1 Wireless Services in Libraries Chris(nger Tomer School of Informa(on Sciences University of Pi:sburgh Pi:sburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S.A. Abstract Since the turn of the 21st century, libraries of almost all types have been providing clients with access to the Internet through wireless net- works. In the process, wireless networking has become an important part of the con(nuing effort to extend access to library services through networked informa(on technologies. The expansion of the wireless access offered by libraries, now approaching ubiquity among academic and public libraries, has been driven by a number of factors, not the least of them being the tremendous growth in the numbers of so-called “smart” devices capable of connec(ng to wireless networks and the parallel increases in the bandwidth available via wireless net- works. Looking to the future, wireless access as provided libraries is vital to their func(on as public compu(ng centers. The con(nued develop- ment of and improvements in mobile applica(ons is also essen(al, but the construc(on of mobile-friendly Websites is probably far more im- portant, given the evidence that mobile users are accessing content with increasing frequency and in progressively larger numbers. Simi- larly, the security and privacy of mobile applica(ons and services must be ensured with the greatest possible vigor, inasmuch as the confi- dence of users is closely aligned with their con(nuing use of digital li- brary resources.
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Wireless Services in Libraries · 2 U.S. Digital Future in Focus 2015. comScore. U.S. Digital Future in Focus 2015. . Last accessed February 27, 2016. p. 4. 4 In 2015, it was reported
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Sincetheturnof the21stcentury, librariesofalmostall typeshavebeenprovidingclientswithaccesstotheInternetthroughwirelessnet-works.Intheprocess,wirelessnetworkinghasbecomeanimportantpart of the con(nuing effort to extend access to library servicesthrough networked informa(on technologies. The expansion of thewirelessaccessofferedbylibraries,nowapproachingubiquityamongacademicandpubliclibraries,hasbeendrivenbyanumberoffactors,nottheleastofthembeingthetremendousgrowthinthenumbersofso-called“smart”devicescapableofconnec(ngtowirelessnetworksandtheparallelincreasesinthebandwidthavailableviawirelessnet-works.Lookingtothefuture,wirelessaccessasprovidedlibrariesisvitaltotheir func(on as public compu(ng centers. The con(nued develop-mentofandimprovementsinmobileapplica(onsisalsoessen(al,buttheconstruc(onofmobile-friendlyWebsitesisprobablyfarmoreim-portant,giventheevidencethatmobileusersareaccessingcontentwithincreasingfrequencyandinprogressively largernumbers.Simi-larly,thesecurityandprivacyofmobileapplica(onsandservicesmustbe ensuredwith the greatest possible vigor, inasmuchas the confi-denceofusersiscloselyalignedwiththeircon(nuinguseofdigitalli-braryresources.
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Introduc5on
Sincetheturnof the21stcentury, librariesofalmostall typeshavebeenprovidingclientswithaccesstotheInternetthroughwirelessnet-works.Intheprocess,wirelessnetworkinghasbecomeanimportantpart of the con(nuing effort to extend access to library servicesthrough networked informa(on technologies. The expansion of thewirelessaccessofferedbylibraries,nowapproachingubiquityamongacademicandpubliclibraries,hasbeendrivenbyanumberoffactors,nottheleastofthembeingthetremendousgrowthinthenumbersofso-called“smart”devicescapableofconnec(ngtowirelessnetworksandtheparallelincreasesinthebandwidthavailableviawirelessnet-works;andithasbeenconstrainedbyoOeninelas(cbudgets,confu-sionbornofcompe(ngtechnologiesandstandards,andtheotherde-mandsonthenetworkbandwidthavailabletolibraries.Publiclibrariesandacademiclibrarieshavebeenmostac(veintheuseofwirelessnetworkingasameansofextendingservices,butthepro-visionofwirelessaccesswithintheK-12educa(onalenvironmenthasalsoreachedsignificantlevelsintermsofbothinstalla(onsanditsef-fectsonaccesstolibraryresources.1 1Mostof thewirelessnetworks inplace in librarieshavebeen installedandmanagedlocally,butlatelyatleastafewlibrarieshavebeguntomakewirelessnetworkingservicesavailabletoclientsthroughservicesprovidedbytelecommunica(onscompaniessuchasVerizon.Forexample,theSea:lePublicLibraryhasini(atedaprogram,underwri:enbyGoogle, through which the Library lendsWi-Fi hotspots, in the form of Verizon’s 4G-compa(bleJetpackMiFi,toclients.(Inthisinstance,“mobilehotspots”referstoportabledevicesprovidewirelessInternetaccess,typicallyusingmobilebroadbandservicefromcellularproviderstoprovide3Gor4GInternetaccess.)Undertheprogram,aclientmayborrowthehotspotforuptothreeweeks,whileenjoyingunlimiteddataaccesstotheVerizonnetwork.Thesystemhasbeenverypopular,andasaresult,theCityofSea:lehaselectedtoassumefinancialresponsibilityfortheprogramandprovidefundingthatwill place at least 1,000 hotspots into service. For addi(onal informa(on, see: Ridley,James.Sea:lePublicLibrary’sfreeWi-Fihotspotprogramreceivescityfunding,450moredevices. Geekwire, December 2, 2015. h:p://www.geekwire.com/2015/sea:le-public-librarys-free-wifi-hotspots-find-more-permanent-funding-as-google-grant-runs-out/.LastaccessedFebruary20,2016.
