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This study addresses the problem of Internet information services having to meet the increasing information demands of users in the dynamic Internet environment. The purpose of this research was to use K-12 digital reference services as a starting point to better understand the process of building and maintaining Internet information services. The study has three specific objectives: (1) to build and apply a conceptual framework based on complexity research, literature, and the researcher's experience; (2) to use this conceptual framework to empirically describe how organizations, specifically K-12 digital reference services, build and maintain services in the dynamic Internet environment; and (3) to seek commonalties across these descriptions. Qualitative methods (elite interviews and document analysis) were used to elicit descriptions of six exemplary K-12 digital reference services. These descriptions were then compared across organizations to find commonalties. Appended are the Pre-Test Interview Transcript, quality criteria developed by the expert panel, the AskERIC Pre-Test, Internet sites for further information, and a synopsis of data gathering. Eighty-nine tables and figures are included throughout the text. Contains an index. (Author/AEF)

The chapters in this volume, originally presented at the Third Annual Virtual Reference Desk (VRD) conference, "Setting Standards and Making It Real," (Orlando, Florida, November 2001), were organized, revised, and updated to reflect current technology and practice. The VRD conference and the ideas in this book represent the cutting edge of work, practice, research, and thinking in the digital reference community. The six sections of this volume follow a chronological process of identification, implementation, and evaluation, both as they apply to individual digital reference services and to digital reference service in general. Part 1: Identifying the Need for Digital Reference Service, presents two digital reference projects in unusual settings. These chapters discuss how specific problems were identified, and begin the discussion of the implementation of solutions specific to these settings. Part 2: Managing Key Digital Reference Issues, provides analyses of three major issues in digital reference: artificial intelligence, privacy, and copyright. Part 3: Implementing Real-Time Reference Service, and Part 4: Conceiving and Implementing Collaborative Reference Services, present novel approaches to solving existing problems in digital reference. Part 5: Using Key Findings from Research in Digital Reference, and Part 6: Evaluating Digital Reference Service Quality, present several ideas for both formative and summative evaluation of digital reference services. The book concludes with a comparison of two different types of digital reference service. Contains 43 tables and 24 figures. Includes an index. (Author/AEF)

This book on digital reference services begins with an introduction entitled "The Foundations of Digital Reference" (R. David Lankes). Part 1, "The New Reference Culture: Traits and Trends," includes the following papers: "Why Reference Is about To Change Forever (but Not Completely)" (Joseph Janes); "Transforming Reference Staffing for the Digital Library" (Susan Lessick); "Definitions of Personal Assistance in the New Millennium: Philosophical Explorations of Virtual Reference Service" (Lorna Peterson); and "Evolution or Entropy? The Changing Reference Culture and the Future of Reference Librarians" (Myoung C. Wilson). Part 2, "Building Digital Reference Services and Networks," includes: "Collaborative Digital Reference Service: Update on LC Initiative" (Diane Kresh and Linda Arret); and "Digital Reference Quality Criteria" (Blythe Allison Bennett, Abby Kasowitz, and R. David Lankes). Part 3, "Managing Digital Reference Services," includes: "Managing Growth for AskA Services" (Pauline Lynch); "Designing a Virtual Reference Desk: Intellectual Property Considerations" (Brett Butler); "Simple and Sophisticated Methods for Processing Large Volumes of Question and Answer Information through the World Wide Web" (Lynn Bry); and "Digital Reference Service at the Georgia Institute of Technology" (Bruce Henson). Part 4, "Evaluating Digital Reference Services," includes: "Evaluating the 'Ask a Question' Service at the University of California, Irvine" (Judy Horn and Kathryn Kjaer); and "National Museum of American Art Reference Desk: A Usage Analysis of a Digital Reference Service" (Laura Sowers and Marilyn Domas White). Part 5, "Digital Reference Technology Spotlight," includes: "Moving Reference to the Web" (Susan McGlamery and Steven Coffman); "The University of North Texas Libraries' Online Reference Help Desk" (Monika Antonelli and Martha Tarlton); and "Click on the Wizard for Help: Using Help Desk Software for Real-Time Reference" (Saundra Lipton). The conclusion is entitled "An Agenda for Digital Reference" (R. David Lankes). The book contains an appendix listing digital reference resources (compiled by Joann M. Wasik) and an index. Most papers contain references. (Contains 129 references.) (MES)