ABSTRACT
Researchers have just begun to acknowledge the importance of incorporating the component of human-computer interaction in the design of online information systems. With the advent of interactive computer systems designed for direct use by the general public, the need has become apparent to design “friendly” user interfaces. In this regard, online public access catalogs, OPACs, are no exception. Recent research studies of OPAC users have found that (i) subject access in online catalogs is coming to be valued at least as much as known item access, and that (ii) OPAC users have a number of serious difficulties with subject searching. Consequently, we need to understand what characterizes human-computer compatibility and to examine various means of assisting the OPAC user at the heart of online searching tasks.
In this article I will first develop an argument that OPAC users need better online assistance modes than what has been achieved in most current systems by reviewing findings from some of the studies in the areas of individual differences and error behavior. Then the concepts of “idea tactics” and “information search tactics” will be explored in terms of incorporating them into online subject searching and providing terminological assistance to the online searcher.
