Public Access Terminals Research Articles

User-centered design in universal design resources?

Studies have revealed usability problems with universal design resources (UDRs). In this paper, four UDR development cases are reviewed (Section 508 standards, Web accessibility guidelines, the British Standard on managing inclusive design, and Irish guidelines on public access terminals). Evidence of a user-centered design approach was found in only one case. The needs of people making universally usable products and services in industry are discussed in the context of the use of UDRs and results of organizational research studies. Nine recommendations are made on the development of user-centered UDRs and the setup and management of accessibility teams in organizations.

Improving access to online multilingual resources by adopting the My Language Portal in the City of Greater Dandenong Libraries

This paper reports on the implementation of ‘My Language Portal’ in the City of Greater Dandenong Libraries (CGDL), Melbourne, Victoria, through the development of a ‘My Language Portal Project Plan’ in 2006. It discusses how the aims of the designers of My Language Portal (MLP) are fulfilled in the exceptional, changing demographics of Dandenong. It provides a rationale for the adoption of MLP, by evaluating census and library statistics, and through local assessment of usability features. Wide consultation led to the creation of a user guide in the form of a fact sheet for users of CGD Libraries, and collaborations with IT and marketing staff are strongly recommended to facilitate smooth implementation. MLP offers a powerful online multilingual resource that bridges the inevitable gap in collections caused by an inability to immediately provide inhouse appropriate resources for recently-arrived and diverse migrant communities. Analysis of service provision in Dandenong highlights the need for extra resources, for improved information literacy training, and marketing, and for increasing the number of public access terminals.

Is a Computer Worth a Thousand Books? Internet Access and the Changing Role of Public Libraries

AbstractThe ongoing debate on the “digital divide” is centered on improving Internet home‐access penetration rates through two instruments, price subsidies and capital subsidies. Subsidizing home access can be expensive and difficult because of the inherent difficulty of identifying target households. Increasing the availability of public access terminals instead can be an effective way for achieving universal access. The analysis of this article considers public libraries because of their national reach and existing Internet service offerings to users. It finds strong evidence of a need‐based use of access facilities at these libraries, and also identifies a clear increasing trend in visits over time by patrons for getting online. Upgrading and maintaining these facilities would be a better use of funds than indiscriminately providing subsidies to households.

Reaching beyond the reference books in public libraries

An analysis of the URLs from transaction logs obtained from the public access terminals in four Canadian cities revealed that customers accessed a wide variety of web-based communities devoted to diverse subjects. This paper argues that public library reference librarians should include more web-based communities in the sources that they recommend to customers.

Physical Space for Virtual Services and Collections

Physical Space for Virtual Services and Collections Lynn Silipigni Connaway (bio) When discussing the information environment and how information is used, they cannot be better described than by the words of Bob Dylan in the song, "The Times They Are A-Changin": If your time to you is worth savin' Then you better start swimmin' Or you'll sink like a stone For the times they are a-changin'. As librarians, we need to understand better how people are acquiring and using information—"start swimming," or we may "sink like a stone." Users from the Alexandrian Library in 331 BC would easily recognize that they were in today's modern library. The physical attributes of the collection would be different, but they would know they were in a library. What happens to the library as place when the collection becomes increasingly electronic? New libraries continue to be built—to house the libraries' physical collections, provide access to electronicmaterials, and serve as a physical place where people come to read and to study. Fifteen years ago new libraries were being built to accommodate public access terminals. It was rare to see a user with a portable computer. Now that libraries and campuses are wired, the user is becoming unwired. What is the future of the library as a physical space? In 2003, Grant Gross reported that five billion gigabytes of data were generated in 2002, equaling 800 megabytes per person or enough data to fill 500,000 Library of Congresses. Of these data, 92 percent were stored magnetically on hard drives. Between [End Page 127] 1999 and 2002 the amount of magnetically stored data increased 80 percent, and the amount of physically stored data increased 43 percent. Yet, Americans consume 11,916 sheets of paper a year, and Europeans consume 7,280 sheets of paper a year.1 The notion of the "paperless society" has not materialized. Indeed, content that is accessed electronically is often printed for use. Therefore, in order to provide services and resources, including physical space, it is necessary to understand what types of information are being used, how that information is being used, and by whom. Information Use and Physical Space Studies One of the user communities that has embraced electronic information delivery most enthusiastically is the health science information community. Several recent studies of health information use may provide a clue where other disciplines are headed in terms of user needs, which will have an impact on planning for library space. An online survey of 2,000 adults aged 18 or older was conducted by the Pew Internet and American Life Project to determine whether and how they use the Internet to gather health and medical information. The report indicates that80 percent of adult Internet users (93 million Americans) searched for at least one of 16 health topics online. This is an 18 percent increase from a previously conducted study by Pew. The study reports, "Looking for health or medical information is one of the most popular activities online, after using e-mail (93 percent of adult users), and researching a product or service (83 percent)."2 Those seeking online health information believe that their health information and services improve; and their relationships with their doctors change, because of their newly gained knowledge of the subjects. Online groups and e-mail provide a support network for those who seek consumer health information.3 In the academic world, Brinley Franklin and Terry Plum examined the usage of networked electronic services in four health sciences libraries during a six-year period. In these libraries there are more than five remote users for each in-library user among the faculty, staff, and research fellow groups. Grant-funded research "accounted for approximately 32 percent of the networked electronic services activity at the health sciences libraries and 16 percent at the main campus libraries."4 For researchers with grant-funded projects, networked electronic services appeared to be used more from on-campus than from inside the library.5 In a recent Pew Internet and American Life study, Deborah Fallows reported, "Most Internet users still default to the traditional offline ways of communicating, transacting affairs, getting information, and entertaining themselves. ... The Internet...

