April 2003 ISSN: 0163- 898X No. 260
OCLC Newsletter
The economics of digital preservation
Page 10
WebJunction. org
connects communities to the world
Interview with Bob Martin,
Institute for Museum and Library Services
Page 12 www. oclc. org
OCLC Newsletter April 2003
Format Number of Percentage Locations of
records of total items cataloged
Books 41,374,255 83.49% 806,511,578
Serials 2,493,405 5.03% 27,088,848
Visualmaterials 1,592,847 3.21% 14,609,777
Maps 702,737 1.42% 3,496,606
Mixedmaterials 323,118 0.65% 392,567
Soundrecordings 1,717,324 3.47% 19,333,788
Scores 1,159,848 2.34% 8,911,221
Computerfiles 191,774 0.39% 945,892
Totals 49,555,279 100.00% 881,290,277
as of April 2003
April 2003, No. 260
The OCLC Newsletter ( ISSN: 0163- 898X) is published by OCLC Corporate Marketing and is distributed at no charge. Its contents may be reproduced in whole or part provided that credit is given. Send questions, subscription and address/ contact updates to:
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Editorial content by Brad Gauder, Phil Schieber and Tom Storey. Layout and design by Linda Shepard. All photos taken by Rich Skopin unless otherwise noted.
The OCLC Newsletter is also available on the OCLC Web site at: < www. oclc. info/ news/ newsletter>. For more information on OCLC, including contact information for OCLC offices and affiliated partners, visit the OCLC Web site at: < www. oclc. org>.
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About the cover
The Winesburg Branch of the Holmes County ( Ohio) District Public Library ( serving a community of approximately 425 residents) is one of thousands of institutions across North America that offers public access computing for its users. Now, using the new WebJunction. org Web site developed by OCLC and its partners, librarians and staff at these libraries can meet online to share resources and experiences to support each other’s public access computing programs.
The OCLC Cooperative
Governing Members 7,597
Members 13,532
Participating libraries 44,680
Libraries outside the United States 8,869
FirstSearch libraries 20,808
Countries & territories served 84
WorldCat
Highest OCLC record number 52,133,939
Languages in WorldCat 458
Total OCLC Interlibrary Loan 126,022,371service requests ( since 1979)
Total end user searches of WorldCat 132,781,724on FirstSearch ( since 1991)
OCLC by the Numbers
OCLC, a nonprofit membership organization, is engaged in computer library service and research
www. oclc. org www. oclc. org OCLC Newsletter April 2003
Contents
Features Departments
4 Public libraries meet at WebJunction. org
Building on the success of the U. S. Library Program implemented by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 1997, OCLC is launching a new Web site called WebJunction. org to assist public libraries in North America with their efforts to provide public access computing to their users. WebJunction. org was built using funds from the three- year, $ 9 million grant OCLC received in 2002 from the foundation. Read about WebJunction’s development and how it will impact public access computing.
10 The economics of digital preservation
OCLC Research Scientist Brian F. Lavoie recently authored a white paper to suggest how economic incentives could address preservation risks facing information resources that exist solely in digital forms. Read a summary of his report and get the Web URL for the full white paper.
12 Interview: Bob MartinLibraries: Their role and relationship to other cultural institutions
In February, Bob Martin spoke at OCLC on the relationships that libraries have with other cultural institutions. The OCLC Newsletter interviewed Dr. Martin to pursue his thoughts on how libraries, museums and archives can work together to meet the needs of 21st century learners.
OCLC by the Numbers
2 From the President
15 Update
View the Five- year Information Format Trends report
Library at University of California, Irvine contributes 52 millionth record to WorldCat
Western Illinois University Library enters 124, 125, 126 millionth ILL requests
Working group developing preservation metadata recommendations
OCLC Connexion gets quarterly tune- up
Check out new content added to OCLC FirstSearch
Dutch public libraries using QuestionPoint
Report from OCLC Members Council Meetings
Update your entry in the new OCLC ILL directory
OCLC launches Web site for digitization & preservation resources
Herbert Van de Sompel wins Frederick G. Kilgour Award
OCLC discontinues printed Technical Bulletins
Introducing netLibrary Reference Center
Here’s help for bringing e- books into your library
Read The Technological Challenges of Digital Reference
Listen to Roy Tennant’s address at OCLC
Learn how Internet2 will help libraries
netLibrary releases easier- to- use online e- book reader
Sign up for OCLC e- update
Richmond public libraries launch e- book service www. oclc. org
2 OCLC Newsletter April 2003
From Jay Jordan
OCLC will not increase prices in coming year
I am pleased to report that OCLC will hold the line on its prices in the coming fiscal year.
