Many changes and some certainties for research and special libraries, and documentation centers

Abstract

It is argued that despite the many changes being experienced by research and specialized libraries, and documentation centers, which cause them doubts about their future, there are some certainties that allow these centers to properly address their activities. It is proposed to distinguish between minor and profound changes and it is affirmed that, for information centers, the fundamental change has been to go from a situation in which information was scarce and the time to look for it abundant, to another in which time to look for information is scarce and information is abundant. This should help redirect the activities of the information centers -following M. Buckland- to stop focusing on the "˜information- as-an-object´ to concentrate on the "˜information-as-a-process´. Two consolidated movements should help them to guide their future: the Open Science and the Digital Humanities. Some information products that reflect a change in the ways people approach and use information are examined: Museo del Prado´s The Collection, Transcribe Bentham, eBird and Mapa Literari Català. Finally, the author recommends to documentation centers, and specialized and research libraries to guide their services to digitize their heritage collections in an enriched manner, to promote citizen participation, and to create and strengthen communities.