Digital Commons Network^™

Opportunities For Real-Time Digital Reference Service, Matthew Marsteller, Jackie Schmitt-Marsteller

Matthew Marsteller

This article explores the opportunities that real-time digital reference service can offer to a variety of library settings from the independent public library to the large multi-campus university or the multi-national corporation. There are many occasions when a real-time digital reference service will be the optimal solution for a portion of a library’s reference service. The authors’ goal is to offer our original ideas, and examples from the literature, that will stimulate thought about real-time digital reference services that could be offered by your libraries. The numerous ideas and examples should provide the reader with workable methods for extending the …