Thing 15: Google Book Search & Google Scholar

Although the search worked for both Google Book Search and Google Scholar, the results were patchy. As a libraryish sort of person, I know that library catalogues or OPACs have been designed to guide users to the most relevant items and will be linked (through classification systems, metadata, subjects, indexing, etc.) to other useful items in a clear, meaningful way. Both Google Book Search and Google Scholar appear to produce a list of hits in a seemingly arbitrary way, so it's not that easy to know how useful results will be? I know that there are advanced search options available, but I suspect the majority of Google users don't want to be bothered with this... the same way most library users don't want to be bothered with advanced search options in OPACs!

I do like the option to search for items held in a variety of libraries, but I would probably continue to use a service like Libraries Australia or the Australian Libraries Gateway from the National Library of Australia to find items held in other libraries - and trust the results.