Web Proxy Use survey

Introduction

The purpose of this survey is to gather information about the use of web proxy servers in libraries. Responses to this survey may be used in future presentations and publications. This survey is being conducted in conjunction with the LITA Regional Institute on "Proxy Web Servers and Authentication."

The survey consists of a group of questions regarding your library's use or planned use of proxy servers to solve one or more of these problems:

  1. Bandwidth Conservation
  2. Gathering Statistics
  3. Filtering
  4. Remote Resource Access
For each area, you will be asked which proxy server you are using or plan to use to solve a particular problem along with followup questions specific to each problem. You can skip an entire major section if it does not apply to your institution.

Proxies for Bandwidth Conservation

Proxies for Bandwidth Conservation are used to reduce latency (the average time it takes for web pages to display due to network delays) and network traffic on your network segments. If you do not use a proxy server for Bandwidth Conservation, you can skip to the next section.

What proxy server does your institution use for bandwidth conservation?

 Apache  Squid  Delegate  Microsoft Proxy Server  Netscape Proxy Server  WinProxy  WebManager (Sagebrush)  Home-grown software  Other (please specify):  More than one software package  No response

Proxies for Statistics

By forcing all web requests for web resources through a proxy server, an institution can use the log files from the proxy server to gather statistics on what resources are used. If you do not use a proxy server for Statistics, you can skip to the next section.

What proxy server does your institution use for statistics?

 Apache  Squid  Delegate  Microsoft Proxy Server  Netscape Proxy Server  WinProxy  Obvia  WebManager (Sagebrush)  Home-grown software  Other (please specify):  More than one software package  No response

What statistics program do you use to process the log files?

Proxies for Filtering

Some proxy servers can be configured to allow access to only specific web sites (a.k.a "allow lists") or deny access of the request is for a specified web site (a.k.a "deny lists"). If you do not use a proxy server for Filtering, you can skip to the next section.

What proxy server does your institution use for filtering?

 Apache  Squid  Delegate  Microsoft Proxy Server  Netscape Proxy Server  WinProxy  WebManager from Sagebrush Corp.  Home-grown software  Other (please specify):  More than one software package  No response

For what purpose do you use a filtering proxy server?

 Allow Lists  Deny Lists  Both  Neither  No response

Does your institution use proxy servers for other types of filtering (removing cookies, blocking advertisements, virus scanning, etc.). If so, please describe:

Proxies for Remote Resource Access

Some proxy servers can be used to provide remote access to vendor databases from computers outside your institution's network. If you do not use a proxy server for Remote Resource Access, you can skip to the next section.

What proxy server does your institution use for remote resource access?

 Apache  Squid  Delegate  Microsoft Proxy Server  Netscape Proxy Server  WinProxy  EZproxy  Obvia  WebManager from Sagebrush Corp.  Remote Patron Authentication from epixtech  Web Access Management (WAM) from Innovative Interfaces  Home-grown software  Other (please specify):  More than one software package  No response

If your proxy server requires users to make changes to their browser configuration, do you provide instructions on your web site?

 Yes; please list URL:
 No  No response

Other Uses of Proxy Servers

Is your library using proxy servers for another reason? If so, please describe:

Does your library publish a statement regarding the type and amount of information collected by the proxy server, and the use and disposition of proxy server log files?

 Yes; please list URL if published on your website:  No  No response

Demographics

Type of library

 Academic  Public  School  Corporate  Special  Other (please specify):  No response

Where did you hear about this survey?

 Posting on Web4Lib  Posting on PACS-L  Posting on LITA-L  Posting on Teknoids  Posting on SYSLIB-L  Posting on LIS-LINK  Posting on PUBLIB-NET  LISnews.com  E-mail received because I attended a LITA Regional Institute  Word-of-mouth  Nick Moore's column in "Library Review"  Other (please specify):  No response

Institution Name

Your Name

Your e-mail address

Your name, institution, and e-mail address are optional. This information will be used for followup to survey answers, and will not be published or disclosed to third parties without your consent.