The recent addition of Consensus Deep Search mode is a great boost to its retrieval capabilities. On top of that, it has one of the most appealing interfaces out there, with color-coded references, and the Consensus Meter, for all its methodological faults, is likely to appeal to undergraduates and less advanced users. Add advanced pre-filters and LibKey integration to institutional full-text, and it is easy to guess this will be a hit for many users doing narrative literature reviews.
Agree. I do have two more questions would like to have your opinions and thoughts, if you don't mind:
1. As for AI-powered research workflow, I configured Zotero (for metadata records), Obsidian (connected to Zotero; for personal reading and note-taking, and AI-assisted reading and note-taking when appropriate), and Consensus connected to Claude for further literature search, comparative lit. analysis, etc. I found the connections among the tools are smooth, but I might need to actually use them in my daily research tasks to better explore how helpful they can be. However, if I'd like to share with staff and students, there are two challenges: 1) In Hong Kong, users will need to use a VPN (outside HK) for Claude access, and 2) my institution is not able to offer Claude access that enables the Consensus MCP, or the campus-licensed Copilot (basic plan) does not support it either. So, as librarians, we found that some tools could be helpful, but without a campus/region (HK) license, do you think it is still worth hosting a university-wide seminar to introduce them? Or at least introduce it in the LibGuide as an option?
2. Based on the practice, we somehow found that registrants prefer online sessions and recordings. We are also considering creating more online materials, such as courses and LibGuides, for users. I also prefer to make the LibGuide informative enough by referring to the vendor's official guidance, while also creating a user map with user cases (for example: https://libguides.lib.hku.hk/digital-literacy/ebscohost#s-lg-box-wrapper-27113428). Would you think it too detailed and could lead to loads of work for librarians, since the tools are changing fast? How do you position LibGuides, and how do you think it will be helpful to users?
Re-read this post, still feel very informative. Appreciated your testing and personal tips. Thank you, Aaron
Thanks. Things move very fast in this area, Consensus has changed quite a bit from >6 months ago e.g adding agentic tool use, MCP, more filters etc.
Agree. I do have two more questions would like to have your opinions and thoughts, if you don't mind:
1. As for AI-powered research workflow, I configured Zotero (for metadata records), Obsidian (connected to Zotero; for personal reading and note-taking, and AI-assisted reading and note-taking when appropriate), and Consensus connected to Claude for further literature search, comparative lit. analysis, etc. I found the connections among the tools are smooth, but I might need to actually use them in my daily research tasks to better explore how helpful they can be. However, if I'd like to share with staff and students, there are two challenges: 1) In Hong Kong, users will need to use a VPN (outside HK) for Claude access, and 2) my institution is not able to offer Claude access that enables the Consensus MCP, or the campus-licensed Copilot (basic plan) does not support it either. So, as librarians, we found that some tools could be helpful, but without a campus/region (HK) license, do you think it is still worth hosting a university-wide seminar to introduce them? Or at least introduce it in the LibGuide as an option?
2. Based on the practice, we somehow found that registrants prefer online sessions and recordings. We are also considering creating more online materials, such as courses and LibGuides, for users. I also prefer to make the LibGuide informative enough by referring to the vendor's official guidance, while also creating a user map with user cases (for example: https://libguides.lib.hku.hk/digital-literacy/ebscohost#s-lg-box-wrapper-27113428). Would you think it too detailed and could lead to loads of work for librarians, since the tools are changing fast? How do you position LibGuides, and how do you think it will be helpful to users?
Thank you for your time!