Planning and Implementing Resource Discovery Tools in Academic Libraries

For librarians and administrators, Popp, a resource and discovery librarian at Indiana U. Bloomington, and Dallis, a dean for academic library services there, bring together 40 chapters by librarians from US and Canadian universities on planning and implementing resource discovery tools to meet the needs of users for a simple search and the desires of librarians to present scholarly research in ways appropriate for today's user, who is used to simple web search engines. They first review information seeking among academic users, the federated search as a precursor to discovery tools, and issues involved in planning, implementation, use, and maintenance of discovery tools. Then, through case studies of various universities, they describe how to evaluate tools; user behavior and expectations; user teaching and user-centered design in implementing discovery solutions, with discussion of EBSCO Discovery Services, Primo from ExLibris, and Serials Solutions Summon; implementation issues, including resource selection and configuration of the public interface and the development of an in-house discovery tool; embedding the tool within environments such as a learning management system and enterprise portal or a consortium environment; supporting organizational buy-in; marketing; the impact on collection use and cataloging maintenance; experiences in selecting and implementing products like Encore Strategy, Primo Central, and WorldCat Local; and problems of next generation search tools and the challenges and opportunities of the metadata environment in the context of discovery tools, as well as tools for music researchers.

Providing both practical advice and critical analysis of resource discovery tools’ use, implementation, and effectiveness in academic libraries, this volume offers theory and practical chapters, supporting librarians, administrators, and programmers in academic and specialized library settings who are considering and currently using resource discovery tools.

Choosing the right discovery product that not only enables the myriad of resources to be aggregated and exposed but at the same time provides a positive search experience for the user can be a daunting and overwhelming decision for any library. This comprehensive reference source on virtually all aspects of selecting a discovery service in an academic library provides just what a library needs to make an informed and thoughtful decision. Edited by Mary Pagliero Popp and Diane Dallis, this book packs a punch at a whopping 732 pages of useful and timely information that goes beyond selecting and implementing discovery services.

This book includes a critical analysis of why discovery tools are gaining such wide acceptance in the marketplace despite their cost and their limitations. It also addresses the problems which will face the next generation of search tools and the associated metadata. Most intriguing is the promise offered by the option of adding a collection-browsing tool and promoting the value of serendipity in research. This book is a must have for every academic library intending to continue operating into the future.

This hefty volume is a comprehensive exploration of discovery tools meant for academic librarians considering implementing, switching, or evaluating discovery tools. Experienced contributors (mostly from larger academic libraries) report, analyze, and assess their research and experiences at every step in the process. All academic librarians can benefit from the authors’ experiences by dipping into one or more of the 40 articles covering topics such as the RFP process, institutional buy-in, discovery in a consortial environment, and usability testing. There are also articles on specific discovery tools, such as Primo, WorldCat Local, and Summon. The guide, lengthy as it is, is tempting to read from beginning to end. Articles are quick and fascinating to peruse, with screen shots, replicated test instruments, tables, and charts.