The Digital Access Architect

This new library role anticipates users' needs and wields the latest technology to respond

By Vanessa Neblett, Cassandra Shivers, Nils Thingvall and Bobby Tsui -- Library Journal, 11/01/2005

This July, the Digital Archive Architects at Orange County Library System (OCLS) in Orlando, FL, offered patrons two ways to access a program on how to plan a wedding using the Internet. Patrons flocked to the Wedding Virtual Gallery but shunned the trek to the library for similar material. The online option got 205 page views in one month; one person showed up for the face-to-face program. It's the job of the new Digital Access Architects (DAA) to address how to change the one-on-one model of providing information into a one-to-many dissemination of information in order to serve increasing and increasingly niched populations. The possibilities are endless. On one end of the spectrum you have static web pages and on the opposite end you have dynamic web pages with interactive avatars to guide users. This is especially useful for the expected waves of information requests—on sports, taxes, school, holidays, and, yes, weddings—that each year brings.

A DAA, a role created in 2005 at OCLS, anticipates the needs and questions of patrons by providing “just in time” information in digital media formats. By building the bridge between “tech speak” and the layperson, DAAs improve customer service through proactive initiatives, using technology to promote the library as much more than its historical image—a building with books. The role of “interpreter,” “translator,” and “go-between” infuses the DAA's work.

DAA projects have included building and unveiling a new web site; creating of online tutorials and learning tools (such as tutorials on using databases and interactive games teaching the alphabet); providing RSS feeds on general library information, library technology, and children's programming; innovating Help Desk help; creating catalog and web site FAQs; and designing virtual galleries. But the web site is just one of the DAAs' routine priorities. They also staff the help desk and conduct staff training. Time management, adaptability, and the ability to prioritize and multitask play important roles in completing both routine and unique projects.

In developing the position, the library considered the knowledge base and skill set required for the position. Besides an information-based master's degree, OCLS required a portfolio of digital content, including web pages, Flash movies, and presentations. We wanted people who were looking at information in new ways. This meant looking beyond the traditional MLS degree. Librarians are credible sources of information trained to handle and disperse knowledge, but now this know-how must translate to the web, in both sources and delivery. Traditional librarian training does not provide the necessary skill set to assemble and deliver information using technology. We hired four people: three were OCLS librarians with MLIS degrees who had spent the previous year in the Information Systems Department gaining digital and technical skills, and one was an OCLS web designer with a master's in digital media studies who had also been working in that department.

The DAA position is all about helping patrons get better access to information through digital media, so we are always finding, evaluating, and implementing new and novel technologies. Though it only absorbs an hour or two for each DAA, this critical part of the job allows the DAA to anticipate trends. For us, research and development consists of finding and sharing interesting items found through browsing the web or RSS feeds. By keeping our ears to the electronic ground, we can note innovations and ideas in other libraries, businesses, or technology. If an idea or product shows promise, one of us will adopt it and do some further investigating into how this might work at the library.

Many times we turn a “find” into a project that provides greater public access or enhances our web site. For instance, we found Flash wallpaper software that allows us to convert a Flash movie into desktop wallpaper. We created a sample wallpaper that provides easy navigation to the sections of our web site as well as a calendar widget, a Google search box, and a search box for our catalog. Patrons download it to their desktops. Enabling patrons to search our catalog straight from their desktop makes it that much easier for them to use and rely on the library—and that much more likely that they will. We plan to design wallpapers to appeal to specific target audiences.

Other projects include sending electronic postcards to promote the library and events, such as an appearance by author Carl Hiaasen; working with new software to create and maintain newsletters for multiple target audiences; and developing library toolbars that contain links and information for library staff and patrons. The DAA role offers ways to improve previous models of reference service. Library staff can teach a class about how to use an online database and have 15 attendees. More people can be reached, however, by putting that class content on the library web site and allowing users to guide themselves when and where it is most convenient for them to learn.

The web site presents the greatest range of tasks for a DAA, including posting and checking RSS feeds, link checking, and updating or changing content. When OCLS began implementing RSS feeds, the DAAs posted three feeds (General, Technology, and Children) with content from the respective departments and maintained the counters pages for them, which track what pages are accessed following a feed and which simply through the web site. We have since trained people in the departments to post their own feeds while maintaining the counters.

