[Sig-bwp] Elsevier _Library Connect_ > The Mobile Issue

[gerrymck]

Colleagues/

_The_ Tipping Point !!!

/Gerry

Over a decade ago, researchers, clinicians and information providers
worldwide were enthusiastically embracing online access to information
as a revolution in STM publishing. Indeed, Web access to STM
literature was hailed as a revolution on the order of Gutenberg's
invention of the printing press.

Today we’re in the midst of a fascinating new phase of what clearly is
the ongoing evolution of dissemination of scholarly content. We need
just one word to sum up this new phase: mobile.

The main point I’d like to make, in my welcome to this issue on
“mobile access,” is that mobile is here and it’s here to stay. Apart
from that sweeping generalization, I have the same questions about
mobility that we all have.

Addressing diverse aspects of mobility are this issue’s authors, who include:

•Doyle Friskney on how mobility is challenging academic libraries
•Jay Katzen on the impact of mobile technology in the research workflow
•Mike Takats on putting clinical medical content into the pockets of physicians
•Wan Wee Pin, Liau Yi Chin and Chua Lay Lian on making the library
truly accessible anytime, anywhere
•Lisa Carlucci Thomas and Joe Murphy on strategies to help academic
libraries meet their patrons’ demand for mobile access
•Chad Carpenter and Scott Plumlee on how libraries can get started on
the road to going mobile.

Reading this issue, I thought about how hard it is to predict the
future of STM information access. Our technology and our zeal to
improve our lives through technology have raced ahead during the past
decade, since MD Consult’s launch in 1997 and ScienceDirect’s launch
in 1999.

Where will the next decade take us, as mobile devices become more
pervasive and powerful? How will mobility of content change the way we
learn, conduct research, treat patients and provide information
access? We can’t know for sure. We can simply continue to experiment,
and collaborate with our customers to meet their changing needs. And,
through publications such as this, built by many kind contributors,
we’ll continue to share the results with each other.

Randy Charles, Managing Director, Global Clinical Reference Group
Elsevier Health Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, USA

!!! Thanks To Gary Price / ResourceShelf / For The HeadsUp !!!

Link To The Full Issue Text Library Available At

[ http://tinyurl.com/yjfelee  ]

Regards,

/Gerry

Gerry McKiernan
Associate Professor
Science and Technology Librarian
Iowa State University Library
Ames IA 50011

Follow Me On Twitter > http://twitter.com/GMcKBlogs

There Is No Answer, Only Solutions / Olde Irish Saying

The Future Is Already Here, It's Just Not Evenly Distributed
Attributed To William Gibson, SciFi Author / Coined 'Cyberspace