Librarians alert : how can we exploit what is happening with personal information management (PIM), reference management and related issues?

Abstract

This column aims to explore the potential of personal information management (PIM) and reference management. It seeks to focus on how librarians can stay alert on new developments regarding PIM and related issues such as plagiarism, reference techniques, information literacy and information behaviour. It also tries to stimulate interest in looking for hidden gems that can be of value in their careers as well as those of library users by considering the innovative and creative use of PIM, e.g. by also monitoring the potential of mind maps and concept maps. The column is written against the background of research from information behaviour, PIM, information curation, alerts on software development and related issues, and also social bookmarking. There are many ways in which librarians can stay abreast of what is happening with PIM, reference management and related issues. There are also many things to note such as improvement of the software, uses of PIM and reference management, teaching skills in PIM and reference management, ways of sharing information, linking to innovation and creativity, and linking to information literacy and information behaviour. Although much has been published on developments in PIM and reference management, the author is not aware of other attempts to link alerting services on PIM and reference management to go beyond developments in software.