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Following are comments by Greg Hajic, who is responsible
for computer-applications assistance to users in the
Map & Imagery Lab, UCSB:
 
Well, Chris has summed up the feelings of many a map librarian I would
suspect. It sounds like he has done as much advance work as possible to
miminmize time spent with frequent requests. And it sounds like he has
a good grasp of what his patrons want and how to go about delivering. I
think he hit the nail on the head with the line: "Just about everyone
has needed help in getting started, and the majority of users have
required vast amounts of additional help."
 
Making software easier to use would be nice, but I only see that
happening slowly over time. I think the trade-off with ease-of-use is
limited functionality; it is hard to get something for nothing (no free
lunch and all that). The only alternative to additional staff, or
specialized staff is for patrons to expect a slower turn around time.
No matter how you slice it, custom-designed maps from a digital source
take time to produce, period. I know the desire and the past standard
is/has been to provide walk-in service. Maybe that just isn't realistic
in this low-budget (minimum staff), high-tech (skilled labor) environment.
 
I think things will improve over time though. We are in a transition
period which requires lightning adaptation to the high-tech products
which appear at a faster-than-light rate with staff that are literally
pushed into the abyss of state-of-the-art technology, dragging their
card catalogues with them. Over time, positions will evolve to smooth
out the inequities of service during this transition period. I think
(hope) we will look back on this period and laugh about the volume of
high-tech equipment and the handful (if that) of staff available to
support and use it.
 
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