The Type Of Information Agency

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

Introduction

Information Agency

Information agencies is an agencies that specialized on information work, collecting, storing, procession, managing, preserving, creating and disseminating information to enable future generation to gain enormous benefits and values for various means and purpose.

Type of information agency

The basic role of information agencies are as knowledge archival, preservation of cultural and heritage and as a knowledge disseminator. In the same perspectives, Information Agencies will act as knowledge retrievals for education and social interaction purposes. There are three type of information agency.

Library

A library is a collection of information, sources, resources, books, and services, and the structure in which it is housed: it is organized for use and maintained by a public body, an institution, or a private individual. In the more traditional sense, a library is a collection of books. The term can mean the collection, the building that houses such a collection, or both.

Museum

A non-profit making, permanent institution in the service of society and of its development, and open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits, for purposes of study, education and enjoyment, material evidence of people and their environment.

Archive

A place where public records or other historic documents are kept. Usually, archives documents or records relating to the activities, business, dealings, story of a person and family, corporation, association, community or nation.

Technology

Technology is the making, modification, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems, methods of organization, in order to solve a problem, improve a pre-existing solution to a problem, achieve a goal, handle an applied input/output relation or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, modifications, arrangements and procedures. Technologies significantly affect human as well as other animal species' ability to control and adapt to their natural environments.

System

A system is a set of interacting or interdependent components forming an integrated whole or a set of elements or we call component and relationships which are different from relationships of the set or its elements to other elements or sets.

Background of technology and system

Technology

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Figure 1.0: The image of kindle

Technology called the Kindle is a series of e-book readers, popular technology at the international level and recently introduced in the country Malaysia. Kindle is produced by Amazon.com. According to Amazon's website, Kindle technology have got best seller in New York.

On November 19, 2007, hardware Kindle was introduced in the public and in the next two years, in the year 2009, the Kindle (with large screen) was introduced at the Amazon website. Amazon.com build this kind of technology is to provide an excellent no-frills e-book reader for anyone, anytime and everywhere.

If users use wireless networking in kindle hardware, the users can browse and read e-book, newspaper, magazines, blogs and other digital media such as the free PDF of book, article, and other reading material that can view or download via wireless.

So far, Amazon has manufactures more than four types of Kindle to meet the preferences of consumers and want to pursue this development of today's world. Among the types of Kindle are kindle itself, kindle touch, kindle touch 3G, kindle keyboard 3G and other type of kindle.

System

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Figure 2.0: koha. Free Library System

According to Manisha Singh and Gareema Sanaman, (2012), in 1999, koha has been develop in New Zealand by Katipo Communication Lts, and also Koha is a first full featured open source integrated library management system. They also add in their article that koha has been develop in version for academic library, public library, and special library (small, mid-sized and large libraries). Also, a study by Alan Poulter (2010) found that koha was the first open source library management system that launch in January 2000 for Horowhenua Library Trust and it has customers all over the world.

In koha free library system, they have six modules that covered in koha integrated library system there are online public access catalogue (OPAC), acquisitions, cataloguing, circulations, serials and reports. Koha was full customizable web-based interfaces also get full support from Machine-Readable Cataloging (MARC 21 and UNIMARC). In Koha, they also includes Z39.50 server and client for data interchange. Enhanced patron services, example, online reservations and borrower purchase suggestions support (koha, 2009).

In Malaysia, academic, public, and special libraries are using locally developed integrated library system (ILS) known as Integrated Library Management Utility (ILMU), Virtua VTLS, Horizon, GEAC Advance and Milennium. National Library of Malaysia has promote koha library system for rural libraries but still majority of small libraries and school resource centre still not using ILS (Amzari Abu Bakar, 2010). Users in Malaysia that develop Koha library system are University Sains Malaysia, Universiti Putra Malaysia, MADRI Serdang and other.

Vendor/ supplier

Technology

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Figure 3.0: Amazon kindle

As be notified, Amazon.com is that which produces the Kindle technology. Amazon.com was founded in 1994 and the area they served already stretched around the world. Amazon industry in the form of internet and online retailing. Amazon.com produced this technology to make users easy to read book at everywhere and anytime.

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Figure 4.0: Faxconn

For current main supplier is Foxconn Company. Foxconn stand for Hon Hai Precision Industry and was establish in year 1974 by Terry Gou (president and chairman of Foxconn). The first place the company is expanding their industry is at Longhua, Shenzhen, China in year 1988. Foxconn is Taiwanese multinational electronic contract company based in the Tucheng, New Taipen, Taiwan. Foxconn is the largest and popular manufacture electronic in the world. Also Foxconn have the produced of the original design and the company's customers include major European, America and information of technology companies. This company has a lot of factories in Asia, Europe, and South America to produced electronic product. In china, they has 13 factories in every nine Chinies cities. In Malaysia, they has four factories in Johor at Kulaijaya in year 2011.

