Includes bibliographical references. / Libraries are still unsure of the value e-books can add to their collections and subsequently to their users’ research. E-book integration into library collections is made difficult by complicated purchasing and lending models and ever-changing technological requirements. Additionally, it is unclear what exactly library users want from their e-books. In this study, research into the obstacles facing the growth of academic library e-book collections was carried out by reviewing the literature on the topic, found in print and electronic reference works, monographs and journals, and on blogs and websites. Secondly, an investigation was conducted into patrons’ attitudes to e-books, their current use of e-books, and their expectations of e-books in their libraries, to examine the current and potential use of e-books at South African university libraries. The investigation employed both qualitative and quantitative research methods to discover library users’ attitudes towards e-books. Surveys were run on the campuses of the four universities in the Western Cape of South Africa. A sample of potential participants, totalling 1,539 staff members and 45,849 students, was invited to participate in the survey via email or a website link. Data was collected by means of a self-administered, online questionnaire distributed using SurveyMonkey software.

Includes abstract. / Includes bibliographical references. / In recent years it has been acknowledged that the practice of knowledge management can play an important role to ensure an organisation’s competitive edge within an industry. This study focuses on knowledge sharing practices in university libraries with special reference to the Unisa Library. The aim of the research project was therefore to establish whether the Unisa Library is receptive to knowledge sharing practices,whether there is a need for knowledge management and more specifically for a knowledge sharing strategy. Thus the objective was to establish the extent to which knowledge sharing practices occur among professional library staff, albeit unknowingly, in their daily activities.The study employed both quantitative and qualitative research approaches. A questionnaire was delivered in person to professional librarians while interviews were conducted with managers from the various directorates of the library. The questions explored the knowledge sharing practices, including challenges within the library. They were based on internationally accepted knowledge management themes which include the role of leadership, organisational structure, organisational culture,technology, processes in enabling the effective practice of knowledge management.

Researchers produce large amounts of data during their research investigations and have a variety of interventions for the management of these data. It has not been the responsibility of academic institutions to manage research data, this responsibility has resided with the researchers and their research units. This investigation attempted to understand how pre-digital, early digital and current digital research data in the Biological Sciences Department at the University of Cape Town had been and is being managed, if researchers had archived any of these data and what their opinions were on sharing their research data. Long-term ecological data are an important component of research in the Biological Sciences Department as researchers wish to understand ecosystem changes such as climate change, the spread of alien species and the impact of humans on land and marine exploitation. It is consequently critical that research data, past and present are properly managed for future research so that meaningful management decisions can be made. Research Data Management and the Research Life Cycle are phrases that are very much in the literature at present as librarians and university administrators grapple with the task of implementing data policies and data repositories. The literature review revealed that although the University of Cape Town may be a somewhat behind other international institutions in engaging with Research Data Management and repositories, investigations have been ongoing in other parts of the world and in the international community the groundwork has already been done. Research data have been the preserve of researchers and they are reluctant to give up control of their hard-earned data, usually the result of hours spent on funding applications, and field or laboratory work. Data sets of sufficient quantity and quality to answer research questions can take a researcher a lifetime to accumulate and they understandably do not wish to make these openly available without the insurance that their work will be acknowledged. The findings of this research project revealed that in the absence of systematic data management initiatives at institutional level, researchers had preserved many long-term data sets and in some instances were archiving with international repositories specific to their data types. The findings resulted in a range of suggested interventions for the support of Research Data Management at the University of Cape Town.

