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Purpose - The paper aims to present a part of a wider study, performed at the Department of LIS&BS at the University of Ljubljana (UL). The study investigated the perceptions of user friendliness of information retrieval (IR) systems. Design/methodology/approach - An expert study and a user study were performed. The user study was based on the results of the previous expert study, which surveyed the interfaces of four e-journal IR systems (Science Direct, Proquest Direct, Ebsco Host and Emerald) and has been published separately. In the user study three of these interfaces were used: Science Direct, Proquest Direct, and Ebsco Host. A pilot study with ten subjects and a main study with 61 subjects, all postgraduate students of the UL, was performed. Questionnaires and observation were used for data collection. The users' perceptions of user interfaces were investigated and compared to the findings of the expert study. Findings - It was found that users do not show high appreciation of auxiliary functions (such as search history, indexes, etc.) and do not use them to a great extent. They also do not prefer to have available different full-text formats. Perceptions of user friendliness of elements and functions were different in each interface. For each interface it was also established that different functions and elements were influential in the overall perceptions of the interface friendliness. In comparison of the findings of the expert and user study it was found that the expert study was in some cases too detailed and investigated aspects not perceived by the users. For this reason, certain findings of both studies were not appropriate for comparison. Research limitations/implications - The methodology of data collection was rather demanding and lengthy, and influenced the type and size of sample. Because of that it may not be possible to generalise the result to all users of e-journals. Also, large quantities of data were collected which could be studied further. Practical implications - The results of the study are relevant for the design of the user interfaces of IR systems. They also have implications for other areas, e.g. user education and training. Originality/value - The study investigates the users' own perceptions of user friendliness of the e-journal interfaces and also compares them to the findings of the expert study. This gives a valuable insight and provides many different viewpoints in regard to user friendliness, which in itself is a demanding concept. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article presents one part of a wider study, performed at the Department of library and information science and book studies (LIS & BS) at the University of Ljubljana (UL). The study investigated the perceptions of user friendliness of information-retrieval systems (IRS) and the role of individual characteristics of users in these perceptions. Based on an expert study, a user study with 61 postgraduate students of the UL was performed. Three interfaces of e-journals were studied: Science Direct, Proquest Direct, and Ebsco Host. Questionnaires and observations were used for data collection. The users'perceptions of user friendliness and of importance of auxiliary functions were investigated. Also, the connections between these perceptions and the users'individual characteristics were identified. Three sets of individual characteristics were included: approaches to studying, thinking styles, and hemisphere leanings. In connection with the dimensions of individual characteristics, very different perceptions of user friendliness were expressed. Some dimensions of individual characteristics were also found to be connected to the users'academic areas. It is shown that participants from different academic areas have different requirements and perceptions of user friendliness. The results of the study are relevant for the design of the user interfaces of disciplinary IR systems. They also have implications for other areas, for example, user education and training. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper presents one part of a wider study, performed at the Department of LIS&BS at the Faculty of Arts in Ljubljana. The study investigated the perceptions of user friendliness of information retrieval systems' (IRS) interfaces and the role of individual characteristics of users in these perceptions. A user study with 61 postgraduate students of the University of Ljubljana was performed. Three interfaces were studied: Science Direct, Proquest Direct and Ebsco Host. Questionnaires and observation were used for data collection. The users' perceptions of importance of auxiliary functions, interface preference and perceptions of user friendliness of certain interface elements were investigated. Also, the connections between these perceptions and the users' individual characteristics were identified. Three sets of individual characteristics were included: approaches to studying, thinking styles and hemisphere leanings. In connection with the dimensions of individual characteristics very different user perceptions were expressed. Some dimensions of individual characteristics were also found to be connected to the users' academic areas. It is shown that the participants from different academic areas have different requirements and perceptions of user friendliness. The results of the study are relevant for the design of the user interfaces of disciplinary IRS. They also have implications for other areas, e.g. user education and training, acquisition and marketing. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper deals with the characteristics of user interfaces of information retrieval systems with the emphasis on design and evaluation. It presents users' information retrieval tasks and the functions which are offered through interfaces. Design rules, guidelines and standards are presented, as well as criteria and methods for evaluation. Special emphasis is placed on the concept of user friendliness as one of the most important characteristic of the user interfaces. Various definitions of user friendliness are presented and their elements are also discussed. In the end, the paper shows how user interfaces should be designed, taken into consideration all these criteria. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to review the nature of, and rationale for, user expectations in the digital library setting, and ways in which they may best be met and/or managed. Design/methodology/approach - An analysis of the literature, focusing on empirical studies, and bringing out main themes and issues. Findings - User expectations of digital libraries are often unrealistic, usually unrealistically high, mainly due to the ubiquity of the web search engine as an information environment. Expectations differ between user groups. Both meeting and managing expectations have been promoted as a solution; it is likely that a mix of the two will be most effective. More empirical and conceptual studies are needed. Ways of making the nature of digital library collections and their organisation ‘visible’, embedded in a natural way within their interfaces, are desirable. Originality/value - This is the first paper to review the literature of this topic. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]