At the regular meeting of the OCLC Board of Trustees on April 15, OCLC management recommended that there be no price increases next fiscal year. The Board unanimously adopted the proposal to keep prices at their current levels for fiscal year 2004, which begins July 1, 2003. There will be no price increases in OCLC cataloging and metadata services, cooperative discovery services, and digital and preservation services. In those services where we provide access to third- party content ( FirstSearch service, Electronic Collections Online and netLibrary) we will pass through to libraries only royalty increases that are charged to us by content owners.
The Board of Trustees and OCLC management are acutely aware of the severe pressures that the depressed worldwide economy is placing on already strained library budgets. In the United States, 45 state governments are projecting budget cuts. Book budgets, library operating hours and staffing levels have been reduced in many libraries. Stock market declines have reduced the endowment funds of the vast majority of public and private colleges and universities, which are an important source of funding for libraries. Similar bad tidings are being reported by libraries in many regions of the world.
New sources of revenue
In order to hold the line on prices, we must look for new sources of revenues and new areas for cost reduction and control. In the past year, we have introduced or acquired new services that are expected to generate incremental revenues for OCLC, including QuestionPoint, Digital and Preservation Resources, netLibrary and WebJunction, the public library portal that is initially being funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. These new services are ramping up, but are not expected to generate sufficient revenues in fiscal 2004 to offset expenses. We must also continue to operate our current services on which our libraries depend. Our reduced revenues are hitting at the same time we are making major investments in a new technological platform for WorldCat and building new user support and business systems.
Cost control
On March 19, 2003, I announced to OCLC staff that in addition to stringent cost- cutting actions in funding for travel, consulting, training, maintenance and capital programs, OCLC will reduce the size of its workforce by up to 5 percent to bring expenses in line with revenues. We will achieve this reduction over the next several months through a combination of restructuring, attrition and an early retirement option. We are also freezing salaries of upper management and reducing www. oclc. org OCLC Newsletter April 2003 3
Jay Jordan
President and Chief Executive Officer
OCLC
the merit increase pool for all other staff. These actions are painful but necessary, and we are taking them in common with many of the institutions that we serve.
Reducing the rate of rise of library costs
Since OCLC’s founding in 1967, one of its chartered objectives has been to “ reduce the rate of rise of per- unit library costs.” I call your attention to the chart below that compares OCLC’s prices with those in the Higher Education Price Index. Over the past 10 years, OCLC has held its cumulative price increases substantially below the level of inflation that educational institutions have experienced.
Whenever and wherever we are financially able to do so, we are committed to helping our members. While modest price increases will have to occur in the following year ( fiscal 2005), we will continue to work hard to control our costs and keep any increases in prices as low as we can.
Credits reduce member costs
At the same time that we are keeping prices at current levels, we continue to provide libraries with credits for their cooperative efforts, which provides additional cost savings for members. For the fiscal year that will end June 30, 2003, we will provide libraries with an estimated $ 10 million in credits, primarily in cataloging and resource sharing, to encourage the growth and quality of WorldCat. In the last five years, we have provided more than $ 49 million in total credits.
Financial strength
Also since its founding, OCLC has issued an annual report to the membership, which includes financial statements and a candid discussion of the financial state of the organization.
Because we have operated in a business- like manner, we have the financial strength to keep our prices at current levels even as we continue to invest in new services and the new technological platform for the WorldCat database, which is the cooperative’s most valuable asset. We will continue to operate in a business- like manner in the future. At the same time, we will continue to be mindful of our public purposes.
In April, OCLC closed on a Franklin County, Ohio, industrial revenue bond project in which we were able to borrow $ 25 million for 10 years at an average interest rate of 3.99 percent. The bond issue will enable us to purchase equipment and software needed for our services. We will also save some $ 2 million in future interest expense by paying off an earlier bond issue. The fact that OCLC’s bond issue received an “ A” rating from Standard & Poor’s testifies to OCLC’s solid record of performance and solid reputation in the financial community. We intend to maintain that reputation.
Cooperation, collaboration and resource sharing— the core values of the OCLC cooperative— can help libraries rise to the challenge of these demanding economic times. We fully intend to continue to make your OCLC membership the best value in the worldwide library community. OCLC services offer practical solutions that can help you increase your productivity, extend your resources and improve your services.
Your continued participation in the cooperative, at both the personal and institutional levels, will create new opportunities that can help libraries not only survive, but thrive, in these turbulent economic times. www. oclc. org 4 OCLC Newsletter April 2003 Public libraries meet at www. oclc. org OCLC Newsletter April 2003 5
OCLC, Bill & Melinda
Gates Foundation
launch new,
interactive
Web site to help
public libraries
manage technology
by Brad Gauder
H arnessing information
technology for public libraries and their users is the aim of a new Web site
that goes live in May. Called WebJunction, the
new site hopes to establish
a Web- based forum where
public librarians meet virtually for online
education, technical resources and community-
building to help enhance
and sustain their public programs and services.
