Me Too Meebo

I think IM would be very useful for both patrons and in-house communications.
It would make it very easy for patrons to ask their questions if prompted by
an inviting button to “ask your librarian” . They could do so without leaving
their home enjoying that feeling of anonymity and privacy and get answers in
writing without being tied to a phone and bothering with fax machines.

One drawback might be with staffing schedules if this service becomes too
popular and overwhelms the reference department. That might be solved by
having subs on standby working from home.

I have used IM at work and find it very convenient. It faster than email, but
not so urgent as a ringing phone. You’re not tying up the line and the other
person has time to deal with their current concerns before they formulate an
answer and get right back to you. I hope to use IM with increasing frequency.