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Dorette SnymanCollection Developer: E-Resources
Unisa Library
The battle to build an e-book collection: advice from the
trenches
GAELIC Training Camp, 16 November 2010
Discussion of the Unisa Library experience in:
• Finding ebooks• Purchasing models• Content models• Selection criteria• Making e-books available • Advice to offer to other libraries
Battle is an orgy of disorder
George S Patton, American general
The battle to find e-books• No single comprehensive source available• Combination of sources needs to be used• Book supplier & aggregator databases
• Coutts, Dawson, Blackwell, NetLibrary, Ebrary, MyILibrary• WorldCat, Google Books• Publishers web sites• Publishers promotional material, visits & conferences• SANLIC offers• Requests from clients• Serendipity, or the chance encounter• Type of resource wanted will determine where we’ll look • Selection is an effort!
What’s difficult to find?
• Textbooks• Older titles
– Excluding big publishers– Free titles may fill the gap– Google Editions
• Small and niche publishers• South African publishers• Different content models offered
Content models• Publisher driven content
– Compile collections to suit their marketing plan– Bulk selling of content = “big deal”
• Library driven content– Pick your own titles – time consuming– Individual titles on request– Often pre-requirement eg minimum value
• Patron driven content– Purchase based on patron use
• Dawson• MyILibrary
Purchasing models
• Individual titles• Subject collections – determined by publisher• Packages – by copyright year • “cherry pick” – or create your own collection• “the whole tutti” - or complete collections• Backfiles – historical collections• Unsuitable models:
– E-mailing the book in pdf or other format– Downloading to individual workstation– Individual password per person– Single user per title in publisher packages
No battle plan survives contact with the enemy
Colin Powell, US General
Selection (1)• Budget
– Separate budget for collections & “bulk buying”– Allocation within subject budget for individual titles– Vary between colleges and subjects– Digital assets and digital non-capitalised resources
• Selection decision:– Collection development policy– Criteria for selection– Preference to access in perpetuity– Title lists are scrutinized and circulated for approval
Selection (2)
• Content with opposing forces– Publisher vs aggregator platform– Collection vs individual title– Purchase vs subscription / lease– Front list vs available titles– E-only vs print + e– Single vs multiple user access– Unlimited vs restricted use– Copyright year vs publication year
• Full title list of available titles pre-requirement to order• No front lists may be ordered• Precise description of selected package or collection
Licence and technical issues
• Licence agreement / purchase agreement– First order on platform time-consuming– Due diligence (risk analysis) – Description of the collection in addendum to licence– Clauses required:
• Authorized users with remote access• Post-cancellation or post-termination availability• Educational use• ILL?
• Technical considerations– Authentication methods: IP vs passwords– Format of content – pdf, html– Persistent URL’s for linking
Procurement
• Publishers order record or individual title orders• Direct or via agent• Record of no. of volumes and title list• Processing licence agreement & signatures• Communicate with publisher re discounts • Updated addendums for existing agreements• Tracking payment through Finance dept. • Receive notification of access• Communication to collection development & cataloguing
Cataloguing• 2-record approach• Source of MARC records – OCLC vs publishers vs self• Completeness of MARC record• Correct 856 field and item record• Fields must be correct to be retrievable in discovery tool • Problems with OCLC Collection Sets:
• 856 (URL) not always correct – persistent URL’s• Collections incomplete, do not match selection title list• Errors in records
• Publishers MARC records• Varying quality and completeness, UKMARC records• URL usually correct• Collections incomplete
• Keeping up with additions and deletions
Post- notification of access
• E-resource collection developer:– Publisher or platform on A- Z list– Completion of ERM record– Usage statistics– Initial announcement to users via newsletter
• Subject Collection Developers– Ordered collections available– Incorporate into marketing efforts
• Personal librarians, Information Desk– Communicate to users – on-campus and remote
Finding our e-books
• Searchable in OASIS library catalogue– E-books scoping in catalogue– Or searches limited to e-books
• Linking in prescribed and recommended reading lists• Listed on A-Z database web page• Listed as separate list in monthly New Books list• Will be retrievable in discovery tool (Encore)
Who is involved?• Collection development
– Subject collection developers– E-resource librarian
• Procurement– Serials – if subscription– Books – if a purchase
• Cataloguing– All catalogers involved
• Personal librarians– Marketing and raising awareness
• Information Desk, Request Services• Marketing• Training
Using our Millennium modules
Acquisitions• Create bib record for publisher• Attach orders to publishers
record – collection developers• Dedicated fund code for e-
books – per college• Number of volumes• Fixed fields:
– Location: E-books– Asset type: electronic– Format : electronic
ERM • Create erm record for publisher• Attach order records (related o)• Use Financial tab to total
payments – usage stats• Source of MARC record -
catalogers• Licence record - track progress
- Procurement• Contact record for publishers
contact persons – used by all• Supporting docs:
– Title lists– Collections purchased– Conditions, discounts, etc.
All collection orders attached to one publishers record
Individual order with full information
ERM – publishers record:Under Financial tab, record of payments per year with total
Full ERM record
Examples of recent requests
• Knowledge Resources: HR Survey 2009– Ebook in pdf, downloaded by e-mail link, valid for 2 hours, single
workstation• Harvard Business Press
– To lecturers only, after registration of course, individual student per title, no institutional purchase
• Clinical Nutrition, 8th ed., Cengage Gale iChapters– Lecturers and students online copy, payment per credit card,
individual use only• Introduction to Textiles: Textiles and apparel education
and training at your finger tips. – Series of 8 courses, prices per student per module
Issues we need to resolve• Policies and criteria• Boundary clarification between staff – internally and
inter-divisional• Communication channels• Publishers title lists. Slippages!• Turnaround time for loading MARC records • Mismatched title lists and MARC collection sets• Additions and deletions of titles – who?• Source of MARC records – other services?• ERM to upload MARC records• Prescribed titles – e-version available?• Investigate e-readers and mobile interfaces
What advice?
• Communicate!• Get your work flow sorted• Complete order records • Contacts with publisher• Get the licence for the platform done first• Insist on the correct title lists• Document procedures• Constantly work on the mind change of staff into the e-
world
Valuable book
Anson, Catherine & Connell, Ruth R. 2009. E-Book Collections. SPEC kit no. 313.
New York: Association of Research Libraries, 2009. http://www.arl.org/resources/pubs/spec/
You have to fight a battle more than once to win it
Margaret Thatcher, UK Premier
