Usage patterns of Punjab University Library website: a transactional log analysis study

Purpose – This paper aims to assess the usage patterns of a university library website to find out user’s behaviour of monthly use, its top most used resources and services and search phrases used to reach the library website. Design/methodology/approach – Transactional log analysis (TLA) – an unobtrusive research method – was used to identify and analyse data of website-using patterns. The log data of website use from January 2011 to March 2011 were analysed for this study. Findings – The findings of this study revealed that the university librarywebsite was heavily used on campus by users; however, it was used by a significant number of clients residing off-campus. Free scholarly journals, resources downloaded, e-journals, e-books and donated personal collections were among the top most used resources and services. However, free scholarly journals were used more than subscribed e-journals accessible on-campus only. Originality/value – This study first used the TLAmethod to trace user behaviour of website use in a local scenario. Assessing the usage of e-resources is imperative to determine the effectiveness of the librarywebsite in providing these services to its on-campus and distant users. Thefindings of this study are valuable for librarians andwebmasters of the librarywebsite to redesign and reorient their services.