Planning and Evaluating Library Networked Services and Resources

This book describes techniques for evaluating services provided through library networks, including collection development, group purchases, and reference services. Providing guides for developing evaluation instruments, testing them and applying them, it is comprehensive in its treatment of evaluating network services. Featuring contributions from some of the leaders in the area of e-metrics (Oliver Pesh, Ebsco; Judith Hiott, Houston Public; Jeff Shim, ARL e-metrics; and Chuck McClure) this book is an integrated, updated knowledge base of events in this area since 1998. It also provides a great deal of experiential knowledge concerning what libraries should do, plan for, and use in e-metrics.

These days the traditional quiet of libraries is punctuated by the click of fingers on keyboards and the hum of personal computers. This collection of 11 essays follows the cables behind the scenes to help library professionals evaluate and select networked services and resources that best meet the need of patrons. Essay topics include planning, selecting evaluation approaches, assessing services and resources, choosing performance indicators, performing needs assessments, dealing with legal and business matters, developing policy, allocating resources, penetrating vendor usage statistics from both sides, and considering key issues and future directions. Contributors offer both tools and arguments in making the case for services and resources. Annotation ©2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

JOHN CARLO BERTOT is Professor, School of Information Studies, Florida State University, Chair of of the International Standards Organizations (ISO) Working Group 4, member of ISO Working Group 2, and serves on the National Information Standards Organizations (NISO) library statistics committee. He is Editor of Government Information Quarterly and Co-editor of Library Quarterly.

DENISE M. DAVIS is Director of the Office for Research and Statistics at the American Library Association. She serves on the advisory committees of the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) Library Program for the public and state library surveys, and chairs the NCES academic library survey advisory committee. She also chairs the National Information Standards Organization Library Statistics Standard Z39.7 revision committee, and serves on a number of other committees including the ProjectCOUNTER advisory and International Standards Organization (ISO) committees. library statistics standards.