WebJunction. org
A recipient of a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation U. S. Library Program grant, the
Mansfield Richland County ( Ohio) Public Library is one of thousands of institutions in
North America that can enhance its public access computing through WebJunction. 6 OCLC Newsletter April 2003 www. oclc. org WebJunction resources
At its initial release in May 2003, WebJunction will offer a variety of resources to help libraries manage their public access computing programs effectively.
• Policies and Practices: tools to support policies, technology planning and funding
• Learning Center: online tutorials and training materials
• Technology Resources: technology support resources, “ how- to” guides
• Buying Guide: Technology reviews, guides to low- cost hardware and software
• Community Center: forums for connecting mentors and peers; sharing best practices
Source: Stay Tuned newsletter January 2003.
In May 2002, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation awarded OCLC a three- year, $ 9 million grant to develop the Web- based forum to help public libraries enhance their public access computing programs. Just one year later, OCLC launches WebJunction. org at the Great Hall of the Library of Congress in Washington, DC, on May 12 as part of the American Library Association’s National Library Legislative Day.
WebJunction will build on the success of the foundation’s U. S. Library Program, which has provided more than 40,000 computers with Internet access to more than 10,000 libraries in low- income communities across the United States and Canada since 1997. In partnership with the Colorado State Library, the Benton Foundation, TechSoup and Isoph, OCLC began developing WebJunction in mid- 2002.
Addressing library needs
According to Marilyn Mason, WebJunction Program Director and former director of the public library systems in Cleveland, Ohio, and Atlanta, Georgia, almost 100 percent of U. S. public libraries now offer public access computing. However, many public libraries face a critical shortage of support for computer services they offer that goes well beyond technical, equipment- related concerns. During these difficult economic times, when public librarians are trying to make best use of existing resources, many do not have access to technology training or guidance on computer usage policies.
Ms. Mason notes that public librarians report significant increases in user traffic at public computer terminals in recent years. Communities now expect these resources to be available, she says. For example, students use
Marilyn Mason
“ It’s more than just equipment. WebJunction will provide the means for library staff to help each other forge a community.” — Marilyn Mason www. oclc. org OCLC Newsletter April 2003 7
The Gates Portal Advisory Committee met at OCLC in September 2002. Front row, L- R: Jim Welbourne, City Librarian, New Haven Free Public Library; Joey Rodger, Director, Urban Libraries Council; Loriene Roy, Professor, Graduate School of Library and Information Science, The University of Texas at Austin; Danny Hales, Director, Suwannee River Regional Library. Back row, L- R: Marilyn Mason, WebJunction Program Director; Luis Herrera, Director, Pasadena Public Library; Andy Gordon, Professor, University of Washington; Frank Hermes, OCLC Vice President, Cooperative Discovery Services; Laura Breeden, Director, America Connects Consortium at Education Development Center; and Michael Crandall, Technology Manager, U. S. Library Program, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Not present: Joan Fanning, Executive Director, NPower; and Sara Parker, Missouri State Librarian.
the public library computers to do research projects and travelers use them to check e- mail while they are away from home.
“ Our goal with WebJunction is to help library staff be more effective in offering and sustaining public access computing— helping them do more with less by connecting them with each other in an environment of difficult budgets,” says Ms. Mason. “ This is the specific charge of our grant— it’s what the community tells us they need.”
Online learning community
At its initial release, WebJunction will offer a broad range of resources, including a forum for sharing information on policies and practices ( e. g., Internet access for minors), technical resources, advice for purchasing hardware and software and community message/ discussion boards that cover both day- to- day support issues as well as broader management topics. It will also provide free access to a newsletter called Crossroads that will keep participants informed about new resources being added to WebJunction.
According to Ms. Mason, “ It’s more than just equipment. WebJunction will provide the means for library staff to help each other forge a community.”
Therein lies the heart of WebJunction— an online learning community through which librarians and other library staff can share their experiences and their expertise and thereby enrich the public computing access experience for library users.
Nancy Bolt, Colorado State Librarian, who has played a key role in the development of WebJunction, believes that it will help libraries with the critical work of providing automated services to their users in two key ways. First, WebJunction’s online resources will help library staff keep their computers operational, which she says is particularly important at public libraries whose staffs lack computer expertise. 8 OCLC Newsletter April 2003 www. oclc. org on public libraries and other institutions that offer computer access to their users.
