2025 EBSCO User Group

This session will provide a deep dive into the challenges of migrating to the new EDS user interface. I'll share the library’s experiences in customizing the interface to align with the users' specific needs and expectations.

Key topics will include:
- Customizing the User Experience: Learn how we developed and implemented custom filters, placards, and search extensions to enhance the search experience and improve discovery.
- Effective Training and Communication: Discover the strategies we employed to train staff and communicate effectively with the entire university community, minimizing disruption and maximizing user satisfaction.
- Monitoring and Responding to User Feedback: Explore how we tracked user feedback and implemented changes to address concerns and improve the overall user experience.
- Looking Forward: Review the key upcoming features coming to the interface in 2025.

Some of the topics I will cover include:
The dos and don’ts of marketing research
Identifying markets for innovative technologies
Determining company/industry developments
Company/industry analysis
Product reviews and strategies
Field searching for targeted results
Using EBSCO keywords to expand search parameters
Doing a SWOT analysis

In November 2024, New York Public Library (NYPL) successfully implemented EBSCO Discovery Service (EDS) as Article Plus for their patrons. This change, along with a single-search box on a newly-launched Online Resources and Databases page, facilitates a transformative experience for NYPL patrons. The implementation of EDS marks a significant milestone by providing patrons with enhanced access to hundreds of online resources and databases.
In this session, NYPL’s Elliot Clement, Research Electronic Resources Coordinator, and Laura Leone, Collections Access and Discovery Project Manager, will share their experiences and insights on the implementation process of EDS. They will discuss the strategic changes made to the NYPL website to integrate EDS, support received from the EBSCO implementation team, and the work it took to create and promote the launch of Article Plus.
Key highlights of the session will include:
• An overview of the implementation process, including details about the redesign of the
previous Articles and Databases user interface.
• The collaborative efforts among NYPL and EBSCO stakeholders to ensure a seamless integration.
• The impact of EDS on improving access to resources and information.
• A live demonstration of the new features and functionalities added to the NYPL website.

TBD - Placeholder for IET

Ready to take your collection management to the next level? Join us for a hands-on dive into the new Collection Assessment tool, designed with you—busy library administrators—in mind. Whether you're juggling acquisitions, renewals, or content upgrades, this tool simplifies the complex decisions you face daily.

Imagine effortlessly comparing resource and coverage overlaps, running title-level analyses, and generating detailed reports—all from a user-friendly interface. With the ability to export comprehensive insights and dive into package- and holdings-level statistics, you'll have everything you need to make smarter, data-driven choices for your library's future.

This session is more than a demo—it's your chance to see how this tool can transform the way you manage collections. We will dive into Overlap Analysis export, how to create package-level and holdings-level analysis and much more. Bring your questions, curiosity, and aspirations for a stronger digital library presence. Don't miss out on this opportunity to streamline your workflow and elevate your decision-making!

Join us for an in-depth session on the updated Publication Finder, designed to enhance your search experience within your institution's collection. Publication Finder includes many features requested by you, our customers, which include a new interface, the ability to select from a larger set of subject groupings, the return of A-Z browse, the ability to browse by database and you’re able to pre-filter searches against a sub-set of content. Additionally, we’ll cover the introduction of database search and browse and other recent enhancements.

During this session, we will cover:
• Responsive User Interface: Discover the modern, intuitive design that adapts seamlessly to any device, ensuring a smooth and efficient search experience.
• Advanced Search Options: Learn how to utilize both basic and advanced search functionalities to quickly locate journals, eBooks, magazines, and newspapers.
• Enhanced Browsing Capabilities: Explore the ability to browse by subject, database, or title, and filter searches by book or journal content.
• Integration with EBSCO Discovery Service: See how Publication Finder integrates with other EBSCO tools to provide a cohesive and powerful research experience.

Whether you are a seasoned researcher or new to the platform, this session will equip you with the knowledge and skills to make the most of the new Publication Finder.

The TERMS framework, developed by Jill Emery, Graham Stone, and Peter McCracken, postulates that e-resource resource management follows a recurring lifecycle, from evaluation to licensing to acquisitions to activation and access to discovery to management back to analysis and evaluation. This presentation intends to showcase how EBSCO's suite of products represents and enables the TERMS cycle for libraries. Attendees will leave with a better high level understanding of how EBSCO's products from GOBI to FOLIO integrate together and create a cohesive e-resource ecosystem.

