Conclusion

Intranets have many traits that are beneficial to libraries. Intranets save time once they are implemented into a library environment. Intranets broadcast information to the organization and provide answers to frequently asked questions. Libraries can reduce the duplication of employee efforts by posting results of reference searches or programming resources for all to see and subsequently, make them permanently available. It helps to reduce clerical duplication and frees up time for the staff to assist the public with their searches. Improved service is the goal. Cost has been shown to be manageable for most situations and even large corporate libraries are able to justify their investment through increased employee response to the Intranet access of the library. Training and technology are issues that all librarians deal with and the Intranet is nothing new in that respect. Therefore, librarians should take up the leadership role of Intranet implementation and become involved in the planning and policy development of this important resource.

Sharing is a underlying theme to this medium of document and information delivery. The organization that accepts the Intranet as part of the organization's philosophy will achieve results from Intranet implementation. However, if the employee does not make use of the Intranet then its potential will have been wasted. The increased potential for the sharing of information will change the corporate environment through a more open forum of information sharing. Communication between the library and its staff will improve and this can only benefit the work environment and the service that libraries provide.

Policies about the use of the Intranet and the management of it are important to the effectiveness of the investment. Standards are needed not only for the physical infrastructure of setting up and Intranet they are also needed for managing information on the Intranet, how it is organized, and when it is updated. Systems departments may be in charge of the installation and physical maintenance but it is the role of the librarian to manage the resource like any other information gathering tool. Dissemination and information retrieval are issues that librarians are trained for. Librarians must take an active role in the promotion of the Intranet and assume a proactive approach because Intranets do not operate on their own. They are simply a tool to better service. Mismanagement of this, like any other resource at the librarian's disposal, is a matter of poor judgement. The potential is there, it is simply a matter of harnessing it and making it a part of the library's makeup for better public service.

Contents

Table of Contents

Part 1: Intranets Philosophy Structure Part 2: Intranet Installation Basic Network Configuration Server Client Publishing Applications Security Conclusion References