ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries December 1986 / 719 Cooperative online search ing: The E m p o ria/K an sas State experience By N a n n ette P . M artin Reference Librarian Emporia State University Long distance searching can be another way to share resources. S u b j e c t specialization is a continuing problem for small to medium-sized academic libraries. Typi­ cally, librarians in these institutions often have so­ cial sciences or humanities backgrounds. Science is an area usually found lacking for several reasons. First, it is almost impossible to compete in the job m arket for the few persons in physical or bio­ logical science who also have library training. Second, the diversity of the usual library faculty m em ber’s job is often far removed from his special interests and also involves general supervisory, of­ fice, or campus committee assignments. T h i r d , a g re a t m a n y science specialists are geared tow ard research, and little of this is inher­ ent in m any academic library positions. Finally, the few librarians who do have major interests and training, w hether in chemistry or m u ­ sic, often prefer to apply for the positions in special libraries which more closely parallel their interests; of course, salaries and working conditions are usu­ ally better in special libraries, and these are added incentives to steer away from the all-purpose gen­ eralist librarian who may give library tours, keep reference desk hours, have collection development responsibilities and p a rtic ip ate in online search functions. As a supervisor of interlibrary loan services and head of the online search service, as well as a p a r ­ ticipant in all the other areas mentioned above, it occurred to me th at a cooperative venture might be ossible in online searching. W hy not lend online xpertise, in addition to books or periodical a rti­ les? I knew th at Kansas State University’s Farrell ibrary, an area sister institution, had several li­ rarians who shared searching responsibilities, so I ecided to discuss my plan with Glenn Remelts, ead of their search service. After communicating ith his supervisor, Glenn agreed to assist E m poria tate, as time allowed, with the more difficult sci­ nce searches, particularly those in the physical sci­ nces. Although the William Allen W hite Library at m poria was only asked infrequently to do science earches, it became increasingly clear th at I was ot well equipped to handle anything but the most eneral topics. The classification codes, the term i­ ology, and the basic knowledge needed to un d er­ tand my faculty colleagues was difficult, if not im ­ ossible. Yet, the biologists and chemists on the aculty needed and deserved the same online search pportunities as other faculty members. Database orkshops and seminars offered periodically in the rea are beneficial, of course, but nothing ever uite takes the place of subject knowledge. The actual process of “long distance searching” egan w hen a contact was m ad e for an online earch in an area of science where it was deter­ ined through the interview process th at addi­ p e c L b d h w S e e E s n g n s p f o w a q b s m 720 / C &R L News tional expertise would be needed. Three intervals during the next day or two were identified when the library patron could return to be interviewed over the telephone. Glenn Remelts was contacted in the same way, and chose one of the suggested times. Using me as the intermediary, the patron was contacted and told when to appear in my office for the 10-15 minute telephone interview. Infor­ mation regarding charges and expectations of the search had already been given to our patron. Glenn asked the usual questions regarding for­ m at, language, publication years, num ber of cita­ tions needed and other p e rtin e n t inform ation. Print citations could be obtained either online or offline, with the time elapsed being approximately 8– 10 days if offline. The E m p o ria p a tro n was called when the search results arrived in Emporia either by mail or university courier system. A check for the amount due was sent to Kansas State by re­ turn courier or mail. Five searches were done in this manner the first year, and all library patrons, stu d en ts a n d fa c u lty m em b e rs, seemed to be pleased with the results. Although this process may sound complicated, it actually was done with relative ease, and the most positive aspect of the “long distance search” was the specific information obtained, since intricacies of each database were fully utilized. Another ad ­ vantage to this online m ethod was the possible availability of several database vendors which are often most accessible in large academic libraries. Many small libraries subscribe to only one database vendor, the most common being DIALOG. The negatives encountered were those typical of such a process: • t h e inability of the patron to be present during the search session; •difficulty in pinpointing search costs; • t h e inability to see “samples” of citations d u r­ ing the search; • a n d the additional 3–5 days delay before the search results were received. It is evident th a t such a cooperative service would need to be used sparingly since large li­ braries usually have active online departm ents, and cannot perform m any additional searches. However, this venture can be reciprocal, because during the same period of time, two searches were done at E m poria State for students enrolled at Kansas State University. For students who com­ m ute, the advantage of having online facilities available in their own cities is often an important consideration in choosing the site for online search service. In order to try shared online searching, it would be best to have an informal instututional arrange­ ment such as this for approximately one year. If results are satisfactory, a formal agreement or con­ tract stipulating such terms as the maximum num ­ b er of searches a v ailab le each m o n th , search charges, and types of library patrons to be served should be considered. Large libraries would have the least to gain, just as is true in interlibrary loan services; therefore it would be important that they not be used excessively. If cooperation and consider­ ation among all participating members were com­ ponents of a shared online search program, regional or even state networks might become a reality. December 1986 / 721 W ith end user programs becoming available, “long distance searches” may not be so attractive, but faced with the present economic conditions in higher education, resource sharing in all forms seems worthy of consideration. The ability of the small academic library to offer the latest inform a­ tion techniques will depend heavily upon creative and imaginative library programs. ■ ■ T rain in g online catalo g assistants: C reating a friendly in terface By H arvey S a g er Instructional Services Librarian Arizona State University The design and implementation of a staff training program fo r online catalog assistants at ASU. The use of lib r a r y assistants to p ro v id e o n dem and assistance to users of Online Public Access Catalogs (OPACs) has been a successful compo­ nent of OPAC instructional programs at several ac­ ademic libraries. This article suggests the benefits th at can accrue to the individual participants as well as to the library as a whole when such a p ro ­ gram is implemented, and describes the staff tra in ­ ing program developed at Arizona State University Libraries to prepare staff volunteers to serve as PAC assistants. More th an a year prior to “going public” with our L ib raries’ ALIS III online catalog, indeed while the online catalog was still in its design stage, a committee of seven librarians representing a cross section from public services and the b ran c h li­ braries was appointed by the assistant university li­ brarian for autom ated systems and charged with the task of designing and implementing an orienta­ tion and training program in the use of our new on­ line catalog for our library staff and public. Specif­ ically, the committee was charged with finding a solution to the anticipated instructional “crunch” which, it was feared, would inevitably affect the public service staff in the main and science library reference service areas where the online catalog terminals would be located. In other words, we had to find a way to meet the anticipated need for online catalog instruction in our reference areas without sacrificing the q u a n ­ tity and quality of existing reference and inform a­ tional services already being provided to our stu­ dents a n d f a c u l t y — a n d we h a d to do it w ith existing library staff. The committee agreed th at one component of such a program should include a corps of trained volunteers recruited from the existing library staff to be stationed in the main and science library ref­ erence areas during our busiest hours to provide p a ­ tron assistance in the use of the new online catalog, thereby freeing the reference librarians and infor­ mation desk personnel to carry on business as usual. Such a program, we speculated, would provide benefits to the trainee participants as well as to the library. Specifically, it would provide opportuni­ ties for motivated and outgoing staff (and every li­ brary has such employees) to: 1) receive some special recognition and visibility