Jun 6, 2006

INFORMATION RELEASE            

Media Contact: Heather O'Connell

(239) 461-2924 or hoconnell@leegov.com 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: GET REALTIME ONLINE HELP FROM A LIBRARIAN!

FORT MYERS, Fla., June 6, 2006 – – "Where can I find accurate demographics for Lee County online?"  "How many different types of snakes are there in Florida's Everglades?" 

Lee County Library System answers questions like these at the libraries, over the phone and via e-mail during library hours. And starting today, you can get answers instantly seven days a week, thanks to a cooperative effort by the Lee County Library System and over 80 other public, academic, school, and special libraries around Florida.

Chat online with a librarian Sunday through Friday, 10 a.m. – 10 p.m. and on Saturdays from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. You can even follow along on the Web, so you can see how and where the librarian is locating the information. The chat session is totally interactive and there is no special software to download.  Once your question has been answered, you can print off or e-mail a transcript of the entire session in case you need to refer to it again. 

To try the service, visit the Lee County Library System website at  www.lee-county.com/library, click on the Ask a Librarian icon and you'll go to a page that allows you to post a question to the virtual reference desk. Within a few seconds your question will pop up at the desk of one of hundreds of librarians statewide.

"You could be conversing with someone from Lee County or you might just be chatting with someone in Tampa or Jacksonville," says Sally Bissell, a Reference Librarian at South County Regional Library, who will be one of the librarians answering questions online.
The librarian will be able to type back and forth with you, having a virtual conversation about your reference question.

"We'll be able to show you how we search for information and ´take you along' with us throughout the process.  It makes it easy to learn about all the special online resources available through the library and helps you see how librarians sort through the listings on the Internet to find information that's accurate, credible and current," Bissell added.

Ask a Librarian is a free service funded through the Library Services and Technology Act and administered by the State Library of Florida. For more information about Ask a Librarian or other free programs and services available at the Lee County Library System,  please contact the library at (239) 479-INFO (4636) or visit us online.

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