“ Libraries have been very positive in their response to Staying Connected and forward- thinking regarding WebJunction,” says Mr. Stauffer. “ Users keep sending us feedback like this: ‘ I just finished reading a few of the online resources and I learned soooo much!’”
Some two- dozen state libraries in the U. S. have assisted with the development of WebJunction through support of needs assessments and focus groups that were sponsored by the Colorado State Library. Ms. Bolt hopes that state libraries across the country will be able to contribute resources they already have to WebJunction. “ We also hope they will serve as experts for the community forums that WebJunction will host.”
High hopes for the online learning community
While the primary audience for WebJunction is staff at libraries that received computer grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, any institution— public library or other information- providing organization— that provides computers for public access is welcome to use it.
Ms. Bolt says that while librarians won’t need training on how to use WebJunction, they may benefit from orientation sessions. She is coordinating orientation sessions that may be available at state library conferences beginning in the fall of 2003. “ There is a lot of excitement about WebJunction at the state and local levels,” she notes. “ Librarians are eagerly anticipating its arrival.”
Secondly, WebJunction will positively influence the quality of service libraries can offer to their users. “ With WebJunction, we’ll provide resources to train library staff how to use computer technology productively— and how they can share that knowledge with their users,” says Ms. Bolt.
Ms. Mason agrees, pointing out that the learning center concept is central to WebJunction. “ What librarians say they need is better training, so we’re planning to provide it using readily accessible resources for individual training and also synchronous events that will train staff in many libraries simultaneously.”
Getting libraries involved
To involve libraries in the development of WebJunction, OCLC established an interim portal in August 2002, called Staying Connected < http:// stayingconnected. oclc. org>. According to Jeff Stauffer, WebJunction Product Manager, the portal provides online training courses and an electronic newsletter called Stay Tuned, in addition to providing libraries with a means to contribute ideas and other input for WebJunction.
“ We’ve taken a collaborative approach with WebJunction,” explains Mr. Stauffer. “ This will help us create an online community of users who will be engaged in providing input to shape the content and services of WebJunction on an ongoing basis.”
If response to the Staying Connected portal is any indication, WebJunction will have a positive impact
“ With WebJunction, we’ll provide resources to train library staff how to use computer technology productively— and how they can share that knowledge with their users.” — Nancy Bolt
Photo provided by Nancy Bolt www. oclc. org OCLC Newsletter April 2003 9
“ WebJunction is the logical next step in the computer access program begun by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 1997,” says Frank Hermes, OCLC Vice President, Cooperative Discovery Services. “ OCLC is honored to lead the important efforts to make it easier for public libraries across North America to help each other with the day- to- day tasks of providing computer access for their patrons.”
The foundation also has high expectations for WebJunction, according to Michael Crandall, Technology Manager for the foundation’s U. S. Library Program. “ The foundation hopes that WebJunction will become a resource and a community meeting place for libraries in North America,” he says.
“ It’s important that library users have the opportunity to access information and services beyond their local community through public access computing. Libraries can visit WebJunction to pick up new tools and share experiences and knowledge that will help them sustain computer services,” he says. “ This online community of libraries will also result in a strong voice of support for public access computing.”
For more information about WebJunction, visit: http:// webjunction. org
For more information on the American Library Association’s Library Legislative Day, visit:
Assessing needs that WebJunction can address
As part of the WebJunction project, the Colorado State Library conducted a needs assessment of public library staff in the fall of 2002. Assisted by 22 state library agencies, the assessment included responses from 1,800 library staff ( including technical staff) and state library and regional library cooperative staff who work with individual libraries.
The responses indicated these top needs among libraries:
• Managing public access to computers
• Troubleshooting installation, repair, maintenance and upgrades of computers
• Marketing
• Technology planning, including budgeting and space planning
• Purchasing and funding of technology, including grants
• Staff training, online courses, tip sheets and resources
• Sample policies that govern public use of technology
• Ability to interact with experts and peers to share information
Source: Stay Tuned newsletter, January 2003
Michael Crandall
http:// www. ala. org/ Content/ NavigationMenu/ Our_ Association/ Offices/ ALA_ Washington/ Events10/ National_ Library_ Legislative_ Day/ Default2689. htm
Photo provided by Michael Crandall 10 OCLC Newsletter April 2003 www. oclc. org by Tom Storey
Each year, the body of knowledge that’s born digital and exists solely in electronic format continues to grow. And so does the risk of it disappearing forever, due to technological obsolescence or just plain neglect.
What should be done to ensure that the cultural heritage and intellectual capital that’s now generated in digital form is properly preserved for generations to come?
Part of the answer lies with economic incentives, according to a white paper recently published by the OCLC Office of Research.
