The Information User: Past, Present and Future    

The emergence of research on various aspects of `information behaviour' is explored and its growth as a subject of academic research is documented. The origin of the field as a potential aid to the development of library and information services is noted, as is the transition from this status to that of a subject for research at PhD level and beyond. The development of the field has thus led to a division between the needs of academia for theoretically grounded work, and the needs of the field of practice for guidance for service development. There is, today, a disconnection between research and practice, to a significant extent: early research was undertaken by practitioners but today academic research dominates the scene. Suggestions are made as to how this disconnection can be repaired.

Wilson, Tom. Journal of Information Science (2008). Articles>User Centered Design>Information Design>Search

The Sociological Turn in Information Science    

This paper explores the history of `the social' in information science. It traces the influence of social scientific thinking on the development of the field's intellectual base. The continuing appropriation of both theoretical and methodological insights from domains such as social studies of science, science and technology studies, and socio-technical systems is discussed.

Cronin, Blaise. Journal of Information Science (2008). Articles>Scientific Communication>Research>Cultural Theory

On the History of Evaluation in Information Retrieval    

This paper is a personal take on the history of evaluation experiments in information retrieval. It describes some of the early experiments that were formative in our understanding, and goes on to discuss the current dominance of TREC (the Text REtrieval Conference) and to assess its impact.

Robertson, Stephen. Journal of Information Science (2008). Articles>Information Design>Assessment>Search

Bibliometrics to Webometrics    

Bibliometrics has changed out of all recognition since 1958; becoming established as a field, being taught widely in library and information science schools, and being at the core of a number of science evaluation research groups around the world. This was all made possible by the work of Eugene Garfield and his Science Citation Index. This article reviews the distance that bibliometrics has travelled since 1958 by comparing early bibliometrics with current practice, and by giving an overview of a range of recent developments, such as patent analysis, national research evaluation exercises, visualization techniques, new applications, online citation indexes, and the creation of digital libraries. Webometrics, a modern, fast-growing offshoot of bibliometrics, is reviewed in detail. Finally, future prospects are discussed with regard to both bibliometrics and webometrics.

Thelwall, Mike. Journal of Information Science (2008). Articles>Research>Online>Assessment

Aardvark et al.: Quality Journals and Gamesmanship in Management Studies    

Publication in quality journals has become a major indicator of research performance in UK universities. This paper investigates the notion of `quality journal' and finds dizzying circularity in its definitions. Actually, what a quality journal is does not really matter: agreement that there are such things matters very much indeed. As so often happens with indicators of performance, the indicator has become the target. So, the challenge is to publish in quality journals, and the challenge rewards gamesmanship. Vested interests have become particularly skilful at the game, and at exercising the winners' prerogative of changing the rules. All but forgotten in the desperation to win the game is publication as a means of communicating research findings for the public benefit. The paper examines the situation in management studies, but the problem is much more widespread. It concludes that laughter is both the appropriate reaction to such farce, and also, perhaps, the stimulus to reform.

Macdonald, Stuart and Jacqueline Kam. Journal of Information Science (2007). Articles>Publishing>Management>Research

Novel Fuzzy Information Proximity Measures    

As a measure of information shared between two fuzzy pattern vectors, the fuzzy information proximity measure (FIPM) plays an important part in fuzzy pattern recognition, fuzzy clustering analysis and fuzzy approximate reasoning. In this paper, two novel FIPMs are set up. Firstly, an axiom theory about the FIPM is given, and different expressions of the FIPM are discussed. A new FIPM is then proposed based on the axiom theory of the FIPM and the concept of fuzzy subsethood function. Two concepts based on the idea of Shannon information entropy, fuzzy joint entropy (FJE) and fuzzy conditional entropy (FCE), are proposed and the basic properties of FJE and FCE are given and proved. Finally, classical similarity measures such as dissimilarity measure (DM) and similarity measure (SM) are studied, and two new measures, fuzzy absolute information measure (FAIM) and fuzzy relative information measure (FRIM), are set up, which can be used as measures of the proximity between fuzzy sets A and B.

Ding, Shi-Fei, Shi-Xiong Xia, Feng-Xiang Jin and Zhong-Zhi Shi. Journal of Information Science (2007). Articles>Information Design>Databases>Search

Better Reporting of Randomized Trials in Biomedical Journal and Conference Abstracts    

Well reported research published in conference and journal abstracts is important as individuals reading these reports often base their initial assessment of a study based on information reported in the abstract. However, there is growing concern about the reliability and quality of information published in these reports. This article provides an overview of research evidence underpinning the need for better reporting of abstracts reported in conference proceedings and abstracts of journal articles; with a particular focus in the area of health care. Where available we highlight evidence which refers specifically to abstracts reporting randomized trials. We seek to identify current initiatives aimed at improving the reporting of these reports and recommend that an extension of the CONSORT Statement (Consolidated Standards of Reporting Trials), CONSORT for Abstracts, be developed. This checklist would include a list of essential items to be reported in any conference or journal abstract reporting the results of a randomized trial.

