RESEARCH ON INFORMATION SCIENCE AND PUBLIC LIBRARIES (PAYAM-E-KETABKHANEH (LIBRARY MESSAGE))
Year:2013 | Volume:19 | Issue:2 (73)|Papers Count:7

Purpose: This research identifies and evaluates the librarians ICT skills, attitudes and factors related their ICT skills.Methodology: Statistical population includes all Yazd public library staffs and a questionnaire used for assessing librarian ICT skills in four main dimensions, including skills in general software, hardware skills, applicative and specialize software skills and communicating and searching skills. The priority of librarians’ skills has been considering by AHP technique and hypothesis testing done by one sample t-test, Pearson correlation and ANOVA tests.Findings: According to research findings, applicative and specialize software skills, skills in general software, communicating and searching skills and hardware skills known as the most important public library staff required skills, respectively. Findings reveal the librarians’ positive attitude about ICT and desirable level of hardware skills, between four dimensions of ICT skills. Educational level, knowing English language and librarians’ attitude considering as the affecting factors of the librarian ICT skills.Originality/Value: Evaluating librarian ICT skills and factors relating to them can be set as the base of technical knowledge and professional behavior, improving election, recruitment, education, compensation systems, consultation and performance evaluation and finally representing better services by libraries.

Purpose: This research investigates native management in public libraries of the Markazi Province. Management roles are investigated in three main parameters and ten sub- parameters. The main parameters are: communication, information, and decision making roles.Methodology: The study adopted an analyitical survey. Data were gathered using a self-developed questionnaire with the reliability of 93% and are validated with content – based method. The study population included all the librarians of Markazi state public librarians. 110 librarians formed the sample of the study using Morgan – table, of which 106 librarians completed the questionnaire. The data was analysed in two levels of descriptive and statistical inferential, (i.e.g frequency, frequency percentage and variance), using SPSS software. Findings: The results revead, that the communication and information roles are not practiced by the public librarians in this study. Findings showed that that “attending in associates ‘relatives’ funeral" with mean of 3.59 and “holding other ceremonies for associates ‘relatives’ and their families" with Mean of 1.86 received respectively the highest and lowest Mean in the communication roles. This implies that communication roles are not practiced by the public librarians. In the information roles, “evaluating information" with the Mean of 3.05 and “introducing the native culture to customers ” with the Mean of 2.24 received the highest and lowest Means respectively. In the case of decision making role, “negotiations ended with the benefit of the library” with the Mean of 3.11) and “awarding suggestions given on the local issues with the Mean of 2 received the highest and lowest Mean respectively.Originality/Value: Native management is an area which has received little attention in the LIS research. This study introduces this area in libraries.

Purpose: This article presents results from a survey on the user interface environment of Persian journals databases from the viewpoints of Iranian public librarians.Methodology: Adopting a survey approach, this study examines the views and experience of public librarians about about the user interface environment of Persian journals databases, taking into account five dimensions and 58 criteria. Findings: Findings reveal that the user interface environment of Persian journal databases with numerical mean equal to 180.8 was at the satisfactory level. It appeared that the dimensions of public information (mean: 43.9), searching (mean: 81.3), retrieval (mean: 33.1), were at satisfactory level, and demonstration (mean: 16.2), user- friendliness (mean: 7.13) were at unsatisfactory level. In addition, the findings showed that.Originality/Value: Illuminating the strengths and weaknesses of the user interface environment of Persian journals databases, this study help journal database producers designing better interface environments for users. It helps institutions selecting the databases that best meet the needs of their patrons. It also helps users experiencing easy and fast access to their required information via a better user interface.

Purpose: This study identifies the most important internal factors of strengths and Weaknesses, as well as the external factors of opportunities and threats in regards with privatization of the public libraries, and their readiness for privatization.Methodology: the factors and variables resulted from a literature review and several interviews with a group of experts in the field of library and information science. The researcher's observations were used to analyze the internal and external SWOT factors in regards with privatization in public libraries.Findings: Findings show that the public libraries under the study are quite ready for privatization both internally, and externally, provided that they take advantage of opportunities they have. The weighted sum of the strengths and weaknesses is 3.38, and the weighted sum of opportunities and threats is 3.47, both of which are greater than the cut point 2.50.Originality/Value: this seems to be the first attempt in SWOT analysis of public libraries in regards with privatization of these libraries.

Purpose: This study illuminates some lights on public communication dissemination of science magazines as a possible contributive factor to the structural changes in the public communication of Science in Iranian society.Methodology: A historical analysis of some documents representing the status of Science in Iran was conducted. It also conducted a content analysis of a random sample of public science magazines. As the sample included documents with no systematic record, the study also created a list of these documents for the first time. Findings: The study revealed that the magazines have played at least three roles in changing the cultural space of Iranian society. These were: a) introducing the infrastructure needed for development of Science; b) commemoration and acknowledgement of science by magazines; c) quantitative development in the corresponding public communication of Science institutions.Originality/value: This research is the first dealt with the role of public science magazines in structural changes in Iran. Considering public science magazines as a cultural space, this study illuminate the role of such magazines in the formation and transformation of public communication of Science in Iran.

Purpose: This paper presents various image indexing techniques and discusses their advantages and limitations.Methodology: conducting a review of the literature review, it identifies three main image indexing techniques, namely concept-based image indexing, content based image indexing and folksonomy. It then describes each technique.Findings: Concept-based image indexing is text-based. It allows users posting their query, using keywords. The and content-based image indexing is pixel-based. It allows users posting their query based oncolour, texture, shape, etc. Images have more semantic features and layers, as a result indexing for images is more complex comparing to texts. That is why indexing a text differs from indexing an image.Originality/value: This article reviews the conceptual framework of image indexing and retrieval and gives a comprehensive view about this sphere by collecting a relatively complete literature about it. This consolidated review can help us to get a right view about image indexing and retrieval.

Purpose: This study investigates views of undergraduates on the electronic textbooks in a research methodology class.Methodology: Adopting a quasi-experimental approach, this study compared the attitude of two groups of undergraduate students on the use of e-textbooks in a Research Methodology course. One were exposed to e-textbooks and the other to printed books. The study population included all (32) undergraduate students studying in the Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences at Allameh Tabataba'i University in the second semester of 1389-90. Descriptive and inferential statistics were then used to analyze the data.Findings: Findings revealed that attitudes of students were exposed to e-textbooks significantly increased compared to the group who were not exposed to e-textbooks.Originality/Value: The study implies that use of e-textbooks may have positive impact on the higher education in Iran.