Demonstrating the World Wide Web as an academic research tool

The Electronic Library, 2012

PurposeThe current study seeks to describe and analyze academic library websites in the years 2000 and 2010, as they appear both in the Internet Archive and in current library websites.Design/methodology/approachA content analysis of 31 academic libraries homepages which were selected from the ACRL accredited LIS schools was conducted.FindingsFindings reveal that the content of academic library websites in the years 2000 and 2010 has much changed over the ten years, presenting an increasing use of e‐journals and Web 2.0 applications, as well as a focus on library users, and a great use of graphics in websites.Practical implicationsThe comparison documented in the paper should prove very interesting and important to librarians, information scientists, LIS scholars and students, presenting trends, changes and innovations that have occurred within the scope of academic libraries over the last ten years.Originality/valueThis study presents a yet unexplored dimension: the comparison, foc...

1997

The U S WEST Research & Information Group, the corporate research library, has recently moved many of its resources and services to the company's intranet. Principle among the group's functions is conducting information searches and research analyses for employees. This paper describes a webbased system that employees can use to interact with library researchers. The system also automates tracking of research service usage and indexing and archiving of research requests and actions. Library clients initiate research requests using a personal web page. Each request generates its own web page on which interaction between cIient and researcher takes place. Researchers and clients can post comments, record actions, use e-mail, and upload and download files through the request web page. When the interaction is over, the client may record an evaluation using the same web page and all actions are saved for administrative purposes. Research interactions are maintained in a searchable archive which cau be viewed by all employees.

The DLSU faculty researchers welcome the influx of information resources in electronic format. This is proven by the 62.13% or 210 out of 338 works of DLSU faculty researchers submitted to Libraries from AY 2008-2009 to AY 2012-2013 which cited 1,895 information resources in electronic format. Said sources are in the form of e-journal, e-book/e-monograph, e-thesis/e-dissertation, e-handout, website and web document. With the great number of e-resources users, it is important to know if the Libraries can cater to the growing e-resources needs of our faculty. Using citation analysis method, this study reveals the information that are essential in the continuous pursuit of the Libraries to accommodate research needs of its researchers, particularly the electronic resources need. It also analyses the value of the DLSU Libraries’ electronic resources, as it provides information on the degree of availability of cited e-resources in the Libraries and presents concrete data on the actual use of the Libraries’ current electronic subscriptions.

Serials Review, 2009

The editors of this special edition originally asked if institutional repositories are shaping and changing scholarly communications. While the Open Access movement has had a profound impact, there is at least one area where repositories are not. While repositories are Web-based, they almost always contain only print-oriented materials which are not fully realizing the fabric of the Web and its ability to link documents to each other and to data. This article will explore some of the factors that have contributed to this print-dominated situation and then report on work undertaken at the University of Southern Queensland (USQ) to make repositories more Web-like, using a publishing system which was originally devised at the university for publishing course materials to multiple formats. The article concludes with a description of a new model for changing scholarship by focusing on post-graduate theses and new journals in an open access context.

This study provided insight into the significance of the open Web as an information resource and Web search engines as research tools amongst academics. The academic staff establishment of the University of South Africa (Unisa) was invited to participate in a questionnaire survey and included 1188 staff members from five colleges. This study culminated in a PhD dissertation in 2008. One hundred and eighty seven respondents participated in the survey which gave a response rate of 15.7%. The results of this study show that academics have indeed accepted the open Web as a useful information resource and Web search engines as retrieval tools when seeking information for academic and research work. The majority of respondents used the open Web and Web search engines on a daily or weekly basis to source academic and research information. The main obstacles presented by using the open Web and Web search engines included lack of time to search and browse the Web, information overload, poor network speed and the slow downloading speed of webpages.

2010

DESIDOC Journal of Library & Information Technology, 2010

The introduction of digital information resources on Internet has revolutionised the academic world. The Internet is paving way for a great leap in the field of higher education and research. This paper is an attempt to investigate the use of Internet resources by the academic community of the Sri Venkateswara University (SVU), Tirupati. For this purpose a survey was carried out using questionnaire tool. The results show that users from all branches of science are making use of Internet resources better than social sciences and humanities. Providing training to its users at the beginning of each semester will improve its use and reduce the problems faced by the library users. The paper highlighted the various problems and issues involved in handling digital library and has given suggestions to improve the library services to meet the demands of the users.