This study investigated the information-seeking behaviour of the Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources' (FANR) students at Neudamm Campus, University of Namibia (UNAM). It determined their information needs, informationseeking patterns, information use and information evaluation including preferences for information resources. In addition, it considered the challenges students encountered when accessing and using information at Neudamm Library. This was done in order to improve the delivery of information services. Taking a qualitative research approach, this study was guided by Kuhlthau's (2004) Information Search Process model which served as a theoretical framework. Data were collected from a purposively selected sample through focus group discussions that were held with undergraduate students and interviews with postgraduate students and academic staff. The key findings from this analysis are that FANR students need information to write assignments, class tests, examinations and research projects. They value both printed and online resources. However, they are frustrated by the outdated resources, shortage of printed materials, and the limited and restricted access to e-resources. When in the library, they mainly browse for books on library shelves and search for information on the internet, and rarely use library electronic databases. There is a need to train students on the formulation of search strategies and the use of library e-resources. It transpired that students seldom use advanced search strategies, instead they either type short keywords or long sentences on Google search engine. Their challenges include very noisy library study area, ineffective interlibrary loan systems and fellow students' unwillingness to share facilities such as computers. The findings indicate that the library needs to acquire the latest e-resources, provide robust information literacy training and redesign its space to increase study space that students can use to access quality information. Additionally, the university should source funds from external donors to build a state of the art library to accommodate the increasing number of FANR students.

Includes bibliographical references (leaves 100-108) / In 2002, a pilot project established school libraries in eleven primary schools in Melani, Fort Beaufort District. The role players in this initiative were South African Partners (an American Non Governmental Organization), the Eastern Cape Department of Education, the University of Fort Hare and the Library and Information Science Association of South Africa (LlASA). Each school nominated one teacher to receive teacher librarianship training to manage and sustain the school libraries. The aim of the project was to develop a model that would lead to the establishment and development of school libraries in other areas of the Eastern Cape. This research project sought to investigate the effectiveness of teacher librarians in primary schools reflecting on the experience of the Melani cluster of schools. The aim was to assess the effects the school libraries have had on teaching and learning. The qualitative and quantitative study involved 110 primary learners, 39 educators, 11 teacher librarians, and an official from the Provincial Department of Education.

Bibliography: leaves 252-256. / The Royal Alexandrian Library (RAL) is considered by modern scholarship to represent the epitome of the development of ancient librarianship. Its extensive holdings imply the application of modern organizational procedures such as collection development, information retrieval and promotion of use - terms identifiable as elements embodied in the conceptual framework of librarianship (for the purposes of this study the latter two concepts - information retrieval and promotion of use - are combined into the simplified general concept of "collection accessibility"). The RAL therefore constitutes a key development phase in the evolution of modern librarianship. However, scholars have disputed the origins of the RAL and Mouseion or university it was attached to. The socalled "Greek thesis" emphasizes the purely Greek origins of both the Mouseion and the RAL. Conversely, the "Ptolemaic thesis", while acknowledging the Greek origins of the Mouseion, argues that the RAL (as an independent institution distinguishable from the Mouseion proper) is derived from Middle Eastern institutions. This study traces the origins of the RAL from the textual collections of the early Mediterranean and Middle Eastern civilizations, through the period of Greek and the subsequent Hellenistic cultural dominance - culminating in the legacy of Hellenistic librarianship as inherited by the Roman Republic, since the newly emerging Roman empire was to exert a deciding influence upon the historical development of the RAL. Within these civilizations and regions a brief overview is undertaken to gauge the extent of literacy and literary output prevalent in each as well as a general assessment of librarianship and library practices. The major and most noteworthy archival and book collections are then analysed according to the organizational procedures identified in the outlined conceptual framework of librarianship. For this purpose sufficient information has been obtained from archaeological evidence and primary and secondary sources to allow for the analysis of forty-three libraries throughout the ancient world. In this way predominantly Middle Eastern as well as Greek elements have been identified as contributing to the creation, organization and functioning of the RAL.

Sophistication of technology has resulted in libraries having to manage print, digital and electronic resources. Managing all resource types and formats with traditional integrated library systems is ineffective as the systems were designed for physical resources. Next generation library management systems are expected to change this by integrating all library resources and providing access through a single platform, reducing the number of transaction the user has to perform. Additionally libraries will save large proportions of their budgets on hardware and software, as the systems are accessed through a web browser this will be an added benefit for libraries as the cost of acquiring electronic resources is continuously increasing. Next generation library management systems are not yet implemented in academic libraries in the Western Cape Province. To investigate the reasons for this, the author employed a qualitative case study approach in which a minimum of two members of the Executive Management of each of the four Cape Library Consortium institutions were interviewed. Data collected was analysed using NVivo analysis software, responses being analysed within the institution and compared across the other institutions.