“ Economics is fundamentally about incentives, so a study of the economics of digital preservation should begin with the incentives to preserve,” says Brian F. Lavoie, OCLC Research Scientist who authored the study, The Incentives to Preserve Digital Materials: Roles, Scenarios and Economic Decision- Making. “ Securing the long- term viability and accessibility of digital materials requires an appropriate allocation of incentives among key decision- makers in the digital preservation process.
“ But the circumstances under which digital preservation takes place often lead to a misalignment of preservation objectives and incentives. Identifying circumstances where insufficient incentives to preserve are likely to prevail, and how this can be remedied, are necessary first steps in developing economically sustainable digital preservation activities.”
As noted by the widely cited 1996 report by the Task Force on Archiving Digital Information, digital preservation is a huge concern among educators, librarians, curators, archivists and other officials who fear losing important information and knowledge that’s born digital. Nonetheless, Mr. Lavoie notes that sustained programmatic approaches to digital preservation, as well as market- based digital preservation services, are just beginning to emerge, despite the urgency to preserve valuable, often expensive digital resources. “ Digital preservation is an activity that is largely conducted on an ad hoc basis.”
In his paper, Mr. Lavoie identifies three key decision- making roles present in digital preservation efforts, and develops five organizational models characterizing the structure of digital preservation activities. He then uses the decision- making roles and the organizational models to explore economic issues associated with the incentives to preserve digital materials, and considers several real- world digital preservation initiatives in light of this framework.
The economics of digital preservation
What incentives will help? www. oclc. org OCLC Newsletter April 2003 11
His complete report can be found at
http:// www. oclc. org/ research/ projects/ digipres/ incentives- dp. pdf
Among the reasons he cites for the slow development of digital preservation programs and services:
• The owner of digital materials may not benefit directly from long- term preservation and will therefore be reluctant to bear the costs, even though the materials may represent a valuable part of the scholarly or cultural record.
• The range of preservation services potentially needed is diverse, which may restrict market size and limit production efficiencies by reducing economies of scale.
• In circumstances where there are several owners of a digital object, none will have the incentive to be the first to preserve, since all other owners would presumably benefit. Once the resource is preserved for one owner, it is perceived as being preserved for all, since the preserved copy is substitutable for all other copies.
Although more research is needed in this area, Mr. Lavoie suggests several prescriptions for enhancing incentives in circumstances such as those described above:
• Subsidize digital preservation when private incentives to preserve do not take into account social benefits.
• Tailor preservation services to the needs of particular institutions or communities where possible, but search for ways to leverage infrastructure across the range of services in order to realize economies of scale.
• Combine the benefits of preservation with the benefits of access to ensure that all stakeholders contribute to the costs of preservation.
Mr. Lavoie proposes a four- point research agenda to further advance the understanding of the economics of digital preservation. Research efforts should focus on: 1) accumulation and synthesis of case studies in digital preservation, 2) designing effective strategies for boosting the incentives to preserve where needed, 3) understanding how an efficient market for digital preservation services should be structured, and 4) developing effective pricing strategies for digital preservation services.
“ Digital preservation can hardly be classified as a new topic anymore,” says Mr. Lavoie. “ Yet we still find ourselves not very far from the beginning in terms of exploring its economic ramifications.
“ Ensuring that appropriate incentives to preserve exist is the fundamental economic imperative of digital preservation, and an essential first step in securing the future of the vast corpus of information in digital form.”
Culturally significant Web sites and scholarly e- journals are digital materials at risk that could benefit from incentives that encourage archiving.
OCLC Research Scientist Brian Lavoie www. oclc. org 12 OCLC Newsletter April 2003 Interview
Bob Martin
Libraries:
Their role and
relationship to
other cultural
institutions
by Tom Storey
In July 2001, Robert Martin was confirmed as Director
of the Institute for Museum and Library Services ( IMLS),
an independent, federal grant- making agency that supports the nation’s libraries and museums. Prior
to his appointment, he was Professor and Interim
Director of the School of Library and Information
Studies at Texas Woman’s University. From 1995 to
1999, he served as Director and Librarian of the Texas State Library and Archives Commission where he led a
dramatic expansion of TexShare, the agency’s statewide
library resource- sharing program, and coordinated the
development of new school library standards for the
state.
From 1985 until 1995, Dr. Martin was Associate Dean
of Libraries for Special Collections at Louisiana State
University. Before that, he worked in the archives and special collections at the University of Texas at Arlington and the University of Texas at Austin. He also
taught at the University of Wisconsin– Madison. www. oclc. org
OCLC Newsletter April 2003 1Interview:
Bob Martin
Has the role of libraries changed in the Digital Age?
