Virtual Self-Service:
Accessing HKUST Library’s
Web Resources
Diana Chan
Head of Reference
Hong Kong University of Science
and Technology Library
Contents
1.
2.
3.
Introduction to HKUST
Service Trends
Access to HKUST Library’s Website


4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Website Design and Organization
How We Make our Web Resources More Accessible
and Easily Discovered
Tracking Usage
Databases & E-Journals
Subject Guides
Internet Resources
Conclusion
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HKUST





Founded in 1991
1 of 3 research
universities in Hong
Kong
Undergraduates: 5,500;
Postgraduates: 3,000;
Faculty: 440
4 Schools with 100
degree programs:
Science, Engineering,
Business, Humanities &
Social Sciences
Rank: 42 among the top
200 universities (The Times
Higher Education Supplement,
2004)

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22 librarians, 75 staff
3
HKUST Library –
Collection Size
As of July 2005:
 Books: 615,000 volumes
 Journals (including e-journals): 13,000*
titles
 Databases: 300
 Media & Microform: 710,000 volumes
* catalogued titles only, many e-journals not pertinent to our
research are not included. About 6,000 e-journals were added
after July 2005.
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Service Trends in ARL Libraries, 1991-2004
150%
130%
110%
% Change Since 1991
90%
70%
50%
30%
Interlibrary
Borrowing
(148%)
Participants in Group
Presentations
(82%)
Group
Presentations
Circulations
(50%)
Ratio: Initial
to Total**
(27%)
Total
Students
(18%)
10%
Total
Staff
(1%)
-10%
-30%
-50%
** Total Circulation includes Initial and Renewals but excludes Reserve Circulation
Source: ARL Statistics 2003-04, Association of Research Libraries, 2005
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Initial
Circulation**
(-12%)
Reference
Transactions
(-34%)
5
HKUST Library Web Server Usage
Total Requests
May'95
Reporting Interval: monthly
Oct'05
Peak Requests: 2,388,948
Request in September 05: 2,322,219
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Monthly Access Statistics,
March 2005
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Daily Access Statistics:
Updated Every Hour
As of Sept 8, 2005
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Patrons Have Gone to the
Web


Although our traditional service
transactions drop, access to our webbased services increases.
Our patrons have gone to the web.
What web pages are being accessed?
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Website Design and
Organization





Aim is to provide information
Attractive & easy to browse
Standards & guidelines
Organization & balance
Coverage



About the Library
Resources on site
Resources off site
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How We Make our Resources More
Accessible and Easily Discovered through
our Website?
News & Alerts: e.g.,
New Acquisitions List,
Sci/Tech Alert
Useful
information:
hours, services,
forms
Extract subsets
from OPAC: e.g.,
Database list and
E-Journal list
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OPAC – All resources are
catalogued (books, digital
libraries, databases, media &
microforms, reference & reserve,
periodicals, special collections,
thesis, university archives).
Direct link to electronic
resources.
11
Standards & Guidelines

Content


Design


Date, ©HKUST Library, up-to-date & accurate,
broken links are fixed quickly
Consistent look-and-feel, Use CSS Style Sheet,
appropriate library banner imagemap, use
TITLE tag, resize graphics
Procedural & Technical

Schedule of revision, test links, spell-check,
proof-read, ALT attribute for images <IMG>,
convention of filenames, validate a page with
W3C HTML Validator
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Tracking Usage

Use different programs







AWStats
Pwebstats
Analog 6.0
AccessWatch v1.33
Journal Usage Report Online (JURO)
No comprehensive study on web
access
Historical archives, since 2002
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Frequency of Items
Requested
As of March 2005
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Consistent High Access





Databases
E-Journals
Subject Guides
Internet Resources
Services (Room booking calendar,
hours, forms, etc.)
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Database List
Links 2.0
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Web-based Database
Collection
200
About 30 open access databases included in 2005
180
178
No. of Databases
160
140
128
117
120
114
107
109
2000
2001
100
80
2002
2003
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2004
2005
17
Database Access Using
CGI Scripts
2,500
Average Successful Requests Per Day
2,000
1,500
1,000
500
0
00/01
01/02
02/03
On Campus
03/04
04/05
Off Campus
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Usage of the Most Popular
Databases
1500
1000
500
0
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005*
3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
2000
2001
ProQuest
4000
2000
0
2002
2003
2004
2005*
Average Local Hits per Month
6000
2001
2003
2004
2005*
3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
2000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
2000
2001
2002
2001
2002
2003
2004
2005*
2003
2004
2005*
IEEE Xplorer
Ovid
8000
2000
2002
2003
2004
2005*
Average Local Hits per Month
2000
WiseNews
Average Local Hits per Month
2500
2000
Average Local Hits per Month
Web of Science
3000
Average Local Hits per Month
Average Local Hits per Month
Academic Universe
7000
6000
5000
4000
3000
2000
1000
0
2000
2001
2002
*2005 data is projected from access in Jan to Aug, based on usage
pattern in previous years.
Ovid includes 11 databases; ProQuest includes 21 databases
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Remote Authentication
Server
Program started on Thu, Sep 01 2005 at 10:55 AM. Analyzed
requests from Fri, Nov 01 2002 at 7:47 AM to Thu, Sep 01 2005
at 12:00 AM
Average Requests Per
Day (Nov. 1, 2002Sept. 1, 2005 ):
21,821
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Summary - Databases