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Figure 5.0: LibLime Koha

R.A. Egunjobi and R.A. Awoyemi (2012) states that to develop koha library systems are easy and the sytem in koha library system is free. So, there is no vendor to develop the koha library system but they have suppliers that supply system or software to user. LibLime Koha is the main suppliers for worldwide. According to LibLime (n.d) LibLime is the global leader in Koha support. LibLime facilitates Koha open source solutions by providing consulting, development, implementation, and support or hosting for libraries of all types and sizes. Koha provides libraries with a cost effective alternative to the traditional commercial model of software license costs and expensive annual maintenance.

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Figure 6.0: Universiti Sains Malaysia

In Malaysia, Bio-ICT Centre and Knowledge & Information Centre, Advanced Medical and Dental Institute (AMDI), Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM) are one of the other organization in Malaysia that promote the koha library system. USM already organize some activity that related to the koha library system in order to promote koha library system such KOHA-Integrated Library System Seminar (Malaysia).

Need of technology and system

Technology

The main reason why we need to use this technology is due to the current pursuit of advancing technology of the world today. According to Joanna from ABC News (2013), San Antonio's Bexar County is going to be home to the BiblioTech, the country's first book-less public library and of course, there will be just e-books, not physical books.

This has proven that we need a technology like the Kindle to be able to keep pace with the progress in the world now. M. Cristina Pattuelli, and Debbie Rabina (2010), states the portability of the device and its convenience of use anywhere and anytime is pivotal for enhancing the students’ reading experience and outweighs the limitations of the device’s usability. Users must use the kindle to enhance the reading experience or improve the reading culture anywhere.

Users do not need to bring a thick book to read, users just need to bring the Kindle which just six inches and it is not a burden to the enthusiasts who like to read a book. World today, Libraries, both public and academic, have begun introducing circulating e-book options for their users, albeit with varying platforms and fairly restrictive downloading options M.Cristina Pattuelli and Debbie Rabina (2010, as cited in Ferguson, 2008; Oder, 2008). as we know, the library has introduced e-book collection, so with the Kindle, users can read e-books directly through the Kindle via Wi-Fi or network.

System

As stated, koha library system is a open source software. According to Manisha Singh and Gareema Sanaman (2011), Open source software (OSS) is gaining importance worldwide and in the last few years open source has triggered a vast volume of research and has entered the mainstream software market, with the adoption of packages such as Linux (operating system), mySQL (relational database), PHP, Perl, Python (scripting and programming languages), Apache Web Server and the Zope content management system. Also, development of the open source products is generally rapid and more responsive to users in comparison to commercial software. So the main reason why we need this koha library system are it is a open source software.

Open source software means that is free and easy to use. Barahona (2008) states that one of the main consequences of publishing a program as libre (free, open source) software is that its source code is freely available to anyone who is interested in it. Open source software is continuing to gain importance in the library community.

An increasing number of library administrators are realizing that there are significant advantages to using software distributed under an open source license as today open source library application software products are rivalling and even surpassing their proprietary counterparts in terms of functionality and quality. Also, libraries no longer need in-house expertise to use these open source products due to availability of commercial contracts for installation and support services Manisha Singh and Gareema Sanaman (2011, as cite in Dorman, 2008, p. 58).

Another reason is to make the entire module such as online public access catalog, circulation, series, acquisition, cataloguing, and report organize. With the availability of this system library that have develop koha library system, they can manage all the module with regularly.

Function and efficiently

Technology

The main purpose or function of kindle is for e-reader. According to Amazon.com (n.d) kindle technology is easy to use e-reader. Kindle has an easy to use five way controller, enabling precise on-screen navigation for selecting text to highlight or looking up words. No on-screen fingerprints. Kindle also ergonomic design.

Kindle is easy to hold and read. Amazon.com designed to their e-reader with long-form reading in mind. When reading for long periods of time, people naturally shift positions and often like to read with one hand. Kindle's page-turning buttons are located on both sides, allowing user to read and turn pages from any position. Another function is Wireless Capability. User can access the e-book through virtual library via Wi-Fi. Kindle automatically detects nearby Wi-Fi networks at school, home, or user favourite cafe. At a hotel or cafe that requires a password? Simply enter the password and connect to the network. Once users have added a Wi-Fi network, Kindle will automatically connect to that network the next time users near the hotspot.

If users read e-book through kindle, user can adjustable text sizes, font choices kindle has eight adjustable font sizes to suit users reading preference. Users can increase the text size of user’s favourite book or periodical with the push of a button. If users want to read e-book users can choose font, rotate between portrait and landscape mode, carry and read users personal document and user can zoom the image to the full size of the screen of kindle.

