Hi,
Since you are interesting in experience instead of actual policies, I'll
include myself in this, especially since thie is "Next Generation Catalogs."
My basic assumptions concerning this issue is that the library catalog must
become relevant in the lives of our users, otherwise it will be just another
one of those dusty, old things that people use just because want to see what
the library has and they have no choice. A library catalog should therefore
be for discovery of the materials that a user needs, and not just to access
them (in other words, not just an inventory tool that people consult only
after they find what they want, although keeping inventory is still very
important).
Therefore, if the catalog is to remain relevant to our users, and people are
using electronic materials more and more, then it naturally follows that
electronic resources must be found through the library catalog. If these
materials cannot be found through the library catalog, we essentially force
our users *not* to use the tools we make. And that, in my opinion, is
completely counterproductive and will lead to the eventual elimination of
the catalog. Consequently, it is absolutely imperative that we include
electronic materials in our catalogs.
Once this is accepted, the question turns toward more process-oriented
tasks: how do we do it? With all of the websites out there, with everything
changing like crazy; sites appear like mushrooms and go away, it seems
impossible. And I agree--it is impossible--that is, if we deal with
electronic materials on the web as if they are books on our shelves. They
are fundamentally different, and must be treated differently from beginning
to end. For one thing, just from the sheer numbers of these materials, we
must deal with them in a truly cooperative fashion, from the point of
selection, on through to the point of access.
And that means change, which a lot of people do not like.
My own attempt on this has been to incorporate an "Extend Search" capability
into my catalog in order to be able to search other databases. For example,
if someone finds this book in my catalog,
http://www.galileo.aur.it/cgi-bin/koha/opac-detail.pl?bib=19355, they can
click on the left-hand side "Extend Search" by "Subject." A box pops up with
the subjects used in the record. The user can the select the subject(s) he
or she wants, can then select in the part "Other Electronic Resources" e.g.
Intute and Infomine. If you don't know what these are, you can click on the
names and a short description appears. After you select what you want, you
click Find, and the search from the catalog record is made into Intute and
Infomine, which are both lists of websites selected by librarians. I didn't
select any of those, but I trust the others who do. There is a lot of links
for help scattered throughout this process.
This method can be improved 10,000 times in 10,000 ways, but this is the
only practical way I have thought of to deal with these kinds of materials.
We must trust one another and open our systems to work together.
Therefore, in my catalog, I cannot really set up policies to select
websites, (although I add certain ones as I find them) but rather, I use the
work done by other librarians at other institutions. That's my solution, or
at least the beginning of my solution, anyway.
James Weinheimer j.weinheimer_at_aur.edu
Director of Library and Information Services
The American University of Rome
via Pietro Roselli, 4
00153 Rome, Italy
voice- 011 39 06 58330919 ext. 327
fax-011 39 06 58330992
> -----Original Message-----
> From: Next generation catalogs for libraries
> [mailto:NGC4LIB_at_LISTSERV.ND.EDU] On Behalf Of François Renaville
> Sent: Tuesday, July 29, 2008 7:14 AM
> To: NGC4LIB_at_LISTSERV.ND.EDU
> Subject: Re: [NGC4LIB] Cataloging Web Resources - policies
>
> Hi, Ranti,
>
>
> I would appreciate all kind of experience feedback also. Not
> everyone among my colleagues is convinced by cataloguing a
> selection of interesting web resources. E-journals and
> e-books have been systematically introduced in our catalogue
> so far, but not other e-resources like (free) databases and
> websites. Some of us find it useful, others consider it’s
> time-wasting because next to the OPAC patrons can use the
> library website that links to those e-resources (a point of
> view I don’t completely agree with). Since the debate
> continues, we only have a few of web-based resources in our catalogue.
> Examples:
> * The African studies companion : a guide to information sources
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001529088)
> * The Ben Okri bibliography
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001526758)
> * Bibliographie der deutschen Sprach- und Literaturwissenschaft
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001529144)
> * The Carlyle letters online : a Victorian cultural reference
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001542836)
> * Dissertation abstracts
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001521165)
> * The National Security archive
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001535759)
> * Online encyclopedia of mass violence
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001554938)
> * Oxford English dictionary
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001529198)
> * The Pierre Bayle home page
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001543757)
> * The proceedings of the Old Bailey, London 1674 to 1834
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001554595)
> * Trésor de la langue française informatisé
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001543300)
> * The Wilson Harris bibliography
> (http://source.ulg.ac.be:80/F/?func=find-c&ccl_term=SYS=001526759)
>
> Next to guidelines and policies, I would appreciate reading
> all kinds of convincing arguments FOR or AGAINST cataloguing
> web resources.
>
> Just a few words about our discipline classification. We've
> just started putting a classification for e-resources some
> months ago. Each e-resource should gradually get one or more
> 089 fields which contain a three-character code translated
> into French and English:
> - A04 corresponds to "Histoire" and "History"
> - E02 corresponds to "Droit pénal & procédure pénale" and
> "Criminal law & procedure"
>
> This home made classification (inspired by ISI) is also used
> in ORBi (http://orbi.ulg.ac.be), our new institutional
> repository. The full classification in available on
> http://orbi.ulg.ac.be/community-list
> (should be available in English only in September, sorry).
>
> In the next months, we intend to present all e-journals from
> the catalogue by using the classification to organize a
> discipline browsing. The same for databases (listed in the
> catalogue or not). The aim is to have for the whole
> university only one discipline classification which will be used:
> - in the OPAC for all e-resources
> - on the library website for all e-journals
> - on the library website for all databases
> - in the institutional repository
>
> Regards,
>
>
> François
>
> --
> François Renaville
>
> Réseau des Bibliothèques de l'Université de Liège Direction
> générale Grande traverse 12 (bât. B37) B - 4000 Liège (Sart
> Tilman) t +32-4-3669576 f +32-4-3669922 m
> francois.renaville_at_ulg.ac.be
> --
>
>
>
>
> Le Lun 28 juillet 2008 18:31, Karen Tschanz a écrit :
> > Hi, Ranti:
> >
> > We have nothing to share at this time, unfortunately, but
> would love a
> > summary of replies! Thanks for your help. kst
> >
> > Karen S. Tschanz, M.L.S., M.B.A., M.S.O.D.
> > Asst. Prof./Chair, Content Management
> > Robert B. Greenblatt, M.D., Library, AB-241 Medical College
> of Georgia
> > 1451 Laney-Walker Boulevard
> > Augusta, GA 30912
> > Phone: (706) 721-9912
> > Fax: (706) 721-6006
> > E-mail: ktschanz_at_mail.mcg.edu
> >
> >>>> Ranti Junus <ranti.junus_at_GMAIL.COM> 07/28/2008 12:18 PM >>>
> > [Sent to NGC4LIB and Web4Lib. Apologies for duplication.]
> >
> > Hello All,
> >
> > Michigan State University Libraries intends to place more links to
> > Web-based content of all kinds in our OPAC (besides the ones we
> > officially subscribe to.) In order to guide the
> implementation of this
> > decision, we need to create policies and consensus on how
> to proceed.
> >
> > Does your library have any policies regarding the selection and
> > cataloging of web resources (web sites, pdf reports, etc.) that you
> > would be willing to share? I'd be more than happy to
> compile the list
> > of responses for you, if you would like to have it as well.
> >
> > Thank you in advance.
> >
> >
> > ranti.
> >
> > --
> > Ranti Junus, Systems Librarian/Electronic Resources Web
> Services 100
> > Main Library W441 Michigan State University East Lansing,
> MI 48824,
> > USA
> >
Received on Tue Jul 29 2008 - 07:35:20 EDT