**4. Study population**

*Digital Imaging*

**3. Discovery tools**

and libraries should acknowledge this.

in the life of all library users. It is the most popular search engine for queries about daily issues and for academic needs. It empowers library visitors to search for their academic information needs, within an easy and popular interface [2]. In libraries, some consider this an obstacle, and some see it as an opportunity for innovations and improvements. One thing is certain: Google redefined the search experience,

In 2004, Google launched Google Scholar, a tool for discovering scholarly information. Google Scholar is a search engine for academic articles, theses, books, abstracts, and court opinions from academic publishers, professional societies, online repositories, universities, and other websites. This free resource, with its basic and familiar interface, has the potential to serve as a scholarly metasearch information engine [3, 4]. Google Scholar has received mixed receptions from the librarian community. It has some advanced search features, but it provides no interface for refining the results. Users can set preferences such as language, year, author, and periodical title. They can also view an indication of the libraries from which it can access the source, citation export options, and how to cite the source (for many citation styles). The reviews and critiques of Google Scholar have been mixed, at best. Its content, its search engine, its interface, and its citation count have all been criticized. Patrons of libraries who have subscriptions to the digital archives of publishers are the greatest beneficiaries of Google Scholar, as with a single search they are led to the full digital text versions of the articles [4–6]. Google Scholar is very different from library database interfaces and their search options, yet it introduces

library users to scholarly articles through a familiar and friendly interface.

to offer a "Google-like" search experience of library resources.

i.Connect users with the content from different sources

mary of discovery tools' advantages:

Discovery services are vital tools to increase search ability and accessibility of library resources. A combined search interface for multiple resources will help users discover relevant content. The tool reduces time and effort spent in both searching and learning to use the various database interfaces. It broadcasts a query across all sources and returns one organized list of results for the user [7, 8]. Discovery services have become almost essential in academic libraries. The libraries need to create a discovery layer that simplifies the search process while broadening the richness of resources availability in a Google-like interface. The discovery service is comprised of pre-indexed materials from many library information sources. The discovery solution enables faceted browsing, relevance ranking, and limitation options to refine the search results. Discovery tool services are the libraries' attempt

The discovery tool makes it possible to create a centralized index of an institution's information resources through a single point of access. Since the content is pre-indexed, response time is very quick and meets the user's needs. Discovery tools enable to connect patrons with the library's storehouse of information and search indexes and databases quickly and easily. These tools tend to be more popular with users, especially undergraduates, than traditional library search tools [9–12].

Libraries took upon themselves to review current web-scale discovery solutions and implement it accordingly. In their review, Karadia and Pati [13] suggest a sum-

ii.Quick search across a vast number of resources in a one-stop search box

**76**

Education is highly valued within Israel's national culture, and its higher education sector has been acknowledged for helping to encourage the country's development. There are nine universities in Israel, as well as numerous higher education colleges. Courses are often taught in Hebrew, though Israeli universities also offer English-taught programs. In Israel, academic libraries started to implement discovery services in 2010 [9].

This study uses data from three governmental universities and three colleges (two governmental and one private), to reflect on information behavior and discovery tool use in different types of users and institutions. Every library in our study is unique, each with a diverse organizational culture, a distinct student population, and different educational programs and specialties. This enables us to draw a representation of academic library users in Israel.
