The purpose of this bachelor’s thesis is to examine how students at Högskolan i Borås experience the web-scale discovery service Summon, based on the theoretical model of “The Five Dimensions of Usability”, defined by Whitney Quesenbery. The study aims to answer the following research questions: How do the students execute search assignments in the Summon interface? How intuitive and easy to navigate is the system from a user perspective? What are the students’ opinions about Summon, regarding usability?Five students with varying information seeking skills are asked to perform search assignments during controlled observation, followed by semi-structured interviews. Our findings are presented in the context of previous research and show correspondence with the results of related studies. Our results show that users are comfortable in navigating the Summon interface, but that more user education is desirable for them to be able to fully take advantage of the service provided. / Program: Bibliotekarie

Ubiquitin (Ub) and the ubiquitin-like proteins (Ubls) are polypeptides that can be covalently conjugated to a variety of “target” molecules to modulate their turnover rate, localization and/or function. The full range of Ubl functions is only beginning to be understood. The Raught lab is using mass spectrometry and high throughput screening methods, along with standard cell biology and biochemistry approaches, to better understand Ubl function. Here, I describe the role of a Ubl called small ubiquitin-related modifier (SUMO) in the budding yeast alcohol stress response. We identified a regulatory mechanism of the SUMO system, involving modulation of the localization of a SUMO protease. Secondly, using mass spectrometry (MS), I assisted in identifying several yeast and mammalian Ubl “chain” linkages. Finally, I propose an integrated MS methodology designed to complement standard database software for the confident identification of Ub/Ubl conjugation sites.

Ubiquitin (Ub) and the ubiquitin-like proteins (Ubls) are polypeptides that can be covalently conjugated to a variety of “target” molecules to modulate their turnover rate, localization and/or function. The full range of Ubl functions is only beginning to be understood. The Raught lab is using mass spectrometry and high throughput screening methods, along with standard cell biology and biochemistry approaches, to better understand Ubl function. Here, I describe the role of a Ubl called small ubiquitin-related modifier (SUMO) in the budding yeast alcohol stress response. We identified a regulatory mechanism of the SUMO system, involving modulation of the localization of a SUMO protease. Secondly, using mass spectrometry (MS), I assisted in identifying several yeast and mammalian Ubl “chain” linkages. Finally, I propose an integrated MS methodology designed to complement standard database software for the confident identification of Ub/Ubl conjugation sites.

Electronic availability of information resources has increasingly become an important part of academic libraries everyday vocation. This is a fact that puts impetus on the libraries to know more about the way in which electronic information is being dispersed and handled. This thesis aims to comparatively evaluate Uppsala university library´s own metadata system Summon with the publicly available equivalent Google scholar. The evaluation is based on Péter Jacsó´s theories on database evaluation which concretely puts focus on Summon and Google scholar via the use and application of ten different criteria. The uses of precision and relevance criteria were also implemented as additional evaluation tools. The results indicate that Google scholar at the moment has to be seen as a necessary complement in retrieving electronic information due to the fact that Summon is not yet fully functioning on all levels. This is a two years master’s thesis in Archive, Library and Museum studies.

The purpose of this essay is to examine what happens with library e-resources after implementing the discovery tool Summon. Summon provides a Google-like experience and uses multiple facet options when users need to narrow their discovery. Observations of change in the libraries e-resources with regards to database searches, click-throughs in linkresolvers and full text downloads are examined through looking at earlier reports and statistics from libraries in America and England. This provides a way to compare with Chalmers University of Technology’s Library. This essay presents results that suggest that usage drop in database searches while full text downloads and click-throughs increase when Summon is implemented. Also discussed in the essay is the importance for libraries to continuous evaluate the use of their resources to keep up with their users needs and demands. / Program: Bibliotekarie

This diploma thesis discusses a modern concept of information retrieval and search engines for libraries and other academic institutions. The concept named "web scale discovery" comprises of search engines, whose main characteristics lie in simplicity and user friendliness for the end users while maintaining all functional qualities of traditional research databases. Users can search in a wide variety of international research databases, and also in local sources of an institution that are combined within a large central index. The theoretical section presents definitions of web scale discovery, which conceptually set the new method of information retrieval within the field of information and library science. A graphic scheme of the basic functionality of a web scale discovery system is presented. Also discussed are requirements for a modern discovery system, an overview of the current situation in the Czech Republic, and a short characteristic of commercially available discovery systems. The theoretical part concludes with a literature review of selected foreign research, studying user satisfaction with the new solution, the impact on electronic and print resources in libraries, and usability testing. The practical part presents an original research study - usability testing of EBSCO Discovery...