A little comment on this; Steve DiDomenico if the students and
faculty you’re surveying are not retrieving the desired results,
“something is wrong with the site, not the person.”

Although user studies are a must for better design, and he is correct
to some extent, I’m not certain that “desired results” (not clear on
this phrase) are always achievable to a high degree. This also depends
on the degree of difficulty and complexity of the reference question.
That’s where we come in. That is why we study this stuff. It is our
job not only to design good w-pages and interfaces, but also make it
very clear that help is only a click away. For us as information
professionals it will still bring, at least for me and I assume many
others, an exhilarating feeling of helping people find what they need.
I believe people will always have to be guided by information
professionals. This was always the case, ever since Hector was a pup,
and will continue to be.

Eugene M. Sawa
Head: Microforms, Current Periodicals,
& Stark Listening Center
G49-A Hillman Library
University of Pittsburgh