Prepared for students who participate in the California State University Long Beach (CSULB) Library Instruction Program (LIP), this document is both a working syllabus for classroom use and an outline of the lecture presentations given by librarian instructors, though it can also be used as a reference guide to review library research methods,…

Traces the development of cooperation between reference librarians and catalogers, highlighting cooperative goals, role of the library catalog in meeting informational requirements of patrons, involvement of catalog librarians in library instruction, and patterns of library organization. Future trends are discussed. Twenty sources are given. (EJS)

Discusses the integration of subject pathfinders into online public access catalogs (OPAC) through following features: within the OPAC, offline user guide manuals, remotely printed upon user request, or online as saved searches displayed in help screen format. Excerpts of a pathfinder display for biotechnology are presented. Four sources are…

Discusses the needs of remote users of online public access catalogs (OPACs). User expectations are discussed; problems encountered by remote-access users are examined, including technical problems and searching problems; support services are described, including instruction, print guides, and online help; and differences from the needs of…

This discussion of online public access catalog (OPAC) user assistance includes results of focused-group interviews of 70 OPAC users at six libraries. Importance of printed materials, library staff assistance, users' problems relearning OPAC searching, computer-assisted instruction, multiple-dialog modes, informative system error messages, and…

This guide to Rutgers University Libraries (RUL) is intended as an introduction to the library system for foreign students studying at the University. The guide consists of the following: welcoming remarks; a brief discussion of the American academic library systems; a list of the locations and abbreviations of the 25 libraries, collections and…

Developed for use in the Library Studies I component of the Library Studies Program at Bloomsburg University (Pennsylvania), this self-paced workbook is intended to acquaint students with the Harvey A. Andruss Library and help them develop information-seeking skills. The workbook is designed to be used in conjunction with an exercise book, and…

This study focuses on the planning necessary to support library instruction for an online public access catalog in an academic library. The installation of an online catalog is viewed as an opportunity for librarians to teach effective use of the library catalog. The project report consists of a review of the literature pertaining to the…

Explores issues surrounding efforts to introduce online catalogs to users and presents relevant research results from Northwestern University's "Educating the Online Catalog User" project. Highlights include attitudes and preconceptions about online catalogs and instruction, research on online catalog use, suggestions for online catalog teaching,…

Designed to help students acquire basic library skills, this handbook provides an introduction to the services and types of materials offered by the Cumberland County College Library (New Jersey). The handbook is arranged in the following sections: (1) a listing of the hours and services of the library; (2) an explanation of how books are arranged…

This essay offers suggestions to make online public access catalogs (OPACs) less idiosyncratic and more usable. Discussion covers qualitative difference between online catalog and predecessors, challenge of debunking assumptions, skills for success, maintaining an instructional perspective, catalog development for the people by the people, and the…

Discusses the definition of an online library catalog; five factors to be considered by the online catalog designer; user-computer communication (error messages, help screens, prompts, unnatural language); online tutorials and offline instruction offered by bibliographic instruction librarians; and the current situation. Nine references are…

There is a communications gap between library users and the cataloger. Library of Congress classification may not seem logical to the user not indoctrinated into Library-Think.'' The author urges reference workers to be aware of and try to bridge the gap. (DH)

Describes a workshop program for patron instruction in the use of the Ohio State University Libraries' Library Control System (LCS), a circulation system that is evolving into an online catalog. The instructional objectives, attendance levels, participant characteristics, and success of the workshops are outlined, and seven references are…

Designed to help students acquire basic library skills, this handbook provides an introduction to the services and types of materials offered by the Wichita (Kansas) State University (WSU) Library. The handbook is arranged in three parts: (1) listings of the hours and services of the library together with the locations and types of materials; (2)…