Research Shortcuts + W3 pages

Research Shortcuts + W3 pages =
"Course Pages" or "Library Research Guides"

We have identified a need to upgrade what we do with our current research help pages:

• Research Shortcuts
  
• Web Pages Recommended by Reference Librarians

Benefits to the Students and other library users:

• The current approach requires students to go to two different and unequal places to get research help for specific subjects. Research Shortcuts and Web Pages Recommended by Librarians
• This would be an opportunity to adopt a fresher, Web 2.0, approach and might garner new users.
• There would be a more uniform presentation of information to the user.
• As an added note: LibGuides look can be customized to our own look

Benefits to Librarians:

• Reference librarians who are already time-challenged must update pages in two different places when they could maintain only one and provide users with more options.
• When responsibilities for pages change, the transition would be made easier since the essential information and format would remain the same.
• This tool is mostly modular and automated so librarians would not need to develop another skill set.
  

Resources reviewed:

Upon recommendations from our own librarians and various blogs, wikis, webcasts, and discussion lists, Margaret investigated several things that other libraries use. These are the things that rose to the top and some comment.

Things we did not choose (See below) || What we chose (LibGuides)

Notes on things we did not choose

• ICAP - Open source software from Oregon State University
  
  http://ica.library.oregonstate.edu/about/index.html




• Good page examples:
  
  http://ica.library.oregonstate.edu/Course_Assignment_Page/691
  
  http://ica.library.oregonstate.edu/Course_Assignment_Page/291
  
  http://ica.library.oregonstate.edu/Course_Assignment_Page/761
  






• MP Comment - after consulting with Kevin deLeon, IRT Webmaster and web system admin
  
• This is a very good-looking product but it runs on "Ruby on Rails" which we would have to learn to program. Ruby is a programming language like PHP and Rails is the infrastructure for it.
  


• We'd have to hire a new programmer to implement this even though the software is free and even if we have a server we could run it on.
  



• SubjectPlus -- Open source software from Ithica College http://www.ithacalibrary.com/subsplus/
  




• Example: http://www.ithacalibrary.com/subjects/chemistry
  


• MP Comment - after consulting with Kevin deLeon, IRT Webmaster and web system admin
  


• This product runs on PHP and mySQL and we do have some IRT people who know how to use these.
  


• It isn't as good-looking but it is probably do-able for us if we need to. If we went to open-source, I'd think that we'd need to hire some hourly PHP assistance since I don't think that IRT has the people time to give us the support we need beyond loading on an IRT server.
  

• Library Course Builder - LibCB
  
  http://sourceforge.net/projects/libcb
  




• Example from Univ Rochester: http://www.lib.rochester.edu/index.cfm?page=11&searchtype=rcl&TheClass=17188
  




• MP Comment
  


• This runs on Cold Fusion and we have no Cold fusion operations in IRT.
  

What we chose

• LibGuides - hosted site:
  
  http://springshare.com/libguides/
  




• Good examples:
  




• http://libguides.acadiau.ca/content.php?pid=1254
  


• http://guides.library.sc.edu/content.php?pid=632&sid=3306
  


• http://dal.ca.libguides.com/content.php?pid=570
  


• http://libguides.depauw.edu/content.php?pid=611
  




• MP Comment - after consulting with Kevin deLeon, IRT Webmaster and web system admin
  


• Both Kevin and I think this is the best solution for Library Services.
  


• This is a well-repected host site and has a lot of bang for the buck. I suggest that you read the Features which include lots of widgets (like Facebook, etc.) and embedded Del.icio.us tags, RSS feeds, Podcasts. And it can be updated via the "Post to" browser button so you can add content from anywhere on the web.
  


• Pricing ranges from $899 to $2499 a year plus $60 for custom domain mapping. We'd have to follow up for our particular institutional organization.