It is the same as it has been for 150 years. Libraries are essential educational institutions. We often say that libraries are in the information business, that they select, organize, retrieve, transmit and preserve information. That’s true. But those are activities of the library, not the mission. The primary role of the library— any type of library— is to provide resources and services that support education. And education is what the public wants from the library.
How can libraries continue to thrive in a world where many people think the Internet is the answer?
Libraries should focus on creating public value, a concept developed by Mark Moore at Harvard University. In his book Creating Public Value: Strategic Management in Government, Moore argues that politics is the final arbiter of public value. The desires and perceptions of individuals are expressed through representative government. Managers must therefore pay attention to politics to define the value they are expected to deliver, which means listening carefully and systematically to political leaders to understand fully their agendas, their concerns and their goals. Moore says you create public value in the eyes of your users and resource allocators by focusing on distinctive competence and demonstrating impact. At IMLS, we believe the distinctive competence of all libraries is providing resources and services that complement and extend formal education into an enterprise that lasts a lifetime. We also believe that libraries need to do a better job of demonstrating value to their communities, which is why we train all IMLS grant recipients in outcome- based evaluation and require all grantees to develop outcome- based measures of success.
Is the education role distinctive enough to enable libraries to compete with search engines and Internet reference services?
You bet. Libraries and museums have an impressive array of strengths to bring to the 21st century learning culture. They are trustworthy resources. They have a long history of free and equitable access and stand as core democratic institutions with the ability to meet the needs of everyone. They are effective knowledge navigators and provide expertise to help people learn. They are skillful teachers of learning skills, and critical thinking skills that are so important in today’s world of information overload. They are masters at facilitating inquiry- based learning— the kind of learning that is becoming more vital every day in this new century.
If the libraries’ role is the same, what is changing?
The most obvious change is the impact of networked information technology on library services. Whether it’s building a virtual collection or a virtual reference desk, digital tools greatly expand library services and open up new possibilities to serving 21st century learners.
Can you elaborate on some new possibilities for libraries?
The most exciting one is collaborating with other cultural organizations, such as museums, archives and learned societies, to build more dynamic frameworks for lifelong learning. Digital technology allows us to galvanize the resources of these organizations to create infrastructures that bring content and delivery systems together in fresh, new combinations. We live in a society where learning is not confined to the classroom but is ubiquitous. We can best extend the learning process through innovative collaboration, which is emerging as the strategy of the 21st century. And collaboration is another way to build public value. 14 OCLC Newsletter April 2003 www. oclc. org
How are libraries and museums collaborating?
They are collaborating in traditional ways, such as sharing resources and building community outreach programs, and in new ways made possible through technology, such as creating large- scale digital collections and online exhibitions. This has an especially noteworthy effect on the use of unique materials held by these organizations. Digital collections and online exhibitions transform the use of materials. People who used these materials on- site now frequently, if not exclusively, use them online. And new users who were unaware that these materials existed are now frequent users of the digital collections. Users don’t care, and may not even be aware, whether the original materials are in a library or a museum.
What role does IMLS play in supporting collaboration?
In 1998, we launched the National Leadership Grants program to encourage and fund library- museum partnerships. These grants support model programs of cooperation between libraries and museums with special emphasis on projects that help museums and libraries take a leadership role in the education of lifelong learners in the 21st century. This leadership role is key. To date we’ve funded 64 projects totaling more than $ 15 million.
What are some examples of library- museum partnerships?
One of the best known is the Colorado Digitization Program. Funded by IMLS and the Colorado State Library, this project adopts a statewide approach to enhancing access to materials that document local history. Libraries and museums of all types and sizes, along with several archives, contribute materials that are part of a superb virtual collection of materials of all kinds and formats. The project provides rich interpretative information and assistance to teachers who actively use the collections in the classroom.
A more traditional example is the partnership between the Houston Public Library and the Houston Children’s Museum. With IMLS support, Houston Public Library established a branch library with the Children’s Museum. Families using the museum can go directly from the exhibits and unstructured educational experiences to a branch library collection developed specifically to support and extend those experiences. Books and other learning materials suitable for all ages can be used on site or checked out to take home. And it doesn’t stop there. Directly adjacent to the “ Tot Spot” is a parenting library, where parents can find materials and assistance to support their developing parenting skills.
What challenges do libraries and museums face when they collaborate?
Collaboration is not easy. Max Evans, Executive Director of the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, defines collaboration as an unnatural act, practiced by nonconsenting adults. Differences among libraries and museums can be profound. The assets and personnel, academic preparation of professionals, even the very language to describe operations, can be dramatically different. The characteristics and proximity to the communities they serve can vary widely. Values and assumptions of mission and service can be different. In short, the cultures can differ dramatically. These differences are challenging and they do not go away. It is imperative that they be recognized. Over time, they can evolve into sources of synergy rather than contention.
