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This paper examines to what extent the 129 members of the Urban Public Libraries Council meet the Section 508 standards for accessibility under the Rehabilitation Act, the minimum acceptable standard for accessibility under the Americans with Disabilities Act. Using an HTML evaluation tool, WAVE, the HTML coding of the libraries’ homepages was evaluated according to the Section 508 criteria for accessibility. After one-to-one deep examination to determine the accessibility of the library websites, the results tended to mirror other studies showing that most library websites have some coding deficiencies that limit the accessibility of the websites. Notably, only 7 of the 122 libraries that were surveyed had no Section 508 errors present with their homepages.

文章以美国城市公共图书馆协会146家图书馆为调查对象,借助无障碍评估工具WAVE对这些馆网站主页进行测评,逐一开展网站访查和内容分析,统计为残障用户提供服务的情况。调查发现,美国城市公共图书馆网站达到Section 508信息无障碍标准的比例只有15%,“缺少表单标签”“链接图像缺少替代文本”等是常现错误;55%图书馆网站主页有残障用户服务信息。我国公共图书馆应重视信息无障碍建设,遵循信息无障碍标准,定期进行审查与维护,借助信息无障碍技术提供残障服务。

This study explores whether US post-secondary institutions (PPI) follow philosophies to foster inclusive communities, providing resources for those individuals with disabilities thrive socially, personally, and academically, while there have been no thorough studies conducted to determine web accessibility of the nation’s top-ranked PPI library webpages. Additionally, this study pioneers in comparison with the accessibility of PPI’s library homepages fighting COVID-19. The study evaluated the library homepages of the premium PPIs based on Money.com’s 2019 list of “The Best Colleges in America” via the WAVE web accessibility evaluation tool. The outcomes determined that most of the library homepages analyzed were littered with numerous errors, and the shift to online-based research in learning had no significant impact on the number of errors WAVE detected. The disconcerting findings of this study demonstrate the overall failure to recognize the importance of web accessibility or perhaps even the indifference toward accessibility on the part of the PPI community.

Are core competency requirements for relevant positions in the library shifting? Applying natural language processing techniques to understand the current market demand for core competencies, this study explores job advertisements issued by the American Library Association (ALA) from 2006 to 2017. Research reveals that the job demand continues to rise at a rate of 13% (2006–2017) and that the requirements for work experience are substantially extended, diversity of job titles becomes prevalent, and rich service experience and continuous lifelong learning skills are becoming more and more predominant for librarians. This analytical investigation informs the emerging demands in the American job market debriefing the prioritization and reprioritization of the current core competency requirements for ALA librarians. © The Author(s) 2021.

This paper analyzes the concept of think tanks and concludes that think tanks have three basic characteristics. Firstly, they are based on academic research, relatively independent operation, and aim to serve scientific decision-making. Taking Ivy League think tanks as an example, this paper provides a preliminary discussion of ways for think tanks to maintain the scientific nature of their research, maintain the independence of their operations, and disseminate research results to enhance their influence. It covers institutional mission, research team construction, institutional governance, fundraising, achievements and activities, and alumni networks. This paper proposes a framework of university think tank generation paths associated with the essential characteristics of think tanks. The paper points out that, as a research consulting organization grown out of universities, university think tanks must maintain the scientific nature and independence of research while providing support and services for decision-making. Only in this way can they truly serve scientific and democratic decision-making, gain the trust of the public and have a real lasting influence.

Studying ADA accessibility at library websites of top universities selected from the U.S. News and World Report, the authors used WAVE and AChecker to assess data in compliance with WCAG 2.0 standards. Almost 8 out of 10 public university academic libraries reported accessibility errors as one of the major findings. Low color contrast was becoming a more commonly occurring accessibility issue, making it difficult for people with vision impairments to perceive the color of the image. The outcomes of the study suggest that academic libraries around the world should continue improving their website accessibility.

To determine the present situation regarding services provided to mobile users in US urban libraries, the authors surveyed 138 Urban Libraries Council members utilizing a combination of mobile visits, content analysis, and librarian interviews. The results show that nearly 95% of these libraries have at least one mobile website, mobile catalog, or mobile app. The libraries actively applied new approaches to meet each local community’s remote-access needs via new technologies, including app download links, mobile reference services, scan ISBN, location navigation, and mobile printing. Mobile services that libraries provide today are timely, convenient, and universally applicable.

