ONLINE PUBLIC ACCESS CATALOGS

Assignment Title: Comparison of Web-Based Online Public Catalogs (OPACs).

Participation: Individual.

Due date: 14 February 2001

Format: Formal three-page essay in APA final manuscript format.

Submission Method: Email to the course emailbox with the assignment attached as a MSWord document.

Maximum points: 5.

Introduction:

Goals: The goals of this assignment are:

• To allow you to identify, find, and become acquainted with Web-Based online public access catalogs.
  

• To permit you to evaluate some of the particular characteristics of these OPACs.
  

• To require you to integrate what you see at these sites with concepts and concerns of importance to the class.
  
  
• To encourage you to consider how these characteristics are of interest to LIS generally, to the concerns of the class, and to your professional interests and ambitions.

Tasks: For this assignment you will:

1. Find and look at the online public access catalogs of the following institutions:
   • New York Public Library
   • UT-Austin
   • UT-El Paso
   • The Library of Congress
   
   
2. Identify what you regard as three important characteristics of these four OPACs. Among the characteristics you may want to consider are the accessibility of the OPACs, the effectiveness of their design, their search ability, what the records look like in each, what records are displayable and searchable, and how the bibliographic records for monographs, journals, and full-text digital tools are alike and different in the different OPACs.
   
   
3. Consider how the OPACs are similar or different for each of your chosen characteristic.
   


4. Write an essay addresses what you learned. Please be very specific in describing why these characteristics are important.
   
   
5. Submit your assignment to the course emailbox.