Library, and Institutional Data Database Usage in Context: Wrangling Vendor

Librarians have unprecedented access to data about our collections, including usage and holdings data from database vendors and integrated library systems. Our institutions also collect data about our user populations. How can we harness the power of this data to make informed decisions about collection management and library services? The Neumann Library database at the University of Houston-Clear Lake, reviews, visualizes, and wrangles data into a dynamic, interactive tool for understanding database usage across time. It includes three years of usage data for all library databases, and a variety of usage metrics such as COUNTER, ebook pages viewed, and videos watched. It includes library datasuch as source of funding, liaison, and renewal month. And it includes institutional datasuch as college, program, semester credit hours, and enrollment. This webinar will begin by discussing the rationale behind creating a visualization for the analysis of database usage: enabling the library to make better informed purchasing and renewal decisions. We will then describe the process of collecting and creating the multiple datasets that constitute the visualization. Finally, we will detail the process of creating the visualization, including the development of filters and other design decisions.

Database Usage in Context: Wrangling Vendor, Library, and Institutional Data Conference Paper