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The purpose of this paper is to explore the concepts of Library 2.0 and Library 3‐D and provide a proposal for taking advantage of the new opportunities prevailing in the adoption of Library 2.0 and Library 3‐D concepts. The specific objectives of this study are as follows: to review the status of research in Pakistan on any aspect of Web 2.0, Library 2.0 and Library 3‐D; to explore how a user‐centered library can be developed with the help of Library 2.0 and Library 3‐D applications; to find out information professionals' opinions in this regard; and to provide a proposal for adoption of Library 2.0 and Library 3‐D tools.

This study is descriptive in nature and is based on a literature review and personal interviews. The researchers reviewed the findings of previous surveys recently conducted by researchers in Pakistan on different aspects of Web 2.0, Library 2.0 and Library 3‐D. These surveys assisted the researchers in exploring the current status of acceptability of these applications by the library community in Pakistan. Moreover, semi‐structured interviews were conducted to gain an in‐depth understanding of the phenomena under study. Finally, keeping in mind the findings of the literature reviewed, previous surveys and current interviews, a proposal for the survival of libraries in Pakistan in an era of emerging technologies is given.

It was found that libraries in Pakistan are now becoming aware of the use of Library 2.0 Second Life for Library Services.

The interviews being limited to a purposive sample of information professionals, care has to be taken in generalizing the findings of the study.

The paper not only presents a good understanding of different concepts, such as Library 1.0, Library 2.0 and Library 3D, but also their application.

The paper is the first in Pakistan to deal with the emerging concept of Library 3‐D. It also provides a proposal for information professionals in using Library 2.0 and Library 3‐D applications for library services.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the most used library software in Lahore using a checklist and seek librarians' opinions about them. It also aims to seek librarians' opinions about the most desired and needed features of Integrated Library Software (ILS).

The paper is based on questionnaire survey, interview, document analysis and personal communication. The questionnaire survey was conducted within automated libraries of Lahore, while interviews were conducted with selected librarians from Lahore. Collected data were analyzed both quantitatively and qualitatively to reach conclusions.

A variety of software is being used by the libraries of Lahore. Nor is there available, any standard tool or directory for the selection and evaluation of the software. Evaluation of the software against a checklist reveals the better functionality of Library Information Management System and Library Automation and Management Program than INMAGIC and WINISIS, but librarians were found to be more satisfied with INMAGIC. All the respondents agreed that before selecting any ILS, librarys' actual and perceived needs, available resources and funds should be kept in mind. They also proposed many features of ILS.

The questionnaire survey is limited to the automated libraries of Lahore and focuses on the comparison and evaluation of the most used software only, while selected librarians with good IT skills were chosen for seeking opinions about the most desired ILS features.

The survey results can be helpful to foreign and local vendors of ILS, librarians, higher authorities and other developing countries in selecting and maintaining required software.

It is the first comprehensive study conducted on ILS not only in Lahore, but in Pakistan.

This paper is part of a doctoral research which aimed at proposing a national information system for educational administrators in Pakistan. However, this paper only aims at identifying what an information system is composed of and does; defining the information infrastructure (i.e. libraries/information centers and networks) needed for the development of a national educational information system; identifying the nature and design of the information infrastructure in Pakistan; and ascertaining the problems and gaps existing in the information infrastructure of Pakistan and why they exist.

The study is based on review of the available literature. For the literature search, valid sources of published and unpublished information were consulted (i.e. books, journal articles, reports, conference/workshop proceedings, theses and dissertations).

Many library/information centers and information networks are working in the educational domain of Pakistan. The position of academic, national and special libraries is also presented in this review. The basic weakness traced in this review is in the infrastructure of library/information centers and information networks and disintegration of available information sources. The information does exist within libraries/information centers and information networks but the educational administrators have problems in tracing this information. As a result, available information is not being utilized properly in educational planning and development in Pakistan. There is a need to pool the existing information sources, services and networks in one place to form a well‐integrated information system that may provide a holistic and complete overview of education enterprise for realistic planning and resource allocation.

This paper is the first to present the current position of the available libraries/information centers and information networks within the educational domain of Pakistan. Such a review may help the designers of educational information systems.

The purpose of the study is to determine the most preferred catalogue format – card catalogue or online public access catalogue (OPAC) for searching library material in Oriental languages, i.e. Urdu, Arabic, Persian, Punjabi, Hindi, Sanskrit, Sindhi and Pashto of the Central Library, University of the Punjab, Lahore. It also explores the users’ searching behaviour for finding the library material in Oriental languages.

A purposive sample of 100 respondents was chosen for this study. The questionnaire contained both close- and open-ended questions. SPSS (version 11.5) was used for quantitative analysis of data. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for reaching conclusions. The qualitative data analysis software “X-Sight” was used for analysing the qualitative data.

The study highlights the importance of both types of catalogue. Many of the findings of the study related to the card catalogue and OPAC are surprising when compared to their general perceptions. It is important to note that the users perceived the card catalogue as more effective for searching the library material in Oriental languages. However, they also face many problems while using both types of catalogues.

