Searching for tupuna : whakapapa researchers and public libraries

<p>Genealogists are frequent users of public libraries and other institutions that hold historical material. In recent years research has investigated the information needs of this group, the motivating factors behind their involvement in this hobby. Attempts have also been made to compile a "profile" of the typical genealogist. Research in this area has been done in response to the long association genealogists have had with libraries and in acknowledgement of the growing popularity of this pastime. Similar research methodologies as have been used overseas have been utilised in this piece of research with respect to genealogists in New Zealand, specifically those researching the family history of Maori, the indigenous people of that country. In traditional Maori culture great significance is placed on family history or whakapapa. This study aimed to investigate to what degree the use of public libraries by genealogists researching this cultural group reflected findings of library use and information seeking behaviour of genealogists in other cultural environments. Whakapapa research may be undertaken by genealogists who do not have Maori ancestors, or tupuna, themselves and these library users still fall within the scope of this study. Data was collected by using printed questionnaires distributed to public libraries in New Zealand, as well as a printable version of the questionnaire that was made available online .</p>

Searching for tupuna : whakapapa researchers and public libraries

<p>Genealogists are frequent users of public libraries and other institutions that hold historical material. In recent years research has investigated the information needs of this group, the motivating factors behind their involvement in this hobby. Attempts have also been made to compile a "profile" of the typical genealogist. Research in this area has been done in response to the long association genealogists have had with libraries and in acknowledgement of the growing popularity of this pastime. Similar research methodologies as have been used overseas have been utilised in this piece of research with respect to genealogists in New Zealand, specifically those researching the family history of Maori, the indigenous people of that country. In traditional Maori culture great significance is placed on family history or whakapapa. This study aimed to investigate to what degree the use of public libraries by genealogists researching this cultural group reflected findings of library use and information seeking behaviour of genealogists in other cultural environments. Whakapapa research may be undertaken by genealogists who do not have Maori ancestors, or tupuna, themselves and these library users still fall within the scope of this study. Data was collected by using printed questionnaires distributed to public libraries in New Zealand, as well as a printable version of the questionnaire that was made available online .</p>

Library Use and Information-Seeking Behaviour of Academics at Lincoln University

<p>Academics are an important user group for their university libraries. Academic libraries are trying very hard to balance limited funding and users’ needs, especially while the information-seeking behaviour of academics is being changed by electronic resources. This study was undertaken to discover the information-seeking behaviour of academics and their use of the library at Lincoln University of New Zealand. The results from this study will be useful to enhance the collection development and prioritise programs and services to meet academics’ needs more effectively. An online survey was used for this study. All academics from the Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the Faculty of Commerce and the Faculty of Environment, Society and Design were selected and 49 academics responded. The results indicated that a great number of academics depend on libraries for getting information. Academics are facing a big problem regarding the lack of time to obtain information. They also display great interest in using online journal articles and printed books from Lincoln University Library. However, academics are not interested in using the latest tools, such as smart phones, e-Pads etc. It was also established that academics from different disciplines have a very similar information-seeking behaviours. In addition, academics are satisfied with the library resources and services but they do not use it as much as they recommend it to students. Finally, academics have little contact with library staff. Based on these findings, it was recommended that library resources should continue to have both electronic resources and printed resources. Librarians and library systems must do better to improve the time lost in information-seeking by academics. There is a need to improve the communication and collaboration between librarians and academics to encourage academics to use more library resources in their teaching, and librarians should encourage academics to learn the latest information-seeking tools and skills, as well as promote the library services and resources more.</p>

Library Use and Information-Seeking Behaviour of Academics at Lincoln University

<p>Academics are an important user group for their university libraries. Academic libraries are trying very hard to balance limited funding and users’ needs, especially while the information-seeking behaviour of academics is being changed by electronic resources. This study was undertaken to discover the information-seeking behaviour of academics and their use of the library at Lincoln University of New Zealand. The results from this study will be useful to enhance the collection development and prioritise programs and services to meet academics’ needs more effectively. An online survey was used for this study. All academics from the Faculty of Agriculture and Life Sciences, the Faculty of Commerce and the Faculty of Environment, Society and Design were selected and 49 academics responded. The results indicated that a great number of academics depend on libraries for getting information. Academics are facing a big problem regarding the lack of time to obtain information. They also display great interest in using online journal articles and printed books from Lincoln University Library. However, academics are not interested in using the latest tools, such as smart phones, e-Pads etc. It was also established that academics from different disciplines have a very similar information-seeking behaviours. In addition, academics are satisfied with the library resources and services but they do not use it as much as they recommend it to students. Finally, academics have little contact with library staff. Based on these findings, it was recommended that library resources should continue to have both electronic resources and printed resources. Librarians and library systems must do better to improve the time lost in information-seeking by academics. There is a need to improve the communication and collaboration between librarians and academics to encourage academics to use more library resources in their teaching, and librarians should encourage academics to learn the latest information-seeking tools and skills, as well as promote the library services and resources more.</p>

Evaluation of quality and efficiency of information resources of educational libraries

