This chapter outlines how search engine technology can be used in online public access library
catalogs (OPACs) to help improve users’ experiences, to identify users’ intentions, and to indicate
how it can be applied in the library context, along with how sophisticated ranking criteria can be
applied to the online library catalog. A review of the literature and current OPAC developments
form the basis of recommendations on how to improve OPACs. Findings were that the major
shortcomings of current OPACs are that they are not sufficiently user-centered and that their results
presentations lack sophistication. Further, these shortcomings are not addressed in current 2.0
developments. It is argued that OPAC development should be made search-centered before
additional features are applied. While the recommendations on ranking functionality and the use of
user intentions are only conceptual and not yet applied to a library catalogue, practitioners will find
recommendations for developing better OPACs in this chapter. In short, readers will find a
systematic view on how the search engines’ strengths can be applied to improving libraries’ online
catalogs
