If you are participating in this training, you have most likely joined one of the member libraries participating in the Western New York Library Resources Council's (WNYLRC) Ask Us 24/7 Virtual Reference Project. The libraries participating in the service include a variety of academic, public, and specialized libraries throughout Upstate New York.
Each of these libraries is responsible for staffing the virtual reference desk for a certain number of hours per week, depending on population (or student enrollment) and materials budget. As an individual your library will assign you a certain number of their designated hours to cover during the week.
Each library has its own URL to use on its website when linking to Ask Us 24/7. This unique link identifies the library the patron came from, which allows them to receive the most effective help from the chatting librarian. In addition to using their own library's website, patrons can access Ask Us 24/7 by going to http://www.askus247.org. On this page, the patron can select their library, which then sends them to the appropriate unique URL.
Anyone in Upstate New York can use Ask Us 24/7, even if their library does not participate. However, since their library does not have an account with QuestionPoint, the chatting librarian will not be able to view a policy page for that institution, or forward a question to the institution for e-mail follow-up. To access the service if their library does not participate, patrons can go to http://www.askus247.org and select the option titled "My Library is Not Listed." This will allow them to access the service, identified simply as a patron of Ask Us 24/7, rather than a specific library.