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Inthebeginning,theforemostbenefitsofwirelessnetworkingwereitscompara(velylowcost,theeaseofimplementa(on,andconfigura-(ons that permi:ed the connec(on of personal devices, thus aug-men(ngthelocalcompu(nginfrastructure.Inrecentyears,ithasbe-comeobviousthatthesebenefitshavebeenfarexceededbytheim-pactthatwirelesstechnologiesingeneralhavehadonaccesstoandtheuseoflibraryresources.Intheyearsbetween2011-2015,mobileInternetusageincreasedby394%,withtabletusagegrowingbymore1,700%,withmobiledevicesaccoun(ngfor60%ofalldigitalmedia(me.AccordingtocomScore:
Across every age demographic, there is a substan(allyhigherpercentageofmul(-plagormandmobile-onlyin-ternetusersthanthepreviousyear.Morethan3/4thsofalldigitalconsumers(age18+)arenowusingbothdesk-topandmobileplagormstoaccesstheinternet,upfrom68percentayearago.Mobile-onlyinternetusageisalsobecomingmoreprevalent,driven largelyby the21per-centofMillennialswhoarenolongerusingdesktopcom-puterstogoonline.Meanwhile,the55-years-and-olderconsumersegmentisactuallythefastestgrowingfac(onofmobile users, increasing its combinedmul(-plagormandmobile-onlyshareofaudiencefrom60percentto74percentinthepastyear.2
In2015,itwasreportedthatthenumberofmobile-onlyInternetusershadexceededthenumberofadesktop-onlyusers.34Inaddi(on,itwasreported that mobile search, which includes queries conducted viamobileapplica(onsandmobilebrowsers,accountedfor29percentofallsearchac(vity,withsmartphonesgenera(ngamuchgreatershare(20percent)thantablets(9percent).5And,inspecificregardtolibrar-ies,the2014PewResearchCenterreporteden(tledLibrariesattheCrossroadsindicatedthat50%oftheuserswhoaccessedapublicli-braryWebsitedidsothroughasmartphoneortabletcomputerusingawirelessconnec(on.6Theimpactofthewirelessinstalla(ons?Withinlibrariesthemselves,wirelessaccesshaschangedtherela(onshipbetweenlibrariesandus-ers,mainlybyenabling clients to connectpersonaldevices, suchaslaptopcomputers,tabletcomputers,andsmartphones,totheInternetthrough wireless access points provided by the libraries, thus aug-men(ngthetechnologiesmadeavailablebylibrariesforpublicuseandexpandingtheroleofpubliclibrariesascomputercenters.TheabilityofconsumerstoconnecttotheInternetthroughtheuseofmobiledeviceshasbeenofevengreaterimpact,compellinglibrarianstotakethosedevicesintoaccountinthepresenta(onofinforma(onandservicesviatheWorldWideWeb.Intheearlydays,mostofthe
3Mobile InternetUsageSkyrockets inPast4Years toOvertakeDesktopasMostUsedDigital Plagorm. ComScore. h:ps://www.comscore.com/Insights/Blog/Mobile-Internet-Usage-Skyrockets-in-Past-4-Years-to-Overtake-Desktop-as-Most-Used-Digital-PlagormLastaccessedFebruary24,2016.4NumberofMobile-OnlyInternetUsersNowExceedsDesktop-OnlyintheU.S.comScore.h:ps://www.comscore.com/Insights/Blog/Number-of-Mobile-Only-Internet-Users-Now-Exceeds-Desktop-Only-in-the-U.S.LastaccessedFebruary26,2016.5U.S.DigitalFuture inFocus2015.comScore. U.S.DigitalFuture inFocus2015. . LastaccessedFebruary27,2016.p.16.6 Horrigan, John. Libraries at the Crossroads: Pew Research Center, September 2015,Availableat:h:p://www.pewinternet.org/2015/09/15/2015/Libraries-at-crossroads/.
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librariesrespondingtothepresenceofmobiledevicesfocusedonde-velopingmobileWebsitesthatwereminimalincontent,withthede-signpredicatedontheassump(onthatmobiledeviceusersemployedthem for simple tasks only. Under this view, amobilewebsitewastreatedasacompaniontothefullsite,furnishingmerelybasicinfor-ma(on,suchasaddress,direc(ons,contactinforma(on,hoursofop-era(on,etc.,andwiththeexpecta(onthatmobileuserswouldvisitthefullWebsiteonadesktoporlaptopcomputerforanythingmorethanthat.Thatapproachmayhaveworkedforawhile,butithasbeenclearforsome(methatmobileusersarenolongersa(sfiedwithsimplemobileWebsites.In2012,itwasreportedthatapproximately40%ofunder-graduateandgraduatestudentsusedasmartphoneonadailybasis,andthat54%ofthemthedevicesforacademicpurposes.Inanotherstudypublishedtwoyearslater,inves(gatorsreportedthat51%oftherespondentsusedamobiledevicetoaccesslibraryresources.Almosthalf of them used a smartphone or tablet to search research data-bases.Slightlylessthanhalfofthestudentsindicatedthattheywere“comfortable”readingar(cles,especiallyar(clesofshorterlength,ontheirmobiledevices.7,8In addi(on, themobile compu(ngandnetworking capabili(esof li-brary users have inspired the crea(on of applica(ons specially de-signedtosupporttheuseoflibraryresources,e.g.,onlineintegratedlibrarysystems,databases,eBooks,etc.,throughtabletcomputersandsmartphones.Themobilelibraryapplica(onshaveplayedakeyrolein
7Dresselhaus,A.,andShrode,F.(2012).Mobiletechnologies&academics:Dostudentsusemobiletechnologyintheiracademiclivesandarelibrariansreadytomeetthisnewchallenge? Informa(on Technology and Libraries. Retrieved from[h:p://works.bepress.com/angela_dresselhaus/8/]8Caniano,WilliamT.,andAmyCatalano(2014)AcademicLibrariesandMobileDevices:User and Reader Preferences, The Reference Librarian, 55:4, 298-317,DOI:10.1080/02763877.2014.929910
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renderinglibrariesmorevisibleandmoreusefulonthemobileWeb,butinthelongrunini(a(vesaimedatreformaunglibrarycontentinaccordwithHTML5,CSSanditsMediaQueriescapability,andtheWebAccessibilityIni(a(ve’s(WAI)MobileAccessibilityguidelineswillprovemuchmoreimportant.9,10,11InmanypartsoftheworldotherthanUnitedStates,thenumbersofmobileusersarehighandcon(nuingtoclimb.Inmanyoftheworld’sindustrializedcountries,thevastmajorityoflibrariesareconnectedtotheInternetandofferWi-Ficonnec(ons,eitherthroughthelibrariesorpublicWi-Fisystems,suchasthosedeployed intheScandinaviancountries.But inother loca(onsacrosstheworld,wherewiredcon-nec(vity to the Internet is limited, since the physical infrastructurenecessaryforwirednetworkingislackingandeconomicfactorsargueagainstcrea(ngsuchfacili(es,wirelessaccesstolibrariesisevenmoreimportant.Manyof those loca(onsare indevelopingcountries,butsomeareinmoreremote,lesspopulouspartsofindustrializedna(ons.Forexample,in2014theScoushgovernmentfundedaprogramthatprovided125librarieswithWi-Ficapabili(esandupgradedexis(ngca-pabili(esin6otherlibraries.12,13IntheUnitedStates,theFederalCom-munica(onsCommission’sBroadbandInRuralAreasprogramhaspro-vided$1.5billioninordertoprovidebroadbandconnec(vity,including 9WorldWideWebConsor(um.HTML5:avocabularyandassociatedAPIsforHTMLandXHTML. W3C Recommenda(on. (2014). h:p://www.w3.org/TR/html5/. Last accessedFebruary26,2016.10 World Wide Web Consor(um. Media Queries. W3C Recommenda(on (2012).h:ps://www.w3.org/TR/css3-mediaqueries/.LastaccessedFebruary26,2016;andWorldWide Web Consor(um. Media Queries Level 4. W3C Working DraO. (2016).h:ps://www.w3.org/TR/mediaqueries-4/.LastaccessedFebruary26,2016.11 See: World Wide Web Consor(um. Mobile Accessibility.h:ps://www.w3.org/WAI/mobile/.LastaccessedFebruary25,2016.12 Kingo Mchombu and Catherine Maggy Beukes-Amiss. "The Role of Libraries inContemporary African Society." Library Trends 64, no. 1 (2015): 112-124.h:ps://muse.jhu.edu/(accessedFebruary26,2016).13 Robertson, Iain. WiFi Projects in Scoush Libraries. Scoush Library & informa(onCouncil.(2015).
