The University of Southampton Library reports on a survey of its staff about their research support needs.
Working through researchers’ comments, it was clear that an overwhelming requirement was for more e-Journals, but also clear was that many respondents were not aware of the depth of the Library’s existing support for research and were unclear about how to find information.
The reason for this lack of awareness needs to be investigated as does the apparent low levels of awareness of the library’s collections and service. Encouragingly, some 88.9% respondents agreed that the University of Southampton Libraries services overall provision catered `Very well’ or `Fairly well’ to their needs. [Library Research Support Survey]
And faculty welcomed the institutional e-print repository:
The survey tested researchers’ attitudes to the newly established e-print Institutional Repository (e-Prints Soton). The response showed that it was welcomed by 83.3%, although more than 92.6% preferred depositing their article through an assisted deposit route rather than through self archiving. [Library Research Support Survey]
The University has also just released a press release (circulated on various lists) reporting the establishment of a university-supported institutional repository:
‘We see our Institutional Repository as a key tool for the stewardship of the University’s digital research assets,’ said Professor Paul Curran, Deputy Vice-Chancellor of the University. ‘It will provide greater access to our research, as well as offering a valuable mechanism for reporting and recording it. ‘The University has been committed to Open Access for many years. The fact that we are now supporting it with core funding is another tangible step towards its full achievement.’
The Southampton repository will now become a service of the University Library in partnership with the University’s Information Systems Services and its School of Electronics and Computer Science (who host the JISC-funded software development team). [JISC-DEVELOPMENT Archives — December 2004 (#13)]
