This article describes the Project Lefty, a search system that, at a minimum, adds a layer on top of traditional federated search tools that will make the wait for results more worthwhile for researchers. At best, Project Lefty improves search queries and relevance rankings for web-scale discovery tools to make the results themselves more relevant…

Describes the redesign of the Web site at the virtual library of the NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology). Discusses usability problems with the original site, including navigation difficulties; focus groups to determine user needs; usability testing for the new Web site; and the importance of customer input. (LRW)