AccordingtodataproducedbythePewInternetResearchProjectin2015,nearly two-thirdsof theadultpopula(on in theUnitedStatesownedasmartphone,andtherearerecentes(matesthatthenumberofmobiledevicesinusegloballymayalreadyoutnumberthetotalpop-ula(on.15Forexample,in2014itwasnotedthatHongKonghasacell-phonepenetra(onrateof237percent,anditisan(cipatedthatmorethan7billionnewWi-Fideviceswillbeenabledinthenext3years.1617By2020,itispredictedthat24billiondeviceswillbeconnectedtotheInternet,withthevastmajorityofthemusingsomeformofwire-lessconnec(vityforaccesstotheInternet.It isalso interes(ngtonotethataccordingtothePewstudy19%ofAmericansrelyprimarilyonasmartphoneforaccessingonlineservicesandinforma(onandforstayingconnectedtotheworldaroundthem,andtheydosobecausetheylackbroadbandaccessathomeorhavefew,ifanyop(onsforonlineaccessotherthantheirsmartphone.Ofequalimportance,Pewreportsthatsmartphone-dependentusersarefour(mesmorelikelytobeAfrican-AmericanorHispanicthanwhite,tendtobeyounger,andcomefromhouseholdswithlowerincomesand levels educa(onal a:ainment. Indeed, 7% of Americans own a
14Ma:ey,Carol.AMilestoneinExpandingBroadbandtoRuralAmerica.FCCBlog.August28,2015.h:ps://www.fcc.gov/news-events/blog/2015/08/28/milestone-ex-panding-broadband-rural-america.LastaccessedFebruary26,2016.15 Pew Research Center, April, 2015, “The Smartphone Difference” Available at:h:p://www.pewinternet.org/2015/04/01/us-smartphone-use-in-2015/. Last accessedFebruary24,2016.16Baker,David,andEvans,Wendy.DigitalInforma(onStrategies.ElsevierScience,2015.1750IncredibleWiFiTechSta(s(csThatBusinessesMustKnow02/12/201402:29pmET.Updated Apr 14, 2014. HuffPost Tech h:p://www.huffingtonpost.com/vala-afshar/50-incredible-wifi-tech-sb4775837.html
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smartphonebuthaveneithertradi(onalbroadbandserviceathome,noreasilyavailablealterna(vesforgoingonlineotherthantheircellphone.ThePewreportdocumentstheuniquecircumstancesof this“smartphone-dependent”popula(on, andalsoexplores theways inwhichsmartphoneownersusetheirphonestoengageinawiderangeofac(vi(es.Takentogether,thesenumberssuggeststronglythatforpubliclibrar-iesinpar(cular,andformanyacademiclibrariesaswell,thequalityofwirelessaccessisofcri(calimportanceinbuildinguserpopula(onsofsignificantsizeandloyalty.Thevastmajorityoftheselibrariesalreadyprovidewirelessaccess,butitisreasonabletopresumethatthequal-ityoftheaccessdeliveredisoOeninadequatetotheneedsofusers.Studiesshowingthatmanylibrarieshavenofirmcommitmenttoex-pandingorupgradingtheirwirelessinfrastructuresuggestthatquali-ta(ve problems leading to the dissa(sfac(on of users will becomemoreacuteasthespeedssupportedbynewdevicesincreasesatwhatareexpectedtobedrama(crates.Themorepressingissueisthesupportthatlibrariesprovideformobileusersthroughapplica(onsdesignedforuseonmobiledevicesandtherefiung of Web pages to meet the requirements of devices, like,smartphonesandtabletcomputers,withsmallerscreensandtouch-basedinput.Manylibrarieshaverespondedbycrea(ngmobile“apps”andmakingthemavailabletousers.Smallernumbersoflibrarieshaverevisedtop-levelWebpagesandtheinterfacesforkeyresourcessuchasonlinecatalogsforuseonmobiledevices,butmosthavenotdoneso.InK-12educa(on,theproblemsmaybemoresevere.Thereappeartobemanyeducatorswhobelieve,onthebasisofadop(onpoliciesandsalesfigures,thatmobiledeviceswillsoonbeaubiquitouselementinprimaryandsecondaryeduca(on,that"by2020,butprobablyduring
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the2017–2018schoolyear—everystudent ineverygrade ineveryschool in theU.S,will beusingamobile compu(ngdevice,24/7."18However, according to TomWheeler, the chairman of the FederalCommunica(onsCommission,nearly60%ofschoolsinAmerica"lacksufficientWi-Ficapabilitytoprovidestudentswith21stCenturyedu-ca(onaltools."19Manyschoolshavenowirelessnetwork,andmanyoftheschoolsthatdohaveWi-Fidonothavenetworkscapableofmeet-ingthecapacityneedsofstudentsandteachers.Asignificantnumberofschooldistrictshaveadopted“bringyourowntechnology”(BYOT)programstoaugmentthenumbersofconnecteddevices,butinmorethanafewinstancesthoseprogramsmaybetaxingthecapabili(esoftheexis(ngwirelessinfrastructure.NorisitclearhowoOenortowhatextentthe“bringyourowntechnology”programsinschoolsaresup-portedbyeduca(onortraining.20,21
18Norris,CathleenA.,andElliotSoloway."MobileTechnology in2020:Predic(onsandImplica(onsforK–12Educa(on."EDUCATIONALTECHNOLOGY(2015):12.19 Wheeler, Tom. Closing the Wi-Fi Gap in America’s Schools and Libraries.h:ps://www.fcc.gov/news-events/blog/2014/06/06/closing-wi-fi-gap-america%E2%80%99s-schools-and-libraries.LastaccessedFebruary24,2016.20See:McCrea,Bridget."9ITBestPrac(cesforBYODDistricts:DistrictswithSuccessfulBringYourOwnDeviceProgramsShareTheirKeyStrategiesforRollingoutandManagingStudent-OwnedDevicesinSchool."THEJournal(TechnologicalHorizonsinEduca(on)42,no.1(2015):26;Grant,MichaelM.,SuhaTamim,DorianB.Brown,JosephP.Sweeney,Fa(ma K. Ferguson, and Lakavious B. Jones. "Teaching and learning with mobilecompu(ngdevices:CasestudyinK-12classrooms."TechTrends59,no.4(2015):32-45;andGurung, Binod, andDavid Rutledge. "Digital learners and the overlapping of theirpersonalandeduca(onaldigitalengagement."Computers&Educa(on77(2014):91-100.21Inthebusinesssector,accordingtoDeloi:e,BYOTprogramshavebeensuccessful.Inmanyinstances,an(cipatedhigherdemandsfortechnicalsupporthavenotmaterialized,althoughonly20%ofthecompanieswithBYOTprogramsprovideeduca(onortrainingforusers.
