Evaluating and Selecting a Library Web Scale Discovery Service

Authors

Jason Vaughan, University of Nevada, Las VegasFollow

Editors

Diane Dallis; Mary Popp

Document Type

Chapter

Publication Date

6-2012

Publication Title

Planning and Implementing Resource Discovery Tools in Academic Libraries

Publisher

IGI Global

Publisher Location

Hershey, PA

Edition

1st

First page number:

59

Last page number:

76

Abstract

Selecting a major new discovery service for students and researchers is an important undertaking. Web-scale discovery has implications for library staff and the work they do. More importantly, Web-scale discovery offers promise in simplifying the research process for library users and steering them toward selected and often scholarly content owned or licensed by the host library. Given such broad implications, prospective customers should carefully evaluate options to meet their goal of finding the best potential match for their library. This chapter provides a frame for such an evaluation, based in part on the evaluation process used at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas Libraries. It highlights the important internal and external steps library staff may wish to consider as they evaluate these discovery services for their local environment. By involving a wide range of stakeholders and conducting thorough research, libraries are in the best position to make an informed and confident decision.

Keywords

Libraries; Online information services – Evaluation; Online library catalogs – Evaluation

Disciplines

Education | Library and Information Science | Science and Technology Studies

Language

English

Permissions

Use Find in Your Library, contact the author, or use interlibrary loan to garner a copy of the chapter. Publisher copyright policy allows author to archive post-print (author’s final manuscript). When post-print is available or publisher policy changes, the manuscript will be deposited.

Publisher Citation

Vaughan, J. (2012). Evaluating and Selecting a Library Web-Scale Discovery Service. In M. Popp, & D. Dallis (Eds.), Planning and Implementing Resource Discovery Tools in Academic Libraries (pp. 59-76). Hershey, PA: Information Science Reference. doi:10.4018/978-1-4666-1821-3.ch004

Repository Citation

Vaughan, J. (2012). Evaluating and Selecting a Library Web Scale Discovery Service. In Diane Dallis; Mary Popp, Planning and Implementing Resource Discovery Tools in Academic Libraries 59-76. Hershey, PA: IGI Global.