Beyond the Information Commons: A Field Guide to Evolving Library Services, Technologies, and Spaces

Information commons bring together technology, resources, and services in one “common” physical space to appeal to students. In this update to the 2009 edition of A Field Guide to the Information Commons, editors Forrest (retired, Emory Univ.) and Halbert (Dean of Libs., Univ. of North Carolina at Greensboro) describe evolutions in information commons over the past 10 years, and discuss how academic libraries are keeping pace with the needs of campus communities. Like the first edition, this book is divided into two distinct parts: essays that explore information commons from “historical, organizational, technological, and architectural perspectives”; followed by more than two dozen descriptions of information commons in academic libraries worldwide. The book’s photos and floor plans are helpful for visualizing the space being described.