Hopewell, Sally, Anne Eisinga and Mike Clarke. Journal of Information Science (2008). Articles>Scientific Communication>Research>Biomedical

Judgments During Information Seeking: A Naturalistic Approach to Understanding the Assessment of Enough Information    

In this article, theories of human judgement and decision making are reviewed and their use by library and information science researchers examined. A different perspective on judgement and decision making is offered by the field of naturalistic decision making (NDM) and the implications of this approach are considered for an expanded understanding of how judgements and decisions are made during information seeking. This discussion is illustrated by a case from a recent empirical investigation into how judgements of enough information are made in the workplace. The article concludes with a critical evaluation of the NDM approach. It is argued that NDM, a recent development in decision theory, offers a new perspective from which to investigate judgements and decisions during information seeking.

Berryman, Jennifer M. Journal of Information Science (2008). Articles>Information Design>Search>User Centered Design

Use of Collaborative Recommendations for Web Search: An Exploratory User Study    

This study investigated use of collaborative recommendations in web searching. An experimental system was designed. In the experimental system, recommendations were generated in a group report format, including items judged relevant by previous users, search queries and the URLs of documents. The study explored how users used these items, the effects of their use, and what factors contributed to this use. The results demonstrate that users preferred using queries and document sources (URLs), rather than relevance judgment (document ratings). The findings also show that using recommended items had a significant effect on the number of documents viewed, but not on precision or number of queries. Task difficulty and search skills had significant impact on the use. Possible reasons for the results are analyzed. Implications and future directions are discussed.

Zhang, Xiangmin and Yuelin Li. Journal of Information Science (2008). Articles>Web Design>Search>Metadata

An Ergonomic Format for Short Reporting in Scientific Journals Using Nested Tables and the Deming's Cycle    

The typical structure of a scientific report involves highly standardized sections. The key concept of a scientific report is the reproducibility of results. Because not only clarity but also conciseness is a tool for the advancement of science, a new format using nested tables is proposed with the aim of improving the design of short reports in scientific journals, namely short communications, short technical reports, case reports, etc. This format is based on the ergonomic philosophy of visual encyclopaedias (one topic, one page) and on the quality system of the Deming's cycle (plan--do--check--act) for continuous improvement. This new editing tool has several advantages over existing forms, because it provides quick and ergonomic, reader-friendly research reports that, at the same time, would render a saving in terms of available space and publishing costs of the printed version of scientific journals.

Hortol, Policarp. Journal of Information Science (2008). Articles>Scientific Communication>Research>Technical Writing

An Analysis of Failed Queries for Web Image Retrieval    

This paper examines a large number of failed queries submitted to a web image search engine, including real users' search terms and written requests. The results show that failed image queries have a much higher specificity than successful queries because users often employ various refined types to specify their queries. The study explores the refined types further, and finds that failed queries consist of far more conceptual than perceptual refined types. The widely used content-based image retrieval technique, CBIR, can only deal with a small proportion of failed queries; hence, appropriate integration of concept-based techniques is desirable. Based on using the concepts of uniqueness and refinement for categorization, the study also provides a useful discussion on the gaps between image queries and retrieval techniques. The initial results enhance the understanding of failed queries and suggest possible ways to improve image retrieval systems.

Pu, Hsiao-Tieh. Journal of Information Science (2008). Articles>Web Design>Visual Rhetoric>Search

Bridging the North-South Divide in Scholarly Communication in Africa    

This article takes a broad, general perspective of scholarly communication in Africa, using a simple systems model based on the Lasswell formula. The model identifies and analyses the following components: Creators, Contents, Mediation, Users and Infrastructure. It recognizes that these are to be studied in their cultural, political, economic, legal and ethical contexts. Taking each component in turn, a number of critical issues and problems relevant to the North-South/South-North divide are identified and some observations are made on the position and roles of libraries. The article presents a list of desiderata and emphasizes that scholarly communication has both digital and analogue dimensions. It is a complex phenomenon that needs to be addressed holistically.

Lor, Peter Johan. IFLA Journal (2007). Articles>Publishing>Research>Africa

Search Engine Optimize Your Blog Posts to Increase Your Readership

When you search-engine-optimize your blog posts, you can increase your blog’s subscribers in a long-term way. You don’t have to stiffen your prose to apply search engine optimization — you just have to apply keywords in the right places.

Johnson, Tom H. I'd Rather Be Writing (2008). Articles>Publishing>Search Engine Optimization>Blogging

Does Advanced Search Sound Too Advanced?

Should advanced search be called something else to sound more friendly and inviting, and would it make more people to use it when they need to?

