Influence of Discovery Search Tools on Science and Engineering e-books Usage

Eugene Barsky; Sarah Jane Dooley; Tara Mawhinney; Zoey Peterson; Michelle Spence

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Conference: 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Publication Date: June 23, 2013
Start Date: June 23, 2013
End Date: June 26, 2013
ISSN: 2153-5965
Conference Session: Information Tools and Techniques for Engineering Education
Tagged Division: Engineering Libraries
Page Count: 12
Page Numbers: 23.744.1 - 23.744.12
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--19758
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/19758
Download Count: 416

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Paper Authors

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Eugene Barsky University of British Columbia

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Eugene Barsky is a Science and Engineering Librarian at the University of British Columbia (UBC). He is interested in engineering information, data management in the physical sciences and has published extensively in the library literature.

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Sarah Jane Dooley Dalhousie University orcid.org/0000-0002-0574-4506

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Sarah Jane Dooley is Head of Reference & Research Services and Promotions & Liaison Librarian at Dalhousie University's Sexton Design & Technology Library in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.

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Tara Mawhinney McGill University

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Tara Mawhinney is the liaison librarian for Civil Engineering and Applied Mechanics, Mechanical Engineering, and Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences at McGill University’s Schulich Library of Science and Engineering in Montreal, Quebec. Her research interests include new technologies for collection development in science and engineering librarianship, information literacy and social networking sites for teaching and research. She completed an MLIS from McGill’s School of Information Studies in 2005.

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Zoey Peterson University of British Columbia

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Zoey Peterson is an MLIS candidate and a student librarian at several libraries, including the Science & Engineering Library at the University British Columbia.

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Michelle Spence University of Toronto

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Michelle Spence is a Reference & Instruction Librarian at the University of Toronto’s Engineering & Computer Science Library. She holds a H.B.Sc. (2004) and a M.I.St. (2007), both from the University of Toronto. She has held positions in academic and public libraries, as well as a corporate setting.

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Abstract

Does the introduction of a discovery search engine correlate with an increased use of science and engineering electronic books?Academic libraries are moving toward the use of ebooks at an unprecedented rate and nowhere isthe shift more evident than in science and engineering libraries. Collections such as Knovel,Books 24x7, Springer and Synthesis have been providing online access to science andengineering literature for several years and are leading the way for other disciplines now movingto this format.More recently, new tools that attempt to better expose all types of library formats (e.g. printbooks, online journal articles, etc.) have made their appearance with the promise of renderinglibrary collections easier to discover by replicating the one-stop shopping experience that usersof the Google era have come to know and expect. New discovery search tools such as Summon,Primo, WorldCat Local and others now offer a greater depth (through table of contents, chapter-level and even full-text searching) and breadth (covering ebooks, ebook chapters, journal articles,data, and other resources) than ever before. What implications do these new discovery tools havefor access to existing ebook collections in science and engineering? With the costs of both ebookpackages and discovery tools making up an ever-growing portion of library budgets, do thesetools provide better access to collections than do traditional online catalogues?In this paper, we examine the use of science and engineering ebook collections in three leadingCanadian academic libraries: XXXXX, XXXXX and XXXXX to test the hypothesis thatintroducing a latest generation discovery search tool, such as Summon or WorldCat Local, in alarge academic library correlates with increased usage of major science and engineeringelectronic resources. The study will compare usage of ebook collections such as Books 24x7,Knovel Academic ebook collection, Springer ebook collection, Synthesis ebook collection, andothers that all three institutions have in common prior to and after implementation of a discoverytool. The study will also compare two specific discovery tools: Summon and WorldCat Local todetermine whether there are differences in ebook collection usage based on choice of discoverytool.

Citation
Format

Barsky, E., & Dooley, S. J., & Mawhinney, T., & Peterson, Z., & Spence, M. (2013, June), Influence of Discovery Search Tools on Science and Engineering e-books Usage Paper presented at 2013 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Atlanta, Georgia. 10.18260/1-2--19758

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - Does the introduction of a discovery search engine correlate with an increased               use of science and engineering electronic books?Academic libraries are moving toward the use of ebooks at an unprecedented rate and nowhere isthe shift more evident than in science and engineering libraries. Collections such as Knovel,Books 24x7, Springer and Synthesis have been providing online access to science andengineering literature for several years and are leading the way for other disciplines now movingto this format.More recently, new tools that attempt to better expose all types of library formats (e.g. printbooks, online journal articles, etc.) have made their appearance with the promise of renderinglibrary collections easier to discover by replicating the one-stop shopping experience that usersof the Google era have come to know and expect. New discovery search tools such as Summon,Primo, WorldCat Local and others now offer a greater depth (through table of contents, chapter-level and even full-text searching) and breadth (covering ebooks, ebook chapters, journal articles,data, and other resources) than ever before. What implications do these new discovery tools havefor access to existing ebook collections in science and engineering? With the costs of both ebookpackages and discovery tools making up an ever-growing portion of library budgets, do thesetools provide better access to collections than do traditional online catalogues?In this paper, we examine the use of science and engineering ebook collections in three leadingCanadian academic libraries: XXXXX, XXXXX and XXXXX to test the hypothesis thatintroducing a latest generation discovery search tool, such as Summon or WorldCat Local, in alarge academic library correlates with increased usage of major science and engineeringelectronic resources. The study will compare usage of ebook collections such as Books 24x7,Knovel Academic ebook collection, Springer ebook collection, Synthesis ebook collection, andothers that all three institutions have in common prior to and after implementation of a discoverytool. The study will also compare two specific discovery tools: Summon and WorldCat Local todetermine whether there are differences in ebook collection usage based on choice of discoverytool.
AU  - Eugene Barsky
AU  - Sarah Jane Dooley
AU  - Tara Mawhinney
AU  - Zoey Peterson
AU  - Michelle Spence
CY  - Atlanta, Georgia
DA  - 2013/06/23
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Influence of Discovery Search Tools on Science and Engineering e-books Usage
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/19758
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--19758
ER  -