David Nicholas

Developing and testing methods to determine the use of web sites: case study newspapers

There is a general dearth of trustworthy information on who is using the web and how they use it. Such information is of vital concern to web managers and their advertisers yet the systems for delivering such data, where in place, generally cannot supply accurate enough data. Nor have web managers the expertise or time to evaluate the enormous amounts of information that are generated by web sites. The article, based on the experience of evaluating The Times web server access logs, describes the methodological problems that lie at the heart of web log analysis, evaluates a range of use measures (visits, page impressions, hits) and provides some advice on what analyses are worth conducting.

The impact of the Internet on information seeking in the Media1

There is very little qualitative data on what impact the Internet is having on information seeking in the workplace. Using open‐ended interviews, questionnaires and observation, the impact of the Internet on the British Media was assessed. The focus was largely on newspapers, with The Guardian being covered in some depth. Over 300 journalists and media librarians were surveyed. It was found that amongst traditional journalists use was light. Poor access to the Internet – and good access to other information resources – were largely the reasons for this. Of the journalists it was mainly the older and more senior journalists and the New Media journalists who used the Internet. Librarians were also significant users. Searching the World Wide Web was the principal Internet activity and use was generally conservative in character. Newspapers and official sites were favoured, and searches were mainly of a fact‐checking nature. Email was used on a very limited scale and was not regarded as a serious journalistic tool. Non‐users were partly put off by the Internet‘s potential for overloading them with information and its reputation for producing information of suspect quality. Users generally dismissed these concerns, dealing with potential overload and quality problems largely by using authoritative sites and exploiting the lower quality data where it was needed. Where the Internet has been used it has not been at the expense of other information sources or communication channels, but online hosts seem to be at most risk in the future.

Health kiosk use : a national comparative study

Provides an initial analysis of the use of InTouch with Health touch screen information kiosks located throughout the UK. Presents data for more than 50 kiosks and models use to a variety of variables. The data were collected via kiosk transaction logs and questionnaire. Seeks to explain use differences between kiosks. The amount of kiosk use and the number of kiosk users were explained in terms of both neighbourhood factors and kiosk host factors. Significant variables determining the amount of use and number of users include the size of the kiosk host organisation and whether intermediary help is available to the kiosk user, either from a health professional or a receptionist. The general economic well‐being of the area was found to be significant in explaining the length of session time, while word of mouth and help from other users was a significant variable explaining the number of session pages viewed.

A user-centred approach to the evaluation of Subject Based Information Gateways: case study SOSIG

There has been a massive increase in the amount of information available to people as a result of the Internet and information seekers are expected to be in the position to identify and evaluate this information according to their needs. As a response to this, Subject Based Information Gateways have been introduced providing people with an organised collection of digital information. An evaluation of the Social Science Information Gateway (SOSIG), conducted by an online questionnaire, examines such issues as who the SOSIG users are, how frequently they use the service and what their reasons for using the service are.

A user evaluation of subject based information gateways: case study ADAM

Nowadays, end‐users have quick and direct access to massive amount of information available on the Net. However, this information is unorganized expecting users to be able to identify and evaluate it in accordance with their information needs. Subject based information Gateways SBIG, organized collections of networked information, provide users with a catalogue of authoritative Internet resources, which can be searched and/ or browsed. This paper provides an evaluation of one such gateway ‐ the Art, Design, Architecture & Media Gateway ADAM. It provides information on who these users are, how often they use the service, what their reasons for use are, which search methods and services they prefer and what are the advantages and disadvantages of an online information service.

Health information kiosk use in health organisations : the views of the health professionals

