Presentation Notes - References

FOR-Learn hhttp://forlearn.jrc.ec.europa.eu/guide/0_home/index.htmttp:/forlearn.jrc.ec.europa.eu/guide/0_home/index.htm

UWO. Western Libraries: Libraries-as-Place & Libraries-as-Space Strategic Plan 2007-11.

Eberhardt, George. The Whole Library Handbook (2006).

Gibbons, Susan. The Academic Library and the Net Gen Student (2007).

Durrance, Joan C. and Karen E. Fisher. How Libraries and Librarians Help (2005).

Council on Library and Information Resources.
“Library as Place: Rethinking Roles, Rethinking Space” (2005).

ALA. The Condition of U.S. Libraries: trends, 1999-2009 (December 2009).

Presentation Notes - Diagnosis or Tools to work with

Evidence–based methods for the health sciences are a well established model to engage with. In space planning exercises we can use a number of tools to develop evidence for the desired library space plan.

1. Scoping - looking at the future a la Foresight Planning
2. Work-practice Study - another name for ethnography or studying people at the work.
3. Stakeholder Analysis defining the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats to our new GRC.
4. User-Centred Outcomes - drawing on assessments made to produce outcomes desired.
5. Participation in Faculty & Admin Processes - presenting our case to colleagues.

Presentation Notes - Prognosis = WorkPractice

I recently had the pleasure of listening to Dr. Peter Jones from OCAD and redesign.

He explained the trajectory of user experience design. And this reminded me of the need to ground our work in the daily practices of our users.

Such a grounding can help exclude long-winded discussions about what to do when no one knows the shape of the future we are facing. Respond to needs, incremental change that reflects user demands, and building partnerships is the best way forward.

Then we can draw on our successes to free up resources that a variety of players agree on, rather than dreaming up happy scenarios on our own.

Presentation Notes - The Background

Before prescribing a space plan solution we need to turn to the latest information we have on libraries: what are they ? How are they changing ?

Western Libraries: Libraries-as-Place & Libraries-as-Space Strategic Plan 2007-11.

Gibbons, Susan. "The Academic Library and the Net Gen Student" (2007).

Council on Library and Information Resources.
“Library as Place: Rethinking Roles, Rethinking Space (2005).

ALA. "American Academic Library Trends 1999-2009" (December 2009)

This helps to frame the user groups and stakeholders. Clarifying needs and possibilities within assessment made in the past draws on the strength of the Western Libraries culture of assessment.

Presentation Notes - The Problem

To prepare for the interview I reviewed some documents that inform my library practice so I could answer your question:

“The allocation of space for the Graduate Resource Centre in the new building has not yet been determined. You are concerned that the GRC's existing proportion of space within the Faculty does not adequately meet the teaching, learning and research needs of the Centre's clientele. You firmly believe that facilities and services provided by the GRC must be considered during the space planning process for the new facility.
What would you do to ensure that library and information facilities, resources and services figure prominently in the space planning process?
What strategies would you adopt to advocate for an appropriate allocation of space in the new building?”

My starting point: I am user- centred and approach library work as an extension of social networking. I recently participated in The Human Library, did anyone here see that at OLA ? Or LPL ?

People to People - Introducing the Library

I had a great time being a human 'book' at Guelph's Main Library this spring. I also enjoyed the time I spent with Regina Public Library's Library Director, Jeff Barber at OLA where he volunteered to be 'read for 1/2 hour by me.

This idea, The Living Library, originated with a journalism student in Denmark hoping to reduce violence against ethnic minorities. It seems to have been wildly successful and was just in London at the public library.

This is not a new concept, but reveals our work. Whether the library loans books, DVDs or whatever, the interaction is person to person - author/creator to reader - and a potential new creation starts. Using programming ideas like this, it is possible to generate activities that lead to a library being the social, cultural and intellectual centre of campus.

Pop Quiz

I have a brief test for those of you interested in London's music scene. I had the pleasure of hearing some great home grown music yesterday. Can you guess who it was ? Please select which of the following represents our local music scene.

a) Shad
b) Claire Danaher
c) Talbot Duo
d) All of the above.

Space and the lack thereof

The largest question facing anyone planning a move into new premises is how to manage this process and still remain friends. As anyone who has wallpapered a room with their spouse can attest - this kind of activity can be damaging to your relationship !

There is never enough space and always too many demands to fit the budget. Trying to pinpoint who are the users, what are their immediate needs, and how to address them should focus the discussion and drive debate with evidence rather than personal preferences.

But then again, this is academia, and just what is evidence, what is a user, what is the subjective ??? These issues can really bog you down if you want to start down that cultural narrative garden path into the thorny bed of..., oh let's just let that metaphor die right now.