This study attempted to ascertain what knowledge and skills are required for NUL librarians to meet the information needs of humanities undergraduate students in the digital era academic library environment. To address the objective of this study, the following research questions were generated: what are the library related information needs of NUL humanities undergraduate students in the current digital age?; what knowledge and skills are required of NUL librarians in meeting the library related information needs of humanities undergraduate students in the current digital age?; to what extent has technology affected the roles and functions of NUL academic librarians?; to what extent are NUL librarians readily adapting to and embracing technological changes affecting academic library resources and services?; and, what type of education and training are required for NUL librarians to effectively meet the information needs of humanities undergraduate students in the digital age academic library environment? The study was supported by organizational learning theory. It employed a convergent parallel mixed methods approach within a pragmativist paradigm for the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data to respond to the research questions guiding the study. A case study design was adopted in identifying humanities undergraduate students' information needs and concurrently ascertaining knowledge and skills requirements of NUL librarians. The target population included NUL librarians and humanities undergraduate students. Non-probability purposive sampling was employed to collect qualitative data (from the librarians) whist probability stratified random sampling was adopted to obtain quantitative data (from humanities undergraduate students). Data were collected via face-to-face semi-structured interviews with librarians and a structured questionnaire for students. In concluding, the study presents, inter alia, a blend of required disciplinary, generic and personal competencies for NUL librarians to meet the library related information needs of humanities undergraduate students in the current digital age. It recommends, inter alia, the adoption of effective organizational learning to build on NUL librarian's existing knowledge and skills so that they may more easily adapt to rapidly evolving technology and more fully meet the information needs of humanities undergraduate students.

Includes bibliographical references. / This thesis investigates whether the Internet is reducing or eliminating poverty and whether the Internet is the provider of fast-based information for development. It explores the concept of the information society, the information revolution, and the Internet, to provide a framework for understanding the information society in Africa, and in particular, Lesotho. Increasingly the information revolution, the Internet, is said to be shaping our lives. Globalisation and the new economy are driven by the Internet and social and economic development results from the Internet. The Internet, it is suggested, will enable Africa to "leapfrog" stages of economic and social development. The examples held up to Mrica as models of the use of information and communications technology are the East Asian "Tigers", India's cybertowers and Silicon Valley in California, the United States. These are examined in detail. The question of inclusion and exclusion in the information society is explored and whether the Internet is creating another divide - the digital divide. A historical sequence of meetings, conferences and events that have attempted to include Mrica in the information society is outlined. Statistics of telecommunication and Internet provision in Africa are included. These statistics show that the lack of telecommunications that is the method of accessing the Internet results in the lack of Internet provision in Africa contributing to the growing digital divide. The detailed case study of Lesotho situated in its historical, economic and social context, investigates the extent of telecommunication and Internet development in Lesotho. The conclusions presented are that while the Internet can contribute to some social and economic development it is not reducing or eliminating poverty. This is shown in the case study of Lesotho. This thesis presents evidence of a growing digital divide in society between the information haves and have-nots. Because of the critical role of the Internet in the new economy and globalisation, without the Internet there will be fewer possibilities for social and economic development. Therefore the digital divide is an additional factor contributing to poverty and inequality resulting in greater exclusion for whole groups, countries, and virtually the whole of Africa.

Bibliography: leaves 194-199. / This study examines the contribution made by two alternative service or non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to the provision and delivery of information in South Africa. A brief analysis of the role of information in impacting on and/or reproducing social formations is undertaken to provide an understanding of the way in which information has been used in the South African context to repress transformation of the apartheid state. This discussion frames an investigation into ways in which NGOs have attempted to counter information control on the part of the apartheid regime by mediating information to their constituencies. The relationship between information, education and development is addressed, providing insight into the educational role which service organisations play in delivering an information service on the one hand, the information role they perform in providing an education service on the other, and the developmental role they assume in both instances. Particular attention is paid to the way in which these services relate to their users in the process of imparting information to them. In this regard the interface between NGOs and their users is investigated and the very nature of this interaction assessed.