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.....today’smobileusersarenolongersa(sfiedwithsim-plemobilewebsiteswithonlyasmallfrac(onofthein-forma(on and features that are available on desktopwebsites. The small screen sizeof amobiledevicemaymakeperformingcertaintasksmoretediousorcumber-some,butmobileusersdoexpecttoperformmoreandmoretasksontheirmobiledevices.22
Mobile applica(ons havebeen an element of library service on theWorldWideWebsince2010,andonewhoseperceived importancehasgrowninaccordwiththeriseofmobiledevicesasameansofac-cessinglibrarycontentandservices.Accordingtothe2015LibraryEdi-(onoftheNMCHorizonReport:
Leadershipgroupswithinlibrarianshipareworkingtomeettheneedformobileapplica(onsandWebsitesbasedonprinciplesofresponsivedesign by facilita(ng the exchange of effec(ve use cases and guid-ance.24 For example, the Interna(onal M-Libraries Conference con-venes experts in the field to share their knowledge and experience 22BohyunKim.LibraryTechnologyReports.Aug/Sep2013,Vol.49Issue6,p.15-28.23NewMediaConsor(um(NMC).NMCHorizonReport:2015LibraryEdi@on.(2015).p.7.24ResponsiveWebdesignisanapproachtoWebdesignthataimsatprovidingop(malviewingandinterac(onexperience—readingandnaviga(onwithaminimumofresizing,panning,andscrolling—acrossawiderangeofdevices.Sitesbasedonresponsivedesigntypicallyadaptlayoutstotheviewingenvironmentbyusingfluid,propor(on-basedgrids,images sized in rela(ve units, and CSS3 media queries. Responsive Web design nowaccountsformorethanhalfoftotalInternettraffic—see"CiscoVisualNetworkingIndex:GlobalMobileDataTrafficForecastUpdate2014–2019WhitePaper".Cisco.January30,2015.RetrievedAugust4,2015—atrendnowsoprevalentthatGooglehasbegunto
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withmobile-centric innova(ons foracademicand research libraries.M-Librarieswasestablishedin2007bytheOpenUniversityandAtha-bascaUniversitytopromotethedeliveryoflibraryservicesusingmo-biledevices,whensuchdevelopmentswereintheir infancy.Confer-enceshavebeenheldeverytwoyears,beginningin2009,focusingon“smart”librariesandusers,sustainability,innova(on,anddataandin-telligence.LibrarySuccess,aso-called“bestprac(ceswiki, invites li-braryprofessionalstocontributetotheM-Librariesforum,whichpro-videscomprehensivelistsofacademiclibrariesthathavemobileinter-faces,apps,collec(ons,tours,andSMSservices,aswellasguidanceabouthowtodevelopanddeploymobileservices.25IntheUnitedKing-dom,JISCinpar(cularhassupportedthedevelopmentofmobileap-plica(onsandmobile-friendlycontentforlibraries,theJISCMobileIn-frastructureforLibrariesProgramandtheMobilizingAcademicCon-tentOnlineproject,whichwaslaunchedtoestablishabestprac(cestoolkit.2627The rapid growth of mobile technology has underscored the im-portance of understanding the behaviors and needs of users as ameansofinformingthedesignofserviceableWebsites,andtherearea number of frameworks for research and development that haveemerged.Thereis,forexample,theservicedesignmethodologythatwas developed at Finland’s Aalto University; thismethod leveragesemploysuserprofilesandfocusgroupsasabasisfordevelopingnew
boostthera(ngsofsitesthataremobile-friendlyifthesearchwasmadefromamobiledevice.25M-LibrariesForum,h:p://www.libsuccess.org/M-Libraries.LastaccessedFebruary27,2016.26JISC,formerlyknownastheJointInforma(onSystemsCommi:ee,isapublicbodyinthe United Kingdom that supports higher educa(on and research, including researchrelatedtodigitalresourcesandtechnologyservices.27SeeMobilizingAcademicContentOnline.h:p://www.open.ac.uk/blogs/macon/.LastaccessedFebruary27,2016.
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services.28TheWorldWideConsor(um(W3C)sponsorsaMobileWebIni(a(ve, suppor(ng the development of mobile Web applica(onsthatcantakefulladvantageoftheOpenWebPlagorminaccordwithitsStandards forWebApplica(onsonMobile.This support includesW3Cwidgets,whichprovide a packaging format todistributeWeb-based applica(ons; theMobileWeb Best Prac(ces and theMobileWebApplica(onBestPrac(ces,whichofferguidancetodevelopersonhowtocreatecontentandapplica(onsthatworkwellonmobilede-vices;andthemobileOKChecker.29,30,31,32ExamplesofmobileWebsitesdevelopedintheserviceoflibrariesandreadersarenowabundant.TheM-LibrariesWiki,ath:p://www.lib-success.org/M-Libraries,offersanextensiveandclassifiedlistthatcanbehelpfuliniden(fyingexemplarysitesanddevelopmentaltrends.
DigitalInclusionandLibraries
Accordingto2013DigitalInclusionSurvey,whichsurveyed1669publiclibraries, 97.5% offered public wireless Internet access. Specifically,
28See:Kekolah(,P.,&Karikoski, J. (2013).AnalysisofMobileServiceUsageBehaviourwithBayesianBeliefNetworks. JournalofUniversalComputerScience;andSoikkeli,T.,Karikoski, J.,&Hämmäinen,H. (2013).CharacterizingSmartphoneUsage:DiversityandEndUserContext. Interna@[email protected],no.1,pp.15-36.29WorldWideWebConsor(um.StandardsforWebApplica@onsonMobile;CurrentStateand Roadmap. h:p://www.w3.org/Mobile/mobile-web-app-state/. Last accessedFebruary27,2016.30WorldWideWebConsor(um.MobileWebBestPrac(ces1.0BasicGuidelines.W3CRecommenda(on29July2008.h:p://www.w3.org/TR/mobile-bp/. Last accessedFebruary27,2016.31 World Wide Web Consor(um. Mobile Web Applica(on Best Prac(ces. W3CRecommenda(on14December2010.h:p://www.w3.org/TR/mwabp/. Last accessedFebruary26,2016.32SeeWorldWideConsor(um.MobileOKChecker.h:ps://validator.w3.org/mobile/.LastaccessedFebruary20,2016.
