Figure 1. CyberTools main search page.
As is evident, the catalog has a plain interface. This simplicity is an aspect Mark Roux, President of CyberTools, believes to be beneficial to his software (see my review of the Roux interview below, in my October 14 entry). Roux states that, at CyberTools, "we are all about the single search portal paradigm. It must be simple, but it also must deliver relevant, quality data" (Connor, 2009, p. 241).
I wonder if, in striving for simplicity, some quality may actually be lost. CyberTools offers a one-box search method, mimicking the popular Google model. It is true that many search engines have migrated to using this design, appealing in its straightforwardness. With many search engines, users are given the option of clicking to a new screen for an advanced or guided search. The advanced search may incorporate authors, titles, dates, journal names, and a whole plethora of other specific options from which to choose to hone a query.
With CyberTools, the only method to search the database is the one-box method. Users can pick from one of seven "Search by" terms (keywords, authors, titles, journal titles, subject headings, enhanced subject headings, or numbers - i.e. call numbers). Also available as a search refinement tool is "Material Type." In this drop-down menu, choices include: text, journal, microform, music, map, computer, composite, A/V, audio, slide, videocassette, 2D/3D, equipment, and atlas (see Figure 2). A multi-faceted query, that is a search that allows a user to list, in multiple search boxes, more than one aspect of an item (e.g. author and title or subject heading and author) is not possible with the one-box search method. It is possible, however, to search for multiple facets using the "Keywords" option in the "Search by" drop-down menu.
Figure 2. Options available in the "Material Type" drop-down menu on the main page of the FPL Library CyberTools catalog.
There are two additional features on the CyberTools main search page I would like to highlight. The first is the "Properties..." button (found in Figure 1 below the "Search Now" button). Clicking on this navigates to a screen with a list of search and display options the user can tweak to assist in a search (see Figures 3a and 3b). With some exceptions, it is difficult to understand, on first glance, how most of these options would affect a search without individually testing each of them. I would assume that the average user would not notice or understand this aspect of the CyberTools search engine.
Figure 3b. Latter half of options available through main search page "Properties..." button.
The power search feature is located at the bottom of the main search page. It can be seen in Figure 1 as the area of the main page starting with "Saved Results: 0." The power search allows the capability of saving search results, by clicking on the check box to the left of a queried record. The user may review, preview, or email saved results. It is also possible to sort results by location, author, or title and to format results to view as: search results (brief card catalog record), bibliography (citation), or detail (detailed card catalog record). See Figures 4a and 4b as examples.
Figure 4a. "Review" mode of the power search.
Figure 4b. "Preview" mode of the power search. This is the "Search Results" format view, as opposed to the "Detail" or "Bibliography" view. I am unsure why the Jill Thompson record appears twice.
Perhaps it is my predilection for multiple search query lines that makes me at first averse to the appearance and layout of the CyberTools search engine. It could be, with time and practice, that I will come to appreciate the simplicity of this format. As it stands, with every library search engine I use, I always look for the advanced search button. As CyberTools lacks this feature, it will take me some time to hone my searching skills using their interface. A simple product may not be lacking in quality, it may just take practice to utilize this tool to its utmost.
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Connor, E. (2009). Interview with Mark Roux, president of CyberTools for Libraries. Journal of Electronic Resources in Medical Libraries, 6(3), 236-241. DOI:10.1080/15424060903173128
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