An online questionnaire survey was distributed amongst the Petherick Readers of the National Library of Australia, a user group of scholars and researchers. The survey asked questions about the readers' use and appreciation of the NLA catalogue. This group of users clearly appreciated the library catalogue and demonstrated that there are still…

This report describes the On-Line ERIC Project conducted jointly by the National Library of Australia and by IBM Australia Ltd. between March and May 1976. The Project involved a telecommunications network with video terminals and printers linking the National Library, the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology Central Library, and Macquarie…

A survey of online searchers' perceptions of seven database vendors over 13 service-related characteristics resulted in DIALOG being ranked first for all attributes. A statistically significant relationship between overall preference and frequency of use was demonstrated, with reliability, variety, and flexibility the most highly ranked…

A study was undertaken in 1980-81 to investigate the process of user adaptation to an unfamiliar interactive database search system. Adaptation was defined as performance on, knowledge of, and attitude toward the system being used. The experiment tested 44 students and staff members at the University of Sheffield and Sheffield City Polytechnic in…

Examined the search strategies used by researchers and others to search the Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) database through questionnaires completed by 3,420 users. Results indicate that college professors and educational researchers do a better job searching ERIC, but most end-users should be using better search strategies. (SLD)

The evaluation and selection of information/data management system software for the Egyptian National Scientific and Technical (STI) Network are described. An overview of the state-of-the-art of database technology elaborates on the differences between information retrieval and database management systems (DBMS). The desirable characteristics of…

A self-instructional audiocassette/workbook training kit, Learn INFORM, was designed to teach new users how to search the database ABI/INFORM and to help more experienced searchers sharpen their searching skills. The 35-minute audiocassette is a dialogue between an information specialist and an end user, while the step-by-step workbook includes…

Review of research on online public access catalogs sponsored by Council on Library Resources notes the scope and method (questionnaires administered to catalog users and nonusers in 29 participating institutions) and findings and applications (including organizational setting and computer system, catalog use and satisfaction, and implications).…

Describes the partnership between the public and private sectors in developing and marketing the ERIC database in CD-ROM format. Particular emphasis is given to the marketing research and protocols of partnership that were developed. (Author/CLB)

Describes method of selecting document groups for automation developed by Advanced Document Management Systems staff at Westinghouse Water Reactor Divisions. Criteria for inclusion of document in database, survey questionnaire, a weighting formula to assign priorities (critical, frequency of retrieval, quality assurance, interdivisional use), and…

Applies theories about organizational information processing to better understand the influences on method of access and on effects of using online information. Explores the extent to which organizational differences also influence these variables, what the positive and negative outcomes from using online commercial databases are, and how those…

Describes a project conducted at Stevens Institute of Technology to develop and test the applicability of full-text electronic databases and full-text retrieval technology for use in undergraduate humanities education. The creation of a machine-readable database on Galileo is described, student reactions are discussed, and further work is…

Describes the University of California at Berkeley's participation in the TREC (Text Retrieval Conference) interactive track experiments. Highlights include results of searches on two systems, Cheshire II and ZPRISE; system design goals and implementation; precision and recall results; search questions by topic and system; and results of…

This paper describes a computer support system that eliminated many of the problems associated with the usual methods of transcribing and analyzing questionnaire data. The system was created to support the course evaluation system at Athabasca University, a distance education university in Canada. The courses evaluated were all home study courses,…

A brief summary of the progress and status of the Individualized Instruction for Data Access (IIDA) project is followed by a report dealing with two studies in the environment for which the system was intended. These field experiments were conducted with research engineers and chemists at two different Exxon Research and Engineering Company sites.…