Search

The purpose of this project was to investigate how students' search strategies changed over the course of a semester-long information literacy class. Data collection included four different paper questionnaires corresponding to course content in the spring 2008 semester. Seventy-seven participants completed the questionnaires and course work in the class. Results showed that participants' demographics did not have any impact on their selection of search keywords. While participants reported better search experiences with more search keywords, they were not able to develop more sophisticated search keywords after receiving more instruction and search experience. The participants who did develop more sophisticated search keywords had better search experiences and a higher rate of satisfaction with their research results. Future studies should examine what enabled these participants to develop more sophisticated search keywords. (Contains 6 tables.)

The Walter W. Stiern Library conducted a major redesign to conform the library website to modern web standards. While conducting think-aloud usability testing on the new page, we found that our users were disoriented, especially students who had previously used the site or undergone library information literacy instruction. Returning users indicated that the pathway they had been taught as a first-year student was the same pathway they used every time they needed to find research articles. They used the same databases and resources, and the same series of links to get to those resources. As clean, organized, and attractive as we felt the new site was, returning users felt unsettled in their information-seeking process. These findings suggest that as academic libraries forge ahead with new designs, directions, and products in various redesign projects, our websites should help returning users acclimate to new interfaces as much as possible. Further, librarians must consider their approach to information literacy and practice a less prescriptive form of instruction. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

User feedback on Web site design can be vital to understanding what issues library users may encounter when visiting a Web site, but obtaining this feedback can be time consuming, difficult to structure, and expensive. In past years, staff working on the Cal Poly Pomona University Library Web site collected user feedback from surveys and usability testing. This team was interested in acquiring a more basic understanding of how users interact with the Web in general, whether for research or other purposes, and how such experiences could inform design decisions. This article will discuss what focus groups are, why libraries should consider conducting focus groups for Web site testing and development, how focus groups can complement usability testing, and if focus groups are worth the time and effort. Results from focus group sessions will also be shared and discussed including information that fueled design decisions and benefits that participants gained from the experience. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Cal Poly Pomona University Library launched its first mobile Web site in 2007. The continuous development of the library's mobile Web sites has mostly been informed by feedback from library staff rather than from student users. As mobile devices and tablets become more prevalent among college students, it is crucial to gain a better understanding of students’ mobile and tablet usage patterns so that more decisions are data-driven and based on user expectations. This article details the findings from a study assessing the usability of the library's Web site for tablets and mobile devices, which includes survey feedback and three rounds of usability testing. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In the earlier years of the Web, libraries focused on moving services online and building digital collections, but in recent years, libraries have emerged as key players in the world of digital publishing. Librarians possess all of the necessary skills to act as digital publishers; they join the ranks of many others who have discovered the barriers around digital publishing are lower than ever. Library-based digital publishing solutions have matured to a point that the act of digital publishing could—and should—become a new core competency for the library profession. To explore this hypothesis, the researchers offer a working definition of digital publishing and assess the key roles that traditional publishers have historically offered over time. They find that librarians already possess the requisite skills to become digital publishers, and the collaborative culture of the library profession is a strength for this new role. Examples of digital publishing from two libraries at the University of California-Berkeley offer a proof of concept. Services at these libraries include the conceptualization of overall Web site strategies, a content plan that emphasizes distinctive and original material, and special projects that promote digital publishing at the local level, even as they take advantage of campus- or system-level services. Researchers find that offering library-based Web publishing services can reinforce overall information management programs and also advance the status of libraries within their respective host organizations. The comparative ease of digital publishing has opened an opportunity for librarians to follow the user as they use the Web in creative ways. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]