Getting to "the Right Stuff"

In a world awash with information, finding what you really want can be difficult. Any database or web index can deliver a set of results. But it's particularly difficult to highlight the most relevant 'stuff.' Web search engines such as Google and Yahoo try their best to recommend some items over others, and now libraries are trying to do this for their holdings.

Tennant, Roy. Library Journal (2005). Articles>Information Design>Search

Google, the Naked Emperor

Google rules. Wherever you turn you hear about a new Google initiative. Clearly, Google has the money to do some interesting things. But with all the hype and hullabaloo, it can be all too easy to overlook some serious flaws in Google's services. As librarians, we should not be giving Google a 'pass' that we would not afford other vendors. By being clear about Google's strengths and weaknesses, we can make effective decisions about when and how to use Google's services and advise our users appropriately.

Tennant, Roy. Library Journal (2005). Articles>Web Design>Search

The Library Brand

It's likely that few professionals worry more about how their services are perceived than librarians. Lawyers may have more reason for concern, but many of them laugh all the way to the bank. We have little if not our reputation. So the new report published by OCLC, '€œPerceptions of Libraries and Information Resources,' deserves notice. Do libraries still matter? On what level? Will library use likely increase or decrease?--generated heartwarming comments but also much to cause concern.

Tennant, Roy. Library Journal (2006). Careers>Information Design>Databases

Metadata Leadership

Libraries must increasingly accommodate bibliographic records encoded with a variety of standards and emerging standards, including Dublin Core, MODS, and VRA Core. The problem is that many libraries still rely solely on MARC and AACR2. Meanwhile, the world of information is passing us by. How important is this problem? There are now literally millions of useful online items that lack MARC cataloging and will likely never be cataloged in MARC. We ignore these resources at our peril. Our users will justifiably seek assistance elsewhere, as many already have. Ignoring the problem will only make libraries increasingly marginalized. What are we to do?

Tennant, Roy. Library Journal (2004). Articles>Information Design>Metadata

User Interface Design: Some Guiding Principles

User interfaces vary significantly from library to library, and even within a library, from library holdings to CD-ROM databases to web resources. Why such variation?

Tennant, Roy. Library Journal (1999). Design>User Interface>Information Design

What I Hope Will Be

Libraries and librarians can create the kinds of compelling services that will bring our users back. We can't expect a brighter future unless we work hard for it.

Tennant, Roy. Library Journal (2006). Articles>Information Design>Web Design