Nonetheless, I think libraries and museums have much more in common. Both are essential educational institutions. Both provide a broad range of resources and services for the communities they serve. Both preserve our rich and diverse culture and history and pass it on from one generation to the next. In addition, they provide social settings for community activities. They support economic development. They provide extraordinary opportunities for recreation and enjoyment. And they serve as social agencies that complement the structures of formal education.
I have said on many occasions that as we move from the physical to the digital world, the distinctions between libraries and museums not only blur, they disappear. www. oclc. org OCLC Newsletter April 2003 15
Update
update
http:// www. oclc. org/ info/ trends/
View the Five- year Information Format Trends report
Prepared by the OCLC Library and Information Center, this new report presents data and forecasts about information format trends that will likely shape the information landscape of the future.
http:// www. lib. uci. edu/ index. html
http:// www. oclc. org/ worldcat/
Library at University of California, Irvine contributes 52 millionth record to WorldCat
Entered on April 8, the record was for In the Heat of the Moment, a videocassette release of a television program produced in 2000 by the BBC.
http:// www. wiu. edu/ library/ index. php
http:// www. oclc. org/ oclc/ menu/ ill. htm
Western Illinois University Library enters 124, 125, 126 millionth ILL requests
In a span of 65 days, the three millionth requests were entered into the OCLC Interlibrary Loan service for a cassette Answering Machine Messages and for the books Neither Man Nor Beast and Immediate Action.
http:// www. oclc. org/ research/ pmwg/
Working group developing preservation metadata recommendations
The OCLC Digital & Preservation Cooperative, the OCLC Office of Research and the Research Libraries Group are sponsoring PREMIS ( PREservation Metadata: Implementation Strategies), a new group that’s developing recommendations and best practices for implementing preservation metadata in digital preservation systems.
http:// www. oclc. org/ connexion/ enhancements/
OCLC Connexion gets quarterly tune- up
Highlights of this release include: new display options for cataloging and authority records, enhancements to diacritics and improvements to constant data.
http:// www. oclc. org/ firstsearch/ about/ news. htm# announce
Check out new content added to OCLC FirstSearch
Recent additions include 132 new e- journals from several publishers and the Media Review Digest database, which provides extensive review coverage of educational media. In addition, the ATLA Religion database has been expanded and PsycARTICLES has new PDF images of full- text articles.
http:// www. oclcpica. org/? id= 1231& ln= uk
Dutch public libraries using QuestionPoint
Dutch public library users are now asking reference questions electronically using Al@ din, a customized version of QuestionPoint that links, for the first time, the knowledge of librarians throughout the Netherlands in one digital reference service.
http:// www. oclc. org/ oclc/ uc/ meet. htm
Report from OCLC Members Council Meetings
Presentations and minutes from general sessions as well as library group and interest group discussions are available on the OCLC Web site for all recent meetings.
http:// www. oclc. org/ ill/ illpolicies. htm
Update your entry in the new OCLC ILL directory
The ILL Policies and Technology Directory, which replaces the Name Address Directory, provides users of OCLC ILL with a Web- based, central source for entering and retrieving policies, billing, system and contact information for member libraries worldwide.
http:// digitalcooperative. oclc. org/
OCLC launches Web site for digitization & preservation resources
At this new site you’ll find information about copyright, grants assistance and other digitization and preservation issues, along with links to online resources and reports on what other institutions are doing in this exciting new field. www. oclc. org
1OCLC
Newsletter April 2003
Update
http:// www. oclc. org/ research/ news/ kilgouraward2003. shtm
Herbert Van de Sompel wins Frederick G. Kilgour Award
Dr. Van de Sompel, of the Los Alamos National Laboratories, is being recognized for his significant work in linking technologies and metadata harvesting that helped create the SFX architecture and a protocol for harvesting metadata. OCLC and the Library and Information Technology Association ( LITA), a division of the American Library Association, sponsor the annual award for research in library and information technology.
http:// www. oclc. org/ oclc/ bit/ 273/ content. shtm# tbs
OCLC discontinues printed Technical Bulletins
To reduce printing and shipping costs, OCLC has stopped distributing printed copies of Technical Bulletins but will continue to post them on the OCLC Web site in PDF and HTML formats.
http:// www. netlibrary. com/ help/ reference center. asp
Introducing netLibrary Reference Center
Provide your users with a powerful new online reference resource. netLibrary’s Reference Center enhances your reference content and allows you to offer users access to dictionaries, encyclopedias, directories and more from a single, convenient location.
