An examination of the costs and benefits of an experimental extension of academic library services to remote users

Wynne, Peter M., Brophy, Peter and Butters, Geoff (1997) An examination of the costs and benefits of an experimental extension of academic library services to remote users. New Review of Academic Librarianship, 3 (1). pp. 25-37. ISSN 1361-4533

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Abstract

Describes the networking solutions used in the experimental extension of academic library services from the University of Central Lancashire to an agricultural college some 100 km distant, under the aegis of the EC-funded BIBDEL Project. Highlights the project's use of inexpensive, off-the-shelf products in preference to the commissioning of tailored software applications. Includes a discussion of the philosophy and ethos of the BIBDEL Project, and compares the extant library services of the two institutions participating in the experiment. Presents the technological and other costs of the experiment in tabular form, and discusses and contrasts them with the benefits perceived by the remote users of the service. Discusses the University's retention and expansion of the extended service on an operational footing after the conclusion of the experiment.