Issues and opportunities associated with federated searching

CINF 3

Grace Baysinger, graceb@stanford.edu, Swain Library of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Stanford University Libraries, 364 Lomita Drive, Organic Chemistry Building, Stanford, CA 94305-5081
Library catalogs and databases contain a wealth of information that is not available to Internet search engines such as Google. It can be difficult for users to identify which research tools to use and time-consuming for them to search each resource one at a time. Federated search tools make it possible to search multiple resources with one query. Several strategies have been developed to provide "one-stop shopping" but those dealing with multiple search interfaces face the biggest challenges. This talk will describe a project underway to develop federated searching prototypes on campus and will cover the viability of providing federated search services as well as the interest level by students and faculty in using them.