Join two of our software team to learn about a variety of tools to help increase user engagement with content and drive usage of the library. This session will include a review of several free tools, as well as where to find instructions and help in implementing them. Upon completion the library should have a list of options to consider, at no charge, that will help increase access to content.

Linked data is at the forefront of EBSCO’s efforts to enhance information discoverability and interoperability, benefiting libraries and their communities. Our research services employ linked data, with ongoing efforts to expand its use.

This session will cover linked data basics, EBSCO’s current applications, and future plans. Topics include improving discoverability, knowledge graph development, and the resulting benefits: increased user engagement, satisfaction, and industry recognition of EBSCO’s search capabilities.

EDS is incredibly powerful, but can sometimes feel overwhelming to students and other patrons. In this presentation Simon Ringsmuth, a Digital Services Librarian at Oklahoma State University, will demonstrate the process he has used to create a series of short, targeted, effective, and engaging videos to help patrons learn various aspects of EDS including basics such as keyword searching to advanced features like custom folder sharing and boolean operators. This collaborative video-creation process utilizes free tools for ideation and scripting, as well as off-the-shelf software like Final Cut Pro and Camtasia to handle editing and screen-captures. This process is also not limited to EDS: Librarians can use this process to create tutorial videos about all manner of software tools to help patrons learn to use them more effectively. While some technical knowledge is useful, it is not required and anyone can learn to use this process to create engaging, effective tutorial videos. To see the videos that this presentation is based on, visit bit.ly/OSU-EDS-Search-Videos.

Join us for an in-depth presentation on the enhancements and customizations we've implemented in the new Discovery UI, developed in collaboration with the expert support of our EBSCO Library Services engineer. Highlights include features like a 24/7 chat image, streamlined catalog integration, and custom labels tailored to user needs. We'll also share insights into our decision-making process, incorporating user feedback forms, in-house support documentation, and collaborative discussion methods such as Librarian Q&A sessions and faculty training. This session is ideal for those seeking practical strategies for improving user engagement and streamlining library services.

Research databases are both repositories of diverse forms of knowledge and instigators of knowledge production that require the community-driven, collaborative efforts of humans. Three panelists and a moderator will discuss how, with thoughtful cultivation and use, research databases can account for various practices of knowledge gathering, preservation, and creation. Case studies will include a classroom experiment in which students gather and then visualize metadata from the MLA International Bibliography (MLAIB) to identify patterns in and omissions from the scholarship, with an eye toward history and new directions for research. The goal is to develop critical literacies about power relations built into bibliographic classification and indexing, as well as generate ideas for restorative description. Drawing on experience developing databases of Indigenous texts and iconography, one panelist will consider Western versus Indigenous ways of knowing: What are some of the differences between Western and Indigenous ways of interrogating received knowledge, and how might a database serve and promote Indigenous ways of knowing? What community, cultural, linguistic sensitivities, and other factors and etiquette need to be considered when building a database that serves Indigenous ways of knowing? Throughout, panelists will reflect on how the MLAIB bolsters community in the work that they do.

Many libraries have just moved to the new EBSCO EDS interface, and some are still transitioning. This session will be a tour of the new EDS interface, including what's new, what has changed, and the reasons behind the update. This will also be a chance to ask questions.

In this session, learn how linked data connects information across interrelated library resources so they can be easily discovered in your collection. Linked data uses ontologies, which are essentially the linked data schema for how information is related to each other, to create these networks. Attendees will understand how EBSCO applies knowledge graph analytics through use cases. They will also understand how to leverage their own linked data to identify duplicate resources, if an author’s affiliation 

This session will describe one institution’s experience migrating from VuFind to Locate and will provide the roadmap for future development of the Locate discovery OPAC.

Locate is a relatively new discovery option for FOLIO. Upon its original roll-out, Locate included a clean design and sophisticated real time availability and patron empowerment features. Since its original rollout, Locate has seen dramatic enhancements, including search improvements, result list enhancements, item view additions, and numerous new patron empowerment features. Upcoming enhancements include semiannual releases, additional patron tools, subject browse, and call number browse enhancements. Come hear from the EBSCO Discovery Product Manager for Locate about the future direction and roadmap of this discovery option.

In addition, learn of one institution’s experience migrating from VuFind to Locate. Skidmore College was an early adopter of FOLIO and used VuFind as its “classic catalog” for several years prior to the development of Locate. Skidmore fully implemented Locate in early 2025. Migration tips, suggestions, and real-world feedback will be provided.