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Covid-19 pandemic has posed challenges to all walks of life and libraries are not exception to that. The paper traces the status and trends in extending library and information services during Covid-19 period. The approaches adopted by LIS professionals to overcome restrictions in libraries and information access such as Online chat, texting, Instant Messaging System (IMS) and other social network platforms have been explored. The paper discusses the policy decisions taken by Jawaharlal Nehru University; Delhi, precautionary measures, and revised plans of the Dr B. R. Ambedkar Central Library taken with regard to physical and digital spaces and library and information services to avoid/minimize challenges posed by Covid-19 pandemic. The virtual services provided during the COVID 19 period in real time through video kiosks, live chat, email or phone are enumerated. The paper explains with the example of JNU Central Library how it continues to assist staff, faculty, researchers and students with finding, using and referencing information relevant to their research or study as well. A detailed account has been given about ‘Digital Tracking System ’, Patron Attendance System, Seating Plan of the JNU Library. The study concludes that increased research and publication activity during the prevailing time has led to intensifying the services relating to online plagiarism check and research support services including reference management. Regular webinars were conducted to orient the users of the University. Dr B R Ambedkar Central library, JNU also initiated the online lecture and workshop on Research Methodology to help the ongoing research of its M. Phil and PhD scholars.

Keywords are important words and phrases of a research paper, expressing its essence. The longitudinal study of occurrence of keywords in specific discipline expresses trends of research. The prese...

Purpose This paper aims to highlight the research output of library and information science of the BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) nations during the ten year period, i.e. 2005-2014, as reflected through the Web of Science database. Design/methodology/approach This study used Social Science Index (SSCI) of Web of Science (WoS) citation database to collect data for the ten year period. All records indexed in SSCI were refined by subject area of “Information Science and Library Science” and selected countries. The downloaded results were analyzed by using specific parameters. Findings WoS indexes different kinds of documents, such as articles, conference proceedings, biographical items, book reviews, corrections, editorial material, letters, reprints and reviews. Out of the BRICS output, almost 90 per cent of papers were articles. Other types of documents included conference papers, review papers and book reviews. China contributed nearly half of the documents followed by Brazil, South Africa, India and Russia. On an average, a document had cited 34 references. More than one-third of records did not receive any citations. It has been observed that the titles that had 11-16 words attracted the most number of citations. The top ten publishers in whose journals the researchers published included Emerald, Elsevier and Springer. The primary subject areas were information science and library science, information systems, interdisciplinary applications and management. About 85 per cent of the documents were published in English. Around 93 per cent of the non-English research publications were in Portuguese, the official language of Brazil. Originality/value There are not many studies on BRICS countries and that too about Library and Information Science (LIS) research output. This study may reveal insights into how LIS researchers interact with local and global issues in a specific spectrum of the world community.

Introduction Mobile devices are everywhere and they have changed the way we live. Today the new society is a mobile society, in which the mobile devices have become the remote control for our lives. Mobile devices are connecting, communicating and sharing knowledge and information to make our lives easier. The mobile society of today works on a new logic and a new way of thinking, not only in the fields of health, business, commerce, industry and education but in almost all spheres of life. It is also seen that mobile devices have brought about a breakthrough in education all over the world. They have transformed and influenced the learning preferences of students and faculty, both within and outside the classroom and libraries (Moore, 2008). The use of personal devices by both teaching staff and learners has blurred the line between formal and informal learning. With more digital books than print books in circulation, academic activities are being influenced by mobile technology. Cloud computing and cloud space are also driving the use of more digital educational materials. Mobile devices are becoming the student's backpack (BLE Group, 2011), and so a survey was carried out in six major academic libraries of New Delhi, the capital city of India, to explore the applications and services provided and needed in these academic libraries. Mobile devices in education Mobile technologies are playing an increasingly important role in education and academic lives. Devices such as smartphones, tablets, iPads and e-book readers connect users to the world instantly, increasing access to information and enabling interactivity with others. Mobile devices are playing a great role in all these activities by providing many benefits to students, teachers, parents and universities themselves. Applications that run on these devices let users not only consume but also discover and produce content (Dahlstrom, 2012). The changing educational technology theory, research, and pedagogy are re-conceptualized to provide better opportunities and learning to the students and academic fraternity. Mobile devices are now being used as research tools and e-book readers, for SMS chat rooms, group chat rooms for classes, photo sharing for academic documents and mobile diaries, and to set reminders, make notes and organize schedules, connect with guest speakers in classrooms via Skype and scan QR codes for use as a reference point for assignments and projects (Lepi, 2014).

