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| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Recurso educativo Open Access |
| Language: | en |
| Published: |
1987
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED285596 |
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Table of Contents:
- Catalog Use at the University of Wisconsin-Stout: A Comparative Study. Richards, Mary Academic Libraries Card Catalogs Comparative Analysis Higher Education Library Automation Library Instruction Man Machine Systems Online Catalogs Online Searching Search Strategies Use Studies User Satisfaction (Information) Users (Information) This report describes a three-stage catalog use study conducted at the University of Wisconsin-Stout from 1982 through 1986 to determine the types of searches conducted and search success rates for both the card and online catalogs during the library's transition to the DataPhase Automated Library Information System (ALIS). Phase I, conducted before the introduction of online access, developed a baseline for future comparison; Phase II studied search type, search success, and use for both catalogs; and Phase III, conducted after the removal of the card catalog, concentrated on online catalog use. Data were collected by means of interviews with users for all three phases. Major findings include: (1) a majority of users performed subject searches rather than known-item searches; (2) virtually the only search types used were author, title, and subject; (3) use of the Library of Congress Subject Headings guide as part of the search strategy increased for online searchers; (4) use of online circulation information increased from Phase II to Phase III; (5) previous computer experience had no effect on users' success rates with the online catalog; and (6) Phase II users preferred the online catalog. A 16-item bibliography is provided, and 15 graphs depicting study results are appended. (KM)