Online Video Tutorials and Interlibrary Resource Sharing
The advent of online video sites has made possible a new and powerful way to disseminate information: the online video tutorial. The Western New York Library Resources Council (WNYLRC), in conjunction with the University at Buffalo Libraries, developed a project that sought to explore the possibilities of this tool for librarians. In WNYLRC's Knowledge Base Tutorials On-Demand Program, tutorials were researched, scripted and produced to enhance the training of librarians and professional staff, to answer general questions, and to provide detailed information about library software and platforms. This chapter will describe the design, implementation, and outcomes of this program, as means to lay a foundation for future work in the area of video tutorials, library resource sharing and information dissemination. The ramifications of platforms such as YouTube and the new kinds of literacy that are growing as a result are essential to the future of libraries in the digital era.