Introduction The total number of mobile phone users has risen to 350 million since the inception of mobile use in the country, and India is one of the most attractive markets for mobile telephone operators and wireless equipment vendors. The Indian government is targeting 500 million telephones, both fixed and wireless, by 2010. The market is growing by about ten million new mobile users per month, and with this pace of growth India will probably be close to 450 million subscribers by the end of 2009. Four factors have driven the growth of the mobile subscriber base in India. These include footprint expansion by existing operators, especially in rural areas, launch of operations by newer operators, issuing of 3G licences – which opens up a new world of data services – and cheaper handsets, which will lower entry barriers even further (Jain, 2008). Libraries and documentation centres in India are keeping this proliferation in view and have also initiated some mobile learning (mlearning) services. E-learning has been successful, and now m-learning represents the next stage in an ongoing continuum of technology mediation. It will require new digital communication skills, new pedagogies and new practices. It will also foster young people's interest in their mobile phones and other hand-held communications/entertainment devices to deliver exciting and unusual learning experiences and related messages. M-learning, especially its main delivery system, mobile-phone learning, is under observation, and in coming years will be effectively and extensively used or accepted for learning purposes by either educators or the general public in India. The goal of modern digital libraries in India is to support ‘nomadic’ computing by providing appropriate wireless networking ‘hotspots’ and access to information through mobile devices to support flexible learning space and mobile learning. The proliferation of mobile technology over the past decade has made librarians face issues that were previously the responsibility of software designers and specialists in the field of human–computer interaction (HCI). In this chapter, we will describe the weaknesses inherent in, and some non-viable factors of, mobile phone learning. We will describe how libraries can combine the technologies of mobile communications with any electronically delivered material to impart support services, and will discuss the new PDA technologies, smart phones and wireless connections available in India. This chapter will also present strategies for delivering educational resources to mobile devices through libraries in India.

Introduction Mobility is indispensable in the digital age, and mobile devices are portals through which users can connect with everything and everyone. Mobile devices are rapidly becoming the primary computing devices in people's lives. Mobile apps delivery platforms such as Google Play and the Apple App Store have transformed mobile phones into intelligent computing devices, by the means of applications that can be downloaded and installed instantly (Jayaraman et al., 2013). Smart - phones, tablets or e-readers can give access to data, information and knowledge on demand. Today, in a changing mobile world, publishers and proprietary database providers are eager to provide mobile apps and mobile websites to enable users to search from their mobile handsets, smartphones, tablets, e-readers, low-end devices and other similar devices. In view of this, a survey was done to see which mobile applications and platforms are provided by the most popular databases. The major mobile platforms include iOS, Android, Windows Phone, Windows 8, BlackBerry and HTML5. With device-specific platforms and applications such as BlackBerry, iPhone, Palm, Android, Windows Mobile, Java and more, a survey was carried out to see how far the databases have been supported by the mobile applications. Mobile apps A mobile application is referred to as an ‘app’, i.e. a very small individual piece of software with limited functionality. It is application software designed to run on a mobile device, such as a smartphone, tablet or e-book reader. These applications serve to provide their users with similar services to those accessed on personal computers. They are available through app stores, which are native distribution platforms, provided by the owners of the mobile operating systems. Some of the most popular operating system native stores are Apple's App Store, Google Play, Windows Phone Store and BlackBerry App World. These mobile applications give an edge by providing the ability to access information on the go. The small screen size of a mobile device may make performing certain tasks more tedious or cumbersome, but mobile users do expect to perform more and more tasks on their mobile devices (Kim, 2013). Advantages of mobile apps Learning and research does not have any barriers and it goes beyond boundaries of space and time. So it is imperative for the citadels of knowledge and learning to adopt mobility as the key tool of delivery.

