JEREMY WECHSLER Students experience Olin’s new web interface.

Faculty Survey Enhances Olin By Adam Hurter Contributing Writer Olin Library now sports a new web interface and offers extended reference desk hours and even more changes are yet to come. The improvements are the follow-up to a faculty survey that was distributed to the staff and returned last fall. The six-page survey, which was filled out by 126 tenure-track faculty members, covered a broad range of topics but focused most heavily on the usefulness and efficiency of technological advances.

"The new electronic databases allow professors to not come into the library as frequently," said Associate University Librarian Rachel Cheng. "So we don’t have as much contact with them as we used to ...it also cut back the feedback they gave us. We thought the survey would be a good way to hear the faculty’s input."

Some major changes have already been made.

"The most critical change has been the interface quickness," said Cheng.

The interface was improved after only 35% of the faculty stated that they actually use the program. Users of Olin’s on-line resources are now able to maneuver through the system, known as WebCat, without signing in and no longer need to spend as much time clicking the mouse.

The survey also garnered negative feedback about the copying machines.

"One of the biggest problems is always with the copiers," said Dan Eckles ’00, who works in Olin. "They are always breaking and people are always complaining."

According to the Olin publication "Check it Out," one new copying machine was added to the third floor last year, and although no additional copiers will be added downstairs, the two old ones are soon going to be replaced by brand new machines.

The on-line connection to nearby schools Trinity College and Connecticut College has also been improved. Now students or faculty can order a book not found in Olin that is available in one of these libraries and expect it in two days.

"We’re kind of like the same library," Eckles said.

Another area of faculty dissatisfaction is with the selection of journals. Cheng claims this is a difficult problem to fix.

"The amount of journals that we can purchase is directly related to our budget," said Cheng. "This is an on-going issue."

As the number of journals available is fixed, the only decisions arise over which journals to purchase. Not surprisingly, conflict arises when faculty members’ journals of choice are not selected for subscription.

Surveyed faculty also felt that a reference librarian should be available more frequently. Olin responded by offering new reference desk hours: 10 a.m.- 6 p.m. and 7-10 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. on Friday, and 2-5 p.m. and 7-10 p.m. on Sunday.

The next step for Olin in terms of determining what else is needed in the library is a student survey. "The student survey is already made," Cheng said. "We’re just working on when and how [to distribute it]. We’re thinking in the second semester of this year."