Can we use the methods of Web usability testing to learn about library instruction? This article is among the first in the field trying to establish a link between usability and instruction. The author discusses useful insights that Web usability can bring to our pedagogy as well as to the efficiency of library instruction. The result of a Web…

Social networking and other Web 2.0 technologies led the social whirl of the information industry. Publishers and librarians tried to keep their products and services relevant by mixing authoritative content with user involvement, but that was not enough. Enhancing interfaces, adding new forms of content, and making strategic acquisitions--all are…

American education is failing many students, but especially students of color, from low-income families, with disabilities or those who have limited English proficiency. These students are the focus of "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB), the 2001 revision of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA), which was signed into law…

This study explores student selection of service learning projects in lieu of traditional library research projects. One hundred fifty-four strategic management students completed surveys exploring their tolerance of ambiguity, time pressure, attitudes toward civic participation, self-efficacy toward service, political conservatism, and the role…

The Web-at-Risk project is a digital preservation project funded by the Library of Congress as part of the National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program. The project is developing a Web archiving service to enable curators to build, store, and manage archived collections of Web-published materials captured largely from U.S.…

Educational needs assessments (hereafter NAs) are inattentive to cost considerations and are frequently dominated by elite stakeholder groups. In this article I make a case for adopting a cost-utility approach, illustrating the argument with data generated in a NA of central library services in a Canadian school district. Using survey data from…

In response to the rapid advances in information technology, greater pressure has been placed on academic libraries and teaching faculty to incorporate information literacy skills into the curriculum. Although these skills have been taught for decades, the principles and concepts of information literacy have taken on new urgency as they are…

The purpose of this volume is to add meaning to the statistics of New Jersey's diverse public libraries. This report interprets data obtained from the annual reports of 295 public libraries in the state. The report begins with an introduction describing how the data were analyzed. The introduction then displays the following tables graphically to…

Data collected from Alaska public libraries for fiscal year (FY) 1990 and FY 1991 are compiled. Statistics reported by the libraries and selected per capita computations are included. Information on the following is reported in sets of tables arranged alphabetically and by population for each year: (1) library circulation and interlibrary loan;…

This summary of Nebraska library statistics for the 1996-1997 fiscal year is a compilation of data reported by 225 public libraries. Of these reporting libraries, 74% meet the state guidelines required for accreditation and are eligible for direct state aid and federal grants. Sixty-seven pages of statistical charts are divided according to the…

This document contains statistics and input-output measures for all Colorado public libraries. Tables of the following 1997 survey data are provided: state totals and averages; public library addresses; telephone, fax, and URL for public libraries; public library directors; borrowers, outlets and bookmobiles; ALA-MLS librarians, other staff and…

Historical studies of public libraries are important because they provide insight into the development of these institutions and serve as an aid to future researchers. This paper examines the development of the Tuscarawas County Public Library (TCPL), in Ohio, for the years 1937-60, in order to discover how the library's building, budget,…

Based on information from the 1989 Federal-State Cooperative System for Public Library Data (FSCS), which was collected by the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) in machine readable format, this report summarizes information about the public libraries that was supplied to NCES by the State Library Agency…

Computers have had a tremendous impact on library services as automation has affected every aspect of library activity. Automated systems may be viewed as either internal, intermediate, or external, and different factors must be considered in planning for various types of systems. Internal systems, which are used only by library personnel, handle…

This 1987-88 edition of Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) statistics presents data from 100 U.S. and Canadian libraries that are not members of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL), and are not covered by the annual ARL statistics. The 129 non-ARL libraries that were surveyed for this report were classified by the revised…