“Just-in-Case” Answers: The Twenty-FirstCentury Vertical File

Tam Dalrymple

doi:10.6017/ital.v27i4.3239

Abstract

“Just-in-Case” Answers: The Twenty-FirstCentury Vertical File

Highlights

This article discusses the use of OCLC’s QuestionPoint service for managing electronic publications and other items that fall outside the scope of OCLC Library’s OPAC and Web resources pages, yet need to be “put somewhere.” The local knowledge base serves as both a collection development tool and as a virtual vertical file, with records that are easy to enter, search, update, or delete
The OCLC Library has come to depend on the Internet as an almost limitless resource. It has confronted the advantages and disadvantages of that scope. This means that in addition to using the OPAC and OCLC library’s webpages, OCLC library staff have used a mix of bookmarks, del.icio.us tags, and Post-it® notes to keep track of relevant, authoritative, substantive, and potentially reusable information
One of the challenges is keeping track of the “anything” that falls outside the library’s primary collections scope; QuestionPoint helps with that task

Summary

About OCLC Library

OCLC is the world’s largest nonprofit membership computer library service and research organization. OCLC Library was established in 1977 to provide support for OCLC’s mission. Because of the nature of the organization, the library supports longterm and collaborative research, such as that done by OCLC Programs and Research staff, as well as the immediate information needs of product management and marketing staff. OCLC Library provides information to OCLC’s other service areas, such as finance and human resources. OCLC staff, like those of many organizations, are too busy to consult these resources themselves and depend on the library. OCLC Library staff pursue the answers to such research questions through its collections and look to enhance the collections with “anything that we know will be” of use. One of the challenges is keeping track of the “anything” that falls outside the library’s primary collections scope; QuestionPoint helps with that task

Traditional uses of QuestionPoint

Nontraditional uses of QuestionPoint

Sharing information with staff

Findings

Conclusions