a practical guide to a user-focused digital library

A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO A USER-FOCUSED DIGITAL LIBRARY QIN ZHU – HP LABSSOPHIA GUEVARA – W.K. KELLOGG FOUNDATION

Important tools, tips, and practices

Internet Librarian 2008A Practical Guide to a User-Focused Digital Library

Agenda

• Understand your library environment, settings and users

• Understand your digital library content• Work with your digital library content• Promote your digital library content• Get insights of digital library content usage• Make adjustments for your collection• Q &A

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Digital Library

Users


What is a digital library?

Digital Library

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“ Digital libraries are a set of

electronic resources and

associated technical capabilities

for creating, searching and using

information.”“ Digital libraries are

constructed, collected and

organized, by (and for) a

community of users, and their

functional capabilities support

the information needs and

uses of that community. ”

Borgman, Christine L. What are digital libraries? Competing visions, Information Processing and Management 35 (1999) 227±243


A building blocks approach: -- users and digital library

Users Digital Library

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Do you know your users?

Users

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information

needs

information

preferences

information

seeking

behavior

information

consumption

capabilities


User - Understand your library environment and settings

• Who is the user?

• What are the goals or your organization/users? What are their preferences and capabilities?

• How can you align your services with these goals in mind?

Users

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Do you know your digital content?

Digital Library

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Digital content

Digital

collection Digital access


Library Environment –Digital library approach

• Library physical and space constraints

• User information needs, more digital resources

• User information seeking behavior, getting information online

Digital Library

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Library Environment –Digital content

• What kind of digital content is available? E-Journals E-Books E-Reference Image collection Digital audios Digital videos Electronic databases

Digital Library

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1. Discovery

2. Trial

3. Selection

4. Acquisition

5. Access

6. Renew or cancel?

Tamar Sadeh, Mark Ellingsen. 2005. Electronic resource management systems: the need and the realization. New Library

World 106, no. 5/6 (May 1): 208-218. http://www.proquest.com/ (accessed April 23, 2008).

Digital Content Life Cycle

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Digital Library

Users


Discovery

• Aware of a new e-resource and begins to collect

information that will help him or her decide if the

resource should warrant further interest.

– bibliographic details,

– packages in which this content may be included

– terms of access (worldwide, site-based, seat-based).

• Questions to consider

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Digital Library


Trial

• Try out the e-resource

• Gathers the valuable feedback and other

information needed to ensure that this product is

of interest to their users, serves a worthwhile

need and performs as expected.


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Digital Library

Users


Content Analysis - Content

• Content level

• Content coverage

• Content subject focus

• Content overlap

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Digital Library


Content Analysis - Tools

• Content provider site

• ERM system – Electronic Resource Management system

• ILS system - Integrated Library System

• Comparison tools – CUFTS, databases, Excel, write your own program

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Digital Library


Content Analysis - Tools

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Digital Library

http://lib-cufts.lib.sfu.ca/CUFTS/compare.cgi





Content Analysis - Content

• You know your collection, you know what you are looking for

• Easy to talk to content provider

Content level - check

Content coverage - check

Content subject focus - check

Content overlap – check

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Digital Library


Selection

• The decision

– Acquire the resource?

– If so, what kind of financial commitment are you

making?

• Remember that when users get used to a resource, it can be

difficult to explain that you are declining access to their

favorite product due to a limited budget

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Digital Library


Acquisition

• Positive client feedback and the identification of

a vendor that provides an efficient option for

filling an information need brings us to the

acquisitions process.


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Digital Library


Licensing 101

• Contract template

– A standard license agreement is available at Yale

University's LibLicense site:

http://www.library.yale.edu/~llicense/modlic.shtml

• Connect with your procurement and legal

departments. Understand what you will and

won’t accept

• Understand your options in access and pricing

• Be flexible

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Digital Library

http://www.library.yale.edu/~llicense/modlic.shtml


Digital Content Licensing

Resources

• Yale University Library – Council on Library &

Information Resources. LIBLICENSE:

http://www.library.yale.edu/~llicense/

• Contract management systems

• Licensing Digital Content: A Practical Guide for

Librarians by Lesley Ellen Harris

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Digital Library

http://www.library.yale.edu/~llicense/


Access

• With the paperwork out of the way and access to

the content ensured, you now have to decide how

you will provide your users with easy access to

the product. You also need to be prepared to

complete routine maintenance as necessary.

Encourage your users to provide feedback.

• Access stage questions

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Digital Library


Digital Content Deployment

• User access and authentication layerDifferent content authentication methods from

content providers IP authentication URL referral Username and password

How the different methods integrate with your existing access and authentication system Institution single sign on method Athens Proxy server

Digital Library

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• Providing information access points Depending the content level, different information

access points can be provided List resource to your library resource A to Z list List resource to your library research guide, path finder List resource to your library subject guide List e-journals to your library journal/e-journal list Integrate the content at the publication level to your library catalog Implement OpenURL reference linking Provide federated search to access content from different sources Provide Alert service Provide RSS feeds

Digital Library

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• Providing searching points for digital content

• Is the content at top level searchable• Is the content at publication level findable• Is the content at fulltext level searchable

Digital Library

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• Content integration Integrate and aggregate content from different

providers Journal A to Z list Library Catalog Federated Search Federated Alerts Integrate content to designated site via RSS feed Creating content resource referencing via OpenURL

Digital Library

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Promoting Digital Content

• Why should you promote?• Increase the value of your library in users’ eyes

• What should you promote – users• Ease of use and accessibility• 24 hour availability of content

• What should you promote – key decision makers• Improved efficiency and efficacy

Digital Library

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• Using various technologiesWeb 1.0Web 2.0Web 3.0…

Digital Library

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Users



• Make the content part of user information searching and using flow

• Let the content work for you, not you work on the content

• Follow your users trends• Go where your users go

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Digital Library

Users


Reviewing usage

• Why is this important?

• The collection of usage statistics– Systems: ERM’s

– SUSHI

• Various methods of statistic collection– Site visits, page visits, time spent on site, downloads,

etc.

– COUNTER

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Digital Library


Reviewing usage

• Study your log files

• Understand your user behavior

• Understand how your users access the content

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Digital Library

Users


Renew or cancel

• With your subscription coming to an end, it is up

to you to determine if the resource will remain in

your electronic collection.


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Digital Library

Users


Enhance the flow

Users Digital Library

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Thank You!

Questions&

Answers

Qin Zhu – HP Labs, [email protected] Guevara – W.K. Kellogg Foundation

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a practical guide to a user-focused digital library

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