Some Thoughts on Preserving Functions of Library Catalogs in Networked Environments

Abstract

EDITOR'S SUMMARY Classification and subject indexing systems have long been the mainstay of established information providers to deliver content precisely on topic. Logical semantic hierarchies and rich interconnections of related terms and synonyms enable accurate retrieval and browsing of similar resources and ideally should be available in online environments. But the cost of features may not be sustainable with massively growing resources. Efforts to merge databases and map disparate subject terminology require considerable human intervention. A possible solution combines controlled and uncontrolled terms from three sources: authoritative professional indexing, automated term suggestion and uncontrolled keywords proposed by authors or end users' social tags. Research is required to investigate the effectiveness, cost and applicability of combining controlled and uncontrolled terms for information retrieval.

Improving the effectiveness of subject facets in library catalogs and beyond: a MARC-based semiautomated approach

“…Successfully searching and browsing a library catalog, either stand-alone or as part of an integrated library system, often turns out to be hard, especially for novice users who want to perform complex exploratory search tasks (high-level, open-ended searching and browsing activities, aka broad subject searching and browsing) rather than simple lookup tasks (known-item searching; Bauder and Lange, 2015;Golub, 2016aGolub, , 2016bHead, 2013, p. 3;Julien et al, 2012;Rose-Wiles and Hofmann, 2013;Yu and Young, 2004).…”

“…On the one hand, the flat format display may have simplified interface design and usability to a great extent, but, on the other hand, it poses serious challenges to novice users who want to perform complex exploratory search tasks because they cannot navigate the semantic network of a given subject domain to make sense of it. For this to happen, these users first and foremost need a browsable, high-level topical overview of the information space they are about to explore in advance of a query to help them establish a mental model of the whole space and orient themselves accordingly (Antelman et al, 2006, p. 130;Bates, 2007; "The Proposed definition"; Bauder and Lange, 2015;Golub, 2016aGolub, , 2016bJulien et al, 2012;Shneiderman, 1996, p. 337). This way of displaying subject facets, which is akin to browsing the library stacks, is also more in line with the tenets of exploratory search.…”

“…29-30;Chickering and Yang, 2014, pp. 14-15;Golub, 2016aGolub, , 2016bSonawane, 2017, p. 37). Because Web-scale discovery services rely on a centralized meta-index to provide access to the universe of resources available to libraries, there are some outstanding problems with them that need to be overcome.…”