In the widespread literature that could be included under the rubric of information seeking, there is a genre of empirical work that is larger than any other: studies of people finding information in libraries. Most of the publications in this genre focus on “information as a thing” (Buckland, 1991a), this is, use of books, journals, and other “packages” of information.
So let us imagine another information seeker, this one called Leslie. Leslie is writing a paper for her history class on the 1898 war between Spain and the United Stated. She has gone to the library to gather background data on the role of the United States president, William McKinley, in the decision to declare war on Cuba