The objective of the work was to analyze the quality of the information resources of educational libraries. Methods: A user survey of ten educational libraries was conducted to achieve this objective. Results: It was found that representatives of different target groups visit libraries for different purposes. Students and pupils use the library mainly to carry necessary textbooks and books, communicate, attend events. Academics, lecturers / professors, use it not only to obtain the book, but also to check references and read new publications in the library, use electronic resources, as well as to work on research. Sometimes pupils and students often need the help of library staff, indicating a lack of information literacy. Scholars, lecturers / teachers, are often able to fend for themselves. Electronic resources are the most effective, according to respondents, but visitors to educational libraries also continue to use traditional resources. Conclusions: Research shows that to increase the efficiency and quality of information resources of educational libraries, employees should focus their efforts on improving the information literacy of library users, as well as demonstrating the values of the library, inform about library services and maintain using information and communication technologies.

Impact of COVID-19 on the use of the academic library

PurposeThis study examines differences in library use patterns (in-person visits, online use, reference transactions, library resource and services use) pre-COVID-19 and during the COVID-19 pandemic through multiple data sets.Design/methodology/approachUsing library statistics collected during 2017/2018 and 2020/2021 and student responses to a biennial library use survey distributed in 2018 and 2021, the potential impact of the pandemic on users' behaviors was explored.FindingsLibrary use statistics and the biennial survey responses demonstrate that users' overall library use was impacted by COVID-19. Both the library's gate count and students' frequency of library visits showed a dramatic decrease. The use of virtual support to patrons increased during COVID-19 as reflected by the increase in email and chat reference interactions and virtual consultations.Practical implicationsAs students return to the physical classroom, observing library use via various data will help inform how well use of the library rebounded or if there are changes in users' behavior that suggest the need for the promotion of library services or an expansion in alternative services to support users.Originality/valueThis article highlights the importance of continuously obtaining various data sets to observe trends and changes. By observing multiple data points, some changes are aligned across data, whereas other changes or patterns are different. While impact on physical library use may be obvious, library use before and during the pandemic will help guide and inform how academic libraries should be prepared for hybrid environments post-pandemic.

Use of infographics as a technology-based information dissemination tool: the perspective of Egyptian public university libraries library staff

PurposeThis study aims to explore the potential use of infographics as a technology-based information dissemination tool in Egyptian public university libraries.Design/methodology/approachA quantitative approach was used in the form of a survey conducted in February 202. The survey tool was a self-administrated questionnaire. The study sample consisted of valid responses from 231 library staff. Of this number, 173 (74.9%) were infographics users, and 58 (25.1%) were infographics users.FindingsInfographics users tended to be males between 31 and 45 years of age, mostly BA holders, librarians, with work experience ranging from 11 to 25 years. On the other hand, infographics nonusers tended to be also males between 31 and 45 years of age, mostly BA holders, librarians, with work experience ranging from 11 to 25 years. The majority of library staff used infographics mainly to provide information about the library's map, news, services, events, contact, working hours, policies and activities, to provide guidance, instructions on the library use, explain its classification scheme and provide statistical data. The largest number of library staff indicated that their use of informational infographics ranged from “Completely used” to “Most used”, followed by statistical infographics and timeline infographics The use of informational infographics and statistical infographics described to be at least fairly easy to them. In addition, the use of timeline infographics, statistical infographics and informational infographics has also been described to at least fairly useful to them. A very large number of infographics users indicated that these means are attractive, effective, persuasive, focused, easy to embed, easy to read, artistic, easy to track, highly digestible data, easily shareable, easily rememberable, informative and understandable. About two-thirds of infographics users showed that they provided infographics through a computer-based format, followed by both printed and computer-based formats, and printed format. Barriers, such as lack of awareness of infographics, lack of knowledge about infographics, lack of time needed and lack of necessary technical skills, have been described as the greatest barriers to the use of infographics by library staff.Originality/valueThis study is one of the very few studies concerned with the potential role of using infographics in Egyptian public university libraries, which relates to the presentation of information in the library environment.

Analytics for measuring library use and satisfaction of mobile apps

Purpose User review is a significant component of mobile app markets such as the Google Play Store, App Store, Microsoft Store and others. Users submit their reviews for downloaded apps on these sites in the form of star ratings and text reviews. Apps can contain huge volumes of feedback, making it difficult for the user and the developer to skim through thousands of such reviews to get an insight into usage and impact of such apps. Thus, the current study aims to assess the usage and satisfaction among users of the Mendeley’s Android app vs iOS app. Design/methodology/approach The analytics are performed by using Appbot analytics software which captured, monitored, measured and analyzed the review results for a particular period. Appbot provides easy-to-understand insights of an app using artificial intelligence algorithm tools. Findings The findings of the study reveal strong inclination, adoption and usage of Mendeley’s Android app compared to that of iOS among users. Originality/value The value of this research is in getting an insight of the pattern/behavior of users towards using apps on different platforms (Android vs iOS) and provides valuable results for the app developers in monitoring usage and enhancing features for the satisfaction of users. Without mobile app analytics, one will be blindly trying out different things without any evidence to back up their experiments.