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99.2%oftheurbanlibrariespolledand95.3%oftherurallibrariesac-countedforofferedWi-Fiservices.Slightlymorethanone-thirdofthelibrariesinthesurveysupportedwirelessprin(ng.33In termsof the speedof connec(vity,datapresented inBroadbandQuality inPublicLibraries:SpeedTestFindingsandResults indicatesthatinurbanlibrariesthemedianspeedofadownloadbasedonaWi-Ficonnec(onduring lightusage is19,618Kbps (19.16Mbps)versus1,009Kbps(.99Mbps)duringheavyusage,whereashemedianuploadspeedforaWi-Ficonnec(onduringlightusageis10,517Kbps(10.27Mbps),asopposedto291Kbps(.28Mbps)duringheavyusage.Forsuburbanpubliclibraries,thedataindicatesthatthemediandown-load speed foraWi-Fi connec(onduring lightusage is16,198Kbps(15.81Mbps),and9,017Kbps (8.80Mbps)duringheavyusage.Themedianuploadspeedduringlightusageis7,617Kbps(7.44Mbps)ver-sus3,445Kbps(3.36Mbps)duringheavyusage.Fortownlibraries,themedian speed during light usage is 9,783 Kbps (9.55Mbps) versus7,293Kbps(7.12Mbps)duringheavyusage.Themedianuploadspeedduringlightusageis3,056Kbps(2.98Mbps)versus2,569Kbps(2.51Mbps)duringheavyusage.And,forrurallibraries,themediandown-loadspeedduringlightusageis9,783Kbps(9.55Mbps)versus7,293Kbps(7.12Mbps)duringheavyusage,andthemedianspeedduringlightusageis3,056Kbps(2.98Mbps)versus2,569Kbps(2.51Mbps)duringheavyusage.34Inallinstances,thereissubstan(alvariancefromloca(ontoloca(on.MorethanaquarteroftheusersofcitylibrariesexperienceaverageWi-Fi download speeds in the 10.1Mbps-24.9Mbps range, whereasslightlymorethan20%haveaccessatspeedsbelow1.5Mbps.More 33 Bertot, John Carlo, et al. 2013Digital Inclusion Survey: Survey Findings and Results.Informa(onPolicy&AccessCenter,UniversityofMaryland.2014.34Berto,JohnCarlo,etal.BroadbandQualityinPublicLibraries:SpeedTestFindingsandResults.Informa(onPolicy&AccessCenter,UniversityofMaryland.(2015.)pp.10-20.
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thanone-thirdofthesuburbanlibrariesincludedinthesurveyprovidedownloadspeedsinthe10.1Mbps-24.9Mbpsrange.The speeds delivered by town and rural libraries tend to be muchslower.Almosthalfofthetownlibrariessurveyprovidedwirelessser-vices intherangeof1.6Mbps-10Mbpsrangefordownloads.Almosthalfoftherurallibrariesareinthesamerangefordownloads,butrurallibrariesfallsubstan(allybehindtownlibraries intermsofWi-Fiup-loadspeeds,withmorethanhalfofthemrepor(nguploadspeedsof1.5Mbpsor less,whereasslightly lessthanhalfofthetownlibrariesreportedaverageuploadspeedsinthe1.6Mbps-10Mbpsrange.(Thestudyalsoconsidersthe“dropoff”betweensubscribedspeedandac-tualspeedofnetworkconnec(ons.Thedatapresentedindicatethatthedifferencesareconsiderable,andcertainlygreatenoughtohaveasignificantimpactonmanytypesofInternetuse—forexample,up-loadspeedsdropoffby47%forcitylibraries,55%insuburbanlibrar-ies,67%intownlibraries,andby76%inrurallibraries—butthedataarebasedonwiredconnec(onsonlyanddonottakeWi-Ficonnec(v-ityintoaccount.35)Unfortunately, the aforemen(oned report offers almost no infor-ma(onabout themore specificnatureof theWi-Fi deployments inthose libraries or the quality of services that are delivered throughwirelessconnec(ons.Thereportdoessuggest,however,thatslightlymorethanhalfofthelibrarianssurveyedinthisstudybelievethatthebandwidthprovidedbytheirrespec(velibrariesforpatronsisnotad-equate,withthemajorityofthemoftheviewthatthecostsofincreas-ingbandwidthweretheforemostconstraint.
Owingmainlytostandardiza(on,thetechnicalframeworkintermsofwhichwirelessnetworksfunc(onhasremainedstablesincethemid-1990s,withchangesanddevelopmentsrunningbygeneralagreementthroughprocessesa:endingIEEE802.11,thesetofstandardsforwire-less localareanetwork (WLAN)computer communica(on,asdevel-opedbytheIEEELAN/MANStandardsCommi:ee(IEEE802),foruseinthe2.4GHzand5GHzpublicspectrumbands.36Therearetwotypesofwirelessnetworks.Thefirsttypeisaso-called“adhoc,”orpeer-to-peernetwork,consis(ngoftwoormorecomput-ers each equipped with a wireless networking interface card. Eachcomputermaycommunicatedirectlywithalloftheotherwireless-en-abledcomputersonthepeer-to-peernetwork.Thecomputersonthenetworkcansharefilesandotherresources,suchasaprinter,underthisconfigura(on,buttheymaynotbeabletoaccessresourcesonawiredLAN,unlessoneofthecomputersinthepeer-to-peernetworkalsoactsasabridgetothewiredLAN.Awirelessnetworkmayalsouseaphysicalaccesspoint,commonlyreferredtoasabasesta(on.Inthisconfigura(on,theaccesspointactsasanetworkhub,providingcon-nec(vityforthewirelesscomputers.Themainpurposeoftheaccesspointistoprovidealink(or“bridge”)fromawirelessLANtoawiredLAN,thusallowingwirelesscomputeraccesstoLANresources,suchasfileserversoranexis(ngInternetconnec(on.Thissecondtypeofnet-work is the one used almost universally by public libraries offeringwirelessservices.Thereare two typesofaccesspoints. Thefirstandmost commonlyemployedisthededicatedhardwareaccesspoint.Itisawirelessde-vicethathandlesallthenetworktraffictoandfromitsassociatedcli-ents,usuallywithinarangeofabout300feetandwiththeop(onofa 36 See IEEE Web Portal at h:p://standards.ieee.org/findstds/standard/802.11-2012.htmlforaddi(onalinforma(onabouttheIEEEandthe802.11standard.
