Making the new OPAC seamless: dealing with the transition from “finding” to “getting”
| Pages | 13-29 |
| Published date | 06 March 2009 |
| Date | 06 March 2009 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/07378830910942883 |
| Author | Carmel Denholm,Leto Kauler,Jan Lavelle,Lloyd Sokvitne |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Library & information science |
THEME ARTICLE
Making the new OPAC seamless:
dealing with the transition from
“finding” to “getting”
Carmel Denholm, Leto Kauler, Jan Lavelle and Lloyd Sokvitne
State Library of Tasmania, Hobart, Australia
Abstract
Purpose – This paper aims to describe the process of development undertaken by the State Library
of Tasmania to provide a new generation OPAC – TALISPlus.
Design/methodology/approach – The methods developed and used to meet the “getting” needs of
clients in the new OPAC are described, with examples based on the alternatives investigated and the
results achieved.
Findings – During this development process the State Library established, through client
consultation and feedback, that the process of item discovery within the new OPAC was
incomplete unless accompanied by new methods that ensured that the desired item could in turn be
easily found and physically accessed by clients. The need to address both the finding and getting
requirements of clients is of major importance to the State Library of Tasmania which provides a
state-wide public lending system with one collection spread across 49 branches.
Originality/value – The paper argues that the development of a successful next generation OPAC is
not limited to the provision of new searching functionality. Rather the success of a new OPAC is linked
to its ability to provide existing clients with a seamless tool that delivers the ability to both find and
get the desired item. The provision of this seamless access will require additional and significant
development resources. However, the high levels of client satisfaction with the new OPAC witnessed
by the State Library reinforce and validate this approach.
Keywords Libraries, Information retrieval
Paper type Conceptual paper
Introduction
The attractive client-orientated functionality of web-based delivery systems and the
challenge of other search services such as Google etc. have prompted (or forced) libraries
to respond by developing new search interfaces to replace existing Online Public Access
Catalogues(OPACS). Thesenew or next generationcatalogues aregenerally still basedon
existing data sources (bibliographic and holding records) and existing business polices
and processes (e.g. MARC record structures, AACR2), but offer a wide range of exciting
opportunities to modernise library discovery interfaces and delivery mechanisms.
Against a background of an outdated ILMS OPAC, and the desire to make the
catalogue more client-focused and web friendly, the State Library of Tasmania
undertook a process to design and implement a replacement OPAC during 2006 and
2007. It was hoped that a new discovery interface could be developed using an external
search engine to re-index cataloguing data exported from the ILMS. The resultant
search interface would then simply interface with existing borrowing and other ILMS
functions, handing over functionality as appropriate.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/0737-8831.htm
Making the new
OPAC seamless
13
Received 13 October 2008
Revised 3 November 2008
Accepted 14 November 2008
Library Hi Tech
Vol. 27 No. 1, 2009
pp. 13-29
qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
0737-8831
DOI 10.1108/07378830910942883
The State Library was conscious, however, that any new discovery interface
designed to replace an existing OPAC had to be benchmarked against that existing
OPAC. It could only be turned into a production system if clients clearly and
overwhelming felt that it was a better service than the old OPAC. Because of this, the
development process integrated client evaluation and testing to constantly gauge client
satisfaction. Usability tests and a rolling beta model with restricted staged releases
became major features of the development program.
It was this feedback from clients that necessitated a review by the State Library of
the role of the new discovery interface in meeting client needs, and forced the State
Library to address the reasons why the clients were using the catalogue in the first
place. Based on feedback from clients, the State Library found that improved discovery
outcomes were not an end in themselves, and that client use of the catalogue was part
of a larger process that involved finding a resource and then obtaining access to that
resource. Simply improving the first part of the process, that of item discovery, was not
sufficient to satisfy the clients and would not justify the new OPAC as a replacement
for the old. As Karen Calhoun recently stated: “The end client’s delivery experience is
as important, if not more important than the discovery experience” (Calhoun, 2008).
A “Find” and “Get” model of service delivery has been usefully described by the
National Library of Australia (Pearce and Gatenby, 2005) and Lorcan Dempsey
(Dempsey, 2005). This model provides a simple yet solid conceptual background to
understanding client needs by breaking down the service delivery process into the
finding component (basic searching or discovery) and the getting (the fulfilment of the
client’s need to access an actual item).
The State Library found it useful to further identify three types of information that
would assist clients in getting the items they required. First, the getting function could
utilise information that could be searched directly by the client (e.g. show me items on
X that are on the shelf). In a faceted search engine, a number of searchable facets can be
provided that relate directly to getting outcomes. Such facets are not objective
descriptors of the resource, but reflect how that item is shelved or made available in a
particular library. Second, getting functions could utilise information that passively
assists selection (e.g. where information about availability is included in result display s
and used by the client to investigate or select specific results). Finally, the getting
function would need to access those processes that access or request an item once
chosen (e.g. view a resource online, place a hold on an item, etc.).
The State Library of Tasmania found that addressing these sub-components was a
significant factor in discovery system development and a key factor in achieving client
acceptance of the new system.
The State Library of Tasmania – backgrou nd
The State Library of Tasmania is a multi-function library system covering the State of
Tasmania in Australia. The State Library of Tasmania (SLT) organisation and
corresponding library software serves 46 public libraries, the State Reference Library,
and the Tasmanian heritage libraries. Service outlets range from larger urban centres
down to very small rural and remote areas, and this array of service centres is
supported by the concept of a single collection, whereby clients can borrow, place
holds, and return items at any service point across the state.
LHT
27,1
14
To continue reading
Request your trial