Electronic Resource Management Systems (ERMS) Review

This column provides a status update of electronic resource management systems (ERMS) in addition to librarian comments concerning benefits, challenges and wish lists for ERM tools. Nine company/organization profiles are provided based on survey responses: the CUFTS ERM (an open source ERMS developed by Simon Frasier University), EBSCO’s ERM Essentials?, Ex Libris’ Verde, Colorado Alliance’s Gold Rush, HARRASSOWITZ’s HERMIS, Innovative ERM, Serials Solutions 360 Resource Manager, SwetsWise eSource Manager and TDNet Open ERAM. Each profile describes availability, development, use of standards, compatibility, functionality and distinguishing features.     

Little Magazine Interview Index 2006

Abstract

Portland State University collection development librarian Jill Emery talks with members of the Orbis Cascade Alliance demand driven acquisitions implementation team, EBL, and YBP Library Services about their participation in a pilot project to acquire e-books that are accessible to and jointly owned by the thirty-seven member libraries of the Orbis Cascade Alliance.     

When ERM Met Alma: The Intricacies of Content Management in a Shared Consortia Landscape

ABSTRACT

In 2013, after nearly two decades of operating in a distributed legacy Integrated Library System (ILS) environment on local servers, the Orbis Cascade Alliance, a consortium of public and private academic libraries in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, began a two-year-long process to migrate its 37 members to a shared implementation of Ex Libris's cloud-based Alma library management system (LMS) and Primo discovery interface. Although much has been written on electronic resource management (ERM) functionality at an institution level, little has been written on serials and ERM functionality and workflows within a shared consortial environment. This article discusses the challenges and opportunities of implementing a consortial-based LMS, with particular emphasis on serials and ERM functionality. Key migration issues related to serials control, acquisitions, licensing, administration, cataloging, statistics, and interoperability are examined at the institutional and large-scale networked levels. Benefits and limitations of using a shared consortial cloud-based LMS are explored, and the overall capabilities of the Alma LMS for electronic resource management are reviewed.     

The New AskTech: Implementing a Ticketing System Platform for Technical Services Resource Troubleshooting

Abstract

Duke University Libraries’ Technical Services department recently completed a project to transition AskTech, its resource troubleshooting support service, from working over email to working within a ticketing system platform. The team responsible for this transition examined the flaws in the existing system and searched among alternative systems before ultimately deciding on the Spiceworks platform. Over the course of several months, the team successfully set up the system, tested it, trained Technical Services staff in its use, and moved the service to the system. Technical Services is currently using this system for over 150 tickets per month.     

Serials Control for the Italian Union Catalog of Serials

Abstract

European and Italian libraries are strongly involved in efforts to facilitate access to European information resources. The Italian union catalogue of serials has evolved from a traditional catalog to a sophisticated resource that provides access to serials services. Serials control is the most recent service of the union catalog with features for end users and professional staff. The software is BASIS Techlib by ID Technology (Italy), affinity partner of Open Text (USA). The ability to customize features presents a very satisfactory, easy-to-use product that might be considered interesting for union catalogs in other countries. Serials Review 2003; 29:169–178.     

An Interview with Three Members of the Kate Sharpley Library

Abstract

Jessamyn West interviews three members of the Kate Sharpley Library, a library, reference service, and publishing association that provide access to information about anarchism and anarchist history. The library was founded in South London in 1979 and is now a distributed project, including locations in California and South London and working members in Ireland.     

Context-Sensitive Linking

Abstract

Linking services that provide seamless access to a library's e-journal collections are becoming increasingly prominent. This article outlines some of the hurdles to seamless linking and discusses the technologies that make linking services possible. These include the Digital Object Identifier, the CrossRef initiative, the development of emerging standards like the OpenURL, resolution servers, and an examination of how these are incorporated into a linking service. The authors interviewed representatives from four companies providing linking services—Ex Libris, Sirsi, Endeavor, and Openly Informatics—and describes features of their systems. Serials Review 2002; 28:267–282.     

Working Together to Improve Accessibility: Consortial E-Resource Accessibility and Advocacy

Abstract

In 2015, the Big Ten Academic Alliance (BTAA) Libraries formed the BTAA Library E-Resource Accessibility Group. This group, which consists of members from each Big Ten library and the BTAA Library Initiatives staff, was charged with creating boilerplate accessibility license language for vendor contracts, as well as collectively funding high level accessibility testing of e-resources and posting these publicly for all libraries and users. Since the creation of the group, about 50 databases have been tested and accessibility license language has been created that can be used and adapted by anyone. In 2019, the group welcomed another consortia, the Association of Southeastern Research Libraries (ASERL), to be partners in this work, renaming themselves the Library Accessibility Alliance. This paper examines the mission, accomplishments, and new partnership in more depth while also discussing the need for focused efforts to help ensure accessible e-resources.     