Seattle & Amsterdam - anyone seen this ?

Check out this TED talk on the new Seattle Public Library by the architect Joshua Prince-Ramus.I particularly like two points he makes: the importance of the book (minute 2:30), and the percentage of library programs that require social space (minute 5:22).

The library as public space has three functions, as proposed by Jan Gehl of the Royal Danish Academy which Seattle Public Library has honoured in its' new building:

1. Meeting space;
2. Marketplace - (the trade being ideas and artifacts rather than money);
3. Connection space.


Been to Amsterdam lately ? I was stunned to see the new Amsterdam Central Library has a special floor with MACs dedicated for music when I was there in December ! What a great idea to mix and match pc/non pc systems.

You can really feel that they have considered the 'Net Gen' and believe they have a role to play in selecting excellent quality resources, not just providing free access to information - the Internet does that. In order for the Graduate Resource Centre to flourish there must be a similar devotion to supporting the teaching, learning and research needs of the faculty.

User-Centred Design

One of the most annoying parts of moving a library and planning for the future space is that no one has time to spend thinking through all the possible future uses of the new space.
I mentioned Dr. Peter Jones in a previous post and he shared his tools of Foresight planning used by the University of Toronto Libraries in the study of e-books.

I can see the usefulness of doing a Strategic Foresight Plan, but I also think that given limited time and resources there is much to be said for reviewing old plans, current visions, and then utilizing the engaged constituents - the students - to talk about what are they doing.

Work practice studies, in the tradition of ethnography, are integral to User Experience Design world - see post below -and in Participatory Design. Rather than trying to engage stakeholders in roundabout discussions on what they would like to see in the Graduate Resource Centre, it is far more fascinating to review what students, staff and faculty actually do in their work and extrapolate potential programs, services and resources that correspond to user needs.
The University of Toronto ischool Inforum (a library by any other name...) is another example of how Andrew Clement's User Centred information Systems course led students to develop the floor plan with computer desks custom-made to offer space for collaboration and privacy as needed. It is a student-led project from more than 10 years ago which is still the dominant space plan today as you can sort of see in this image.

Space and Design for All

Trying to track down some specifics on universal accessibility and found a good site on Design for All. This concept takes off where Accessible Design starts, some key principles:

-Equitable use
-Flexibility in use
-Simple and intuitive
-Tolerance for error ( I like that )
-Low physical effort
-Size and space for approach and use
(from the Center for Universal Design at North Carolina State University)

The principles of flexible, simple and useful are deceptively easy words to toss around. But finding your way to first steps can be tricky. The planning phase should start within the context of a culture of assessment rather than a system of theoretical approaches.

Western Libraries has made changes and improvements that follows the results from a variety of assessment tools, such as LibQUAL, SAILS, etc.

Space planning is a logical extension of implementing results that come from assessing user needs regularly. Design follows from the problems and concerns, the successes and strengths related by assessments and reports of the past.

On the way

This presentation is a great excuse to get back to my passion for newspapers and check out some old favourites. I grew up on 3 newspapers a day: The Globe & Mail, The Vancouver Sun and the first major newspaper to go online - The Christian Science Monitor.
Although I am still a loyal Globe reader I would never say it is the finest read out there. I am happy to say my top three are:

1. The Mail and Guardian - two reasons = culture and cartoons.

2. Helsingin Sanomat - the online Finnish version is a thing of beauty.

3. Guardian - no need to say more, it is simply the best.

User Experience Design

So while I am waiting to be invited to the Google Wave party I want to check out some of the ideas that Dr. Peter Jones from the Ontario College of Art and Design mentioned in his talk at Guelph last week.

uxnet The User Experience Network

I like this approach to Human Computer Interaction and I haven't heard about design sustainability before.

"Human-centered design directly supports the first two pillars of sustainability:

Economic - matching a design to user's needs and abilities enhance its utilization, quality, and efficiency, thus providing cost effective solutions and reducing the likelihood that systems products and services will be rejected by their users;

Social - taking a human-centered approach results in systems, products and services which are better for the health and wellbeing of their users, including users with disabilities." - User Experience Network - About

And I want to get back into the loop with the people at the Participatory Design Conference and see if they have any useful links to space planning ideas and universal accessibility.

Google Wave

This is it. I am going to jump in. I asked my local techie guru Wayne Johnston about it and he says he loves it. And, I just read the OLA Access article by Michelle Chau of Toronto Public Library "Waving at the future". She's raving about Google Wave too.

So, I will take my mantra - forget about the culture of being perfect in the library - and play a little with this new toy.