Presentations were given to those colleges that would give us time in their departmental meetings. Three out of four colleges were reached in this manner. Usage that first spring was not very high, but it takes a while for word to spread. In Fall 1995, using student library fee monies, we made FirstSearch available to our entire student body on a per search basis. In other words, we pay for what we use rather than paying out subscription dollars in the event that we might use certain databases. Some databases are available either on a subscription basis or on a per search basis. Others are available only on a subscription basis.

At Bell Library, access to FirstSearch is possible at all of our public workstations. We have now made the Web version available to our users. Remote access is possible, but university users must dial into the University Network to get to the proprietary databases. This is how we identify them as legitimate users. User ID’s and passwords are scripted so that users do not have to bother with this data entry.

For the past couple of years, usage of FirstSearch has run about 2,000 searches/month once the school session was underway. We have offered periodic training sessions in the use of this system on Friday mornings at mid-morning. Turnout has always been light for these half-hour to one-hour sessions. We also, as need dictates, introduce FirstSearch in course-specific classes. For example, when we teach a geology class, we instruct students in the use of GeoRef, one of the databases available through FirstSearch.

In our third year of FirstSearch use, Bell Library has joined the Phoenix Group (a Dallas-area based group) in order to benefit from group purchasing power. Membership gives us access to a base package consisting of WorldCat, ArticleFirst, ContentsFirst, NetFirst, GPO Index, and Medline (although we have access to Ovid’s Medline through the Health Information Network of the Coastal Bend, another consortium in South Texas). These core databases have been among the most heavily used by our university community, particularly WorldCat and ArticleFirst.

We are deciding, based on need and past usage, whether or not to join in on group purchase of subscriptions. Often we find that the per search cost model is more cost effective for an institution our size than is the subscription cost model. A heavily-used database like BIP, for example, is one we’d like to access on a subscription basis. In some cases, we have decided to drop our print subscriptions in favor of the online FirstSearch access. For example, we have dropped Dissertation Abstracts International and the print equivalent of GeoRef. OCLC has committed to providing archival access to its
databases. This kind of commitment is extremely important from a collection management point of view.

While sometimes we may give up something in search power with FirstSearch, we find its access is highly desirable in that one single search software is applied across database lines.

By Denise Landry-Hyde
Reference/Library Education Librarian
Texas A&M University--Corpus Christi

• Jeanne Pyle jpyle@sfalib.sfasu.edu
• Will Stuivenga stuiveng@amigos.org