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LIS-PUB-LIBS  September 2007

LIS-PUB-LIBS September 2007

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Subject:

Re: Online resources - KnowUK, OUP etc

From:

"Stead, Michael" <[log in to unmask]>

Reply-To:

Stead, Michael

Date:

Fri, 21 Sep 2007 15:44:30 +0100

Content-Type:

text/plain

Parts/Attachments:

Parts/Attachments

text/plain (186 lines)

I see MLA's role in this as a middleman (or middleperson?): our performance standards are defined by MLA, and our bulk subscription contracts are negotiated by MLA.  Influencing the latter to enable us to meet the former - or at least to provide the data for it relatively easily - strikes me as a good idea.  But I'm young, naïve and optimistic.

I've seen scads of OpenURL resolvers, fancy OPACs and miscellaneous portals doing federated search with varying degrees of success.  The mythical middleware I have in mind would either be a separate entity to the OPAC, or something it doesn't necessarily search by default.  

When I'm in a library looking for a book, I only really care about books in that library: I'm not bothered about books in our other branches, and especially not entries from OED online et al.  If I can't find that book, I might then be prepared to broaden the base of my search a little bit.

For the OPACs in our libraries at least, shouldn't the search function be limited to stuff you can actually get your hands on, with the option of extending that search into the aether and pulling in results from other targets?  It's a different story for off-site OPAC use, at least for me as a user: if I can't actually get my hands on anything immediately, I might as well see results from other branches, other library services, Amazon, Abe, DNB, Wikipedia...

The only question is whether we can convince our users (and non-users) that our local/regional/national federated search platform will offer consistently higher-quality results than Google.  If we can do that, then we'll have the necessary usage figures to show to our overlords.  

Michael (less cranky in the post-lunch/nearly-the-weekend environment)

-----Original Message-----
From: lis-pub-libs: UK Public Libraries [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Oliver Davy
Sent: 21 September 2007 13:32
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [LIS-PUB-LIBS] Online resources - KnowUK, OUP etc

I don't think anyone (hopefully this includes the purse-string holders) can
seriously doubt the value for money obtained from some online subscriptions
if you compare them to some of the more obscure printed reference works.
According to our cost-per-use analysis, every time one of our borrowers
uses Ancestry, it costs us less than thirty pence.
Oliver Davy
Senior ICT Library Assistant

Central Library
Northumberland Square
North Shields
NE30 1QU

( Tel: (0191) 200 6294
+ Courier Code D1
8  Email: [log in to unmask]

Unless otherwise stated, opinions, conclusions and other information
expressed in this message are personal and not those of North Tyneside
Council.


|---------+-------------------------------->
|         |           Steven Heywood       |
|         |           <Steven.Heywood@ROCHD|
|         |           ALE.GOV.UK>          |
|         |           Sent by:             |
|         |           "lis-pub-libs: UK    |
|         |           Public Libraries"    |
|         |           <LIS-PUB-LIBS@JISCMAI|
|         |           L.AC.UK>             |
|         |                                |
|         |                                |
|         |           21/09/2007 13:23     |
|         |           Please respond to    |
|         |           Steven Heywood       |
|         |                                |
|---------+-------------------------------->
  >-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
  |                                                                                                                         |
  |       To:       [log in to unmask]                                                                             |
  |       cc:       (bcc: Oliver Davy/ECS/ntc)                                                                              |
  |       Subject:  Re: Online resources - KnowUK, OUP etc                                                                  |
  >-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|




Not too pedantic at all Michael. It's a major pain in the butt setting up a
range of resources which each require the same thing a different way before
they may (or may not in the case of British Standards. Grr!!!) be made
available to our customers.


There are ways of having automatically mediated access to these resources
which could conceivably be developed into something along the lines you
suggest but as things stand it would require each library authority to
invent the wheel for itself, resources permitting. (The last two words
being the killer bringing us back to Helen's original problem, sigh...).


Steven


Steven Heywood
Systems Manager
Rochdale Library Service
Wheatsheaf Library
Baillie Street
Rochdale OL16 1JZ
Tel: (01706) 924967
[log in to unmask]
http://www.rochdale.gov.uk
http://libraries.rochdale.gov.uk





-----Original Message-----
From: Stead, Michael [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: 21 September 2007 12:41
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: Online resources - KnowUK, OUP etc





The big issue for me is that, as a user, I have to go to each of these
accredited sources individually.  Google goes to zillions of sources at
the same time.


It's just not worth the effort to log into multiple password-controlled
sources.  The Google approach might be a bit hit-and-miss in terms of
quality, but at least it's easy enough to use.  Even with IP-based
access in the library, it's still a pain to go through this process.


I think we'd get more value from a system that provided a single,
customisable frontend to these resources, providing an aggregated search
to cover all of them.  Search once, read results from many sources.


I'd like to see MLA advocating for (and maybe providing?) a much more
joined-up way of using these resources.  I'd also like to see them
imposing standardised reporting requirements on the vendors of these
systems, especially considering the advent of more meaningful
measurement of virtual library visits.


Each resource - the OUP bundle, British Standards, NewsUK etc. -
provides its own statistics and has its own reporting standards.
Wouldn't it be easier to compare usage (and value) if they all reported
in the same way, via the same single access point?  Or am I too
pedantic?


Publicity materials are definitely necessary, but the products need to
meet librarians' *and* users' expectations of quality *and*
functionality.


Michael (who is apparently rather cranky today - sorry!)


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