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More databases subscribed since 2004
Usage sharply increased since 2004
More databases became web-based
Consistent usage among top databases
 Web of Science
 WiseNews
 Lexis/Nexis Academic Universe
 ProQuest
 Ovid (11 databases)
 IEEE Explorer
Some database usage began to drop. Why? More open
access resources, cross references in databases, access to
some open access databases is not included.
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Journals
14000
12000
No. of Titles
10000
8000
6000
4000
2000
0
1999
2000
2001
Print (Current +Dead)
2002
2003
Current Print
2004
2005
E-Journals
E-journals include open access titles, consortium access and
consortium reciprocal access.
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Number of E-Journal Full-text
Article Requests (JURO) Provisional
538794
550000
500000
450000
400000
344120
350000
300000
250000
200000
150000
100000
50000
0
2003/2004
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2004/2005
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Journal Usage Comparison
Current as of Oct 5, 2005
Title
Print
Online – No. of
Web Access
No. of Full-text
Articles Request
(COUNTERcompliant usage)
1995
2001
2005*
(Jan-Jun)
2001
2002
2003
2004
Oncogene
213
307
11
No Eaccess
403
1,843
1,927
Human Res.
Management
50
58
2
219
48
120
4
Biochemistry
349
103
1
827
327
1,447
1,342
Nature
1,11
6
1,162
49
1,098
1,352
17,339
13,833
Science
1,28
3
1,056
98
1,222
811
16,745
16,549
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Summary - Journals




Collection development emphasizes
on E-access. Subscription changes
from print to E-journal
E-journal usage skyrockets
Popular titles have even higher usage
in E-journals than in print
Print usage nose-dives
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Subject Guides
119 Guides in 5
categories
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Subject Guides
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Multi-page Subject Guide
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Subject Guide and Course
Guide
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Staff Deployment

A 7-member working group of reference and
subject librarians with a charge to:

Create, organize and present a body of information
providing assistance to our users working in a focused
subject area






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Pathfinders
Subject guides
Course guides
Collection guides
Database search guides
Guides on information research skills
Meet once a month
Divide responsibilities in subject areas
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Workflow - Subject/Course
Guides
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Authoring Tool - HTML-Kit
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Design & Standardization


Standards ensure a coherent look
Templates




Pathfinder – multiple html pages
Subject guide – Finding library materials,
Reference Tools, Reference Topics
Course guide
Cascading Style Sheets (CSS)


Fonts, colors & layout
Quick update & global change
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Standards for Basic
Components
Component
Notes
Coding & Other Info.
Top banner
All guides carry the same
banner.
<!-- START BANNER --><!-#include virtual="/ssi/guidesban.ssi"--><!-- STOP BANNER -->
Character
encoding
Use Unicode - display
Chinese (simplified &
traditional) & other nonEnglish languages
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type"
content="text/html; charset=utf8">
Section
headings
Different levels of headings
standardized
Title <H2>
First level headings <H3>
Second level headings <H4>
Scripted links
for Internet
resources
Library maintains a web
directory in the server – has
a cgi-scripted link for each
When available, use a scripted link
instead of the real URL.
http://library.ust.hk/cgibin/beyond/jump.cgi?
http://www.logisticsworld.com/
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Maintenance


Content – is reviewed and updated
annually or when it is needed
Links – Multi-Owner Maintenance
spider (MOMspider)
http://ftp.ics.uci.edu/pub/websoft/MOMsp
ider/
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MOMspider’s Report
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Top 24 Guides (20%) 5/2004 – 4/2005
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Outside users’ access is 11 times
more often than HKUST users
595,689 hits between May 2004 & April 2005
- Human access: 95%
- Robots access: 5%
8% from on-campus computers (HKUST users)
92% from off-campus computers (visitors)
- Some “visitors” might be HKUST users who accessed
the guides from off-campus.
Definition of a “hit”
Every click on a link that leads to the main page
or a sub-page of a guide is counted as one hit.
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Similarities between HKUST
users & visitors


