Guidelines:
Question: Can’t use the catalog because it doesn’t seem
to work at all (and they are using the correct link and URL).
Ask
them if they have javascript enabled on their browser. If they don’t then here are the instructions
for enabling javascript:
http://libraries.mit.edu/help/javascript.html
Netscape
Users:
1.
At the top left of your browser, select Edit --> Preferences
2.
In the left-hand side of the Preferences window, highlight the word Advanced
3.
Make sure that "Enable Java," "Enable JavaScript," and
"Enable style sheets" are all checked
4.
Click on OK
Question: Can I access the old Barton? I don’t like Javascript/frames. I want a text browser capable catalog.
Answer:
We
appreciate the difficulties that enabling Javascript creates and we in the
Libraries share the frustration that it causes. While we were not able
to initially release a javascript-less version of the catalog, we are working
hard with the vendor to create one and as you probably know we plan to release
it by IAP 2002.
Unfortunately
we cannot provide a way to access the older version of our catalog.
The contract with our previous vendor prevents us from allowing any further
public access to it.
We
are very sorry that we can not accommodate your request at this time.
We appreciate your feedback and patience as we work towards an excellent solution.
Another
possible answer:
Thank
you very much for your thoughtful feedback. We appreciate this input.
We absolutely agree with you about the need for a fully accessible, non-javascript
loaded, text-browser readable catalog. Even as we made the decision
to purchase the Ex Libris catalog product, knowing that they didn't have a
fully accessible product, we made the development of a text-browser compatible
catalog a requirement for our purchase. Ex Libris is a forward-looking,
fast-acting company with whom we know that we will be able to provide excellent
and new services to our clients.
While
the timing hasn't worked out for us in introducing a fully accessible version
of the catalog initially, we are very committed to introducing one at the
earliest possible time. In fact, with pressure from us and many of their
other customers, Ex Libris is rapidly developing a fully-accessible version
of the catalog and also within the next year and a half they are even developing
a telnet based version. MIT will be the very first customer to
implement the new no-frames/no-javascript version. We have been able
to negotiate this rapid development from Ex Libris because of the strong commitment
MIT has for accessibility and the principles espoused by the W3C.
Another
answer from the frames perspective:
You
are quite right about how much work went into the new interface to Barton.
You are also, in my opinion, totally right about the reliance upon frames.
In response to demand from us (and probably other libraries,) the vendor from
whom we purchased this system is developing a no-frames version. We've
seen it demo'd and it looks extremely promising. It is scheduled to
be ready for release later this summer; we plan to have our customizations
completed by IAP.
Another
possible answer:
Thank
you for your feedback! When we signed our contract with the new vendor
we insisted that they develop "no frames no javascript" version
of the OPAC as part of the deal. Because the library information system
has to handle more than just searching what we have in the library (eg circulation,
keep track of our orders, cataloging ...) the pros and cons of the deciding
on a new system is a huge project.
We
are also counting days when the vendor releases the "no-frames no-javascript
version" so we can start implementing it. We saw the demo of it,
and it looks very promising. The current schedule of getting that
version up is by the end of summer 2002.
Question: I can’t access Barton anymore! What should I do?
Answer:
Could
you share with me how you are trying to access Barton? Do you have a
bookmark? Are you typing in a URL? Or are you using the link to
Barton from the MIT Libraries’ web site (http://libraries.mit.edu)?
On July 9th we brought up a new version of our catalog, so I am
wondering if you are trying to connect to an older site that is no longer
active.
Thanks
in advance for providing more information and for contacting us!
Answer:
Thank
you very much for this feedback. The new catalog is a work in progress
and we are thankful that you have provided us with this information.
We will look into the problem you have reported and will seek a resolution
as soon as possible.
We
would also welcome any other feedback you may have.
Answer:
very
much a work in progress, so your feedback is extremely helpful.
With
regard to the failed search using the abbreviated journal title:
you
didn't do anything wrong. This search is a bit funky. In a very
small and cramped
nutshell,
here's the problem.
There
is no standardization applied to whether or not these abbreviations are included
in the catalog. In this case, there was an abbreviation included --
it just didn't happen to match the particular abbreviation you had!
(The Barton record for this title has the abbreviated title "Int. rev.
cyt." which differs slightly from the one you searched on.)
Sometimes
people are looking for journals for which they have only an abbreviation.
We decided to index the abbreviations on the theory that it might help some
folks locate journals. We plan to add some context specific help to
the relevant pages that explain the benefits and limitations to using that
search type.
In
the meantime, if you want to search the catalog and you only have an abbreviation,
you can use truncation or wildcard characters in your search.
For instance, if you want to find “J. biomater. sci.” you could do
a keyword or title keyword search on “biomater* Sci*” (leave off the J* or
put in journal. J* retrieves too big of a set and tends to make the search fail).
Again,
thanks for the feedback, and happy searching.
Question: Complaints about how many clicks it takes to
get to availability information.
Answer:
We
agree that this is not a user friendly aspect of the new system. You are not alone in providing this feedback
to us. We are aware of this problem,
but unfortunately this is the way the new system is programmed. We are
looking into ways to enhance this in the future so that not many clicks are
required to access information of the item's availability.
Thanks
for using Barton feedback!