Akwa Ibom state builds an e-library without a website. Yet the governor claims books can be downloaded from remote locations.

On Monday, the governor of Akwa-Ibom state, Godswill Akpabio, led President Goodluck Jonathan to an elaborate ceremony to inaugurate the state's multimillion naira "e-library".

The commissioning ceremony was organised to mark the end of construction work on the project and signal the beginning of use of the facility.

The president did the usual tape cutting, briefly inspected the facility and gave the governor a pat on the back before hopping on his plane back to Abuja.

But perhaps unknown to the president, the edifice he commissioned with much pomp and ceremony does not have a website as expected of any electronic library of this age.

A web platform, experts say, is a core, indispensable part of electronic libraries across the world.

“I was overjoyed after learning about the commissioning of an e-library in Nigeria,” Jackson Ikane, a university student, said. “But my joy was short lived. The library is not what I thought, It doesn’t have a website!”

Electronic libraries all over the world are designated as such for having a physical site, and most importantly, for having collections, stored in digital formats, that could be accessed remotely via the Internet.

The Akwa-Ibom “e-library” was inaugurated despite having only the physical site.

Aniekan Umana, the state’s information commissioner told PREMIUM TIMES the newly inaugurated library had one, but he could not provide us with link to the site.

“Google it,” he said on the telephone on Tuesday.

Pressed further on the matter, he asked for time to source it from the library. Twenty-four hours later, Mr Umana failed to provide us with a url to the state’s “e-library” website.

Media commissioning

State governors in Nigeria often times overemphasise commissioning ceremony that state projects attract - for the media mileage - ahead of building high quality projects for their electorates.

In most cases, journalists are flown or bussed from afar to complement expensive live coverages of the commissioning ceremonies. Some inauguration ceremonies are usually conducted even when projects are still far from completion.

In some cases, governors spend more money organizing flamboyant commissioning ceremonies than they are willing to spend on the commissioned projects.

During the commissioning ceremony on Monday, Mr. Akpabio, described the three-storey library complex as the first of its kind in West Africa.

He said the library has digital collections of 16.5 million e-documents “which can be accessed by users simultaneously.”

He added that the library also has two million electronic books “that can be downloaded” in addition to 14.5 million electronic research e-journals.

The governor added that the library has a conference centre with language translators, and urged the president to bring international conferences to the state, to be hosted in the “e-library.”

Mr. Umana could not explain how books could be downloaded from afar (as claimed by the governor) without a functional web platform.

Source: http://saharareporters.com/news-page/gov-akpabios-phony-e-library-much-hyped-akwa-ibom-e-library-has-no-website

A simple case of political 419!

Post modified

There is a website http://www.ibomelibrary.org/

^
If you have ever been into some libraries abroad, you will understand the concept. You go into the building, access a terminal, search and download a book unto your e-reader, USB stick etc. Thats how it works.

Beaf: ^
If you have ever been into some libraries abroad, you will understand the concept. You go into the building, access a terminal, search and download a book unto your e-reader, USB stick etc. Thats how it works.

tell them o but where are the pictures of the edifice?

Beaf: ^
If you have ever been into some libraries abroad, you will understand the concept. You go into the building, access a terminal, search and download a book unto your e-reader, USB stick etc. Thats how it works.

You need a website to download a book!

You can subscribe to a lot of journals, e-books etc through a specific IP upon which you can only download while logged in with that IP, nevertheless you need a website.

bayooooooo:

You need a website to download a book!

You can subscribe to a lot of journals, e-books etc through a specific IP upon which you can only download while logged in with that IP, nevertheless you need a website.

I just told you how the e-library works and you are still arguing.
It is a building full of computers, not physical books. You go in, download your book and thats it; they would likely have print services, so you can print the entire book.

otokx:

tell them o but where are the pictures of the edifice?

This is from Flikr:

Beaf:

[b]I just told you how the e-library works and you are still arguing.
[/b]It is a building full of computers, not physical books. You go in, download your book and thats it; they would likely have print services, so you can print the entire book.

No! You can't operate an E-library without a website! You don't just download book from computer, you do from a website and you don't have to go to a designated building to do that. You can download and print from anywhere in the world! All you need is means to access such website either in terms of a recognized IP or through a proxy. I download books without being to my library using an installed Cisco proxy software that re routes my query through the recognized url.

Tell me when you enter the library and access the computers, from which website will you download the books?

This is an example of E-library opened by NUC while I was on campus www.nigerianvirtuallibrary.com You access it through a unique username and password, download a number of articles, e-books etc You don't need to stroll into any magnificent building!

Beaf:

I just told you how the e-library works and you are still arguing.
It is a building full of computers, not physical books. You go in, download your book and thats it; they would likely have print services, so you can print the entire book.