Introduction The growing need for high mobility and to stay connected is the prime driver of increasing mobile use in the world today. This is true for people of different age groups and occupations. The youth segment, in particular, comprises 30% of the total mobile handset market. This segment requires high mobility and connectivity, and the same is true for business and other professionals. This innate need, coupled with the availability of handsets and connectivity at affordable prices, has triggered the growth of mobile use in India. The mobile phone has evolved from being a mere communication device to being an access mode with an ability to tap into a plethora of information and services. This is the reason why it is now being referred to as the ‘fourth screen’, after cinema, television and computers. M-resources and m-library services have become the ‘pull effect’, and students and researchers increasingly asking for more than just basic telephony in order to access them, driving the development of mobile value added services (MVAS). Today most of the students and faculty in universities and research institutions are seeking more from their communication devices and they are two of the prominent groups that have become increasingly reliant on mobile internet services for research, m-resources, m-educational literature searches and projects. The growth of MVAS is based on four pillars: access devices, content, technology and infrastructure. This chapter analyses these four pillars and mobile network services in India with regard to the availability of mobile broadband; and mobile service providers with regard to MVAS and their cost-effectiveness for mobile users. The chapter will also present data about the types of mobile content and applications available through different mobile service providers and how it is used and valued by learners in different real-life study contexts. An overview of the mobile web, its potential use with Web 2.0 tools (including screencasts, podcasts, vodcasts and YouTube) and how it is beginning to be employed to support our education system, especially libraries, is also presented. The total number of mobile subscribers in India as of July 2010 was 652.42 million. Since its liberalization in 1991, the telecoms sector has seen unprecedented growth. It is currently valued at $100 billion dollars, contributing a very significant 13% to GDP.

Embedded librarianship is an old concept in new context. It is an old phenomenon to initiate a new range of services in the present environment. This paper defines the attributes of embedded library services such as user-oriented, no physical proximity required, miniature group centric, expertise, etc. It also endows with suggestions to the future embedded librarians which embrace acting as a group and not as an individual, support from the organisation and associates, commercial outlook, risk taking competence, etc. This paper also explains the practicing embedded librarianship process which starts with the identification of a faculty member who is library-friendly and ends with providing with embedded library services in the hi-tech era. It is a transformation process of traditional librarian to embedded librarian. As compared to traditional librarianship which is based on transaction, embedded librarianship is based on relationship with the faculty, or user community. When an embedded librarian initiate interacting with the patrons, it takes them to the another level of understanding with the user. Librarianship with the help of IT has developed into a fruitful affiliation. Most of the high-flying libraries in India are providing embedded library services to its users, some of the libraries are Delhi University Library system, IIT Delhi, Indira Gandhi National Open University, etc. The success of embedded librarianship depends not only on the understanding of librarian and the faculty members but also on the support from the organisation.http://dx.doi.org/10.14429/djlit.34.6.7059

Though the concepts of marketing and public relations are interrelated yet the example of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Central Library reflects how these have been walking hand-in-hand together to maximise the usage of library collections and keep the users well-informed. The paper discusses about the various practices taking place at Central Library which have been customised and functioning as tools of marketing. The in-depth analysis of these practices and services has been showing the endeavors in the direction of building relations with user community to achieve optimum use of library resources, specially the digital kinds.DOI: 10.14429/djlit.36.3.9755

This chapter discusses emerging innovative technologies and examines how Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) Library is increasingly benefited by its new and future services. It discusses the National Open Distance Learners' Library and Information Network (NODLINET), a project of IGNOU Library created for distance learning libraries for sharing collections, e-resources, and services on a common platform. The chapter discusses how IGNOU Library is moving towards innovative Library Services by providing its users with updated contents and constantly strengthening service capability in network information environment. It also explains in detail the component of Remote Access to E-resources, which is a quick, easy, and convenient service to gain off-campus access to all IGNOU Library subscribed databases and other online resources. It also enumerates the copyright restrictions and licensing restrictions through Remote Access Service. There is also a discussion in detail on various other innovative initiatives taken by IGNOU Library like Cloud Computing, Course Reserves, Institutional Repository, Discovery, and AtoZ Services.