Database Usage
Use of subscription databases was well above average this quarter compared to the past five years of data on downloads. Leading resources were ASTM Compass (which is usually the most used database) followed by EOS Library catalog clickthroughs and finally Knovel, which is also usually in the top 3. This quarter we were again surprised to see the second highest number of downloads coming as "clickthroughs" of non-subscription resources from the Library's EOS Online Catalog. It seems to be growing more common that we are getting high numbers of catalog clickthroughs, a reminder that patrons want and expect access to full text online resources, whether they are eBooks, online journals or conference papers, or publicly accessible reports cataloged by Gil Kenner, head of library technical services. We see solid use of our newest subscription the ICE Virtual Library database, which was a trial two quarters ago and now an annual subscription.
The VDOT Research Library continues to expand access to key resources through desktop access to subscription databases. VDOT employees have access to 14 database subscriptions (13 of those are "full text") and because we serve the entire VDOT community, these resources see steady usage. The tables here show the number of downloads per month this quarter (averaging 1,205/month this quarter), and the trend over the past year (right), averaging 1,048 downloads/month.
Subscription Downloads By VDOT: FY20 Q1 | ||||
July | August | September | Total | |
ASTM Compass | 315 | 340 | 352 | 1,007 |
Skillsoft Books | 126 | 298 | 123 | 547 |
Non-subscription Downloads (EOS Catalog) | 196 | 152 | 196 | 544 |
ASCE Library | 83 | 158 | 248 | 489 |
Transportation Research Record | 141 | 114 | 64 | 319 |
Knovel | 84 | 126 | 101 | 311 |
ICE Virtual Library | 38 | 26 | 108 | 172 |
*Other (miscellaneous journals) | 37 | 69 | 49 | 155 |
EBSCO Business Source Corporate Plus | 8 | 4 | 13 | 25 |
EBSCO Business Book Summaries | 3 | 6 | 12 | 21 |
EBSCO eBooks | 4 | 7 | 5 | 16 |
ScienceDirect | 4 | 6 | 0 | 10 |
Monthly Totals | 1,039 | 1,306 | 1,271 | 3,616 |
Note: Miscellaneous resources includes International Journal of Pavement Engineering, Corrosion, and Road Materials and Pavement Design.
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