Using a Standard License for Individual Electronic Journal Purchases

Abstract

This article describes a pilot project in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Libraries in which a standard library license (based directly on the CLIR/NERL/NELINET license) was sent to publishers of individual electronic journals as the initial step in arranging for e-journal access, rather than working first with the publisher's own license. Serials Review 2003; 29:302–304.     

British Publications of Note on Serials

Abstract

Three years ago, the Gold and Green Roads to Open Access were viewed as complementary strategies, with repositories having the potential of gradually behaving more like journals, and vice versa. Since then, repositories and journals have been progressing on parallel tracks. Re-examining the situation, the reasoning suggested in 2004 appears still valid. Simultaneously, a knowledge economy has made of science a strategic resource. The developing world is essentially invited to contribute to world science with little or no regard to the development of an autonomous scientific capacity. Open Access, in this context, takes a new meaning with one objective to help development of local and autonomous scientific capacity. However, to do so, mixing and matching repositories with journals is needed. Brazil exemplifies this type of development and shows how the Green and Gold roads can mix and match.     

Women's & Gender Studies Journal Database

Abstract

The Women's & Gender Studies Journal Database (WGSJD) at Rutgers University is a user-oriented, discipline-based database that provides quick access to journal titles available online. It is also a union list of journal titles, print and online, in the area of women's and gender studies at Rutgers University Libraries. The author describes this database and its value-added service in the context of Rutgers University Libraries' information system. Discussion also includes its advantages and disadvantages, the changing roles and areas of responsibilities for subject selectors, and how the database fits into future developments of the library's information system. Serials Review 2002; 28:261–266.     

An Interview with Ariel Gore and Bee Lavender of Hip Mama

Abstract

Every small, unassuming zine has the potential to be big. Case in point: Hip Mama, a zine that began in the early '90s as Ariel Gore's senior project using a $1,000 student loan and blossomed into a nationally acclaimed alternative parenting resource. Together with Bee Lavender, Gore continues to publish the journal much as she did with that first issue. But today new readers and new technologies are pushing the zine onto the Web and into larger communities. Read all about how a little zine became a giant in this interview with Ariel Gore and Bee Lavender of Hip Mama. Serials Review 2002; 28:159–162.     

Building a Collection of Canadian Newspapers

Abstract

This article discusses the functionality of the Dynix Serials Module. Core functions such as searching, check-in, claiming, and binding are described. Most serials work can be accomplished within this single module by selecting various options from several menu sets. The procedures described are based on Release 181 of the system. Serials Review 2002; 28:45–48.     

1985 ALA Midwinter Reports

Abstract

As scholars have become more reliant upon electronic scholarly journals, the long-term preservation of these resources has become a growing and increasingly urgent need. In 2002, JSTOR launched a project which has now become Portico, a new, not-for-profit electronic archiving service established to address the scholarly community's critical need for a reliable means to preserve scholarly e-journals. Portico is focused on preserving the intellectual content of e-journals through source file normalization and format migration. To date, seven publishers have agreed to deposit more than 3,000 journals in the archive, which will be sustained by contributions from publishers and libraries.     

A comparison of uniformity tests

Problems of goodness-of-fit to a given distribution can usually be reduced to test uniformity. The uniform distribution appears due to natural random events or due to the application of methods for transforming samples from any other distribution to the samples with values uniformly distributed in the interval (0, 1). Thus, one can solve the problem of testing if a sample comes from a given distribution by testing whether its transformed sample is distributed according to the uniform distribution. For this reason, the methods of testing for goodness-of-fit to a uniform distribution have been widely investigated. In this paper, a comparative power analysis of a selected set of statistics is performed in order to give suggestions on which one to use for testing uniformity against the families of alternatives proposed by Stephens [Stephens, M.A., 1974, EDF statistics for goodness of fit and some comparisons. Journal of the American Statistical Association, 69, 730–737.]. Definition and some relevant features of the considered test statistics are given in section 1. Implemented numerical processes to calculate percentage points of every considered statistic are described in section 2. Finally, a Monte Carlo simulation experiment has been carried out to fulfill the mentioned target of this paper.     

Serials for Distance Education Research Projects

Abstract

Public service librarians, eager to comply with Association of College and Research Libraries guidelines, face challenges in the rush to support distance education programs in higher education. Distance education students doing serials research encounter significant problems. In this column the author identifies and discusses issues related to the instruction, reference, and access needs of such students. Serials Review 2002; 28:206–212.     

Electronic Journal Forum: CONSER Summit on Serials in the Digital Environment

Abstract

The CONSER Summit on Serials in the Digital Environment was held March 18–19, 2004. Attendees represented all library service areas, commercial information services, and standards development. The program included panel discussions and facilitated breakout sessions that provided specific recommendations for shaping CONSER and the Program for Cooperative Cataloging efforts in providing metadata for electronic resources.