Johansson, Roger. 456 Berea Street (2008). Articles>Web Design>Search>User Centered Design

Semantic HTML and Search Engine Optimization

So what is POSH? No, it's not just some new clothing fashion hype amongst web designers - POSH is the acronym for Plain Old Semantic HTML. The term Semantic HTML is used for a variety of things, but it has it's origin in one objective: creating (X)HTML documents using semantic elements and attributes, as opposed to using presentational HTML.

De Valk, Joost. Opera (2008). Articles>Web Design>Standards>Search Engine Optimization

Intelligent Site Structure for Better SEO!

Search engines are one of the most important traffic drivers to sites these days, which is why Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is becoming more and more important. SEO is often thought to be just a set of some technical tricks, and as a professional SEO, I confess to spending a lot of time with clients fixing technical issues. A site's structure though, is just as important. Your site's structure determines whether a search engine understands what your site is about, and how easily it will find and index content relevant to your site's purpose and intent. By creating a good structure, you can use the content you've written that has attracted links from others, and use your site's structure to spread some of that "linkjuice" to the other pages on your site.

De Valk, Joost. Opera (2008). Articles>Web Design>Information Design>Search Engine Optimization

Information Technologies as Discursive Agents: Methodological Implications for the Empirical Study of Knowledge Work    

Work activities that are mediated by information rely on the production of discourse-based objects of work. Designs, evaluations, and conditions are all objects that originate and materialize in discourse. They are created and maintained through the coordinated efforts of human and non-human agents. Genres help foster such coordination from the top down, by providing guidance to create and recreate discourse objects of recurring social value. From where, however, does coordination emerge in more ad hoc discursive activities, where the work objects are novel, unknown, or unstable? In these situations, coordination emerges from simple discursive operations, reliably mediated by information and communication technologies (ICTs) that appear to act as discursive agents. This article theorizes the discursive agency of ICTs, explores the discursive operations they mediate, and the coordination that emerges. The article also offers and models a study methodology for the empirical observation of such interactions.

Swarts, Jason. Journal of Technical Writing and Communication (2008). Articles>Technology>Research>Contextual Inquiry

Response Rates and Surveying Techniques: Tips to Enhance Survey Respondent Participation  

Sufficient response rates are important for surveys. A survey that collects very little data may not contain substantial information. In order to collect successful responses, researchers must take into consideration the audience, the quantity of online surveys in circulation, and the potential for surveys reported as spam. These factors may result in lower respondent interest and acceptance of survey invitations. But there are ways to increase response rates!

SurveyMonkey (2008). Articles>Research>Methods>Surveys

Smart Survey Design  

This guide provides information on writing successful and effective survey questions, creating survey flow and layout, calculating response rates, tips for increasing response rates, and the pros and cons of online surveys. (Plus an appendix of links and works cited for additional help in survey design.)

SurveyMonkey (2008). Articles>Research>Methods>Surveys

Five Ways to Increase Targeted Website Traffic

Website visitors do not arrive magically… they follow recommendations from others, such as links, display ads, or even offline word of mouth. As 2007 turns into 2008, here are 5 easy ways to substantially increase the amount of traffic coming to your site.

Jason, Chris. ChrisJason.com (2007). Articles>Web Design>Search Engine Optimization

Findability/SEO Cheat Sheet: Quick Guide to Web Standards SEO

A findability strategy cheat sheet that will guide you through all of the stuff you should be doing when creating new websites or even redesign existing ones.

Walter, Aarron. AarronWalter.com (2008). Articles>Web Design>Usability>Search Engine Optimization

Free Search Engine Tools and Services  

You can communicate information about your site to search engines and see your site from their perspective using some free services and utilities from Yahoo! and Google.

Walter, Aarron. Building Findable Websites (2008). Articles>Web Design>Search>Search Engine Optimization

Places to Promote Your Site  

You’ve built a great site-now get the word out! There are plenty of places where you can promote your site for free.

Walter, Aarron. Building Findable Websites (2008). Articles>Web Design>Search Engine Optimization

Black Hat SEO Techniques to Avoid  

Desperation, ignorance, and a moral compass that doesn’t point due north often get perfectly logical, good people and companies in trouble with search engines. Because being listed high in search results is such a desirable goal to attain, many people search for shortcuts to the front of the line—which can land them in serious trouble.

Walter, Aarron. Building Findable Websites (2008). Articles>Web Design>Search Engine Optimization

Overview of User Experience Design Concepts

User experience design has become an essential consideration in the development of websites and technical communications. No longer can we throw together a few headings and numbered lists in CSS and XHTML and hope the result will be worthwhile and meaningful to users. As the web expands and content becomes more accessible, it is necessary to take content and websites to the next level - to provide information that is not just useful or even usable, but enjoyable. If a person has to spend more than a few seconds trying to find what they need they are that much more likely to “Google it” and find a site or help system that provides the answer quicker.

Designing User Experience (2008). Articles>User Experience>Search Engine Optimization