I am forwarding the information below to the lis-elib list as it gives a
good idea of developments in another country which have been directly
influenced by eLib developments. JEDDS, an eLib project jointly with the
Australian Vice-Chancellors' Committee and the National Library of
Australia, worked with RLG to develop a version of their ARIEL document
delivery system which would work closely with an inter-lending management
system. JEDDS also worked directly with the eLib EDDIS project which is
developing such a system, based on the Fretwell Downing VDX product,
resulting in the system to be used in Australia.
Implementation of a large scale document delivery system of this kind is
easier in Australia than here because of the availability of a national
on-line union catalogue with holdings information (currently ABN, moving
to a new system based on the Canadian AMICUS software shortly). Here we
are hoping that a combination of COPAC (http://copac.ac.uk/copac) and the
various 'clumps' projects will begin to provide this information in a way
more appropriate to the scale and structure of UK higher education.
We are expecting to negotiate licences for the software being used by the
Australians to be available to UK universities.
However, a distributed national system on the scale indicated is still a
long way off in the UK. LAMDA (another eLib project developing into a
service) is a parallel activity on a smaller scale; it will I believe be
migrating to the product of the JEDDS project. A national system of this
type may be more important in Australia because of the absence of a
national service like the BL Document Supply Centre at Boston Spa. I
understand that the DSC will be providing services based on compatible
implementations of the ILL protocol referred to below, ie there is a good
chance of inter-operability with the software the Australians are using
and which we hope to make available.
----- Forwarded message from Bryony De La Motte -----
NETWORKED SERVICES PROJECT
Q&A No. 4
This Q&A is devoted to the new National ILL Utility. The National Library
of Australia has selected Fretwell-Downing's OLIB VDX, the same product
chosen by the Australian Vice-Chancellors' Committee's LIDDA (Local
Interlending and Document Delivery Administration) Project. The Library
welcomes the opportunity to work with the AV-CC in the implementation of new
interlending and document delivery support services for the nation's
libraries.
What is OLIB VDX?
OLIB (Open Library Systems) is Fretwell-Downing Informatics' library
management system which consists of a family of products of which VDX
(Virtual Document eXchange) is the product supporting ILL management. VDX
was trialled in the DALI (Documents And Libraries Integrated) project for
the European Commission and the product was launched in late 1996. VDX is in
use at LASER (London & South Eastern Library Region) - UK's largest regional
union catalogue and interlending service. VDX complies with the major
international standard in document delivery, the ISO ILL Protocol (ISO
10160/10161)
What are the features of the ILL Utility implementation of VDX?
The ILL Utility will support the creation of requests, selection of
suppliers, tracking and management of requests and the ILL payments scheme.
It will feature:
* World Wide Web access
* Integration with AMICUS - this will give National ILL Utility users
the ability to search the National Bibliographic Database via Z39.50 and
automatically include bibliographic and location data in ILL requests.
* Integration with the ILRS directory - giving National ILL Utility
users the ability to use data about suppliers.
* Integration with the Ariel transmission system
* Support for multiple message protocols:
* ISO ILL Protocol
* Centralised message services (as in the current ABN ILL system)
* ART for British Library Document Supply Service messaging
* Configurable email messaging.
How will I connect to the new service?
An Internet connection will be required.
What is the difference between LIDDA and the ILL Utility?
The LIDDA project has also chosen the VDX software for its implementation.
Each participating institution will have its own VDX server allowing more
sophisticated local rules to be applied to ILL administration. This will
provide more automation in processes such as patron authorisation, selection
of suppliers, copyright and financial management and more workflow
configurability. Library staff in these institutions will use a PC client
while patrons (end users) will use a Web interface. The ILL Utility will
have a single VDX server at the National Library which will provide request
management functions to library staff using a Web interface.
What is the relationship between LIDDA and the ILL Utility?
There will be close cooperation between the LIDDA and ILL Utility
implementations to ensure that the requirements of the two systems are
compatible. LIDDA users will be able to search the NBD, route requests to
ILL Utility users (and vice versa) and participate in the ILL payments
scheme.
Will there be a Web interface?
Yes, there will be a Web interface which will enable users to search the
NBD, create requests, select suppliers, route requests to suppliers, track
and manage requests.
Will I need special software on my PC?
No. Customer Libraries will access the National ILL Utility via a Web
interface. Client software will not be distributed. Users with LIDDA systems
will be able to use the LIDDA client to access the NBD and communicate with
the National ILL Utility. This communication is enabled through the
incorporation of the ISO ILL Protocol in VDX.
How will the changeover from the old system to the new be accomplished?
The ABN ILL Sub-system and the new system will run in parallel for a short
period to allow processing of existing ILL requests to be completed on the
old system while users begin to use the new system. ILL requests will not be
migrated from the old system to the new system.
When will the new service be implemented?
The new service will be implemented at the same time as AMICUS, in the first
quarter of 1999.
Bronwyn Lee
NSP Implementation
National Library of Australia
CANBERRA ACT 2600
Phone (02) 6262 1241
Fax (02) 6273 1180
----- End of forwarded message from Bryony De La Motte -----
--
Chris Rusbridge
Programme Director, Electronic Libraries Programme
The Library, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK
Phone 01203 524979 Fax 01203 524981
Email [log in to unmask]
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