Kindle also support for non-Latin characters. Kindle supports the display of non-Latin characters, so people can read books and documents in the translation that's right for users. Kindle displays Cyrillic (such as Russian), Korean , Chinese (Traditional and Simplified), and Japan characters, in addition to Latin and Greek scripts. In kindle they have dictionary and search. If users want to search for a word, just click at Google or dictionary. With kindle users can share the note. Add annotations to text, just like users might write in the margins of a book, with a virtual keyboard that appears just when users need it. And because Kindle e-books are digital, user can edit, delete, and export their notes. Users can highlight and clip key passages and bookmark pages for future use. See what millions of Kindle readers think are the most interesting passages in users’ books. If several other readers have highlighted a particular passage, then that passage will be highlighted in user’s book along with the total number of people who have highlighted it.

Users can also share users’ passion for books and reading with friends, family, and other readers around the world by posting meaningful passages to social networks like Facebook and Twitter directly from Kindle, without leaving the page. Users can also lend other users books. Lend eligible Kindle books to other Kindle or Kindle app users. Each eligible book can be lent once for a period of 14 days. Not all books are lendable. Users can also use public library e-books via Wi-Fi. Customers can check out a Kindle book from their local library and start reading on any Kindle or free Kindle reading application. People can customize their own kindle with choose users own language, organize their own library and lastly users can use password for protection.

The Kindle also has their own store. Users can access the Kindle Store wirelessly right from users Kindle to search and shop the world's largest selection of books that people want to read, plus magazines, newspapers, blogs and games. Kindle makes it easy to discover new titles with recommendations personalized just for users. The Kindle Store uses the same personalized customer experience users used to across Amazon.com, matching their best recommendations to user’s personal reading habits. The Kindle store contains the largest selection of books people want to read, over a million books.

System

Koha library system have their own function and efficiency. If a library develops koha library system, they also develop another system or module. The modules are acquisition, series, online public access catalog, cataloguing, circulation and report. Ferraro (2007) announces the launch of the "Koha with Class" initiative from LibLime which is open to any college or university offering a program in library and information studies/technology, offers five free hosted Koha systems to library school classrooms.

According to R.A. Egunjobi, and R.A. Awoyemi, (2012), states Koha version 3.0.1 integrated library management system has among others, basic features needed to run a library. It has the following features first is online public access catalogue (OPAC). The OPAC is web-based and there is no need to install any software on a user’s machine. Second is web-based circulation interface. This web-based circulation interface can handle issues, returns, transfers, and other. There is no need to install any special software on staff computers once there is an intranet in place. Third is user records management. It allows management of detailed information about each person that is registered as a library user.

Fourth are online renewals and reservations of item by users. Library patrons can self renew their checkouts and make reservations. This has reduced the traffic at the circulation desk and has freed some circulation staff for other duties. Next are branches. Since the software is web-based it is easy to borrow a book in one branch and return it in another branch. Other function is borrower history, comments and tags. Users can comment and review books, tag them and view their reading history. They can also view their records and make purchase suggestions. Customisable search is other function of koha library system.

A library can choose the fields they want on their search form. For example, a search by author, title, subject, and keywords. There is also an advanced search option. Next are acquisitions. This includes orders from vendors, budgets, and pricing information. Lastly is serials. It allows easy cataloguing of journals and user can view holdings information through the OPAC.

Advantages and disadvantages

Technology

Advantages

According to Amazon.com (n.d), they are a lot of advantages in technically, such as lighter, more compact than ever, simple to use, faster page turn, built in Wi-Fi, international languages, buy once read everywhere, adjustable text sizes, and other advantages.

Matt Warman (2012) found that Amazon’s Kindle revolutionised how we read books, rather than bulky paperbacks in every commuter’s bag, or a suitcase full of easy reads for a beach holiday, now we can all carry whatever we want, wherever we want on an affordable gadget. For many people, it’s rendered physical books redundant, and it’s had the unfortunate consequence of freezing thousands of bookshelves. It can be conclude that kindle is easy to carry and can use it at everywhere.

In "Excellent no-frills e-ink reader" (2012) states that the entry-level Amazon Kindle is a compact, lightweight, and ultra-affordable e-book reader with a crisp e-ink screen and Wi-Fi. It offers access to a massive catalog of books, magazines, and newspapers via Amazon.com's familiar online store, plus online loaners from your local library. The Kindle can hold hundreds of books and the battery lasts for weeks.

Jun Qian, (2011), explains that e-book readers weigh just ounces and can hold thousands of books. With dictionary plug-ins and automated text-to-speech technology, the e-book readers can help address the challenges of students with vision problems, language barriers, and lack of reading fluency; for instance they can benefit students whose primary language is not English. In addition, by their very nature e-book readers are environmentally friendly, saving on the use of paper products.