Www.palliativecareglasgow.info: Developing Online Palliative Care Information

The Glasgow Palliative Care Information Network provides an online source of information about palliative care and palliative care services to patients, their families and professionals, particularly generalists. The information for patients and carers aims to clarify what palliative care is and how such services are accessed. The section for professionals includes guidelines, protocols, links and resources which can be used to support their practice in both hospital and community settings. It is also planned to place public access terminals in relevant locations across the city to encourage access to the information available online and by so doing to improve awareness of palliative care and how it is delivered. In addition the network will offer internet access to a group of patients and assess the effect of the web based information on anxiety levels when compared to more traditional media.

Predicting On-Line Catalog Terminal Needs

To determine if research findings from large academic, research libraries on the number of public access terminals needed apply to smaller libraries, the author compared results of a study done at a large research institution to one done at a mid-sized university. The data were different. This is important because the active automation market is currently thriving at smaller libraries, not larger ones, and because environment/size does seem to be critical to the consideration of automation parameters. Thus, smaller libraries should establish their own parameters and employ models generated at large institutions only as a general recipe.

Institutional policy issues for providing public internet access

Libraries of all types are in the midst of attempting to acquire the equipment and connections necessary to provide patron access to the Internet. The 1994 survey of public libraries by the National Commission on Libraries and Information Science indicates that 87.3 percent of all public libraries surveyed do not currently provide public access terminals; yet, informal surveys of library and information science literature, popular literature, and attendance at conferences and workshops indicate there is considerable interest in acquiring connections to the Internet, and many libraries are making concrete plans to do so. Still, libraries involved in the acquisition stage of Internet connectivity may have temporarily set aside consideration of policy issues relating to that access. However, the Internet is far more than merely another format, such as libraries dealt with when deciding to collect videos or CDs; the Internet is a new publishing format, communication tool, repository of information, and art form. It challenges our assumptions and policies regarding censorship, confidentiality, intellectual property, the reliability, stability, and verifiability of information—even our view of (virtual) reality! Providing public access to the Internet can affect every aspect of library policy making and demand new definitions and decisions.

SUTTON LINK: Sutton Libraries' new approach to community information using online public access terminals

SUTTON LINK is an integral part of the community information service provided by public libraries in the London Borough of Sutton. It is a database of community, local and leisure information available on public access terminals in the libraries themselves, as well as in an ever‐increasing number of local advice agencies. This paper describes the evolution, design and features of the service, what it contains and facilities for searching the database, which is run using Geac's Community Information System Module.

Vending Database Searching with Public Access Terminals

CompuVend equipment has been modified by Drexel University to charge different rates for searching online databases, depending on the pricing levels of the databases. The equipment is user‐operated, provides automatic log‐on and password protection, and works with either dollar bill or debit card reader.

Human Factors in Keypad Design

A series of studies is reported in which a number of human factors considerations were investigated in the design of a keypad entry system for Telidon public access terminals. Initial studies evaluated subjects' preferences with simulated keypads upon which subjects performed simulated Telidon tasks. Subsequently, working prototypes were developed of the two most preferred keypads. User performance and preference were evaluated in a series of field studies. It was found that preference measures for the prototypes closely approximated data derived using the simulations, indicating validity of this inexpensive method of design testing.