No abstract

Advances in information technology provide opportunities to inform users in ways that were only imagined twenty years ago. However, information providers need to inform themselves concerning the best way to deliver resources to these users. Often assumptions are made about users that are inaccurate and untrue. With a view to these shortcomings, a team came together to collect information from users to assist in the redevelopment of a departmental library homepage at a major U.S. university. Methods used by social science researchers and by businesses to ascertain customer preferences were employed to increase understanding of the needs and desires of library users. Applying the tools of qualitative research improved understanding of the inexact science one must practice in dealing with diverse groups. This paper is a report of the findings, some surprising, some expected, but all relevant to the shape "Informing Science" takes in one library.

Over the past five years, Baker Library at the Harvard Business School has developed a more formal program to facilitate the use of data throughout the lifecycle of business research. Driven by user needs and institutional data retention requirements, the Research Data Program (RDP) has established and brought together services in the realms of data acquisition and discovery, data curation and management, advice on research methods, and data sharing and archiving. These efforts are in line with a field-wide trend of librarian-led efforts to manage, share, and preserve institutional research data. One initiative of Baker's RDP, the Research Datasets Tool, is a searchable, secure discovery platform designed to enable the institution to log and find datasets purchased by individual faculty. Rollout of the Research Datasets Tool illustrates the benefits and challenges common to efforts to track institutional assets: increased ease of access and maximization of University resources are tempered by the burden of user education and the difficulty of integrating various information discovery systems. Over the next several years, Baker will continue to develop its existing research data tools and services, explore new areas of service, and work to better integrate its services with the larger university community.

Interoperability Between Institutional and Data Repositories: A Pilot Project at MIT

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