Library-user interface: A simulation of the circulation subsystem

The loan policy of a university library can have a significant effect on the ability of library users to find the particular books that they are seeking. This paper focuses on the library-user interface by relating two measures of user satisfaction, book availability and the delay associated with recalls, to the loan policy of the library. This relation is established by computer simulation techniques. This paper synthesizes the results of two studies conducted at the Sears Library at Case Western Reserve University. The results of these studies confirm that the model can accurately predict two measures of user satisfaction as a function of the load policy of a library. Thus this technique can be used to evaluate alternative loan policies in terms of their impact on user satisfaction.