Importance: 6.43/7
Performance: 5.02/7
Gap:
1.41
"I love the online
access you have to the library and all the databases. I live quite far
from the uni, so access to online reading lists and databases are an
essential feature for me."
"As a remote user, I
find the range of databases extraordinary, and extraordinarily useful.
Merci!"
"I mostly use the
online resources as a research student, and have never had major
problems with the databases."
"Provide a means of
grouping together and searching online databases. It is very annoying
that full article text is sometimes not available and that different
databases have different formats. This is hard to navigate."
"I think some
electronic databases are not that easy to use and perhaps the library
could look at system that rates the ease of use eg. certain amount of
stars = easy to use"
"The listing of
online databases are a little hard to use online"
"As an online
off-campus user only, I would like to see a more streamlined entrance to
the online journals" |
-
We are
developing a way to search multiple databases together
MultiSearch is a new
portal which enables you to search up to 10 databases with a single
search, using a single search interface. Although still under
development MultiSearch is available now from the Databases pages.
From the search results you can link through to the full text of
articles of interest from over 35,000 sources. We are continually
adding more resources to MultiSearch and improving its ease of use.
-
We are
continually reviewing the web pages which provide access to
ejournals and databases
After the 2003 user survey
we said we would redesign the Databases page on the library website
so that it is organised by subject. This was completed in 2004 and
it is now regularly updated.
- We are
simplifying the way electronic resources are described in the
library catalogue, and improving coverage information
Many ejournals are
available through more than one database, although each database may
cover different years, or have different access restrictions.
Database vendors, such as Proquest, are continually adding or
dropping journals, making it difficult to provide accurate
information about titles and holdings in the library catalogue and
on the web pages. We have recently commenced a new service which
will improve accuracy. We will regularly revise the catalogue by
removing titles no longer available, adding new ones, and keeping
content messages up to date. We have also started a program to put
information about all electronic versions of a title on the same
catalogue record, leading to only one catalogue record for the print
journal and one for the electronic versions.
- We give
feedback to database providers
We subscribe to hundreds
of different electronic resources, each with their own interfaces
and complexities. Library staff regularly meet with publishers and
provide feedback to them about how they can make their databases
more user-friendly. We also participate in beta testing of
databases under development. While we would like all electronic
resources to be easy to use, the library must also subscribe to less
user-friendly products if they provide important information that
cannot be obtained in any other way.
- We are
providing and improving help when you need it
We are currently providing
"Help" support through the library information desk staff, email,
live chat and by telephone, and try to resolve your problems as
quickly as possible. We are reviewing and improving the training
that the library provides to help users improve their information
skills. This will include improving the online tutorials, providing
more relevant classes, and better online help for searching specific
databases.
"Having easy to use electronic resources has risen in importance
significantly since the 2003 survey. Monash library users are
increasingly dependent on electronic resources. Your comments tell
us that many survey respondents love databases, ejournals and ebooks,
but others find them confusing or frustrating to use. The library
is committed to making electronic resources easier to find and use,
and to the development of new tools to help locate relevant articles
and find full-text."
Jill Wilson,
Director Information Resources
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