There currently are approximately seven billion people on earth, and approximately six billion active mobile phone subscriptions. Mobile devices have transformed how we communicate, seek and use information, create content, and are entertained. Nearly all types of social, cultural, commercial, and governmental organizations, including libraries of all types, must reconceptualize and revamp their services and systems to meet the needs, expectations, and preferences of mobile users. Covering topics such as mobile reference, eBooks, mobile websites, and QR codes, this book examines the effects of the global mobile revolution on libraries and library users - critical information all librarians need. The Handheld Library: Mobile Technology and the Librarian provides the information and guidance librarians need to adapt themselves and their facilities to the mobile revolution - the fastest, most diffuse worldwide technological innovation in human history. The book provides an up-to-date survey of how mobile technologies are affecting library use, library services, library systems, librarians, and library users at various types of libraries. The authors cover core topics related to mobile libraries, including mobile reference, eBooks, mobile websites, and QR codes, and address aspects of the mobile revolution less frequently covered in the literature, such as mobile health information services, the use of mobile technologies on archival work, the impact of the mobile revolution on physical libraries, and the ways in which new mobile technologies are creating professional development opportunities within the profession. While this resource is specifically targeted toward librarians who plan and provide services using mobile technologies, academic, public, and other librarians will also find the ideas and information within useful.
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