Library H3LP at Somerset County Library System

By Lisa Bogart
Virtual help is available to information seekers from the Somerset County Library System (SCLS). Found on the front page of the library’s website (www.sclsnj.org), internet researchers can click on “Ask SCLS” to obtain help from librarians through the chat-based service.
Until December 2011, SCLS, along with most New Jersey public libraries, participated in QandANJ. This service, underwritten by the New Jersey State Library, was a 24 hour virtual chat reference tool. With the growth of the internet and the ongoing digitization of reference resources, the service saw significant drop-off in use over the years, and it was finally discontinued. 
SCLS however wanted to assure patrons of the capability to receive assistance, if they choose, through a similar chat-based tool. Library H3LP, labeled “Ask SCLS” on-line, is the tool that the library has selected to provide virtual assistance.  Currently, Ask SCLS is available during Bridgewater Library hours.
"We know that increasing numbers of customers appreciate getting help using chat on their computers or phones, so we’re happy to be able to provide just such a service, especially now, with the demise of QandANJ. If a question comes in after normal business hours, we’ll do our best to follow through the next day," explained Brian Auger, director of SCLS. 
Ask SCLS is available on the front page of the library’s website, www.sclsnj.org. It can also be accessed by clicking on the “Homework/Research” pull down menu on the front page of the website, and then selecting “Ask a Librarian,” through the “Contact” pull down menu on the front page, and the Middle Schoolers and High Schoolers pages. A chat window is open or opens on the webpage. Lastly, Ask SCLS may also be accessed through the SCLS mobile app.
Patrons with further questions should call their local branch SCLS or enter the website at http://www.sclsnj.org. The Somerset County Library System has branches in Bridgewater, Bound Brook, Hillsborough, at the Mary Jacobs Library in Rocky Hill, North Plainfield, Peapack & Gladstone, Somerville, Warren Township and Watchung.