Purpose – This JISC funded UK National E-Books Observatory study is a benchmarking survey of e-book usage and perceptions in more than 120 participating universities. The paper aims to present the results that investigated: use of e-books in general (methods of obtaining e-books, reasons for using, viewing/reading behaviour in connection with e-books); use of e-books provided by the library; use of JISC collection texts (use and awareness); use of the library and print material in general. Design/methodology/approach – The study is based on an online survey which was conducted between 18 January and 1 March 2008, over which period 22,437 full or partial responses were received. Findings – The study shows that e-book penetration is very strong (61.8 per cent of all students are already using them in connection with their scholarly work, as teachers or students), so the e-book revolution has already happened but clearly it has some way to go. Originality/value – The paper presents the results of the biggest survey of its kind ever conducted, which represents a huge advance in one's knowledge of e-book use on a national scale.

Despite the extensive use of web surveys today, there are certain methodological factors related to participant cooperation and data quality, which remain unclear and require further study. Here, the authors compare responses to a survey administered in two formats—electronic or by post—in terms of overall response rate and the quality of the data collected. Web and mail questionnaires were sent to a sample of 572 PhD holders, asking them about aspects related to their academic career and personal and family data to investigate the factors that determine scientific productivity. The web questionnaire elicited a significantly higher response rate than the mail questionnaire. Response rates did not differ between males and females; however, topic salience had an effect on the response rate. Finally, data quality was higher in web surveys than in the mail surveys, with fewer overall errors, fewer missing items, and longer responses in open-ended questions.

Introducción: Este estudio tiene como objetivo explorar el impacto de la pandemia de Covid-19 en los hábitos y el consumo de medios en España, uno de los países más gravemente afectados. Metodología: Se realizó una encuesta en línea representativa de la población española (N= 1,500 participantes) del 13 al 30 de marzo del 2020, coincidiendo con las primeras semanas de confinamiento en el hogar. La muestra se estudió según dos variables, género (mujeres N= 750; hombres N= 750) y edad (18-39 años N = 720 y más de 40 años N = 780) para detectar las especificidades más relevantes de cada colectivo. El error muestral es del ±4,38% al 95% de confianza. Resultados: La televisión destaca como el medio más utilizado a la hora de informarse sobre el virus, por delante de los medios digitales. Cabe destacar también que programas televisivos tipo “infoshows” consiguen acumular más audiencia que los informativos tradicionales. Los medios menos utilizados para informarse sobre la evolución del Covid-19 serían internet, redes sociales, radio, información proporcionada por familiares o conocidos y prensa en papel. Aunque no destaca el consumo de la radio para mantenerse informado, este medio es considerado como el más creíble, conjuntamente con la televisión. Por último, el consumo de las plataformas “over-the-top” (OTT) ha crecido de forma considerable durante este periodo. Discusión y conclusiones: La televisión recupera así la audiencia de los más jóvenes que parecía haber perdido a favor de los medios digitales, consolidando un panorama mediático cada vez más complejo y competitivo.

A qualitative study of the impact of electronic journals on the information behavior of academic researchers at Catalan universities shows that academic researchers now read more, and more widely. However, their reading is becoming more superficial; they are compelled to improve their discrimination skills in order to decide what to read in more depth. The electronic accessibility of journals means that researchers now make fewer library visits. Web browsing and table of contents (TOC) e-mail alerts are replacing physical browsing, and searching is a very popular option for keeping up to date with developments. Internet search engines, especially Google and Google Scholar, are becoming important sources of information for researchers. However, they face problems in managing their personal scientific information.