Technology and the increased availability of computers in homes have affected libraries in a variety of ways. As computer technology has developed, library patrons have become more self-reliant and the library service known as “the reference question” has begun to decline. Although librarians are expected to stay informed about the latest technology, they now spend less time answering reference questions. Some librarians are shouting for joy at not being interrupted to answer so many questions, but others, like myself, feel as if an old friend is slipping away.

Reference questions make us ponder. They make us dig into books, databases, journals, newspapers and any resource we find that will lead us to our destination - the answer. The reference question may test a librarian's knowledge, persistence or sense of humor. Librarians have been asked to search for titles such as: “The Killer Mockingbirds,” “Cranberry Tales” and “The Hound of the Basketball.”

Thompson Gale, a company known for its in-depth reference materials, has published a compendium of baffling, bewildering and bizarre questions posed to librarians. Some questions include: “What country does the Salvation Army protect?” “Where can I find a book about the disease Marco Polo?” “Where can I find information on the extinct animal known as the battering ram?”

Then, there are the questions that get under your skin, the questions that make you stop a second and ask “why would anyone need to know that?” Questions like: “How tall was Betsy Ross?” “Who was the first person to use the word blue?” One question that haunts me to this day is, “What was the name of Pavlov's dog?”

Some reference questions can be life changing. I gained my now husband's admiration because of a reference question. His dilemma was, “How do I get pink out a load of white clothes?” I guess he liked my answer. Recently, a young mother asked us to identify a plant she had found in her yard. She wanted to make sure eating the little tomato-like berries was OK for her daughter. The plant turned out to be deadly nightshade. Luckily, she contacted us before her daughter ate any.

Although librarians are trained to locate information, there are times when they can't answer a question and a professional needs to be contacted. When dealing with questions that pertain to the medical or legal fields librarians must be careful not to interpret, give opinions or make recommendations.

To keep pace with the demand for Internet-based research, some libraries now have reference departments on the Web. Users simply e-mail questions and a librarian will respond.

I recently did a search on the Internet for “The Hound of the Basketball.” The following results appeared first: “Looking for Basketball Dog on ebay,” “Buy Quicksilver Hound at zappos.com” and “Basketball sweaters and beds 4 your dog.” After searching four pages of hits, there was no mention of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Sherlock Holmes or even a book! This exercise proved to me that, despite all the information on the Net, there is still a need for reference services. More importantly, for many questions, a librarian is still the best link to the answer.

Libbie Messina is a librarian at Stewart Lang Memorial Library in Cato