A series of in‐depth one to one and group interviews were undertaken with health professionals and surgery practice managers in medical locations where a touch screen information kiosk was available for use by patients. The purpose of these interviews was to provide context and understanding for the kiosk log data that was being gathered that provided data on number and length of use sessions, pages viewed and age and gender of users. The interviews were also concerned with issues beyond those raised by the logs ‐ principally the benefits and problems inherent in providing health information ‘online’ and the impact of electronic information for patients on the work of the medical practitioner. The reasons why kiosks were purchased and the extent to which expectations were met were also areas of interest. Results showed that disproportionately high use of the kiosk by children, identified by the log data, could be explained in a number of ways. Medical practitioners spoke of helping children both use the system for school projects and access pages on behalf of parents and grandparents. Inappropriate use, however, was also reported by practice managers. A number of factors cited by professionals, such as poor IT skills and cultural barriers, help explain low use by the 55‐74 age group. A resurgence of interest amongst the over 74s, however, remains a mystery awaiting the next stage of the fieldwork, when patients are interviewed directly. Extensive encouragement by staff to encourage patient use may account for some of the condition specific pages accessed, by all age groups. Nurses tended to be far more pro‐active than doctors, and saw many health‐related benefits in referring patients to the kiosk. By contrast, doctors saw the system in very practical ways ‐ praising its space saving potential, for example, not enthusing about its possible value to patients in health terms. Practice managers and others with responsibility for the maintenance of the system were unhappy with the extra work they were required to undertake, and complained about children ‘playing’ and about printer and other problems.

The impact of the Web on the stockbroking industry: Big Bang 2

An investigation of what effect online trading is having on the traditional stockbrokerage industry. There have been lots of discussions and articles written over the last couple of years debating whether the traditional stockbrokerage model is about to be upstaged by the new online version touted by the online brokerage industry. With so many diverse views being portrayed it is difficult to fully gauge the real impact that online trading is having on the traditional stock brokerage industry. A large‐scale questionnaire and interview study was conducted to get some answers.

To Boldly Go Beyond Downloads: How Are Journal Articles Shared and Used?

With more scholarly journals being distributed electronically rather than in print form, we know that researchers download many articles. What is less well known is how journal articles are used after they are initially downloaded. To what extent are they saved, uploaded, tweeted, or otherwise shared? How does this reuse increase their total use and value to research and how does it influence library usage figures? University of Tennessee Chancellor’s Professor Carol Tenopir, Professor Suzie Allard, and Adjunct Professor David Nicholas are leading a team of international researchers on a the project, “Beyond Downloads,” funded by a grant from Elsevier. The project will look at how and why scholarly electronic articles are downloaded, saved, and shared by researchers. Sharing in today’s digital environment may include links posted on social media, like Twitter, and in blogs or via e‐mail. Having a realistic estimate of this secondary use will help provide a more accurate picture of the total use of scholarly articles. The speakers will present the objectives of the study, share the approach and avenues of exploration, and report on some preliminary findings. Furthermore, the speakers will discuss how the potential learnings could yield benefits to the library community.

The Information Needs of Parents.

RésuméCet article nous apporte les conclusions de la “British Library Research & Innovation Centre”, créateur du projet de recherche. Les buts de ce projet étaient de déceler les informations dont les parents avaient besoin et les sources d’information qu’ils utilisaient. Les résultats de la recherche devraient aider les organisateurs de bibliothèques à procurer un meilleur service d’information aux parents. Des parents et des enfants endessous de 5 ans ont été contactés par les services locaux. Au début des interviews de groupe ont été organisés pour explorer les sujets sur lesquels les parents avaient besoin d’infomations. Ces données ont ensuite servi de trame pour les questions d’interviews individuels avec 35 parents. Les parents demandent des-informations sur la santé de l’enfant, les soins et le développement de l’enfant. Les sources orales se sont montrées les plus populaires, et les professionnels de la santé ont été le plus fréquemment consultés. Il fut demandé aux organisateurs de bibliothéques de publier les informations aux parents de façon plus efficace.ResumenEste artículo provee un resumen de los descubrimientos de una “British Library Research and Innovation Centre” investigaciones. Los objectivos de este proyecto eran de descubrir la información que utilizaban. Los resultados ayudaría libreros proveer un mejor servicio de información por los padres. Padres de los niños bajo de 5 fueron puestos en contacto por sus servicios locales. Initialmente, interviús de grupos fueron tenidos para explorar temas sobre los cuales padres necesitaban información. Estos datos fueron ques utilidados para formular las preguntas por frente a frente interviús que fueron tenidos 35 padres. Los padres necesitaban información sobre la salud, cura y desarrollo por del niño. Fuentes orales de información próbadas más popular, y salud visitadores fueron los profesionales más consultados. Era recomendido que libreros publican sus servicios de información a los padres más efetivamente.