Rethinking How Patrons Discover Information:
Implementing a Discovery Tool
Beth Ketterman, MLS
Megan E. Besaw, MLIS
Michael Tucker, BSCS
A Librarian’s Initial Thoughts on
Discovery Tool Implementation
“Oh God, not another one!” - Kathy
What is a Discovery Tool?
• A discovery tool is a single search interface that
searches the bulk of a library's collection such as
books, journals, article content, digital collections,
and more.
Starting Down the Road…
• In December of 2009, ECU library administrators charged ECU
Libraries with the following: Within 30-45 days, either recommend a
discovery tool or indicate that none of the tools on the market at the
current time are appropriate for ECU
• Inter-library task force formed in December 2009 from ECU’s Health
Sciences, Academic, and Music libraries
• Librarians involved included text mark-up analyst (chair), cataloger,
public services providers, collection development and e-resources
specialists
• The task force recommended ECU was ready for a discovery tool, so
then we had to make a choice between:
Task Force Milestones
Considerations
symphony opac summon wcl
inclusion of article content
0
8
inclusion of local content
10
9
inclusion of other local content (scholarship, digital collections, etc)
2
4
inclusion of other remote content
1
5
ability to refine results
2
9
relevancy ranking
0
7
speed
4
4
remote access
5
5
ease of use
2
8
advanced search options
3
2
future cost (staff time)
1
4
chronological time for implementation
7
8
ability to create additional portals (database specific)
1
2
local customization capabilities
4
1
customer base / company reputation
2
4
overall (web stats delivered + other unique features)
0
2
total
44
82
number of portals (library specific)
3
1
staff survey results (overall question)
n/a
3.33
ebsco
4
5
1
5
8
8
4
5
7
3
4
9
4
1
3
2
73
3
2.91
primo
8
9
4
1
8
8
3
1
6
3
4
6
4
2
3
2
72
2
2.73
rating
6
9
5
1
9
10
4
3
8
2
4
6
1
3
2
1
74
2
2.75
10
10
5
5
10
10
5
5
10
5
5
10
5
5
5
10
115
3
4
Hosted Solutions Milestones
Day 1
Summon Setup Process
Kick-Off Meeting
Client Center Training
Export MARC Records
MARC Record Mapping
Manage eResource Holdings
MARC Record Ingestion
Local Repository Ingestion
Client Content QA
Site QA and Review
Launch
Week 1
Week 2
Week 3
Week 4
Week 5
Week 6
The Implementation Process
From Summon to One Search
The Next Step
• Training
• Marketing
• Poster
• Facebook ad
• Homepage banner
• Tent cards around the reference
floor and other public spaces
• Taught in library instruction
classes and consultations
Is Summon Being Used?
Link
Resolver
Follow-up Anecdote
“One Search has a variety of results
and searches in places you wouldn’t
have thought in the first place”
– Kathy
Questions?
Beth Ketterman, MLS – kettermane@ecu.edu
Megan E. Besaw, MLIS – besawm@ecu.edu