Examines the effectiveness of four Web-based search engines--Alta Visa, infoseek, Lycos, and Open Text--from users' perspectives. Results show that although Lycos has the best relevance ranking performance and highest precision ratio, Alta Vista has the best connectivity, highest user satisfaction ratios for precision and three components of…

Discusses the importance of positive video game experiences and designs that can create them, including immediacy of feedback, allowing graceful recovery from mistakes, high-quality feedback, and input device mappings. Examines interface complexity. Concludes game designers must treat the interaction between human and video game as a formal…

Managing a company's knowledge requires a different set of skills than are typically found in a corporate Web team. Chief among these is a "customer-obsessed" philosophy. The job of taking content, tools, and data and providing a platform that makes it meaningful is an inevitable next step for Web teams in the age of the new intranet.…

A case study investigated the effectiveness of a new self-contained classroom with curriculum that was differentiated for 24 highly intellectually gifted fourth-and fifth-grade students. Results indicate the self-contained classroom provided a challenging learning environment for the students, but students' response to this more challenging…

Discusses findings from a study by the Division of Library Development and Services (DLDS), Maryland State Department of Education of how libraries provide information to children ages eight to fourteen. The survey examined factors/behaviors contributing to a successful library experience; to what degree questions/inquiries are answered; and…

There are many activities and approaches for helping new hires make transitions from classrooms to companies. This article serves as a framework for discussion about first-year attrition. Suggests employers need to create a relationship with employees, making new hires truly belong to the organization and identify with the values and beliefs of…

Surveys of the attitudes and intentions of 155 Australian agricultural students at the beginning and end of their freshman year in college were analyzed using structural equation modeling. Results show that constructs in the model--self-efficacy, future orientation, and generic skills self-estimates--were key predictors of student persistence and…

This study evaluated a comprehensive transition model for students with disabilities known as TASSEL (Teaching All Students Skills for Employment and Life) in two North Carolina school systems. Analysis of social validity data and student outcome data for 76 students found that consumers were satisfied with TASSEL transition services and student…

This intergenerational study focused upon obstacles confronting three gifted women in three generations in the same family. Obstacles included providing for basic needs of family, children, work, and others; the role of personal satisfaction as a quality of life; and the ability to accommodate wants, needs, and expectations of others. (Author/CR)

Investigates the relationship between learning preferences and the following antecedents of library anxiety: (1) barriers with staff, (2) affective barriers, (3) comfort with the library, (4) knowledge of the library, and (5) mechanical barriers. Participants were graduate students (n=203) in a research methodology course. Analysis revealed that…

Investigated the psychometric integrity of scores from the LibQUAL+ evaluation of perceived library service quality conducted by ARL (Association of Research Libraries). Examines score structure, score reliability, score correlation and concurrent validity coefficients, scale means, and scale standardized norms, and considers the potential of the…

Western Kentucky University Libraries developed a survey similar to its Web-based library satisfaction survey, with identical content for library Web and exit patrons to compare these groups' responses. Focuses on the collection of Web and exit survey responses in a two-week period, transformation of response data for analysis, comparison of the…

A study examining the motivation of staff at British residential outdoor centers found that motivation was affected by work environment, nature of work, entry motivation, intrinsic belief, and external and internal motivators and de-motivators. The strongest motivational factor among outdoor center staff revolved around doing a good job. Increased…

Develops a framework of factors that influence the midcareer satisfaction of professional women, delineating key demographic, career, organizational, job, and stress factors. After providing a research background and describing the framework, the article dissects the framework and defines and develops propositions for each key dimension,…

Identifies public library policies, programs, services, or practices that have ruined customer relations and offers suggestions on how they could have been avoided. Highlights include automated telephone answering systems; staff monitoring of computer use; self-service equipment, particularly photocopiers; release forms; staff parking; loan…