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The paper aims to give a presentation of a rich dataset to illuminate graduate students' rating of their satisfaction with library collections and services.

The study is a qualitative investigation based on focus groups.

The paper finds that, although rich detail is provided, the study is part way through and data need more analysis for trends to emerge.

The study is a research project which is ongoing.

Rich data collected are indicating areas for improvement in service, which will be synthesized as the research progresses.

It is rare for data of this richness to be offered to readers. It will help others by confirming or illuminating their own investigations.

When Texas A&M University Library‐agreed to be a test site for the M300 Keymap and SaveScreen enhancements, one of our objectives, besides testing these programs, was to download financial information from the OCLC Acquisitions Subsystem. We could then prepare financial reports without printing the information, then typing it into our Lotus 1–2–3 program. These reports let our other library units track their materials budget expenditures.

Anyone who has tried to review studies relating to use of academic libraries may argue that a great deal of research exists on college students and how they use their libraries. Studies of reading habits and library use among college students have been appearing for more than fifty years, and the diligent student can compile an impressive bibliography of these studies. In spite of all we have learned about student interaction with library resources, there is still much we do not know.

The purpose of this paper is to describe how a medium‐sized university library implemented activity‐based costing (ABC) and other broad‐based decision‐making strategies to make the necessary budgetary cuts and refocus library services accordingly.

The paper uses ABC to quantify the cost‐drive of services in the library.

Given the current budgetary cuts academic libraries are facing, a rational, data‐driven, ABC approach can lead to constructive organizational decision making and outcomes.

The paper demonstrates the value of activity‐based costing in assessing services and addressing issues on how libraries can do more with less.

Discusses two recent conferences, “Virtually yours: models for managing electronic resources and services”, Chicago, IL, 23‐25 October 1997, and “Wired and wary: legal issues for librarians in the digital world”, Boston, MA, 7 November 1997, concerned with library management of electronic information sources. Focusing on those elements of the conferences with financial implications, concludes that definitive answers to financial management questions continue to be a missing element in this area.

There’s little information available on Qatari students’ experience with information literacy. What little information does exists draws from outdated surveys and assumptions about the current population. The purpose of this paper is to describe how data collected from first-semester Qatari students who enrolled in a semester-long information literacy course at Carnegie Mellon University helped update perceptions of this population, drove changes made to content and instructional delivery, and enabled a reflective process for teaching and learning.

Pre- and post-surveys completed by students explore Qatari students’ pre-college experience with information literacy concepts, using libraries, and writing. They also compare the students’ attitude toward information literacy before and after taking the course. Qatari students’ data were extracted from the overall student population to focus on this population and analyzed descriptively based on cumulative responses. The pre-survey data were used to inform changes made to instructional content and delivery throughout the term.

Contrary to assumptions, first-year Qatari students expressed familiarity with information literacy concepts before attending college. The data indicated strong learning preferences and a positive attitude toward information literacy.

Since information collected in this study relied on student perceptions of their experience, results must be paired with performance measurement before drawing additional conclusions about information literacy competencies of first-year Qatari students. Further, the study did not explore gender and sociocultural differences; therefore no general conclusions should be drawn.

Instructional design should be based on a current understanding of local information needs and searching habits. In addition, this approach encourages reflective learning and teaching and help instructors avoid prior assumptions about their students.

This paper provides information on how Qatari students perceive their experience with information literacy before college, the importance of understanding information literacy concepts and its role in their personal, academic, and professional lives. It centers on a population for whom information literacy concepts remain both relatively challenging and critical for their future learning development and offers suggestions for future research.