The Monitoring and Advisory Unit (MAU) is an agent of the JISC (Joint Information Systems Committee) based at the University of Kent. The MAU reports to the JISCs Committee for Electronic Information (CEI) and monitors four national networked academic database services: BIDS, CHEST, MIDAS and EDINA1
This was true when this research was carried out. NISS and HEDS have now been added to this portfolio.
. Part of the MAUs brief is to collect users views on these services and to use the results to monitor and advise the database service providers, the CEI, and other relevant JISC bodies. In early 1998 focus groups were held with a variety of groups of university staff and students to gather views on these services. The results which are reported in this paper cover users views on JISC Services generally and BIDS in particular; the proliferation of datasets and data service providers; supporting and using (and not using) the services; training; the service interface and the future of the service(s). The findings were subsequently used to inform the design of a national survey by questionnaire in summer 1998.