The 2 groups share the 6 same guides in their top 7 list.
These 6 same guides are all general guides
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Differences between HKUST
users & visitors
HKUST users
 10 of the top 24 guides were course guides
 In general, the course guides ranked higher among HKUST users
than visitors
Visitors
 2 of their top 24 guides were course guides
 Used the more general guides more heavily
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User Survey
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Summary - Subject Guides


Provide a package of information on
popular topics and are highly accessed
Top guides are general topics and courserelated

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Job Hunting
10 Steps to a Research Paper
China Studies
Hong Kong Information
Legal Information
High-tech Industrial zones
Company Information
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Information Literacy Tutorial




Used WebCT
previously
Now using LMES
Attempted by
4,000 students
87% students
recommended ILT
to others (2004/05)
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Internet Resources
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14 broad categories
with 77 subcategories
1,213 websites (as of
July 2005)
Organized under
schools and
departments
Other categories such
as Asia, News,
References
Each page includes
1-2 meta sites
45
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Selection

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Collection development policy
Access & Organization
Quality






Authority
Currency
Content
Subject coverage
Awards, e.g. Magellan 4 stars, Lycos Top 5%,
Argus Clearinghouse Seal of Approval, etc.
Referred to by other Web sites.
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Collection Scope








Indexes and abstracts
Technical reports, working papers, virtual
libraries
Electronic journals, electronic magazines
Reference tools, e.g. directories, dictionaries,
acronyms, etc.
Leading associations, societies, or institutes for
the discipline
Full-text information, e.g. data files, databases,
fact sheets, etc.
Web sites with good coverage of resources on
a subject
Other scope on other categories, e.g.
electronic books
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Catalog and Feature a Site

Catalog a resource if it:





Is full/text
Is a discrete, individually distinct
resource
has format resembling a reference tool,
e.g. Complete work of Shakespeare
has an equivalent in print, CD-ROM, or
other electronic format,
Feature a site
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Selection Tools

Internet Directories








Argus Clearinghouse
BUBL LINK
Infomine
Internet Scout Project Scout Reports
Resource Discovery
Network
WWW Virtual Library :
Subject Catalogue
Aardvark: Resources for
Librarians
Michigan Electronic Library:
Best of the Internet

Journals:






Mailing Lists:



Choice. Supplement
College & Research
Libraries News
Databases
Internet World
Online
Scout Report
ResearchBuzz
Search Engines
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Staff Deployment

A 6-member working group of mostly
cataloguers






Identify, evaluate and select Internet resources
for inclusion on the Library Web pages and for
cataloging
Meet once every 6 weeks
Spend 45 hours per month
Divide responsibilities in subject areas
Review resources for inclusion, updating,
deselection
Handle broken links
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Creation & Maintenance


Gossamer Threads Links 2.0 Program
http://www.gossamer-threads.com/
Maintained by the broken links
reports from Links and MomSpider
http://ftp.ics.uci.edu/pub/websoft/MOMspi
der/
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Access to Internet
Resources Pages
No. of Hits to Internet Resources Categories and Subpages in 04/05
40000
"Others" includes pages listing
E-Books, Online Bookstores,
Other Library Catalogs, Web
Directories and Search
Engines, etc.
35000
30000
No. of hits
25000
20000
15000
10000
5000
0
Main Menu
Asia
Business & Engineering Humanites &
Management
Social
Sciences
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Science
News
Reference
Others
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10 Most Popular Sites
Rank
Title
No. of Hits since
2004
1
中國期刊全文數據庫
3,899
2.
亦凡公益圖書館
2,460
3.
HKEx= 香港交易所
1,427
4.
Laws of Hong Kong = 香港法例
1,291
5.
中央研究院漢籍電子文獻
1,052
6.
林語堂當代漢英詞典
1,001
7.
European Patent Office: esp@cenet
970
8.
香港中文期刊論文索引 = HKInChiP
961
9.
WWW Virtual Library
945
10.
三聯書店 = Joint Publishing
939
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Summary –
Internet Resources


Our web server provides a logical
gateway to access high quality
internet resources
Our most popular sites are:



Full-text
Regional focused (Hong Kong, Asia)
Sites with journals, books, patents,
dictionaries
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Conclusion




Patrons’ library usage pattern changes over time.
As the library’s traditional service transactions
drop, access to our web-based services increases.
Users expect to find everything full-text on the
web immediately
We design the library environment to meet their
needs by providing well-organized, and easily
accessible digital resources – databases, ejournals, subject guides and internet resources.
We are developing a Journal Usage Report Online
(JURO) program to generate COUNTER-compliant
usage reports from service providers.
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References


Sam Chu. “Designing, Managing and Evaluating
Web-based Subject Guides: a Case Study.”
Capacity Building for Information Technology
Integration in Teaching and Learning conference,
at Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre,
Hong Kong, June 4, 2005.
Most statistics are available from the HKUST Web
Server Statistics at http://library.ust.hk/usage/
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