< http:// www. netlibraryebooktoolkit. com/ index. asp
Here’s help for bringing e- books into your library
Check out the revamped netLibrary eBook Tool Kit Web site and its wealth of information and tips on integrating and using e- books in your organization.
http:// www. dlib. org/ dlib/ february03/ penka/ 02penka. html
Read The Technological Challenges of Digital Reference
Written by Jeff Penka, OCLC’s QuestionPoint Manager, the article provides an overview of today’s reference environment along with data and practical examples to demonstrate the importance and effect understanding audiences, appropriately using technology and working cooperatively can have for libraries in digital reference.
http:// www. oclc. org/ research/ dss/ date. shtm
Listen to Roy Tennant’s address at OCLC
The well- known columnist and digital librarian speaks on Points of Pain, Peculiar Possibilities and a Patron Paradise, or A Slightly Arbitrary Set of Hair- brained Ideas.
http:// www. oclc. org/ research/ dss/ date. shtm
Learn how Internet2 will help libraries
In this OCLC Distinguished Seminar Series presentation, Jane Ryland, Membership Consultant for the Internet2 consortium and a member of the OCLC Board of Trustees, discusses the power and potential of Internet2, focusing on new activities currently underway and aspects of greatest interest to the library community.
http:// www. netlibrary. com/ help/ reader_ redesign. asp
netLibrary releases easier- to- use online e- book reader
Designed with input from usability testing and customer feedback, the new reader features a simplified navigation architecture and offers a 167% increase in viewing area.
http:// www. oclc. org/ oclc/ forms/ listserv. htm
Sign up for OCLC e- update
OCLC Abstracts, a weekly electronic newsletter that delivers information about OCLC services, programs, news and events directly to subscribers’ desktops, has a new design. Sign up and check it out by sending a “ subscribe oclcabstracts < your name >” e- mail message to listserv@ oclc. org or by completing the online OCLC Internet List Subscription Request form at < http:// www. oclc. org/ oclc/ forms/ listserv. htm>. OCLC Abstracts augments and complements OCLC’s Web site and print communications. www. oclc. org OCLC Newsletter April 2003 17
Update
http:// www. oclcpica. org/? id= 1236& ln= uk
Richmond public libraries launch e- book service
eBooks@ Richmond Libraries, an initiative of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, is using a range of netLibrary titles to provide users with one of the first e- book collections in U. K. public libraries. The Richmond libraries join 2,747 public libraries in the USA and Canada that use e- books from netLibrary, a division of OCLC.
With support from the People’s Network Excellence Fund Award, granted by the New Opportunities Fund, the libraries subscribe to 314 netLibrary titles covering computers, Internet and systems; management and public relations; psychology; social sciences, sociology and anthropology. They also are using e- books from Safari Technical Books Online as part of their collection.
“ We chose netLibrary because its breadth of subject coverage will allow us to develop a comprehensive online nonfiction and reference collection,” said Monica Vidana, E- books Project Coordinator. “ In the future, we are planning to include titles covering core subject areas such as art, law and science as more titles with U. K. rights become available. We are confident the development of our netLibrary collection will benefit both the end user and the Library Service.”
Douglas Orchard, Mayor, helped launch the digital e- book initiative with a toast to the success of the new service at the East Sheen Library, one of the branch libraries in the Borough. Caroline Taylor, Richmond’s Head of Libraries and Information Sciences, and librarians and representatives from other local authorities joined him.
Douglas Orchard, center, Mayor of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, tries out the new e- books at the East Sheen Library branch of the Richmond Public Library. Monica Vidana, left, E- books Project Coordinator, London Borough of Richmond Upon Thames, looks on.
photo provided by OCLC PICA OCLC
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OCLC dinner benefits ALA Spectrum Scholarship Fund
OCLC hosted the 2003 Ohio Dinners for Spectrum on March 18 in the Frederick G. Kilgour Building atrium. The event raised $ 7,450 and awareness for the American Library Association’s Spectrum Initiative, a project that provides scholarships to library and information science schools for African American, Latino/ Hispanic, Asian/ Pacific Islanders and Native American/ Alaskan Native students. Featured speaker Emma Bradford Perry ( pictured at left with Jay Jordan, OCLC President and CEO), long- time OCLC Members Council leader and Dean of Libraries at Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, spoke about “ Diversity and Commitment— A Blueprint for Success.” “ The benefit of diversity, in a nutshell, is this: it enriches one’s professional and educational experiences, promotes personal growth, strengthens the workplace and enhances America’s economic competitiveness,” said Dean Perry. “ Diversity puts one in tune to other people’s backgrounds and different ways of life— plus more respect is garnered for people of different races. I challenge each of you to renew your commitment and sustain your efforts toward heightening sensitivity to diversity and making inclusion a permanent and integral part of your library.”
