Experimenting with mobile technologies in libraries
Jo Alcock, Evidence Base at Birmingham City [email protected]
@joeyanneLearning Resources Forum - 25th March 2013
UK mobile statistics
• There are more mobile phones in the UK than people
• 51.3% of UK mobile phone users have a smartphone
• 12% of UK population have a tablet (and sales are growing 378% each year)
Sources:2012 Mobile Internet Usage Statistics blog post (from Westminster eForum event, March 2012)2012 Mobile Future in Focus report (Feb 2012)
Why should we get serious about mobile web?
Mobile vs. Desktop web in UK
What skills do m-librarians need?
• IT Skills
• Personal traits
• User focus
• Communication
• Collaboration
• Research and development
Kate Davis and Prof. Helen Partridge at #mlib11
What knowledge does an m-librarian need?
• Different mobile devices
• Basics of using mobile software
• QR codes
• Location services
• Augmented reality
Mobile technologies in libraries
• Library content on mobile devices (books, articles)
• Library services from mobile devices (enquiries, statistics, collection management, circulation)
• Mobile specific content/services (location services, QR codes, augmented reality)
Library content on mobile devices
E-books, electronic articles, digitised materials...
How people actually use the iPad
iBooks textbooks
Ebook apps on iPad
JISC PhoneBooth
Library services from mobile devices
Enquiry support, finding resources, circulation, collecting statistics, room booking...
SMS enquiries
State Library of Ohio
SMS tips
University of Huddersfield Library
Keele University Library
Mobile catalogue
Roving enquiries
University of Warwick Library
Mobile circulation
DC Public Library
Radcliffe Science Library (University of Oxford)
Loaning mobile devices
Collecting library statistics
University of Warwick Library
Collecting library statistics
North Carolina State Library
Other experiments
• Room booking by mobile (incorporating QR code outside room to check availability and book if free)
• Paperless online weeding (using iPad in the stacks to colour code stock as "dusty" and withdraw from catalogue if necessary)
Mobile specific content/services
QR codes, location services, augmented reality
LSE Library
North Carolina State University Library
The Wallace Center/Rochester Institute of Technology
University of Bedfordshire Library
University of Huddersfield Library
University of Bedfordshire Library
Oak Park Public Library
University of Warwick Library
University of Sheffield
SCARLET project
Miami University, Ohio
Great, but...
=
Some of this doesn't cost money!
• QR codes
• Location apps (e.g. Foursquare)
• Barcode scanning apps
• Open source software
• Database mobile apps*
*free with existing subscriptions
What do we need to do?
Birmingham City University
What do users want?Library account
Searching for books
Booking a study room
Accessing e-resources
Contacting library
Booking tutorial
Library opening hours
Library location information
Library news
0 5 10 15 20
Facebook Twitter
Pathways to best practice• Introducing users to the
library
• Roving support
• Access to resources
• Managing borrow accounts
• Loaning mobile devices
• ...and more
Points to take away• Aim for high impact (doesn't
need to be high cost)
• Don’t reinvent the wheel
• Utilise free resources
• Animoto/YouTube (video creation)
• bit.ly (URL shortener with statistics and QR codes)
• ZBar (barcode reader)
• Be flexible and adaptable to users' needs
Resources available:http://bit.ly/mlibslrf
@joeyanne
