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Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons

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Loyola University Chicago

Library and Information Science

Information commons

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Full-Text Articles in Social and Behavioral Sciences

Library Spaces In The 21st Century—Meeting The Challenges Of User Needs For Information, Technology, And Expertise, Robert A. Seal Jul 2014

Library Spaces In The 21st Century—Meeting The Challenges Of User Needs For Information, Technology, And Expertise, Robert A. Seal

University Libraries: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Libraries and library professionals face multiple challenges in meeting user needs in the second decade of the new millennium. This is particularly true in academic libraries where students and faculty demand and expect fast, easy, and seamless access to information as well as flexible, comfortable places to work alone was well as collaboratively with colleagues, friends, classmates, and instructors. These same patrons often require the assistance of information specialists to navigate a library’s increasingly large array of online resources. The past fifteen plus years have seen a major shift in philosophy in the U.S. and in other parts of the …


Information Commons: The Future Is Now, Robert A. Seal Nov 2012

Information Commons: The Future Is Now, Robert A. Seal

University Libraries: Faculty Publications and Other Works

First established in the United States in the 1990’s, the information commons (IC) has become a common way to provide users of academic libraries with a variety of both library and technology services in the 21st century. Now a worldwide phenomenon, the information commons offers, in a centralized location, research and writing assistance, access to computers and other technology, high-speed Internet and wireless communication, loans of laptops and tablet devices, tutoring, both quiet and noisy work study areas, collaborative spaces, classrooms, digital media services, coffee and food items, and more. From the smallest to the largest institutions, the IC …


The Information Commons Handbook (Review), Robert A. Seal Jan 2007

The Information Commons Handbook (Review), Robert A. Seal

University Libraries: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Once an innovative idea but now a standard feature of many academic libraries, the information commons has transformed library services across the country over the past decade. Although dozens of articles have appeared in the literature on various aspects and models of the information commons (IC), until now there has not been a thorough monograph devoted to the topic.


The Information Commons: New Pathways To Digital Resources And Knowledge Management, Robert A. Seal Jan 2005

The Information Commons: New Pathways To Digital Resources And Knowledge Management, Robert A. Seal

University Libraries: Faculty Publications and Other Works

No longer an innovation, the information commons has become a mainstream approach in U.S. academic libraries for providing convenient access to technology and online resources, the first step for many university students in their own knowledge management. From the very basic model of a well-equipped computer lab to more elaborate projects involving multiple campus departments, extensive digital resources, and spaces for knowledge creation, the information commons can facilitate the integration of the college and university library into the academic learning process. After a brief overview of the changing library environment, the paper provides a look at the various models and …