Kris & Sharon celebrate 8 years of AskColorado/Ask Academic with chocolate decadence.
Kris states, “We believe in our organization, and we continue to embrace and accept member feedback in a collaborative environment–all with the goal of improving service to patrons. We look forward to the current year with anticipation, and wonder what new changes and challenges lie ahead.”
Posted on behalf of Kris Johnson:
Happy Spring. A few new things have been happening at AskColorado/AskAcademic since the start of the year that I thought library folks might be interested in hearing about:
1. Our after-hours service is growing: Last February I started our own after-hours service, hiring librarians in the metro area to staff the service evenings, nights, and weekends. We started with a crew of nine librarians, and have grown to a current staff of fifteen. We *may* have some openings for part-time librarians coming-up. Continue reading ‘After-Hours Service, Widgets and More’
What do E*Trade, REI, Godiva Chocolatier and AskColorado have in common?
Beginning Feb 1, they will all use the same web-based customer-support and communication technology, InstantService.
In the last few years, libraries have seen an explosion in online communication tools available for reaching and serving patrons. The use of IM, text messaging, online chat and related technologies are becoming embedded in the fabric of libraries’ online service offerings. Given this changing landscape in technology and the evolving need for libraries to flexibly serve their patrons, the AskColorado community and AskColorado Steering Committee have endorsed a migration to this new software platform, InstantService. Continue reading ‘The NEW AskColorado: utility and coolness combined’
Recently Cory Casciato, a writer for Denver’s alternative newspaper Westword, stepped into the world of AskColorado. What this writer received through the 24/7 virtual reference service was the kind of top-notch service that many of AskColorado’s unsung librarians offer on a daily basis.
The librarian tested by Casciato in this particular online interaction was Martha Durgy, a.k.a. “Marty,” from Pitkin County Public Library. And boy did Martha do AskColorado librarians proud!
Read the Westword story/blog post about this encounter at: AskColorado has the answers
How critical is reference to the survival of libraries? Should the library profession do more to promote reference services? In less than a minute you can tell us what you think about reference services.
Let us know what you think at: http://surveys.lrs.org/respond.php?sid=50
Why This Topic
The questions on this survey were inspired by a discussion on a national listerv for virtual reference librarians. It was a fascinating discussion with varied opinions being expressed on everything from usage to promotion. Of course, LRS staff were curious about what the folks in library land thought about these issues. So, here is the second LRS 60-Second Survey: Reference Service – Where is it Going?
About 60-Second Surveys
The 60-second surveys are intended to capture respondents’ gut-reactions to questions about narrowly defined, high-interest topics. Taking less than a minute of the respondent’s time, these are truly quickie surveys. This is not a scientific study, but rather a reader poll-style survey (think online magazine survey) that “takes the temperature” of a very specific topic.
Yesterday marked a significant day in the life of AskColorado, the statewide service built on the shoulders of Colorado’s librarians and sustained through the investment of thousands of on-line hours.
This collaborative service provides interactive, 24-7 virtual reference service in a live-chat environment.
AskColorado truly is a human-powered search engine.
Since its inception in September 2003, AskColorado has provided service in the form of nearly 228,000 interactive sessions with users. All I can say is, “Wow.”
A newly-designed web site was unveiled yesterday to celebrate the completion of five years of service and to provide a foundation for evolving and growing the service. Credit goes to AskColorado Coordinator Kris Johnson for shepherding this redesign process, as well as the State Library’s senior programmer, Steve Gregory, for his fine work in producing new style sheets and redesigning AskColorado’s entry page. Continue reading ‘Turning 5 and still growing’
Bad Behavior has blocked 1163 access attempts in the last 7 days.
What You’re Saying