This study examines public library services for people with hearing and vision impairments, conducted through website visits and an online survey from summer 2023 over 1.5 years. Surveying 250 libraries nationwide, findings reveal strong ADA awareness, with most libraries addressing physical accessibility but fewer supporting visually impaired and Deaf or Hard of Hearing patrons equally. Assistive resources availability varies significantly, from 0.8% to 83.4%, covering accessible print materials, online resources, magnifiers, and assistive technology. This study underscores specific areas for improvement in supporting these communities in U.S. public libraries.

Areal precipitation estimation directly affects the accuracy of reservoir runoff inflow forecasts and flood dispatching decision-making. Because of the heterogeneous spatial and temporal precipitation distributions in large basins, inadequate precipitation stations normally have a negative impact on forecast accuracy. Using the Panjia-kou reservoir runoff inflow forecast as the research subject, this paper adopts the Thiessen polygon block, square grid computing, and DEM (digital elevation model) methods to estimate average regional areal precipitation. Based on the estimation, a model for the Panjia-kou reservoir runoff forecast is developed. The results indicate that different areal precipitation estimation methods have significantly different effects on the accuracy of the reservoir runoff inflow forecast. When the average regional precipitation estimation from the DEM method is used as an input to the model, the simulation results are accurate and are much better than those from the other two average regional precipitation estimation methods.

As a doorway for users seeking information, library websites should be accessible to all, including those who are visually or physically impaired and those with reading or learning disabilities. In conjunction with an earlier study, this paper presents a comparative evaluation of Ivy League university library homepages with regard to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) mandates. Data results from WAVE and AChecker evaluations indicate that although the error of Missing Form Labels still occurs in these websites, other known accessibility errors and issues have been significantly improved from five years ago.

As librarianship evolves, it is important to examine the changes that have taken place in professional requirements. To provide an understanding of the current market demand for core competencies of librarianship, this article conducts a semi-automatic methodology to analyze job advertisements (ads) posted on the American Library Association (ALA) Joblist from 2009 through 2014. There is evidence that the ability to solve unexpected complex problems and to provide superior customer service gained increasing importance for librarians during those years. The authors contend that the findings in this report question the status quo of core competencies of librarianship in the US job market.

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to explore the impact of public digital services on urban/suburban residents, to uncover the current usage of public digital services and levels of satisfaction with the digital resources/content in urban digital libraries (networked computers with specific information infrastructure designed free for public use). Design/methodology/approach - A qualitative approach is used as a main stream in the research framework as the method of inquiry. Qualitative one-to-one interviews include surveying users who use public library websites, observing the users, consulting librarians about the users, and interviewing the users. Findings - Provides demographic patterns of the patron's interaction with the digital services public libraries provide, and the satisfaction and compliances the residents have regarding information access through the digital technology in urban/suburban Connecticut. Practical implications - Because of the small number of participants, this study has limitations in being generalized to an understanding of overall patterns of urban residents using digital resources in public settings in the USA or elsewhere, however, it could be a good pilot study for a nation-wide survey with the methods tested. Originality/value - This study helps fulfill the scant empirical attention given to the impact access to public digital information or use of digital library services on the urban/suburban residents, offers new data that help public library administrators enhance the impact, efficiency and value of the public digital library services to improve the digital learning environments for life-long education at all levels in a broad community of urban-suburban users. © Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to identify the measures employed in the provision of patron services in Chinese academic libraries responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, noting the challenges and issues inherent in providing substantial services while undergoing a public health emergency. Design/methodology/approach: This paper uses an analytical survey study of 137 Chinese academic libraries using data collected through a combination of website investigation, social media access and direct correspondences. Findings: Over 94% of Chinese academic libraries released COVID-19-related information through their websites; the majority switched their service focus to partly or solely remotely online, including remote access, free electronic resources, virtual references reachable 24/7 and research support services deliverable online; services of print materials were altered to e-books for conveniences. Research limitations/implications: It should be noted that the survey was conducted from February 12 to April 5, 2020; because of the rapid updates to the library's website and social media channels, the status of their patron services are in the process of dynamic changes and that there should be many libraries that have adopted some patron service methods, but this study is difficult to cover comprehensively. In addition, patron services carried out offline by the surveyed libraries but not disclosed on the online platform could not be analyzed in a way that would be consistent with the data provided by the survey. Originality/value: By providing evidence of the current status of patron services in Chinese academic libraries during the COVID-19 pandemic, this study helps fulfill the scant empirical attention given to the impact of nationwide public health crises on academic libraries and offers new data of the best practices that help library administrators enhance the impact, efficiency and value of library services to their target community users. © 2020, Emerald Publishing Limited.