Extended-Linking Services: towards a

Quality Web

Eric F. Van de VeldeCalifornia Institute of

Technologyevdv@library.caltech.edu

Oren Beit-ArieEx Libris (USA) Inc

oren@exlibris-usa.com

Extended-Linking Services: SFX

Software: H. Van de

Sompel (British Library)

P. Hochstenbach (U. of Ghent)

O. Beit-Arie (Ex Libris (USA), Inc.)

CIT Implementation: B. Coles J. McDonald

Demonstration

Extended-Linking Services: OpenURL

What is an OpenURL?Why do we need OpenURL?Who works on OpenURL?

1. An Existing Commercial Service

2. Standardization

What is an OpenURL? Transportable Metadata Format

Transportable Between information services

Metadata Initial Focus: bibliographic Down the road: any information society

Format Embedded in HTTP GET or POST request

Why do we need OpenURL? Persistent Links

Embraces DOIs: Provides alternate resolution of DOIs.†

Allows for other persistence mechanisms

For example, OpenURL resolver database may keep track of ownership and location at a coarse-grain (publisher/journal) level.

†Open Linking in the Scholarly Information Environment Using the OpenURL Framework, Herbert Van de Sompel and Oren Beit-Arie, D-Lib Magazine, Vol. 1, Nr. 3, March 2001.

Why do we need OpenURL? Multiple Links per Object

With OpenURL input, resolver may produce a menu of services.

For example: From journal-article citation to:

Full text A&I service Web search engine

From book citation to: Book reviews On-line bookstore

Why do we need OpenURL? Context-Sensitive Links

Resolver may know the user. Resolver may process the OpenURL

information in a manner appropriate to the user’s context.

For example: From journal-article citation to:

Appropriate copy Local document-delivery system

From book citation to: Local holdings (OPAC)

Why do we need OpenURL? Log of User Actions

User jumps from one resource to another.

Resolver may keep track of user actions.

At end of session, resolver may produce a log according to user specifications.

Who works on OpenURL? NISO Committee AX First meeting was June 28th and 29th. Subscribe to the OpenURL listserv at:

http://library.caltech.edu/OpenURL

OpenURL: Major Issues Scholarly Information Society, extensible Structure:

Referent (item, subject, article) Referrer (web-service) Resolver (service component – link server) Requester (user) Service-Type (type of resolution) Referring-Entity (citing article)

By Value and/or By Reference Encoding, Terminology, Versioning

OpenURL: Acceptance

• Fast• Keeps growing• Wide range of information resources:

• A&I databases• OPACs• E-journals• E-print archives (OAi)• Other local data repositories

OpenURL: Acceptance (information and service providers)

• Cambridge Scientific Abstracts

• Proquest

• OCLC FirstSearch

• ArXiv.org

• OVID

• R. R. Bowker ulrichsweb.com

• HW Wilson WilsonWeb

• EBSCO PublishingEBSCOhost

• The Gale Group • Institute of Physics

Publishing AxiomElectronic Journals

• ISIWeb of Science

• Swets BlackwellSwetsNetNavigator

• SilverPlatter ERL

• Ex LibrisALEPH DigitoolMetaLib

http://www.sfxit.com/sources.html

OpenURL: Acceptance (libraries with SFX)

• Ghent University• Los Alamos• Caltech• IUPUI• Washington State

University• University of Nevada, Reno• University of Chicago• CDL• UTS, Sydney• University of Rochester• London Business School• UC Davis• UC Santa Barbara

• Boston College• Brown University• Yale• University of Westminster,

UK• MIT• University of Iowa• Oak Ridge Laboratory• Delft University of

Technology, Holland• New York University• Czech National Library• Teacher’s College, Taipei• …