Disadvantages

According to Roy (2009) argues that Extending this theme, what is the future of interlibrary loan under a mostly e-book universe, especially if licensing or technology restrict the practice? How will libraries that have performed collaborative book purchasing, which often means sharing fewer copies of books than there are institutions in the collaborative, continue this practice with e-books? If electronic journals (e-journals) offer any insight, the answer is "not inexpensively". Will consorting libraries purchase large packages of publisher offerings, similar to the notorious "big deal" e-journal packages, which bundle quality content with larger quantities of mediocre content? Similar to the ways a critical mass of smart phone users has forced institutions to develop applications that work on mobile devices, a time may be spawning when libraries will need to provide Kindle-friendly ways of content download.

Chris Gibson, and Forbes Gibb (2011), the participants of the study felt that the two clearest disadvantages were the limited battery life: "reliance on battery power – you can finish a paper book but not an e-book if the battery runs out!" and the fact that damage to the e-book reader would be a more significant problem: "it would cost substantially more to replace than a paper book".

These were closely followed by the relatively high cost of e-book readers and the fact that the devices were still not as usable as desired or expected. Participants also remarked on the loss of physical book characteristics (e.g. paper texture and smell), strain on the eyes, and potentially adverse effects on the environment Chris Gibson, and Forbes Gibb (2011).

System

Advantages

The open source system has the advantage of promoting the software quality and reliability through peer review (Ebenezer, 2002, p. 34).

According to Manisha Singh and Gareema Sanaman (2011), open source system represents an exciting opportunity for libraries rather than forcing a library to depend on products which may not fully meet its needs. Open source allows the library to participate directly in the development of its systems and innovate services in a manner consistent with the values of librarianship.

R.A. Egunjobi, and R.A. Awoyemi (2012) say "It further revealed that library staff enjoys working in an automated environment and the patrons enjoyed services rendered using an OPAC instead of a card catalogue."

Koha uses a dual database design that utilizes the strengths of the two major industry-standard database types (text-based and RDBMS). This design feature ensures that Koha is scalable enough to meet the transaction load of any library, no matter what the size.

Koha is distributed under the open-source General Public License (GPL) or free.

No Vendor Lock-in. It is an important part of the open-source promise that there is no vendor lock-in: libraries are free to install and use Koha themselves if they have the in-house expertise or to purchase support or development services from the best available source, koha-in Malaysia (2009).

Koha is built using library standards and protocols that ensure interoperability between Koha and other systems and technologies, while supporting existing workflows and tools.

According to Amzari Abu Bakar (2010) notes that koha library system is low cost maintenance.

Disadvantages

According to Nick Dimant (2010) found that koha library system have many advantages, but though it too has some larger installations.

For a non-programmer the concept of open source can be difficult to grasp, Alan Poulter (2010).

"While everyone accepts what open source is, there is no agreement as to its utility. Despite its original founder’s intention to foster business through open source, the open source movement is seen as ‘‘anti-business’’. Open source has been attacked by commercial software companies as buggy, drab and difficult to administer: software companies have been seen by the open source community as selling over-priced, glossy, feature-limited software, despite their protestations of ‘‘quality’’. Neutrality and objectivity are usually in short supply"(Alan Poulter, 2010).

Its disadvantages are that costs could be greater, taking into account training, new systems, and other, it may need expensive and difficult local customisation and if the developer community does not deliver and no one can offer specialist support, then functionality, reliability and speed of system response will suffer, Alan Poulter (2010).

Conclusion

All in all, almost as soon as the Amazon Kindle reached the market, information scientists began to explore the use of the Kindle. Kindle is one of the latest technologies in Malaysia. Kindle is a series of e-book readers. Kindle help user in gain more knowledge. But kindle have it own lack of background diversity and other problem.

For example, in a previous Kindle pilot project at Texas A&M University (Clark et al., 2008) 36 volunteers were involved in the focus groups. The sample size is a disadvantage; 36 participants are not enough to be a representative sample of a diverse population. Homogeneity is also a concern: the participants of this study were selected from the library staff and faculty of this institution. With their educational backgrounds, similar occupations and similar geographic location they cannot represent all users of different ages and educational levels in different regions.

And for the koha library system, they have a lot of advantages if a library develops this system. But there are some recommendation to the library that have develop this system, Libraries should endeavour to employ opportunities to use open source software instead of waiting to acquire software that costs so much and may discourage management from granting the request. Librarians and other library staff should embrace changes that ICT has brought to the library profession. In addition, library staff should be computer literate prior to automation if at all possible.