Monthly link checking is divided among the four DAAs. The parts of the site that are regularly link-checked are Netlinks (Internet Favorites), Fast Facts, and Virtual Galleries. Updates and changes to the site are made as requested, with the homepage checked daily to ensure the information and dates are current and that expired items are removed. The DAAs also maintain the public “Confused?” FAQ database and the internal “Help Desk on Demand” (HDOD) database (a collection of the questions and responses we've received at the Help Desk that staff can search when on a call), adding and updating the content as needed. Web site maintenance accounts for an estimated three to five hours per week of each DAA's time.

The Help Desk, implemented last year, provides a second tier for customer response. It gets the email and calls that the front line (Questline) cannot answer. It acts as a bridge for technical questions about library card accounts, the online catalog, or the online databases. DAA projects such as the internal HDOD and the public Confused? FAQ have driven down the number of Help Desk requests (112 in August).

Our patrons have questions outside normal working hours, so we expanded Help Desk coverage. The DAAs alternate evenings to cover Monday through Friday, 7 a.m.–6 p.m., and added a Saturday shift, 9 a.m.–6 p.m. We trained the folks in information systems to respond to Help Desk emails on Sunday.

Virtual galleries are the library's version of the “one-stop shop,” where a web page (the gallery) such as Black History Month, Hurricane Preparedness, or Florida Heritage lists a variety of relevant resources, including library events, materials, online databases, and recommended web sites. The DAAs design and maintain a growing number of galleries—currently 23. Most contain what we have dubbed a “construct”—an informational object that adds value and content to the page—often a Flash-based interactive experience for the user. Some of our favorites have been time lines, interactive maps, flip books, and recommended reading lists. We create about two galleries a month, and each takes approximately ten hours to build.

OCLS consists of one main location, where the DAAs work, and 14 branches across 1000 square miles of the county. The DAAs reach out to educate staff about new projects and address ongoing questions. When we train an individual or small group at a branch, it is more efficient and less interruptive to train via the web. The web site we currently use is Citrix GoToMeeting. It allows the trainees to view the trainer's screen while they talk on the phone via conference call. There is also an online chat option. The product has been easy to use, reliable, and effective. Recent staff training includes an overview of the new library web site, how to post RSS feeds, and how to use Macromedia Contribute to edit branch web pages.

Currently we are working to develop an easy reference tool using an artificial intelligence called a chatterbot. It allows patrons to ask questions in natural language rather than doing a keyword search or drilling down through categories to find answers to their questions. Many questions are directional in nature (Where can I get on the Internet? Why do I have fines?), so we are developing a bot that can handle those questions and make it easier for patrons to get answers. They can simply type in questions as they would ask them of a person. The bot can engage in simple conversation with the patron and give answers to basic questions. By making this available over the web, patrons will also have 24/7 access to answers.

Trying to create a virtual librarian is no small task. Experimenting with several different solutions involves delving into artificial intelligence markup language (AIML), which is used to program the bot and interpret user questions. Not only is this new for us, but it is a fairly new technology—there is little documentation. This is a typical challenge of the DAA position.

Through collaborations with other departments we are tackling some larger projects. For example, the content of “Alphabet Bites” was initially developed by our children's department as a series of programs to help teach early literacy skills through activities centered on each letter of the alphabet. With that content, we developed a Flash and HTML program that caregivers can use to help kids access online from home. We divided the curriculum for each letter into five sections: Listen, Play, Read, Watch, and Do, incorporating into each games, activities, or materials for kids to use to learn the alphabet. We started off small with the letter B. The whole program received a grant from Target, so we will continue through the rest of the alphabet as the children's librarians develop more content.

We are using this same method in our “Share Your Skills” tutorial. The topic for the initial tutorial is “Starting Your Own Business.” Users will be instructed on what resources are available and how to use them. The content is being developed by reference librarians, and the DAAs are building the online version. Like “Alphabet Bites” it will be flexible and reusable.

A collaborative effort that features a new option, the links basket, is InfoSpot—computers with quick, easy access to the catalog and shortcuts to some of the most used and requested online resources, such as our online databases. The InfoSpot helps staff introduce patrons to library resources. The links basket provides patrons with a take home sheet with instructions on how to duplicate their search. The InfoSpot will have two different versions, one for use on dedicated computers that incorporates Flash wallpaper, acting as an instant information kiosk, and one designed for use on the web from home or other computers. This becomes an instant information kiosk. It not only provides quicker access for patrons to choice parts of the web site, but it helps orient patrons new to the web site.

Libraries need to take advantage of every avenue for getting information to patrons. Providing smarter customer service through technology has the added benefit of promoting the library as a vital and relevant institution in the 21st century.