Typical of a chav. Would do anything to Steal peoples intellectual property rights.

The MTN E-library across designated tertiary institutions readily comes to mind . . .You just have to visit a particular building connected to the web loaded with MTN branded systems . . .only via this system will you have unfetered access to their E-library collections . . .

We always had battles with the admins cos we were always using VPNs and proxies to access banned sites such as the social networking and sports sites . .

Am sure this E-library had that concept when it was planned . . .and i understand exactly what Beaf is saying . . .

We shouldn't be quick to label it a scam

bayooooooo:

No! You can't operate an E-library without a website! You don't just download book from computer, you do from a website and you don't have to go to a designated building to do that. You can download and print from anywhere in the world! All you need is means to access such website either in terms of a recognized IP or through a proxy. I download books without being to my library using an installed Cisco proxy software that re routes my query through the recognized url.

Tell me when you enter the library and access the computers, from which website will you download the books?

This is an example of E-library opened by NUC while I was on campus www.nigerianvirtuallibrary.com You access it through a unique username and password, download a number of articles, e-books etc You don't need to stroll into any magnificent building!

Dude, I'm an IT person (some would say, guru, but ayam very modest ), so please cut out the talk about IP's and proxies.
This is from the article you posted, its crystal clear, bro:

He said the library has digital collections of 16.5 million e-documents “which can be accessed by users simultaneously.”

He added that the library also has two million electronic books “that can be downloaded” in addition to 14.5 million electronic research e-journals.

Beaf:

Dude, I'm an IT person (some would say, guru, but ayam very modest ), so please cut out the talk about IP's and proxies.
This is from the article you posted, its crystal clear, bro:

That does not change anything. We are not talking rocket science.

When you have digital collections, it merely means you have subscriptions to access such collections for a designated period which in any case is renewable. Such collections do not become your permanent property.

Each time you want to access such digital collections, you need a platform unique to your library or your school, whatever. That brings the concept of IP and proxies, VPN for off-campus, off-physical library access. As an IT expert, tell me how you implement that without a website.

I don't understand what you guys are arguing about. If it were an internet based library , there will be no need for such complex, just get a cool room with a server and u ve ur e-library.
This is different, u enter the library, get a screen and do ur research from the library portal/database. From research materials which normally even online is paid/subscribed

ITbomb:
This is different, u enter the library, get a screen and do ur research from the library portal/database. From research materials which normally even online is paid/subscribed

Simple

bayooooooo:

That does not change anything. We are not talking rocket science.

When you have digital collections, it merely means you have subscriptions to access such collections for a designated period which in any case is renewable. Such collections do not become your permanent property.

Each time you want to access such digital collections, you need a platform unique to your library or your school, whatever. That brings the concept of IP and proxies, VPN for off-campus, off-physical library access. As an IT expert, tell me how you implement that without a website.

Broda, all dat one na akanmu!
All you need is a password for network access.

You don't really need a website to download e-books. You can do it remotely on window 7!

Beaf:

Broda, all dat one na akanmu!
All you need is a password for network access.

You are right IT guru!

Anyway the news item is false. There is a website for the library.
http://www.ibomelibrary.org/

http://akselibrary.org/index.php

Guys just chk this our: www.akselibrary.org , na so those rumour mongering/fake news experts go dey run their mouth, u can NEVER see this kind of 'news' on any reasonable media. May GOD punish sahara reporters. Smh

bayooooooo:

You are right IT guru!

Anyway the news item is false. There is a website for the library.
http://www.ibomelibrary.org/

http://akselibrary.org/index.php

.
[size=20pt]CASE CLOSED[/size]

Na wa o, so the OP will apologize for misleading article ?

Billyonaire: Na wa o, so the OP will apologize for misleading article ?

May be the website was created overnight after inquisitive calls from sh

Billyonaire: Na wa o, so the OP will apologize for misleading article ?

Yeah, my bad!

A simple check could have saved me the trouble. Besides, I was carried away by E-whatever to rationalize what was really wrong until I made an effort to download an article and truly realize that I was merely redirected to a website. Don't mind the fact that I download articles almost every two days.

A website is not needed to operate, you only need an access.

talk true:

May be the website was created overnight after inquisitive calls from sh

I don't think so. The website was registered in 2011.

Thanks for sharing.

bayooooooo:

Yeah, my bad!

A simple check could have saved me the trouble. Besides, I was carried away by E-whatever to rationalize what was really wrong until I made an effort to download an article and truly realize that I was merely redirected to a website. Don't mind the fact that I download articles almost every two days.

A website is not needed to operate, you only need an access.

You are a great dude, but you need to be very wary of Sahara Reporters. I wouldn't be surprised if half (or even more) of their news is manufactured.