Reports on a two-phase study of academic libraries to identify patterns of database use and the factors that might influence this use. Online data was used as well as results from a survey that investigated factors that may influence online use, including level of instruction and availability of remote access. (LRW)

Examines current demographics of Web usage and the challenges they reveal. Provides guidance for creating World Wide Web content for international audiences. Addresses what can be achieved by making the Web a truly international medium. Concludes that a consensus has not yet been reached on a global graphic language. (PA)

A review of relevant library literature suggests that public library service to lesbian, gay, and bisexual people is poor. Offers ten suggestions to improve library services to these groups and discusses user studies; access, including classification and cataloging; library holdings; and social responsibility versus professional neutrality.…

Discusses three papers presented at the 1994 ALA (American Library Association) annual convention in Miami Beach (Florida) that deal with investment information in academic libraries and their use by faculty, doctoral students, undergraduates, MBA (Masters of Business Administration) students, and individual investors. (Author/LRW)

Discusses trends in library reference services, focusing on the needs of the individual user. Highlights include the effects of CD-ROM; the growth of online systems; tiered reference service structures; roving reference librarians; going out to users; user studies; and bibliographic instruction. (LRW)

Reports findings from a study of searching behavior by over 200,000 users of the Excite search engine. Analysis of over one million queries revealed most people use few search terms, few modified queries, view few Web pages, and rarely use advanced search features. Concludes that Web searching by the public differs significantly from searching of…

Reports on a study that examined which of the available simulators could be used by the U.S. Army Armor School (Fort Knox, Kentucky) for instructional purposes and determined actual usage of large-scale simulation networking (SIMNET) by examining usage logs maintained by SIMNET operators. The appendices list Armor School courses and simulators.…

Surveys at Darton College (Albany, Georgia) revealed that faculty felt little personal connection to existing pre-produced telecourses and that students felt isolated from the on-campus community. Describes the implementation, success, and subsequent expansion of a system allowing the transmission of courses to home-based students as they are…

A survey of undergraduates taking 17 live, interactive telecourses at 68 remote sites revealed that high levels of relative performance were associated with (1) student satisfaction with the technological aspects of the course; (2) student satisfaction with the promptness of material exchange with the instructor; and (3) overall student…

Demonstrates the benefits and problems of using Web log analysis to extract information about the global information customer. The Web logs examined were those of "The Times" and "Sunday Times." Highlights include the measures and metrics; the data and its meaning; and analyses with potential (AEF)

Explores the implications of articulating the bridges that are built, usually implicitly, between metatheory and method, and between these and their ultimate interests, the doing of research; the purpose is to articulate the uses of methodology. Suggests that there is lacking a vocabulary for talking about methodology which attends to the…

Discusses the trials and errors of creating Web sites for libraries. Topics include knowing what the Internet offers, supporting academic computing personnel, observing patron use of the Web, knowing the target audience, developing a selection policy, making and checking links, and analyzing usage data. (LRW)

Explores the potential impact of imposed query, a new model of information-seeking behavior, on current approaches to library service and system evaluation. Discusses reference service evaluation, user studies, output measures, and relevance as an evaluation tool. Argues that imposed query broadens understanding of the user and of the role that…

This response to an article evaluating Indiana's early intervention service delivery (EC 628 669) identifies implications of the study including: service intensity is relatively light; service location and context and the process of Individualized Family Service Plan formulation should be examined; implementation should be treated as an…

This reaction piece briefly reviews the findings from the Bober and Bartlett study of training evaluation use in corporate universities. It then focuses on the importance of context in understanding and facilitating evaluation use. The author suggests an alternative interpretation of particular findings based on a deeper consideration of the…