What is a collection in digital libraries Changing

What is a ‘collection’ in digital libraries? Changing concepts, objects & economics © Tefko Saracevic Rutgers University tefko@scils. rutgers. edu © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University ©

… answer not simple Library collections in the digital age are changing to new forms AND functions 7 part is evolution yfrom old to new 7 part is revolution yvery, very new Effects on libraries are profound and large © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 2

Foreword: Where did it all come from? z Emergence of the digital information systems yonline bibliographic & numeric databases for searching yonline catalog followed by yelectronic reference databases yfull-text digital articles and journals and digital collections y. AND: new forms of scholarly communication, e- publications, & e-archives in many fields z All on networks, and most distributed (stored) all over © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 3

Forces shaping new collection concepts 7 Changing nature of objects for digital & hybrid libraries 7 New digital technical & networked environment 7 Evolving economic models away from ownership 7 Many possibilities for linkages 7 Real sharing possibilities 7 Revolution in access means 7 Changes in users’ information seeking, needs, & publishing © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 4

Traditional concept of a ‘collection’ z From library point of view 7 sum total of library materials that make a holding of a particular library yorganized for use z Major characteristics: 7 objects: (documents) tangible, have a physical presence & location 7 economics: ownership of physical object, but not content 7 location: brick & mortar 7 access: tangible, physical, direct © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 5

Broadening of the traditional concept z Collection 7 a set of information resources selected, accumulated & developed for use by a user community or communities z Major characteristics: 7 objects: tangible & intangible, have a physical presence, but also other media 7 economics: ownership, but also of access, sharing & cooperation 7 location: mostly in-house 7 access: direct, but also remote © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 6

Digital collection - still broader concept z A set of digital & multimedia information resources yselected and/or created following defined criteria & policies yfor a defined community of users but not necessarily accumulated yowned, licensed, or freely accessed ywith possibility of sharing - consortia ydistributed as to location yadapted for networked environment yincluded access & search tools yparts with specified access rights yincluded portals to other collections z Still. Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers yet settled © evolving, not University 7

Major characteristics: DL objects z A variety of intangible objects 7 From outside: e-publications, e-journals, e-books, multimedia 7 From inside: objects, collections, databases created within library 1. tangible objects selected from traditional collections & then digitized & organized 2. objects borne digital, new resources 7 Gateways, portals, directories ylinks selected, organized, evaluated, yvertical portals (vortals) in specialized areas, subjects, topics ydigital bridges to distributed resources © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 8

Characteristics: DL economics z Economics of ownership vs. economics of access 7 ownership declining a lot ycounting what owned not relevant 7 replaced by access y licensing to e-publications ytime dependent; many variations 7 sharing costs & access through consortia & similar arrangements 7 charging distributed, subsidized z Also entering into economics of e-publishing digitizing Rutgers © Tefko Saracevic, University 9

Characteristics: DL location z Could be on in-house network z More often, distributed to large number of locations 7 collection becomes collections 7 e-publishers providing ‘shelf space’ to licensed collections 7 little or no control over distributed resources z Persistence: a BIG issue z Dependent on the Internet & networked arrangements © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 10

Characteristics: DL access z Access arrangements are an integral part of collection 7 information retrieval for searching ysearch engines often provided with licensed collections 7 navigation, browsing arrangements 7 extended functionality z Different levels of access 7 subject to policy & license 7 partial universally open 7 full dependent on belonging to a defined community z Users usually self-directed © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 11

Approaches to collection decisions z Collection development 7 acquisitions, selection, and collection building 7 based on criteria & user needs z Collection management 7 collection development plus a broader range of policy, planning, analysis, and cooperative activities 7 with digital collections plus close involvement of access © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 12

Collection management z Number of areas & activities 7 theory and practice of collection policy development 7 selection, acquisition, licenses 7 materials budget allocation, 7 collection analysis, 7 collection use and user studies, 7 staff training & organization 7 preservation, persistence 7 cooperative collection development; sharing resources © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers 7 management of collection space: from physical to University 13 virtual

Selection criteria for electronic resources z Many traditional criteria remain but with new interpretations z A number of new criteria have emerged specific to digital nature of resources & access ymany can be found on the Web z Judicial & trusted selection: 7 a key value-added contribution by library k 7 trust extends to digital collections 7 makes all the difference between a library & other collections © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 14

Specific selection criteria zwhat & why? - documents, objects 7 content? purpose? scope? viewpoint? zby whom? - creators, authors, institutions 7 identity? authority? credibility? reputation? qualification? refereeing? zwhere? - affiliation, connections 7 identity? overt? covert? authority? credibility? reputation? © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 15

criteria. . . zfor whom? - orientation 7 intended audience? needs satisfied? fit with user community? zwhen? - timeliness 7 currency? up-to-date? revisions? persistence estimate? zhow? - treatment, coverage 7 accuracy? credibility? objectivity? style? clarity? organization? usability? © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 16

criteria. . . zin what way? - presentation 7 format? layout? interface? search capabilities? access? zhow much? - economics 7 effort? price? cost-benefits? license? sharing? zin comparison to? - competition 7 other similar resources? © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 17

Web sites & cognitive authority z Assigning credibility to Web information a BIG problem 7 sometimes even attribution difficult yidentity? reputation? qualifications? z Need to carefully asses: 7 document, author, institution & affiliation on criteria of: authority; accuracy; currency; objectivity; coverage z Libraries provide an important service in criteria development. Rutgersassessments of Web sites & © Tefko Saracevic, University 18

Facing: Realities within z Assortment of forces in play 7 economic constraints y“libraries are struggling to maintain two libraries: a physical library & a digital library, with resources that are inadequate for both. ” 7 difficulties in finding, training personnel with new competencies 7 balancing the demands of print and digital materials 7 difficulty in assessment of many digital resources 7 difficulty in assuring persistence yfor many here today, gone tomorrow © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 19

Facing: Realities without z Dramatic changes in scholarly publishing & communication ytechnical advances in digitization are truly revolutionizing the way scholarly information is published, organized, maintained, distributed, & accessed - new world emerging z Increased competition yin provision of various library-like services by non-library institutions & commercial organizations z Ever changing technology 7 hardware, software, networks 7 getting & keeping competencies © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 20

Consortia z Library cooperatives emerging as answer to digital collection problems 7 economics of scale kick in 7 power in negotiation for licenses 7 enable sharing of collections 7 regulate access to their communities z Libraries forced to working together by economic realities & technological possibilities © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 21

Issues for digital collections z Traditions long tested in collection development & management: 7 What standards, values & approaches to keep? Modify? 7 What new standards to develop? z Location of digital collections: 7 Where? does it matter? z Boundaries: where are they? y. Forward links - collection? directory? y. Networks: a gigantic collection? • then, is a particular ‘collection’ meaningful or not to users? © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 22

Issues. . . z Creation: 7 How and where to become creator of digital collections? y. Lines between libraries & publishers blurring z Access: 7 How to integrate with collection? 7 How to provide, safeguard, & protect access? z Economics: 7 Where and how to adjust? 7 Trade-off? Sharing? Licensing? © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 23

Conclusions z The concept of library ‘collection’ has changed dramatically & will change even more 7 includes many problems - should be viewed as opportunities for libraries to innovate & lead z How radically will collection management change in the next five or ten years? z How is it changing on a day-to-day basis right now? © Tefko Saracevic, Rutgers University 24