1. QuestionPoint Worldwide Cooperative Reference 4 th e-ICOLC Conference, Thessaloniki, Greece 3 rd October 2002 Simon Day Senior Product Specialist, OCLC PICA days@oclc.org

2. Overview Context: digital reference and collaboration History: from CDRS to QuestionPoint Vision Components: how it works Current position: participation so far Future Sources of further information

3. Digital reference Definition “The provision of reference services, involving collaboration between library user and librarian, in a computer-based medium” – Bernie Sloan, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Technologies Web forms Asynchronous communication email Synchronous communication Text Chat MUDs & MOOs Video, Voice over IP Co-browsing, application sharing

4. Reasons for digital reference Serve users where they are Reach new users Expand reference availability Increase the library’s visibility and web presence Make the library the first choice for high-quality reference service

5. Collaborative digital reference Solo – one library with its own users Consortium/Group Resource sharing Global Access the community of librarians and libraries worldwide Bring the power of library co-operation to the reference desk Forms of collaboration Referring questions Routing – manual/human, automatic/machine Question and collection metadata comparison Sharing answers Knowledge bases of previously asked/answered questions

6. The origins of QuestionPoint Library of Congress CDRS (Collaborative Digital Reference Service) Global library-to-library pilot project: June 2000 – June 2002 Early adopters defined requirements Membership: grew from 16 to 260 libraries of all types in 20 countries over the two years Proof of concept: member profiles, algorithms for routing questions OCLC Local/regional user-to-library service pilots with the INCOLSA and METRO U.S. library networks

7. QuestionPoint vision To help libraries provide professional reference services to users anywhere, anytime, through collaborative, web-based networks of libraries.

8. QuestionPoint provides: Web-based tools to provide and manage reference services within your library The option of linking with your local reference networks or with the global reference network to provide additional coverage

9. With QuestionPoint libraries can… Deliver reference support to users via the web Provide a locally-branded and customisable question-asking reference service using web forms, email-based interaction, and chat interaction with users Use enhanced communications: browser sharing, document sharing, video, voice over IP Manage local reference functions Receive, respond to, track & manage users’ questions Route questions to peers locally

10. With QuestionPoint libraries can… Collaborate locally Create, profile, and manage local, regional or subject-based reference groups to handle querying, routing, and answering of user questions within these groups Collaborate globally Participate in a global co-operative network of reference librarians for answers to user questions requiring expertise or coverage unavailable within your institution or group

11. With QuestionPoint libraries can… Access a local and/or global knowledge base Build and access shared local and global knowledge databases comprised of completed and edited Q&As Manage user accounts, interface customisation, and statistical reporting

12. With QuestionPoint library users can… Ask questions and receive answers from their local library via the Web Get quality and reliable information from trusted sources Chat with a librarian to get immediate information Share applications to gain from librarians’ experience and expertise Track and review their previously asked questions View their question history and the current status of submitted questions via a password- protected and secure interface

13. Components User question forms (templates) Local librarian interface Global co-operative network Profile database Routing Manager Knowledge base(s) Administrative interface Usage statistics and reports

14. QuestionPoint local/group component Your Reference Group Institution Ref Lib LocalKBLocalKB User Global KB Profiled Inst 1 Your Library Ref Lib User-Library Communication Walk in/Phone Web Form Email Chat Voice* Video* User-Library Communication Walk in/Phone Web Form Email Chat Voice* Video* Ref Lib Institution Ref Lib Inst.Admin GroupAdmin

15. QuestionPoint global component Local/Regional Component Question submitted to global component Question submitted to global component Answer returned To local environment Answer returned To local environment Global Knowledge Base Profiled QP Members RefLib RefLib RefLib RefLib RefLib Automated Question Routing Q & A Editing Process Member Global Component “Best Fit” ProfileDatabase GlobalAdmin

16. Automatic question routing Routing Manager compares elements of the question with elements of each member’s profile to obtain a “best fit” Question metadata Time deadline Subject area / Subject broad class Geographic focus Educational level Format

17. Automatic question routing Institution profile Available times Days of the week, hours during those days Unavailable dates, time zone, observance of daylight saving time Quota Number of questions the library is prepared to answer per week Subject strengths LCC & RLG conspectus collecting levels Geographic strengths Education levels served Format strengths

18. Routing Algorithm Question Time Deadline Subject Area Subject Broad Class Geographic focus Education Level Format Profile Available Times Unavailable Dates Time Zone Daylight Saving Time Processed per week (quota) Subject Strengths Educ. Levels Served Profile Available Times 20% Load 20% (Time last question received from global network) Subject Strengths 40% Geog. Strengths 10% Format Strengths 10% Select eligible institutions Select “best fit” from those eligible

19. Global participation United States China Australia United Kingdom Germany Netherlands Slovenia Norway Canada Belgium

20. Governance and contribution LC and OCLC serve as organising stewards Advisory Board: members represent variety of library types Sub-committees address areas of Legal Membership Implementation Best practices Contribution Answering questions from Global Reference Network Adding completed Q&A to Global Knowledge Base Editing Q&A in the Global Knowledge Base

21. QuestionPoint membership benefits Total reference solution: local, group, global access & tracking tools Local and global knowledge bases of previously answered questions Usage statistics Web-based (no local software or hardware) Global network of expertise Access to subject specialists worldwide Potential to extend reference service to 24/7 Collaborate locally and globally Raise the visibility of libraries

22. QuestionPoint pricing Annual subscription model based on “profiles” A profile = a node on the global network Reference “consortia” created by associating profiles Unlimited use Packages Global Network Access Local/Group Reference Network & Global Network Access Enhanced Communications Discounts for contribution & consortia

23. The Future… Standards-based communication Interoperability among reference networks and between local services/global network NISO Standards Committee AZ for Networked Reference Services Quality Standards for e-Reference McClure & Lankes http://quartz.syr.edu/quality/http://quartz.syr.edu/quality/ Routing Automated local routing Manual global routing: pick from best 3 suggested by routing algorithm Off hours and supplemental coverage Knowledge Base development Batch import of FAQs End user access Public access to the global network

24. Further information QuestionPoint: http://www.questionpoint.orghttp://www.questionpoint.org Digital Reference Services bibliography: Bernie Sloan, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign http://alexia.lis.uiuc.edu/~b-sloan/digiref.html VRD 2002 Conference: The 4th Annual Digital Reference Conference, "Charting the Course of Reference: Toward a Preferred Future," will be held on November 11-12, 2002 in Chicago, IL. http://www.vrd.org/conferences/VRD2002/ Standards: NISO Standards Committee AZ for Networked Reference Services http://www.niso.org/committees/committee_az.html

25. Questions?