it, process and analyze it, apply it, and rearrange and reuse it. We also organize things, such as parts, merchandise in a store, or clothes in a closet, using similar principles for similar purposes.
Information organization can be understood from four perspectives: a data perspective, a relationship perspective, an operating system (OS) perspective, an application architecture perspective. But I chose the first perspective as the specific information organization I really needed
Data perspective of information organization
• the information organization of geographic data must be considered in terms of their descriptive elements and graphical elements because
o these two types of data elements have distinctly different characteristics
o the have different storage requirements
o they have different processing requirements
• for descriptive data, the most basic element of information organization is called a data item
o a data item represents an occurrence or instance of a particular characteristic pertaining to an entity (which can be a person, thing, event or phenomenon)
• a group of related data items form a record
o by related data items, it means that the items are occurrences of different characteristics pertaining to the same person, thing, event or phenomenon (e.g. in a forest resource inventory, a record may contain related data items such as stand identification number, dominant tree species, average height and average breast height diameter)
o a record may contain a combination of data items having different types of values (e.g. in the above example, a record has two character strings representing the stand identification number and dominant tree species; an integer representing the average tree height rounded to the nearest meter; and a floating-point number representing the average breast height diameter in meters)
• a set of related records constitutes a data file
o by related records, it means that the records represent different occurrences of the same type or class of people, things, events and phenomena
o a data file is individually identified by a filename
o a data file may contain records having different types of data values or having a single type of data value
o in data processing literature, collections of data items or records are sometimes referred to by other terms other than "data file" according to their characteristics and functions
• the concept of database is the approach to information organization in computer-based data processing today
o a database is defined as an automated, formally defined and centrally controlled collection of persistent data used and shared by different users in an enterprise (Date, 1995 and Everest, 1986)
? above definition excludes the informal, private and manual collection of data
? "centrally controlled" does not mean "physically centralized" --- databases today tend to be physically distributed in different computer systems, at the same or different locations
? a database is set up to serve the information needs of an organization
? data sharing is key to the concept of database
? data in a database are described as "permanent" in the sense that they are different from "transient" data such as input to and output from an information system
o the use of database does not mean the demise of data files
? data in a database are still organized and stored as data files
? the use of database represents a change in the perception of data, the mode of data processing and the purposes of using the data, rather than physical storage of the data
o databases can be organized in different ways known as database models
? the three conventional database models are: relational, network and hierarchical
? the emerging database model is object-oriented
• data are uniquely identified as individual objects that are classified into object types or classes according to the characteristics (attributes and operations) of the object
CHALLENGES
When we say challenge, what does it really mean in the context of my role in the information environment? Is it about confrontations? Problems? Tests? In some sense, all of these things.
Lack of ICT Training
There is lack of such expertise in working librarians. All participants viewed it as a major challenge. Establishing a digital library without refreshing the information technology and information retrieval skills of library professionals is a difficult task. A breed of experts and continuous training programmes to handle and operate the latest technology in libraries is a dire need.
Lack of Awareness
Many studies have found that a lack of awareness is associated with lower use of electronic collections (Ibrahim 2004; Said, 2006; Warraich, 2007; Bashir, 2008). Hussain (2006) explores the perception of LIS professionals regarding digital libraries. He found the low IT literacy rate in Pakistan to be a barrier to digital libraries (pp. 50-56). Sadique (2005) found that lack of awareness about Information Resource Center (IRC) in PUL and low digital literacy were the main causes of lower use of electronic services. In a similar vein, a low level of understanding and awareness of available sources and services by the science and technology teachers of Punjab University limit the use of information systems (Muzammil, 2008).
User Orientation
Orienting users to modern library services is another challenge. Mahmood, (2003), Ameen, (2006) and Rehman, (2008) warn LIS schools that they must produce graduates who are up to the demands of the changing and challenging information market place. A study by Naz (2007) depicts significantly lower use of OPACs due to lack of orientation by librarians and low level of IT information literacy among students. Bashir (2008) asserts that training needs attention from university authorities and HEC for better service in libraries.
Bandwidth and Infrastructure
Developing countries may have limited bandwidth available. Universities were faced with purchasing dedicated bandwidth, but HEC provides shared bandwidth via Pakistan Telecommunication Limited (PTCL). Poor connectivity has been a big challenge for accessing and downloading information especially large files.