The newest genera(on of Wi-Fi signaling in popular use is IEEE802.11ac.38Itu(lizesdualbandwirelesstechnologyandchannelbind-ing,suppor(ngsimultaneousconnec(onsonboththe2.4GHzand5GHzWi-Fibandstoincreasethebandwidthavailabletocompa(blede-vices. Offering backward compa(bility to 802.11b/g/n, 802.11ac isratedupto1300Mbpsonthe5GHzbandandupto450Mbpson2.4GHz.Thepreviousversionsofthe802.11standardshavetypicallyused20MHzchannels,although802.11nusedupto40MHzwidechannels.The802.11acstandarduseschannelbandwidthsupto80MHzwideas
37Mosthardwareaccesspointscannotcommunicatewitheachotheronthebasisofawireless connec(on. Typically, anaccesspoint can communicateonlywith itswirelessclients. The excep(on is the wireless repeater, a device that receives a signal andretransmits it at a higher level and/or higher power, or onto the other side of anobstruc(on,sothatthesignalcancoverlongerdistanceswithoutdegrada(on.Whatismoreimportant,wirelessaccesspointscannotbeusedtobridgewirelessLANs.38The802.11familyofstandardsspecifiesanover-the-airinterfacebetweenawirelessclient and a base sta(on or between two wireless clients. The IEEE accepted thespecifica(onin1997.
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standardwithop(onsof160MHzortwo80MHzblocks.Accordingtothe IEEE, 802.11ac raises data throughput rates a:ainable onWi-Finetworkstoaminimumofaround1Gbps,withspeedsupto6.93Gbpspossible.Therearebo:lenecks,however.Routersbasedon802.11acgenerally use mul(ple antennas to increase overall data rates, butwhenauserwithasingle-antenna802.11ac-compa(blesmartphoneconnectstosucharouter,thedatarateislikelytobesomewherebe-tween400Mbps—thetheore(calmaximum—and200Mbps.Effortstoextend802.11acarealreadywellunderway.Forexample,IEEE802.11adisanamendmentthatdefinesanewphysicallayerfor802.11networkstooperateinthe60GHzmillimeterwavespectrum-- this frequencybandhas different propaga(on characteris(cs thanthe2.4GHzand5GHzbands,whereWi-Finetworksnormallyoperate--IEEE802.11afisanotheramendment,thatallowsWLANopera(onin theso-called"TVwhitespacespectrum,"which is situated in theVHFandUHFbandsbetween54and790MHz,andIEEE802.ah,whichoffers,owingtothefavorablepropaga(oncharacteris(csofthelowfrequencyspectra,improvedtransmissionrangewhencomparedwiththeconven(onal802.11WLANsopera(nginthe2.4GHzand5GHzbands.Thedeploymentofthenewerstandardsislikelytooccuroverthenextfewyears--routerssuppor(ng802.11acarereadilyavailableatthiswri(ng--butavailableinforma(onaboutreplacementschedulesde-visedbylibraries,orthelackthereof,suggestthatthecapabili(esof802.11acanditsamendmentsareunlikelytohaveanybroadeffectintheshorttermonthewirelessservicesofferedbylibraries,par(cularlyservicesbasedon local installa(ons.According to thePublic LibraryTechnologyLandscapereportfrom2012:
Overall,amajorityofpubliclibraries(63.2percent)donothave replacement schedules and replace their work-
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sta(ons only as needed. There is a stark differencebe-tweenthereplacementpolicyschedulesofurbanandru-rallibraries.Themajorityofurbanlibraries(57.3percent)haveanestablishedreplacementpolicy,whereasthema-jorityofrurallibraries(69.5percent)donot.Themajorityof suburban libraries (53.4 percent) had a replacementschedulein2010-2011,butthispercentagedecreasedto41.9percentin2011-2012.39
WirelessLANsradiosignalsthatoOengobeyondthelimitsoftheareaan organiza(on physically controls. For instance, radiowaves easilypenetratebuildingwallsandcanbereceivedfromthefacility’sparkinglotandpossiblyafewblocksaway.Asaresult,itispossibleforanun-authorizedpersontogainaccesstoawirelessnetwork,uselicensedresourcesonanillicitbasis,andevenpassivelyretrievesensi(veinfor-ma(onaboutconfigura(ons,licensesandotherpermissions,orlegi(-mate users. How difficult is it to engage in passive monitoring? Ahackerwithawirelesslaptopandso-called"packetsniffer"couldcap-ture data streaming across a library'swireless network froma parkbenchacrossthestreetfromtheirtown'spubliclibraryandthen,forexample, extract sensi(ve informa(on, including passwords. Themethodforresolvingissuesofpassivemonitoringistoimplementse-cure connec(ons between all client devices and the access pointsthroughencryp(on.Anencryp(onschemealterstheinforma(onbits
ineachframeofdatatransmi:edbyusingencryptedkeys.Thegoalisto make data captured via passive monitoring unusable. However,someofencryp(onschemesaremuchmoreeffec(vethanothers.TheWiredEquivalentPrivacy(WEP)scheme,whichwaspartoftheoriginal802.11standard,isrela(velyeasytocrack,whereasotherencryp(onmethods,suchasWi-FiProtectedAccess(WPA),aremuchmorediffi-culttobreakandthereforeoffermuchstrongersecurity.40Theextent towhichunauthorizedaccess toawirelessnetwork is aproblemdependslargelyontheskillwithwhichwirelessnetworksandconnectedwirednetworksaremanagedwheresecurityisconcerned.Many organiza(ons lock down servers and applica(ons effec(vely,closeunusedports,andapplysoOwarepatchesandupdatesregularlytoguaranteetheintegrityoftheirnetworks,butmanyotherorganiza-(onsareconsiderablylessvigilant,evenwhenconfrontedwithabun-dantevidenceoftheproblemsthatcanariseinapoorlysecurednet-work.Perhapsmoretothepoint,anynetworkthatpermitsexternalaccessispoten(allyvulnerable.Theobjec(veofsecurityregimesistoreducethenumberofunauthorizedintrusionstoaminimum.Wirelessnetworksarepar(cularlyvulnerabletodenial-of-serviceat-tacks.41 Today,mostwireless networks in place rely on the2.4Ghzband. IntheUnitedStates,underFederalCommunica(onsCommis-
40WEPisusedatthetwolowestlayersoftheOSI(OpenSystemsInterconnec(on)model-thedatalinkandphysicallayers--andthereforedoesnotofferend-to-endsecurity.(TheOSI model, which divides a communica(on system into seven abstract layer, is aconceptualframeworkthatcharacterizesandstandardizesthecommunica(onfunc(onsof a telecommunica(on or compu(ng system independent of its underlying internalstructure and technology, with the aim of promo(ng interoperability by means ofstandardprotocols.)41Adenial-of-servicea:ack(DoS)isanexplicita:empttopreventlegi(mateusersofaservicefromusingthatservice.TherearetwogeneralformsofDoSa:acks:thosethataredesignedtocrashservicesandthoseareintendedthatfloodserviceswithdatapacketsandthusrenderthemunabletorespondtootherrequestsforservice.
