Thursday, March 20, 2008

WorldCat Genius



So, I was requesting that my local library get The Library at Night by Manguel. I wanted to look up the info so they could process it quickly (if it gets approved). Thus, I went over to WorldCat.

Now, I've used WorldCat for some time, and I've seen their links to Amazon. However, this is the first time that I've noticed the little green button above. So, I decided to check it out.

The review page and the following shopping cart are integrated outstandingly well. It is almost seamless & quite beautiful. Yes, the store's design does deviate some from WorldCat's site; however, it is much, much better than Google Checkout and even Amazon's proposition. The design makes one feel as if they've never left WorldCat (though, a link back to WorldCat would be wise).

Baker & Taylor (B&T) & OCLC have teamed up to create this service. Furthermore, a portion of the proceeds go to the library of your choice! Now, I'm sure the library of your choosing is not getting much, but the idea that the library is getting something and that the buyer feels even better about their purchase is genius. Props to both for creating such a well-thought design to a union catalog & shopping experience.

Hmm...with library systems like Ohio State University integrating WorldCat into/as their catalog, I wonder if we might begin seeing that little green button elsewhere.

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