EThOSnet Christmas Newsletter, December 2007

The EThOSnet project continues to make good progress towards the launch
of the Electronic Theses Online Service (EThOS) in 2008.

 
Updated EThOS website:

The updated EThOS website will go-live at the start of January 2008.

It will include:

- Updated information on the EThOSnet project;

- A section on resources that can be used by HEIs;

- Current news on the project and developments;

- Outlines of the project partners and their roles on the
project; and

- A link to information on the JISC funded UK Theses
Digitisation Project being led by the British Library

So ensure you check it out!

 
Enhanced EThOS Toolkit:

The enhanced toolkit will be launched at the end of February 2008.

This will build on the current toolkit and provide useful information
on:

- Exemplars for institutional workflows, model regulations,
repository statements and embargo procedures, as well as examples of
good practice;

- Advocacy material from partners and early adopters;

- Step by step workflows for taking part in the EThOS services;

- Checklists for participants

- Information on the costing/charging model from the British
Library;

- Technical expertise on standards, preservation, formatting
etc;

- Information on the legal updates, service level agreements
and licensing;

- Training postgraduates on presenting their thesis; and

- FAQs that have been fed back from users to the Project Team

 
All in all, there will be a lot of exciting information in the enhanced
toolkit to help guide you and your institution in adopting e-theses.

 
Unbound or not unbound? - That is the option

In the last newsletter we asked some of you if your institution would be
interested in sending in unbound copies or duplicate theses to be
disbound, digitised and then destroyed. The responses showed that an
overwhelming majority (c90%) preferred Route A where the paper thesis is
preserved and the original thesis returned intact to your Institution.
The option ensures that the scanned copy on the EThOS server will be
preserved under the British Library's digital object management
programme.

 
Costs of Digitisation

The British Library is currently working out the precise cost per thesis
based on detailed workflows. We know that it is very important to get
this information out to the HE community as this will determine
sponsors' digitisation quotas, and we will be endeavouring to do so
early in the New Year. The costs of digitisation will be very
competitive and will save institutions a great deal of time and effort
in the future, compared with the current methods of supply.

 
UK Theses Digitisation Project Update

The UK Thesis Digitisation Project which aims to digitise at least 5000
of the most requested UK theses to 'seed' the EThOS service with
valuable content from Day 1 is progressing rapidly. The purpose of the
project is to reduce the workload on the EThOS service as it is
anticipated there will be heavy demand for digitisation services in the
early days of the system going live. By digitising the 'most popular'
theses the workload on the service will be reduced ensuring better
throughput and happy users.

The project has been funded by JISC as part of its Digitisation
Programme, and as such chosen theses will not be subject to costs
associated with the EThOS business model. This means that the only costs
incurred by your institution will be transport costs to and from the
British Library - all digitisation costs are covered by the project.
Digitised theses will be free to download from the EThOS service once it
goes live and your institution's theses will be available for loading to
your own Institutional Repository should you have one.

Emails have recently been sent out to UK HE Library Directors of
institutions affected asking whether they would like to be involved in
the project. If your institution has received such an email and you have
not returned a response yet, please do so as soon as possible. We are
aware that a small number of the emails have not yet got through and we
are investigating the correct addresses.
Thanks to the generosity of JISC, this deal really IS as good as it
sounds - your theses will be digitised for very little direct cost!

 
Outline timetable for participants

November/December 2007: HEIs holding theses popularly requested from the
British Thesis Service invited to take part in the UK theses
digitisation project

January to June 2008: Theses for the JISC UK Theses Digitisation
Project requested by BL, from HEIs

Mid 2008: Born-digital theses harvested from institutional
repositories

Mid 2008: Secondary partners and early adopters test digitisation
workflow

April to July 2008: Early adopter sponsor payments, or 3-year
advance payments may be made if desired

August 2008: Full EThOS service goes live, year 1 sponsor fees due

December 2008 to March 2009: Sponsors' digitisation quotas monitored and
HEIs advised accordingly (capacity for additional digitisation work if
demand is within quota, or need to make arrangements if demand exceeds
quota)

 
From everyone on the EThOSnet Project Team we wish you a very Merry
Christmas and a happy and prosperous New Year!


Kevin O'Leary
EThOSnet Project Manager
Administration, Central Library,
Imperial College London
South Kensington Campus
London, SW7 2AZ
Tel: 020 7594 2071
P Think before you print.