The South Australian Public Libraries Network Web site (iNet): efficiencies through collaboration
| Date | 01 December 2002 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/14684520210452709 |
| Pages | 375-384 |
| Published date | 01 December 2002 |
| Author | Ian Hildebrand |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Library & information science |
The South Australian
Public Libraries
Network Web site
(iNet): efficiencies
through collaboration
Ian Hildebrand
Introduction
During the planning stages of the iNet
project, it was calculated that, on average, a
links page with 150-250 links would typically
take an individual library around 100 hours to
establish and 10-20 hours per month to
maintain if all links are checked regularly, new
items were added and old items changed or
deleted. At an average staff cost of $20 per
hour such a page would cost an individual
library service $2,000 to establish and $2,400
per year to maintain.
Taken across all library services in South
Australia the total cost to each library to
independently establish a links page would be
around $250,000 and around $300,000 a year
to maintain.
Since the few South Australian library Web
sites that had links pages also contained a
large amount of duplicate material, it seemed
sensible to pool the resources of librarians
across the state to establish a single common
links resource which all libraries could
contribute to, at a fraction of the cost and
with a minimal amount of time allocated by
each service.
Background
The South Australian Public Library Network
(http://www.plain.sa.gov.au) consists of 131
libraries representing 78 local government
authorities, with many of South Australia's
rural library services being in communities
with populations of less than 3,000 people. In
order to provide appropriate services to these
communities, the South Australian Libraries
Board and the Local Government Authority
have joined with the Department of
Education, Training and Employment to
operate very successful school community
libraries.
Much has been done over the years to
develop the network and where possible to
coordinate the activities of public libraries,
centralise common activities or involve the
network in consortium purchasing
agreements.
The key strategic body in the South
Australian library and information field is the
Council of Library Administrators of South
The author
Ian Hildebrand is Information and Development Team
Coordinator and iNet Project Coordinator for the City of
Charles Sturt Library Service, Woodville, South Australia.
Keywords
Collaboration, Web sites, Public libraries, Australia,
Management
Abstract
iNet is a collaborative project of the South Australian
Public Library Network in partnership with the Council of
Library Administrators of South Australia (CLASA) and
PLAIN Central Services (PCS). It is a customisable
information Web site which consists of a core element of
organised links to quality information resources available
on the World Wide Web as well as information about
each library service in the state. A variety of administrator
libraries across South Australia are involved in
maintaining, updating and adding links to the site.
Maintenance is facilitated via a password protected
content management tool which enables administrators
to make changes to their allocated subject areas and
library content without requiring HTML or other Web
programming knowledge or skills.
Electronic access
The research register for this journal is available at
http://www.emeraldinsight.com/researchregisters
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is
available at
http://www.emeraldinsight.com/1468-4527.htm
Refereed article received 12 April 2002
Approved for publication 25 August 2002
375
Online Information Review
Volume 26 .Number 6 .2002 .pp. 375±384
#MCB UP Limited .ISSN 1468-4527
DOI 10.1108/14684520210452709
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