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sion’sregula(ons,the2.4Ghzbandprovidesonlythreenon-overlap-pingchannels--channels1,6,and11--whichmeansthattarge(nganddirec(ngadenial-of-servicea:ackonawirelessnetworkcanberela-(velysimple,sinceana:ackerneedsonlytocauseenoughinterfer-ence into those three channels to cause a serious service interrup-(on.42 In addi(on,denial of service a:acks can launched in concertwiththeuseofaso-called"rogueaccesspoint."Therogueaccesspointcanbesetupinachannelnotusedbyalegi(mateaccesspoint.Then,adenialofservicea:ackmaybelaunchedatthechannelscurrentlyinuseonthelegi(mateaccesspoint,causingendpointdevicestore-as-sociatewithachannelinuseontherogueaccesspointandcrea(ngcondi(onsunderwhichusersmayunwiunglyrevealconfiden(al in-forma(onofvarioustypes,e.g.,userID,password,address,telephonenumbers,creditcardnumbers,SocialSecuritynumber,etc.There isno foolproofmethodof thwar(ngdenial-of-servicea:acks,butpacketfiltering,afirewalltechniqueusedtocontrolnetworkac-cessbymonitoringoutgoingandincomingpacketsandallowingthemtopassorhaltbasedonsourceanddes(na(onInternetProtocol(IP)addresses, protocols and ports, is probably the most effec(ve andmostwidelyusedofthemeansavailable.TheuseofMediaAccessCon-trol(MAC)addressfilteringcanalsobeeffec(veundercircumstancessufficientlycontrolledtopermititsimplementa(on.43
42Anon-overlappingchannelisonethatdoesnotsharefrequencyspace,meaninginthiscasethattheuseofthechannelsisrestrictedtodevicessuppor(ngwirelessnetworking,and that other devices, e.g., microwave ovens, telephones, etc., designed to operatewithinthe2.4Ghzband,arenotlicensedtousethesespecificchannels.43AMACaddress,alsocalledphysicaladdress,isauniquealphanumericstringseparatedbycolons,e.g.,00:02:D1:1A:2D:12,thatisusedtoiden(fynetworkeddevicesastheysendand receivedataover thenetwork.MACaddressesareusedasanetworkaddress formostIEEE802networktechnologies,includingEthernetandWi-Fi.
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Bluetooth,orWirelessPersonalAreaNetworks
Anincreasingnumberofwirelessdevicesalsosupportashort-rangedatatransfertechnologyknownasBluetooth.Bluetooth,astandarddevelopedbyatelecommunica(onsindustryconsor(um,isaso-called“WPAN(wirelesspersonalareanetwork)technology”thatisdesignedtoconnectpersonaldeviceswithinasmallarea.Althoughlibrarytech-nologistshavefocusedmainlyon802.11-basednetworkingtechnolo-gies,Bluetooth-baseddevicesareimportantinmanyseungs,andtheymayplayamuchlargerroleintheyearsahead.ThepurposeofBluetoothtechnologyistodevelopanddeployastand-ardized,low-poweredradiochipthatmaybeusedtoconnectdeviceswithinawirelessnetworkwitharangeof10metersextendinginalldirec(ons.TheBluetoothchipisdesignedtoreplacecablesbytakingtheinforma(onnormallycarriedbycablestoandfromdevicessuchasprinters,keyboards,mice,andPDAsandtransmiungittoaradiore-ceiver.Bluetooth chips are commonly placed in computers, printers, key-boards,andmice,replacingshort-rangecables.Theyarealsofoundinawidevarietyofotherdevices,includingsmartphonesandtabletcom-puters.44RecentversionsoftheBluetoothspecifica(onincludetheuseofacollocated802.11linkrunningatdatatraffic(Version3.0and4.0oftheBluetoothCoreSpecifica(on),aprivacylayerandIPconnec(v-ity, including IPv6 connec(ons, to support connected buildings andotherIoTimplementa(ons(Bluetoothv4.2).45
44 The Bluetooth specifica(on was originally conceived by Ericsson in 1998, before anumberofothercompaniesbegantocollaborateandeventuallylaunchedtheBluetoothSpecialInterestGroup.45Bluetoothusesthemicrowaveradiofrequenciesinthe2.402-2.480GHzrange.USB3.0devices,portsandcablesinterferewithBluetoothdevices,owingtothecloseopera(ngproximityofBluetoothandUSB3.0usageintheradiospectrum.Theconflictscanresultinadropinthroughputorcompleteconnec(onlossoftheBluetoothdevice/sconnectedtoacomputer.Solu(onsrangefromincreasingthedistanceofUSB3.0devicesfromany
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ThefutureofBluetoothmayturnlargelyonitssupportforatechnol-ogycalled“beamforming,”whichconcentratesdata transmissionsothatmoredata reaches the targeteddevice insteadof radia(ngoutintotheatmosphere.BeamformingisalsosupportedbyIEEE802.11ac.Atpresent,Bluetooth’ssupportforbeamformingisakeyelementinnew technologies that support remote chargingofwireless devices,butitalsoholdstheprospectofbeingtoconnectamobiledevicetoBluetooth-compa(bledisplaydevicesatrateshighenoughtosustainhigh-resolu(onpictures.46
RFID
Anotheraspectofwirelesstechnologyinlibrariesistheuseofradio-frequencyiden(fica(on,orRFID,andwirelesssensors.47Ac(vi(esthatcanbenefitfromtheuseofRFIDincludecircula(on, inventoryman-agement,anditemprocessing.Inaddi(ontomakingeachofthesela-bor-intensive ac(vi(es more efficient, RFID installa(ons also guardagainstthelossofphysicalitemsthroughmisplacementortheO.4849
Bluetooth devices to purchasing USB cables with higher-quality shielding to applyingaddi(onalshieldingtotheinternalBluetoothcomponentsofacomputer.46Wirelesspowersystemchargesdevicesupto20feetaway.ExtremeTech.January6,2015. h:p://www.extremetech.com/extreme/196868-wireless-power-system-charges-devices-up-to-20-feet-away.LastaccessedFebruary26,2016.47RFIDuseselectromagne(cfieldstoiden(fyandtracktagsa:achedtoobjects.Thetagscontainelectronicallystoredinforma(on;passivetagscollectenergyfromanearbyRFIDreader'sinterroga(ngradiowaves,whereasac(vetagshavealocalpowersource,suchasaba:ery,andcanoperateataconsiderabledistancefromanRFIDreader.48 Hardgrave, Bill C., John Aloysius, and Sandeep Goyal (2009). "Does RFID improveinventory accuracy? A preliminary analysis". Interna@onal Journal of RF Technologies:ResearchandApplica@ons1(1):45–56.doi:10.1080/17545730802338333.49 Suthar,AshokkumarA.RFID:AnEmergingTechnology for Libraries.Asian [email protected](7):43-46.
