Library Hi Tech 

About: Library Hi Tech is an academic journal published by Emerald Publishing Limited. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Computer science & Digital library. It has an ISSN identifier of 0737-8831. Over the lifetime, 1887 publications have been published receiving 25094 citations. The journal is also known as: Library hitech.

A critical appraisal tool for library and information research

Abstract: Purpose – As the interest in evidence‐based librarianship increases, so does the need for a standardized practice methodology. One of the most essential components of EBL, critical appraisal, has not been fully established within the library literature. The purpose of this paper is to outline and describe a thorough critical appraisal tool and process that can be applied to library and information research in an evidence based setting.Design/methodology/approach – To create a critical appraisal tool for EBL, it was essential to look at other models. Exhaustive searches were carried out in several databases. Numerous articles were retrieved which provided “evidence” or “best practice” based on a critical appraisal. The initial tool, when created, was distributed to several librarians who provided comments to the author regarding its exhaustiveness, ease of use and applicability and was subsequently revised to reflect their suggestions and comments.Findings – The critical appraisal tool provides a thorough,...

Clear and present questions: formulating questions for evidence based practice

Abstract: Purpose – The paper seeks to provide an overview and update of thinking in relation to the theory and practice of formulation of answerable research questions within evidence based information practice.Design/methodology/approach – The paper reviews the healthcare and information literature on question formulation, augmented by structured and purposive internet searches.Findings – Although a few key authors have published extensively on all aspects of the evidence‐based information practice process, including question formulation, there is little in the way of empirical research.Research limitations/implications – In the absence of an empirical research base from within the specific domain of information practice, this conceptual paper extrapolates findings from healthcare research to general librarianship.Practical implications – This article models the process of question formulation using a proposed conceptual framework (SPICE) and encourages practitioners to identify their own practice‐based questions...

Progressing the definition of “e‐book”

Abstract: Purpose – This paper aims to propose a definition for the concept “e‐book” on the basis of an analysis of existing definitions. The e‐book marketplace is growing rapidly and the potential impact of e‐books on publishers, librarian and users is increasing in significance. Yet, there is agreement that despite a few widely accepted definitions there is no consensus on the definition of the term e‐book, and, further that consensus on the definition would be beneficial for both researchers and practitioners.Design/methodology/approach – This paper starts with a brief overview of the developments in e‐books, covering technologies, marketplaces, and the attractions and challenges associated with e‐books for users and libraries. It then reports on a content analysis of existing definitions of e‐book. A collection of definitions was compiled through an exhaustive literature review. Content analysis was performed to identify the frequency of occurrence of key words and phrases across these definitions.Findings – Th...

The history and development of transaction log analysis

Abstract: The purpose of this article is to present an overview of the history and development of transaction log analysis (TLA) in library and information science research. Organizing a literature review of the first twenty‐five years of TLA poses some challenges and requires some decisions. The primary organizing principle could be a strict chronology of the published research, the research questions addressed, the automated information retrieval (IR) systems that generated the data, the results gained, or even the researchers themselves. The group of active transaction log analyzers remains fairly small in number, and researchers who use transaction logs tend to use this method more than once, so tracing the development and refinement of individuals' uses of the methodology could provide insight into the progress of the method as a whole. For example, if we examine how researchers like W. David Penniman, John Tolle, Christine Borgman, Ray Larson, and Micheline Hancock‐Beaulieu have modified their own understandings and applications of the method over time, we may get an accurate sense of the development of all applications.