This paper contrasts the arguments offered in the literature advocating the adoption of open source software (OSS)--software delivered with its source code--for teaching and learning applications, with the reality of limited enterprise-wide deployment of those applications in U.S. higher education. Drawing on the fields of organizational…

Describes the Information Market Indicators survey that monitors online vendors, database producers, and specific databases in terms of the revenues generated and number of connect hours of usage. Highlights and facts relative to calendar years 1982 and 1983 (usage, revenue data, vendor databases, database producers, classes of users) are…

This report summarizes the results of an international survey on the utilization of videotex and teletext which covered 20 countries, including Canada, Great Britain, France, Holland, Switzerland, the United States, and West Germany. Included are: (1) definitions and a comparison of the two media; (2) the methods used to collect the data…

Reviews of use studies of online systems at academic libraries support the need for aggressive public relations techniques to increase usage. An examination of user needs reveals the existence of a potential market of users that can substantially benefit from online services, but, so far, has not been reached by the libraries that supply these…

This overview of the status of online databases in the United Kingdom describes online users' attitudes and practices in light of two surveys conducted in the past two years. The Online Information Centre at ASLIB sampled 325 users, and Chadwyck-Healey, Ltd., conducted a face-to-face survey of librarians in a broad cross-section of 76 libraries.…

This survey of online search service centers in Canada was conducted to provide data on these centers and, more specifically, on the characteristics of the human search intermediary; and to provide an accurate overall picture of online searching in Canada. The survey questionnaires were mailed to approximately 765 Canadian customers of seven…

The use of online searching by reference librarians to provide actual answers and not just bibliographies or current awareness printouts has the potential to save time and money for the reference department. The quick reference service can actually promote rather than compete with the library's online search service for in depth subject searching.…

Describes a study at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill that analyzed the transaction logs of medical students' searches of a factual database to determine the overall frequency of search moves, the interaction between the problem statement and students' search strategies, the search moves selected, and the tactics used by students.…

This paper highlights the findings of two studies conducted by Market Opinion Research for Data Courier Inc., both of which focused on textual or bibliographic business information. The first study consisted of interviews with 535 known searchers of the ABI/INFORM file, a product of Data Courier Inc. The purpose was to determine the habits, needs,…

Two information dissemination centers at University of California at Los Angeles and University of Georgia studied the interactions between computer based search facilities and their users. The study, largely descriptive in nature, investigated the interaction processes between data base users and profile analysis or information specialists in…

Uses the example of bibliographic retrieval services to explore the potential impacts of historic usage trends, technological advances, actions/policies intended to enhance or control evolving services, and other social, economic, and political developments on areas of concern to users of online systems. Eight figures and 23 sources are included.…

Describes the nature of intellectual access to digitized art images using qualitative methodologies based on a study at the University of Central Florida. Queries of art historians are analyzed and compared to retrieval parameters and image characteristics, and implications for database design are suggested. (Author/LRW)

The role of information research centers in institutional research activities was explored, based on 1,040 requests for student data at an information center at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, during 1980-1985. Three distinct information center markets were identified and mechanisms for serving each market were recommended. The first was…

Based on the premise that editorial page writers do not have what they consider sufficient time to adequately research their topics, a study surveyed newspaper librarians and writers to determine the extent of database system use by editorial page writers. Circulations of the participating newspapers were included as a variable to determine if…

Presents preliminary results from a study of an information need identification system for interactive information retrieval for undergraduates researching a history topic. Concludes that the query taxonomy must include levels of topic specificity because while general topic-based queries are inappropriate as query terms, more specific topic-based…