Digital Library Services and the Changing Environment

Digital Library Services and the Changing Environment

John MacColl, European DirectorOCLC Programs and Research

Oxford University Library29 August 2008

ThemesThemes

• Concentration - network-level• Diffusion - high-use web environments• Local - Group - Global• Local infrastructure: 4 pillars and three environments

• Web-scale digitisation• Digitisation of unique assets• Global - Local switching

CreditsCredits

• Lorcan Dempsey

• Roy Tennant

Concentrate, and diffuseConcentrate, and diffuse

ConcentrationA web-scale presenceMobilise data

DiffusionDisclosure of links, data and services

Concentration: network levelConcentration: network level

Diffusion: workflowDiffusion: workflow

Global: catalogue records at the network levelGlobal: catalogue records at the network level

Global Local: libraries in the flowGlobal Local: libraries in the flow

Facebook

LibraryThing

Not just GoogleNot just Google

WorldCat as a ‘switch’WorldCat as a ‘switch’

Userenvironment

Library &NetworkResource

Managementenvironment

End User Access

Management

Digitised/Digital

Bought/Physical

Electronic/Licensed

Specialcolls/

Archives

Management

4 pillars and 3 environments4 pillars and 3 environments

Userenvironment

Library &NetworkResource

Managementenvironment

Find It

Management

Digitised/Digital

Bought/Physical

Electronic/Licensed

Specialcolls/

Archives

Manage It

Get It

Metadata

Content

With verbsWith verbs

Userenvironment

Library &NetworkResource

Managementenvironment

End User Access

Management

Digitised/Digital

Bought/Physical

Electronic/Licensed

Specialcolls/

Archives

Manage It

Get It

Metadata

Content

ILL/CIRC LINK RESOLVER SPECIAL

SPECIALILS ERM REPOSITORY

OPAC MetaSearch WebsiteA-Z NextGen

MARC DC EADA&I XXX

Find It

With toolsWith tools

network level – library website - workflow

Difficult to ‘mobilize’

library resource into

workflows

A thin layer around complex legacy systems

Concentration

Diffusion

Low gravitational pull?Little social dynamic

Limited usage data

Stuck in the middle …Stuck in the middle …

‘Monolithic fragmentation’‘Monolithic fragmentation’

• Move to ‘concentrate’ at local level • Single search environments

• Move to ‘diffuse’ at local level• RSS, APIs, ….

• But …• Have to manage presence at the local, group and global level

GroupGroup

Data?• Knowledge base• Aggregate usage data

• Resolver data• Download data• Database usage data• Circulation• …

• Shared catalogue (eg OhioLink)

• Syndicate to global (eg Google Scholar and union catalogues)

• Switch to local for fulfilment

Applications?• Repository? (eg HAL)• Search

• Institutional search (Primo, WC Local, etc)

• Metasearch• Catalogue

• LMS?• Network effects: e.g.

circulation and recommendation

• Shared selection• CIRC <> resource sharing

GroupGroup

The collective collection?

• Competition for space and ongoing cost a concern

• Legacy print collections (cf UKRR) • Storage• Preservation• Access

• Physical delivery architecture

The collective collection?

• Managing a licensed collection• Ebooks• Journals• Preservation• Access models

Where data aggregation is beneficialWhere data aggregation is beneficial

• More effective exposure in a web-scale site (metadata)

• To attract users and social engagement

• Avoid redundant data management (supplier details, supplier suggestions)

• Collective knowledge - tasks less complicated or more accurate (serial prediction)

• New knowledge via deduction or mining (eg holdings count indicating rareness and popularity, supplier performance, enriched name metadata)

• Most effective management of links and imported enriched data

• Comparison of collections; facilitating the management of the collective collection

GlobalGlobal

• Discovery• Registry (of institutions, services, collections)• Electronic delivery architecture

LocalLocal

• Interpretation of specific research and learning needs of institution

• Intersection of research/learning and information management

• Reputation management• Disclosure to group and global levels• Funding

Mass digitisation of special collectionsMass digitisation of special collections

UrgencyUrgency

““There’s an illusion being created that There’s an illusion being created that all the world’s knowledge is on the all the world’s knowledge is on the web, but we haven’t begun to glimpse web, but we haven’t begun to glimpse what is out there in local archives and what is out there in local archives and libraries. libraries. Material that is not Material that is not digitized risks being neglected as it digitized risks being neglected as it would not have been in the past, would not have been in the past, virtually lost to the great majority of virtually lost to the great majority of potential userspotential users.”.” - Ed Ayers - Ed Ayers

FulfilmentFulfilment

Which do you prefer?Which do you prefer?

Stop cherry-picking

Breaking it downBreaking it down

1.1. Do Do whatever it takes whatever it takes to get to get your material onlineyour material online

2.2. Expose it Expose it where people where people congregatecongregate

How do we achieve web-scale?How do we achieve web-scale?

