This is a lengthy, peer-reviewed report that describes the DESIRE research into the development of quality systems and selection criteria for subject gateways.

Subject gateways are characterised by their use of human intermediaries, often librarians, to provide a quality controlled collection of Internet resources. This human factor is integral to the selection , classification and cataloguing of each resource. This is in contrast to search engine collections built by indexing robots which rely on automated solutions to organise Internet resources.

DESIRE aimed to create tools and methods for gateway staff to use to develop and sustain quality control systems. A "state of the art" review was conducted which covered:

• quality definitions and practices used in the commercial sector
• selection criteria currently being used by subject gateways
• selection criteria used by other Internet services
• selection criteria used in libraries

1. A diagrammatic model of an information gateway that highlights the areas that require quality control mechanisms
   
2. A list of selection criteria that can be drawn upon in creating an explicit set of criteria for a specific gateway
   

This report will be of interest to people wishing to see the research and methodology that lay behind the development of the DESIRE tools. Those who wish to use the tools to develop a gateway are advised to go directly to them