It is the first study of its type in Pakistan that explored the users’ perceptions and behaviour of searching Oriental language material from the card catalogue and OPAC. The findings of the study are valuable for library management, not only at the Central Library of Punjab University but also for other libraries. These findings can help in making both card catalogue and OPAC more effective and user-centred. It will also assist them to improve weaknesses of both types of catalogues.

This study compares the users’ preferences for card catalogue and/or OPAC when searching Oriental language material. There are very few studies available on this subject and most of them are dated.

The purpose of this paper is to review librarianship in different eras and throw light on its foreseeable future, as seen through the eyes of new librarians in Pakistan.

The paper is based on a literature search, website visits, personal communication with related experts and interviews of future librarians. A purposive sample of 20 students of the final semester from the Department of Library and Information Science, University of the Punjab was chosen.

The electronic environment of the 21st century will demand a range of skills from librarians. Technology alone cannot help bring about the required changes. Attitudes, practices and policies need to change if libraries are to truly benefit themselves and their community of users by the application of new technologies.

The research is mostly based on a small sample of future librarians” perception and researcher”s perception acquired through literature review and personal communication with experts.

The paper can be helpful for both working and future library professionals in planning their professional future tracks.

The paper provides an overview of librarianship in different eras and provides a thorough understanding of the foreseeable future as seen through the eyes of newly qualified Pakistani librarians.

The paper seeks to reveal the current status of software used in the libraries of Lahore, to explore the satisfaction level of the software users, and to find out their problems and suggestions.

The paper reports a survey of automated libraries of Lahore comprising academic (university, college, and school libraries), public and special libraries. Opinions were acquired from the whole population. The data collected were analyzed quantitatively and qualitatively, and conclusions were drawn along with recommendations.

Most libraries purchased or developed software without any exchange of experience with each other. A variety of software was being used by the libraries of Lahore. No standard tool or directory was available for the selection and evaluation of software, nor was comprehensive literature written and published in a Pakistani scenario discussing the technical and practical aspects of library software. The Pakistani literature available on the topic is not up to date.

The research is limited to the automated libraries of Lahore and focuses on the comparison of software and determining librarians' opinions.

The comparative analysis of software used in various libraries of Lahore made in this study and the opinions of the software users studied will be helpful for foreign and local vendors of library software. It will also provide guidelines for libraries in developing countries, which are planning to automate their services, in selecting and maintaining software that is most suitable to their needs.

No comprehensive survey has been conducted at national or local level to reveal the current status of the software and related problems faced by Pakistani libraries. The current study, although focussing only on libraries in the city of Lahore, can be extrapolated to the country as a whole and should prove useful as an indication of how issues with library software can arise and be handled.

The purpose of this paper is to assess the use of electronic information resources and facilities by humanities scholars at the University of the Punjab, Lahore, Pakistan.

A questionnaire survey of faculty from arts and humanities departments at the University of the Punjab was conducted. In total, 62 faculty and research staff participated.

The results correspond with previous studies conducted in other countries. The humanists still stick to the printed information sources but they pay good attention to electronic resources. Most of them have access to computer and internet at office and home. They are regular users of a variety of electronic technologies. Although faced with many problems, the humanists perceive that modern technology made their work easier.

The study is based only on the humanities faculty in a large university of Pakistan. The survey should be replicated on a larger sample for generalization.

Keeping in view the positive trend of humanists towards modern technology, universities and libraries should give more funding to provide electronic resources and facilities in the arts and humanities discipline. Special training programmes for humanists should be organized.

This is the first study on this topic in Pakistan. The results can be useful to design services and facilities in humanities libraries and information centres in Pakistan and other developing countries.

The purpose of this paper is to explore the library use pattern of humanities faculty members at University of the Punjab, Lahore.

A questionnaire‐based survey was conducted to get response from the targeted population which consisted of 90 teaching and research staff of humanities departments. The response rate was 69 percent.

The study reveals that most of the respondents feel themselves good in library use skills, which is owing to their high frequency of library use, not to any formal training. They prefer to use the library themselves, rather than seeking help from the library staff. Respondents found the central library richer in collection than their departmental libraries. Most of respondents were visiting the library for using the reference material or for searching some specific information and they seldom seek help from the library staff. Resources and services/facilities available in the central library were professed to be better than their departmental libraries. Respondents fulfilled their information needs not only from central and departmental libraries of the university but from other libraries in the city as well. They were facing the problem of non‐availability of required material due to their heavy dependency on the library resources. Dissatisfaction was also shown with the library staff and technical support. More journals and reference material in humanities were suggested by the respondents, along with better facilities and services.

The knowledge about the information needs and library use pattern of users helps the library and information science professionals to develop the library collections, improve the services and upgrade the facilities.

This paper provides a case study of how specific kinds of scholars use library services and should be of interest to librarians providing information services for humanists.

The purpose of this paper is to review the changing scenario of research in Pakistan and the status of demand and supply of library and information science (LIS) professionals with research qualifications to fill the leadership positions in Pakistan.

Government reports and websites were reviewed and telephonic contacts made with LIS faculty and senior librarians.

The paper finds that research activities are rapidly increasing in Pakistan, while there is a wide gap between demand and supply of LIS professionals with research qualifications.

The researchers have furnished some recommendations for filling the identified gap.