Not the way we’ve been doing it!

Web Scale

Web Scale

Access vs preservation — access wins!Access vs preservation — access wins!

Access wins!Access wins!

• No one has been throwing away No one has been throwing away originals…so preservation needs originals…so preservation needs are best served by themare best served by them

• Only by surfacing presently Only by surfacing presently ignored collections can we ignored collections can we justify their preservationjustify their preservation

• Our brave new world shows we Our brave new world shows we cancan go back and do it againgo back and do it again

Selection has already been doneSelection has already been done

• Don’t spend time selecting items to Don’t spend time selecting items to digitizeddigitized

• Capture materials as accessionedCapture materials as accessioned• For important collections, capture it allFor important collections, capture it all• For others, sample and allow user interest For others, sample and allow user interest

to guide your choicesto guide your choices• Capture on demandCapture on demand• Capture ‘signposts’ and devote more Capture ‘signposts’ and devote more

attention when/where warrantedattention when/where warranted

Handle once (then iterate)Handle once (then iterate)

• Handle incoming items Handle incoming items once once for both for both description and digitisationdescription and digitisation

• Compromise on image resolution and Compromise on image resolution and metadata as needed to achieve metadata as needed to achieve throughput requirementsthroughput requirements

• Create a single unified processCreate a single unified process• Let usage guide further effortsLet usage guide further efforts

Programmes not projectsProgrammes not projects

• Forget ‘special projects’ — it’s long past Forget ‘special projects’ — it’s long past time to make this a basic part of our time to make this a basic part of our everyday work!everyday work!

• Digital capture must be embedded in our Digital capture must be embedded in our basic procedures, budgeting, etc.basic procedures, budgeting, etc.

• Figure out a way to fund it yourself and Figure out a way to fund it yourself and you’ll figure out a way to do it cheaperyou’ll figure out a way to do it cheaper

Change in Photoduplication PolicyAs of March 17, 2008, the Ransom Center's policy regarding research copies of items from its collections will change. We will no longer furnish photocopies. For all requests received on or after March 17, our default procedure will be to make digital scans of the originals and furnish PDF files (72 dpi) either by email or on CD-ROM. For patrons who are unable to make use of PDFs, printouts will be available in lieu of digital files.For publication purposes, high-resolution images will still be furnished on the same terms as before.

Harry Ransom Center, UT Austin

Scan on demandScan on demand

Engage your community in descriptionEngage your community in description

• Do not describe everything in Do not describe everything in painstaking detailpainstaking detail

• Start with basic description, then…Start with basic description, then…• ……allow serious researchers to contact allow serious researchers to contact you for more detail, and…you for more detail, and…

• ……engage your user community with engage your user community with adding to the descriptionsadding to the descriptions

January 16th 2008: LC photographs on FlickrJanuary 16th 2008: LC photographs on Flickr

24 hours later24 hours later

Exposure

Impact: exposureImpact: exposure

Flickr: Top 50LC: Top 6000

Contributio

ns

How to lose control

Go with itGo with it

Feeding back into our workFeeding back into our work

89 records updated

Quality vs quantity: quantity wins!Quality vs quantity: quantity wins!

• The perfect has been the enemy of the The perfect has been the enemy of the possiblepossible

• Achieving excellence can have a Achieving excellence can have a substantial costsubstantial cost

• Any access is better than none at allAny access is better than none at all• Instead of measuring Instead of measuring cataloguer/archivist output we should cataloguer/archivist output we should be measuring impact on usersbe measuring impact on users

Discovery happens elsewhereDiscovery happens elsewhere

• People don’t discover our content by People don’t discover our content by coming to our lovingly crafted web coming to our lovingly crafted web sites (can you say ‘Google’?)sites (can you say ‘Google’?)

• We must expose our content to web We must expose our content to web search engines and hubs like Flickrsearch engines and hubs like Flickr

Global Local switchingGlobal Local switching

Then: Users built workflow around libraries

Now: Library must build services around user

workflowDiscovery happens

elsewhere

Disclosure

Benefits of concentrationBenefits of concentration

• Search results ranking• Holdings data• Usage data (eg display, circulation)

• Recommendations of related books• User contributed content can be shared

• User contributed content can be made better

• Attention can be attracted and redirected

Benefit of concentration:ranking based on numberof holding libraries

Benefit of concentration:More data to mine

Benefit of concentration:ability to make user-contributed data better

Benefits of diffusionBenefits of diffusion

• Library holdings syndicated into places where people are found (eg Google)

• Small libraries can play in big spaces (the ‘long tail’)

• The more paths there are, the easier it is for people to reach you

Put things under people’s nosesPut things under people’s noses

Benefit of diffusion:exposed in spaces wherepotential users are found

Put another way...Put another way...

“It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory.”

—W. Edwards Deming

The EndThe EndJohn MacCollmaccollj@oclc.org

RLG ProgramsOCLC Programs & Research