Improve the Use of Electronic Resources
HEC databases are great source of electronic access for Pakistani universities, and are very costly. Overall use statistics show relatively more use by public universities users than private. The use statistics compiled for 2005 show that the cost per article is less than $2.30, and the cost is borne by the HEC (Said, 2006, p.20).
Universities whose use of e-resources is low have their subscriptions automatically canceled by the NDL programme. Use statistics justify the subscriptions and their effective use. Increasing the use of the databases is essential for maintaining institutional access and requesting subscriptions to more sources. Increased use of resources is the result of user awareness and orientation. Creating awareness and increased use is important for increased research productivity.
Preservation
Due to financial problems and poor infrastructure, it is a concern that digital libraries may lack their current resources in the future. Ameen (2005) and Haider (2004) anticipate the future of digital collections and state that subscriptions to online resources often provide only access rather than ownership. The library may be emptyhanded after the subscription ends.
Technical Support and Security
Security for digital information is a demanding challenge for librarians. Piracy, virus inversions, and parallel satellite networking stress are some of the problems for which solutions are needed. Information technology skills and applications are changing and developing quickly. To endure, digital libraries need the latest technology and more technical staff or experts for this purpose.
New Field of Research
This is new field of research for library and information professionals and researchers. User satisfaction, perception, use, and usability studies regarding digital library sources will be helpful for improving this programme.
Myths about Digital Collections
It is a challenge to combat the myths about electronic resources and libraries. Library users think that the web is a substitute for the library and that there is no need of librarians in the digital environment. In fact, the librarian is a mediator between the huge sea of information and its users, and the need for a trained mediator is more apparent than ever. Ameen (2005) rightly points out that library patrons have confusion. These confusions include the belief that the web is the equivalent of a library and feelings of fear and anxiety.
ADDRESSING THE CHALLENGES
Opportunities
It is a common saying that challenges are also opportunities. There are definitely opportunities for librarians at PUL and elsewhere.
Learning and Improvement of ICT Skills
Library professional can now get informal online education regarding about trends in librarianship on their desktops. They may improve their ability to retrieve information and serve users. Self learning regarding the use as well as understanding of new tools, acquisition of e-resources, and efficiency of retrieving information, dissemination, leadership qualities, and better use of human and financial resources can help meet digital library challenges.
Digital library services can play an increasing role in practical and specific tasks in teaching, learning, and research.
Marketing Strategies
Said (2006) points out that HEC allocated 7 percent of the NDL budget to marketing and promotion of e-resources and 12 percent for training researchers. This is great opportunity for LIS professionals to learn about marketing, develop marketing plans for better promotion , develop a marketing strategy to justify subscriptions to more databases or continuing existing sources, and learn about methods for internal and external communication. Marketing research, strategic analysis, and user segmentation can help librarians know their customers and develop a user-centered approach. Customer- centered services could enhance the use of electronic databases using marketing and promotion. Because of the market demand for more orientation, the LIS Department of the University of the Punjab conducted a workshop on this topic for working librarians. Such continuing education activities can help working professionals.
Improve the Image of Library
Punjab University librarians have a positive attitude towards the NDL. They are providing better services because of these digital sources. This programme not only improves the image of library but also the image of library professionals.
Awareness of Use of E-Resources and Researchers' Orientation
Library orientation can take place at the time of new enrollment, which is the practice at PUL. The role of departmental librarian is crucial. Hands-on exercises are helpful in introducing new students to electronic resources and services. Promotional material should also be distributed among all types of users. Said (2006) mentions that 8,850 faculty members and students were trained at the various seminars across the country from 2003-2006. The short courses and workshops conducted by HEC for library professionals can be a great opportunity for librarians to improve their IT literacy.
Design of Library Web Page
The library web page is used to promote library services and especially to provide access to e-resource links through ELIN. The library web page is an effective tool and should also be used to provide tips to researchers on search strategies and effective use of resources. LIS professionals have the opportunity to learn web page design and develop other ICT skills to help users.
REFERENCES:
http://www.thefreedictionary.com
http://www.clir.org/pubs/reports/pub110/introduction.html
http://www.cs.virginia.edu/~cyberia/PIE/
http://www.informationenvironments.org.uk/
http://www.google.com.ph/#hl=en&source=hp&q=information+environments&btnG=Google
+Search&meta=&aq=0&oq=information+environment&fp=cec5a45a8751de0f
http://informationr.net/ir/9-4/paper187.html
http://www.ncgia.ucsb.edu/giscc/units/u051/
http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/~mbolin/wairrach.htm
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