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Reference and Information Services: An Introduction, 3rd Edition (Library and Information Science Text) 3rd Edition

3.6 out of 5 stars 17 customer reviews
ISBN-13: 978-1563086243
ISBN-10: 1563086247
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Editorial Reviews

Review

"A very good revision of the previous edition. Intended for beginners, this is an excellent survey of the field that a practitioner would find useful." --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

RICHARD E. BOPP, retired, was Associate Professor of Library Administration, University of Illinois, UrbanaChampaign.

LINDA C. SMITH is Professor and Associate Dean, Graduate School of Library and Information Science, University of Illinois, UrbanaChampaign. She serves on the editorial board of Library Quarterly. She received the Isadore Gilbert MudgeR. R. Bowker Award for distinguished contribution to reference librarianship and was named a Distinguished Teacher/Scholar. She is also the 2004 recipient of the Beta Phi Mu Award for distinguished service to education for librarianship.

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Product Details

  • Series: Library and Information Science Text
  • Paperback: 624 pages
  • Publisher: Libraries Unlimited; 3rd edition (December 15, 2000)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 1563086247
  • ISBN-13: 978-1563086243
  • Product Dimensions: 7 x 1.5 x 10 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
  • Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,291,178 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Top Customer Reviews

Format: Paperback
Now in a fully updated and expanded third edition, Reference And Information Services offers detailed discussion on a wide range of reference-related services including interlibrary loan, document delivery, access to networked electronic resources, readers' advisory services, and more. Of special interest on the chapters regarding the Internet and World Wide Web, the attention to ethical issues and the strong focus on user-centered services, both face-to-face and those mediated by technology. Reference And Information Services is an essential reference for library school and professional library reference collections, as well as in-service library training supplement reading resource lists.
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Format: Paperback
This is a great book for learning about reference philosophy, sources, and services. Its one weakness is its lack of coverage of virtual (chat) reference. It briefly mentions "videoconferencing," but with the importance of chat/IM today, along with e-mail, phone, and in-person forms of communication, the reference librarian needs to know how virtual reference systems work and how to implement them. One book about virtual reference that could supplement this text is "Going Live: Starting and Running a Virtual Reference Service," published by the ALA. Also, its chapter on instruction could be rewritten with greater clarity. Otherwise, an outstanding text.
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Format: Paperback
A lot can be said abotu Reference and Information Services. It is filled with fantastic information, not only about the various types of reference books (many of which I was unfamiliar with their usage), but also how to provide reference services to library patrons of all types. The information itself was great, the problem was the presentation. With few exceptions, the blandest language was used. Getting through a few pages was often such a chore that I could barely keep my eyes open. However, the biggest flaw was truly the repetition of "evalutation" material. Every type of reference source had a multiple page section on how to evaluate that type of source. In theory, this was a good idea. However, in practice the same thing was simply written again and again and again, with only the slightest changes (if any) for each type of reference. A great improvement to this book would be to simply make one chapter on how to evaluate reference sources. It'd end the repetition, and make the other chapters a bit more enjoyable.

Overall, it's a good text for a course on reference librianship, as long as you can get yourself to read it.
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Format: Paperback
...so it's not all that exciting. It was required, so I didn't really have much of a choice. I'm sure as I move through the School of Library Science, I might find other, more informative texts on reference. I do like that this text gives you numerous examples of the various types of sources and a search strategy, like almanacs, databases, and atlases, and which ones seem most useful for a given audience. The most useful stuff has been on the specific sources.
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Format: Paperback
For my Access to Information course, which is a core course in the graduate library and information science program that I am currently in, this was the required text, and I read most of the book for that class. Seeing as how I am still working on the degree, and that I used this book for a course I took during my very first semester in the program, I am probably not the best judge of the accuracy and presentation of the information. However, I do feel that I have a good understanding of reference librarianship after reading through this text---as well as the other readings that were required for the course. So I'll give the book a good rating.

Some other reviewers have criticized the book for being dry. I'll admit, they're right; but you know what, it's a textbook, so what else can we expect? It is really very unrealistic to expect to be entertained by reading a library/information science textbook. When I first opened this book to begin reading the first chapter, my eyes actually glazed over when I read the first few sentences. My first thoughts were: "Man, this is dry and wordy." But I eventually got into it. And if nothing else, it probably improved my reading comprehension skills a bit.
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Format: Paperback
This book gives an overview of the many types of reference materials, easily organized into chapters such as Indexes, Encyclopedias, Bibliographies, etc. Not designed for pleasure reading but more of a resource to guide selection in individual areas of references. Many resources are listed by name and described in detail. The amount of information included is comprehensive and can be a bit over-whelming at times. I would recommend this for Library Science students or professionals wishing to know more about reference materials or wishing to enhance their library's reference collection. The detailed bibliography at the end of each chapter provides supplementary resources for each topic.
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Format: Paperback
This is an excellent text for Library and Information Science students. It is grounded in the history and importance of library reference services from the late 1800's to the present. Important reference text sources are described in detail as well as reference databases and the Web environment up to 2001. Content is well organized and topics are throughly covered, with emphasis on search strategy. This is a large paperback edition, but it is well constructed, with an easy to read font size and ample margin space for notes. I covered mine with clear contact paper to keep the cover clean and to provide more reinforcement. It is a very likable book on a tough subject.
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