Abstract:
A study was carried out between January and February 2013 to analyze
the contents of 16 university and university college library websites in Tanzania
using content analysis method. The consolidated data were analyzed using
Microsoft Excel and presented in tabular form. The study findings revealed that
although many university library websites have some commonalities, these websites
miss many important features. Some library websites have very little content that do
not provide a real picture about their collections, resources and services. The
websites also lack uniformity despite many similarities that university libraries
possess. There is poor presentation of details on e-resources and library services. It
is recommended that the design of library websites should be driven by the
information needs and seeking behaviour of target users rather than technology or
library functions. Website designers should make use of current and emerging
technologies to provide library users with opportunities to locate and retrieve
information efficiently. Furthermore, library websites should be updated regularly
in order to respond to users’ changing needs. Recommendations on future research
are also provided.
