Content enrichment of OPAC and its impact on the precision of search and information retrieval services: survey study of Algerian university libraries catalogs

Abstract

This study aims to identify the most important features of available Algerian university libraries on-line catalogs from different aspects of dealing with the capabilities of information search and retrieval, as well as aspects of enriching the content of these catalogs and to identify the used automated systems, and to determine the difficulties faced when searching them, through finding out the differences between these catalogues and the impact of content enrichment services on retrieved information. In order to collect the necessary data, a survey was conducted in which observation and experiment were adopted as two basic tools for collecting data using the survey method. The sample included 27 university libraries out of a total population of 50 libraries, which were deliberately selected and include libraries that actually allow their catalogs. The results indicated that either the PMB system or the Syngeb system was adopted by most libraries to enable their online catalog. The results also found that the research is one of the most important difficulties facing users because it is not possible to search the content of all the bibliographic records’ fields. Concerning content enrichment, however, was limited to 3 elements including cover photos, abstracts and full text, if any. Based on these findings, the study presented a set of recommendations; the most important of them consists of a proposal for the adoption of a project to enrich documents, especially those published in Arabic, by the National Library since the latter issues the legal deposit and collects documentary collections.