Although digital resources may greatly expand the pool of resources you can choose from, the acquisition choices you make shouldn t stray from this formal set of rules. Content should be well-written, and it should be provided in manageable, digestible chunks. Some content aggregators offer a more a la carte approach to licensing resources within a specific subject area. These services may enhance your delivery options. Ensuring that end-users get value from the content is key.
Vendors are usually quite specific about what constitutes fair use.
In some instances users are allowed to download or print content for personal use, but may not redistribute content in electronic format, e.g., on a listserv or bulletin board. Pay close attention to your license agreement, since fair use is defined differently in the electronic world than in the print world. This could have bearing on interlibrary loan, reserves, and other educational uses. This criterion focuses on how effective the search functionality is in accessing the content. Poor design directly affects usability and can quickly become a bone of contention among your users.