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A2013studysuggeststhatifthequalityofaRFIDimplementa(onis"good,"theuseofresourcesincreasesandusersa(sfac(onishigher.50Thereare,however,concernsaboutthepossibilityofRFIDimplemen-ta(onsinlibrariesleadingtotheviola(onoftheprivacyofreaders.EffortstosecureRFIDsystemshavebeenextensive,butconcernsper-sist,owingtothenatureofRFIDimplementa(onsandthepossibilityofpersonally-linkedinforma(onbeingcollectedandread.51Thereis,moreover,aninterest,nascentatthiswri(ng,inusingRFID,wirelesssensors,andar(ficial intelligence in concert toautomateaspectsofthereader'sadvisoryfunc(onandbuilddigitallydefinedpathsthatus-ersmightfollowinordertoreachtheirpar(cularobjec(vesintheuseof library resources. This use is certain to raise seriousprivacy con-cerns.But precisely how librarianswill respond is unclear. Another recentstudyofRFID implementa(ons in librariessuggests that inmany in-stancestheanalysisofpoten(alethicalissueshasnotbeenacentralpartoftheprocessofimplemen(ngRFIDtechnology—inthosecases,theconsidera(onofethicalissueshadeitherbeendelegatedtolocalgovernmentorvendors,whoseclaimsforprivacyprotec(onappeartohavebeentakenatfacevalue,and inothercasesethical issueshad
50Dwivedia,YogeshK.,KawaljeetKaurKapoorb,MichaelD.Williams,andJanetWilliams.RFIDsystems in libraries:Anempiricalexamina(onof factorsaffec(ngsystemuseandusersa(sfac(on.Interna@onalJournalofInforma@onManagement33(2013)367–377.51 The Interna(onal Organiza(on for Standardiza(on(h:p://www.iso.org/) has beenac(ve in the development of specifica(ons aimed at securing RFID installa(ons. Forexample,ISO/IEC18000andISO/IEC29167useon-chipcryptographymethodsfortagandreader authen(ca(on, over-the-air privacy, and support of efforts to make the tagsuntraceable,andISO/IEC20248specifiesadigitalsignaturedatastructureforRFIDandbarcodesprovidingdata,sourceandreadmethodauthen(city.(ThisworkhasbeendonewithintheframeworkofISO/IECJTC1/SC31Automa(ciden(fica(onanddatacapturetechniques.)
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beentreatedasperipheral,ifatall.52,53,54Inthelongterm,however,itis reasonable to expect that a con(nua(on of the librarianship’slongstandingcommitmenttotheprivacyofreaderswillshiOpercep-(onsandleadtotheimposi(onofsharplimitsontheextenttowhichthesetechnologiesareplacedintheserviceofindividualclients.
Conclusions
In summary,wirelessaccessasprovidedby libraries is vital to theirfunc(onasacademicorpubliccompu(ngcenters.Inordertomaintaineffec(vefunc(oninthatarea,librariesmustprovidewirelessservicesof high quality. Because there is not enough informa(on currentlyavailableaboutthespecificnatureofdeploymentsandsupportforrel-evant standards, it is impossible toknowwhatmightcons(tute thebestprospects formaintaining theseservicesathigh levels,but theexampleoftheSea:lePublicLibraryanditsuseofmobilehotspotsisonethatshouldbeconsideredcarefully.Mobileaccessisalreadyofcri(calimportancetolibrariesandtheirus-ers, and theemergenceof the5Gmobilenetworks in thenext fewyearsislikelytoenlargethedemandsformobileservices.Thecon(n-ueddevelopmentofand improvements inmobileapplica(ons ises-sen(al,buttheconstruc(onofmobile-friendlyWebsites isprobablyfarmoreimportant,giventheevidencethatmobileusersareaccessing
52Ferguson,Stuart,ClareThornley,andForbesGibb.HowdolibrariesmanagetheethicalandprivacyissuesofRFIDimplementa(on?Aqualita(veinves(ga(onintothedecision-makingprocessesoftenlibraries.JournalofLibrarianshipandInforma@onScience2015,Vol.47(2)117–130.53 R-Moreno, María D., Bonifacio Castaño, David F. Barrero, and Agus�n M. Hellín."Efficient ServicesManagement in Libraries using AI andWireless techniques." ExpertSystemswithApplica@ons41,no.17(2014):7904-7913.54 Griol, David, Miguel Ángel Patricio, and José Manuel Molina. "The CALIMACOMul(modal System: Providing Enhanced Library Services Using Mobile Devices." InBioinspired Computa@on in Ar@ficial Systems, pp. 339-348. Springer Interna(onalPublishing,2015.
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contentwith increasing frequency and in progressively larger num-bers.And,sufficeittosay,thesecurityandprivacyofmobileapplica-(onsandservicesmustbeensuredwiththegreatestpossiblevigor,inasmuchastheconfidenceofusersiscloselyalignedwiththeircon-(nuinguseofdigitallibraryresources.Newtechnologies?TheuseofRFIDandar(ficialintelligenceasmeansofhelpinguserslocateandselectresourcesisanintriguingpossibility,but also one fraughtwith dangers. Librarians need to consider anytechnologythathasthepoten(altoreducefric(onintheuseoflibraryresources, whether those resources are analog or digital, but theyneedtoexercisegreatcareindoingso.InPew’sLibrariesatthecrossroads,theauthorsnotethatthenumberofAmericansusinglibrariesmaybetrendingdownward.55Whilethereportiscarefultonotethatthereisnotenoughdataavailabletodrawbroadconclusions,itseemsreasonabletoconcludethatreversingthistrendmaywelldependinlargepartontheextenttowhichlibrariesofalltypescometogripswiththeneedsandrequirementsofmobileus-ers.