[WEB4LIB] RE: Is the milk in the back? (was Re: Alta

[jlenze at tln.lib.mi.us]

I don't know that I would even buy the idea that stores put the milk in
the back to make customers walk past merchandise, thus tempting us with
more impulse purchases.  I figure they put the milk in back because the
refridgerators they stock milk in are filled from the rear, thus the
stock-persons need to access them from the back room (i.e. receiving).

If the stores wanted to make us walk down more aisles, they would not put
spaghetti sauces near the pasta, nor would the pop aisle be right next to
the snacks aisle.

It is worthwhile though, to think about the placement of our collections,
and whether we are promoting or hampering access.  A good example is when
libraries consider whether to selve non-fiction AV materials with the
non-fiction books or with the fiction AV materials.  

For web design, I guess the question is how many steps we make the user
take to get to the information they are seeking.  This is why the Garden
City (Mich) Library has a seperate "home page" for in-house patrons.  We
figure that they don't need a picture of the building, or information on
how to find us, etc.  They want: 1) the catalog;  2) Magazine databases;
3) search engines;  and 4) information about our policies and services
(not necessarily in that order).  So that's about all we give them -- plus
a link to our home page for the "outside world".

 __________________________________________________
/                                                  \
|   "It was a BUG, Dave."                          | 
|        HAL9000  http://www.apple.com/            |
|                                                  |
|   James B. Lenze           jlenze at tln.lib.mi.us  |
|   Garden City Public Library                     |
|                                                  |
\__________________________________________________/