A Field Guide to the Information Commons (review)

A Field Guide to the Information Commons reviews and expands the literature of the now mainstreamed information commons. While most of Charles Forrest and Martin Halbert's comments in the introduction cover familiar territory, one observation strikes an important note about de rigueur technology: "The technological systems commercially available to libraries have been both uniformly available to essentially all libraries, and in fact have steadily become commodified in price." (p. xiv) What was expensive, new, and unique has become ubiquitous and affordable.

The first chapter, Elizabeth J. Milewicz's "The Origin and Development of the Information Commons in Academic Libraries," is a useful overview that includes discussion of the Coalition of Networked Information in the early 1990s. Joan K. Lippincott's broad perspective and deep understanding of the information commons in chapter 2 is a valuable contribution. Chapter 3 offers wise and insightful perspectives from information commons architects, while chapter 4 covers new ground by providing a case study of a large state library. The 30 mini-case studies are in concise, accessible format and add valuable breadth and currency to the existing information commons "biographies." Twenty-one of them provide new insight into existing information commons, while seven provide interesting updates to earlier case studies found in The Information Commons Handbook (New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, 2006) and Transforming Library Service through Information Commons (Chicago: American Library Association, 2008).

One less helpful aspect of this volume—found in much of the literature—is the blurring of the information commons concept. While avoiding prescriptive and rigid definitions, the book could have done a better job at highlighting patterns over time and recognizing pertinent conceptual categories. It would have helped the reader understand the taxonomic relationships and the commonalities and differences found among information commons. Both of the books referenced above provide taxonomic schemas for representing information commons.

With the exception of Crit Stuart's comments in the afterword and brief mentions in seven case studies, this volume limits its focus to information commons as student resources, services, and facilities, instead of as a place for students and faculty to collaboratively engage in interactive teaching, learning, research, and knowledge creation. The information commons is surely most vital when it is a constellation of resources, services, and facilities available to all—students, faculty, and staff. Inclusion of these additional perspectives would have made this volume more useful.

A Field Guide to the Information Commons is recommended for librarians, administrators, and educators.