Approaching beyond reality to connect realism in the library

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to investigate how libraries adopt beyond reality technologies like virtual reality, augmented reality, mixed reality and extended reality to provide an engaging environment and transform user service provision.

Design/methodology/approach

The study explained different facets of beyond reality. It surveyed various library websites and analysed literature dealing with varying forms of beyond reality technology to gain an idea of how libraries perceive the relevance of this emerging technology for incorporation in its workflow.

Findings

The study presented some use case studies to give an overview of the adoption of this technology in libraries. The study also outlines the scope of future possibilities for the expansion of applications.

Originality/value

The practical examples will help improve the understanding of practicing librarians who are contemplating implementation or preparing to cover more areas under this technology in libraries and encourage researchers to explore the integration of artificial intelligence and machine learning with this technology in a cloud infrastructure to leverage maximum outcome in a broader perspective from this immersive technology.

Citation

De Sarkar, T. (2024), "Approaching beyond reality to connect realism in the library", Library Hi Tech News, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/LHTN-08-2024-0132