Library with a Thousand Databases

In his book, *The Hero with a Thousand Faces*, Joseph Campbell laid out a narrative pattern he saw across myths, stories, and religious rituals that he called The Hero's Journey. The hero moved out of the ordinary world into the "Special realm," where she encountered all manner of obstacles before coming back to the ordinary world transformed.

As librarians, it's easy for us to forget that many patrons leave the ordinary world for the "special realm" of library research databases when they use our services. For decades, these tools have been disconnected, proprietary tools that require a truly epic amount of effort from our hero/patrons if they are to find their treasure (usually articles, books, or citations). But it doesn't have to be this way. We can make the journey easier for our patrons with the right tools and an eye toward improving the search experience.

Transcript

1. THE LIBRARY MATTHEW REIDSMA GRAND VALLEY STATE UNIVERSITY WITH A THOUSAND DATABASES
2. Image from Wikipedia: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Tondo_Minotaur_London_E4_MAN.jpg
3. From the film Labyrinth, 1986
4. Theseus fighting the Minotaur by Jean-Etienne Ramey, marble, 1826, Tuileries Gardens, Paris
5. A Hero with the Thousand Faces, 1973, p. 30 “ A hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: Jospeh Campbell
6. A Hero with the Thousand Faces, 1973, p. 30 “ fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: Jospeh Campbell
7. A Hero with the Thousand Faces, 1973, p. 30 “ the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man. Jospeh Campbell
8. SPECIAL REALM NORMAL WORLD SUPREME ORDEAL CALL TO ADVENTURE CROSSING THE THRESHOLD RETURNING HOME
9. Image from Wikipedia: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/56/Tondo_Minotaur_London_E4_MAN.jpg
10. From the film Labyrinth, 1986
11. Theseus fighting the Minotaur by Jean-Etienne Ramey, marble, 1826, Tuileries Gardens, Paris
12. LIBRARY RESEARCH NORMAL WORLD SUPREME ORDEAL INFORMATION NEED DATABASE A-Z LIST DOWNLOADING FULL-TEXT
16. Shared by Erin White on Twitter: https://twitter.com/erinrwhite/status/347380407039307776
17. From the film Labyrinth, 1986
18. UNFAMILIARITY
19. EPIC WHILE SOME SEARCHES ARE MOST ARE NOT
20. EASIER? HOW DO WE MAKE THIS
21. What makes something simple or complex? It’s not the number of dials or controls or how many features it has: “ Donald Norman Living with Complexity, p. 40
22. It is whether the person using the device has a good conceptual model of how it operates. “ Donald Norman Living with Complexity, p. 40
23. FAMILIARITY
25. RULE THEM ALL ONE SEARCH TO
28. Theseus fighting the Minotaur by Jean-Etienne Ramey, marble, 1826, Tuileries Gardens, Paris
29. FAMILIARITY
30. The more expert we become at a subject, the more complexity we prefer. “ Donald Norman Living with Complexity, p. 13
31. http://www.daveyp.com/blog/archives/1754 “ The trouble with Summon is that students don’t need to be taught how to use it, but librarians do! Matt Borg
32. THANKYOU