Here is an interesting use of the OPAC in helping patrons find materials in the physical plant of the library as noted by The Ubiquitous Librarian today [http://theubiquitouslibrarian.typepad.com/the_ubiquitous_librarian/]:
“…I discovered a very cool finding aid to help users locate items in the stacks.
Check it out. Go to FSU’s Library site and search for something. Cloning is always my default keyword.
You’ll see something like this:
When you click on “map” you get this:
It’s a great concept. Maybe all the catalogs are doing this these days—I have not been following the talk about 2.0 OPACs but this helps with a common challenge: finding books in the stacks. So I commend FSU for this. However, I tried to use their “texting” feature and after 2 hours it still has not arrived.
Follow-up:
So on a hunch I looked at several other Florida universities since I know they use the same catalog. Here are more examples of map/floor plan layouts that are linked out via the catalog: UF, USF, FGCU,FAU, UNF, UWF, UCF
You’ll find a lot of variation, but… FSU trumps them all with their low-tech image simply because it provides an indication of where the book can be found. 99% of the time I side with form over function, but this is one of those rare cases where 1% wins out. I like their map because it shows me where about on the floor I can find the book.”