Development of a Web-Based Digital Library, 2023

The advent of the Internet and its accompanying telecommunications infrastructure has revolutionized information and communication technology (ICT), leaving an indelible impact on almost every aspect of human endeavour. This unprecedented progress has led to an increase in developments, research and discoveries in various fields, resulting in an incredible volume of library publications and materials. As a result, the complexity of library systems and their operations has increased, prompting the need to develop sophisticated web-based digital library systems. A web-based digital library system is a large multimedia content information management system supported by a standardized relational database structure. The main objective of this study is to highlight the importance and usefulness of digital libraries to aid in the improvement of knowledge acquisition, especially in the context of university or higher education. To achieve this, the study uses object-oriented analysis and design methodology, which ensures the creation of stable and user-friendly software for both staff and university students. Digital resources which includes books and other educational materials were obtained from an online repository (pdfdrive.com) while the multiple choice questions used in the library were procured from the Safoundry website (safoundry.com). These resources were implemented according to design, using vue.js as the framework and programming language of choice. The finished work was hosted on Firebase which also serves as the back-end of the implementation . Research results clearly demonstrate that web-based digital library implementation has many positive effects on the usability of university libraries, mainly through providing convenient web access. By leveraging the power of technology, an electronic library system improves the accessibility and convenience of library resources, which in turn affects the use and participation of library services. institute of the university community. In summary, the development of a web-based electronic library system represents an important step in harnessing technology to enhance knowledge acquisition and optimize the functionality of academic libraries. With its user-friendly interface and seamless web access, the Web-Based Digital Library system enriches the overall experience of staff and students, promoting increased use and efficient exploitation of resources. library resources. It demonstrates the transformative potential of ICTs in redefining the educational landscape and disseminating information, paving the way for a more dynamic and inclusive learning environment.

Journal of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 2001

This research examines the use of Internet-based electronic resources (e-sources) by a group of library and information science (LIS) scholars. It focuses particularly on how scholars use, cite, and evaluate e-sources during the research process. This research also explores the problems scholars encounter and concerns they have when using e-sources for research. The following approaches were used to collect data for the investigation: (a) a longitudinal analysis of e-source citations in eight LIS journals from 1991 through 1998; (b) a survey of editors of the eight journals; and (c) a survey of 201 authors with articles to be published in the eight journals. The longitudinal analysis of e-source citations shows that there has been a notable increase in the number and proportion of authors who cite e-sources in their research articles over the 8-year period, although at the time of this study, e-sources were still cited much less frequently than print sources. This result provides empirical evidence that e-sources are increasingly used among scholars. Complementing the citation data, the results from the author survey show that e-sources are becoming an important component in scholars' research, and are serving a wide range of purposes and functions. The number of access points and self-perceived overall ability to use the Internet are identified as the two significant variables affecting frequency of esource use. The results of this study also suggest that a limited number of criteria can be implemented in practice for scholars to evaluate electronic sources and systems. When citing e-sources, scholars consider some factors that are unique to e-sources, in addition to the factors they consider for print sources. Although the advantages of e-sources promote citing, some drawbacks of e-sources at this stage serve as a barrier. The survey of editors also reveals a lack of clearly stated editorial policies regarding citing e-sources. The major problems and concerns reported by scholars regarding using e-sources are summarized, and both the theoretical implications and practical applications of the findings are discussed.

Computers and Composition, 2006

The steady increase in the use of Web sites as sources in undergraduate research-based papers has raised concerns about the suitability of these reference materials for citation and about the ability of undergraduates to distinguish between appropriate and inappropriate sources in academic writing. While informal means of evaluating Web sites are in existence, there is a need for Web-source assessment criteria that not only focus on the use of these particular sources in introductory undergraduate writing programs but also closely match the requirements of faculty within a specific academic field. This paper identifies elements of a prototypical rating instrument for students in Humanities courses based on the results of a three-part survey of faculty members in a Humanities Department (N = 31) and highlights the divergence between criteria that faculty found crucial and those that many undergraduate students appear to be using in their Web-based research.