Derek Neary
Northern News Services

NNSL (Mar 29/99) - For perhaps the final time, librarians from the western territory were joined by their counterparts from Nunavut in Fort Providence from March 16-19 for a scheduled second round of library Internet training.

A total of 24 librarians congregated in SSI Micro's computer lab for several hands-on training sessions using the technology that will "revolutionize" resource sharing and Web-page creation in the North, according to NWT Public Library Services territorial librarian Suliang Feng.

"This is the way of our future communication among all our components," said Feng, who noted that the GNWT's Digital Communications Network will soon provide Internet access to many NWT communities.

The resource-sharing program, which will keep track of borrowing statistics, will replace more costly fax services, he noted.

Each of the librarians departed with a CD containing each of the programs and streaming-video instruction which will reinforce many of the lessons they learned in the computer lab.

"They can review and practise at the local level many, many times...it's a dynamic way of training," Feng said.

Librarians from the East have expressed an interest in continuing the combined training even after division, according to Feng. They had been working together as a combined unit for the past 10 years and he said he's optimistic that they will continue to maintain a partnership and sense of teamwork.

Although budgets are being slashed in many government departments, the Department of Education found the funding necessary for the computer training, which included Internet search techniques and the use of e-mail, because of its value to education and to the community as a whole, he said.

"This is worthwhile. This is a good investment," he insisted.

The librarians themselves offered nothing but praise for the new technology and the manner in which it was presented.

"On-line library services are going to be very helpful," said Tammy Smith, who is responsible for school, community and regional collections as librarian at the John Ayaruaq Library in Rankin Inlet. She added, "The instruction is really good. I learned a great deal at the first (training workshop), this one was just as good."

Jeri Miltenberger, with the Mary Kaeser Library in Fort Smith, where the Internet "is a very popular feature," said she envisions the resource-sharing program saving herself and her counterparts a lot of time and paperwork. She added that the training workshop was very beneficial in terms of social networking.

"Meeting with other people, you always find out new tricks." she said. "You can only share so much on-line, you can't put a face to a name."

Lori Shapansky, the librarian in Norman Wells, was amazed by how the Net-it program makes it so easy to create a Web site to promote the library -- its services, hours of operation and various announcements.

"Anybody can do this," she said. "It's wonderful because it's all hands-on and easier to understand than reading a pamphlet, or a book or even watching a video."