Putting All The Pieces Together: Developing a Cyberinfrastructure at the Georgia State University Library Tim Daniels, Learning Commons Coordinator Doug Goans, Web Development Librarian Georgia State University Library LITA National Conference 2006, Nashville TN Like many libraries over the last several years we have been developing or purchasing technologies such as a Content Management System, an Open URL Link Resolver, an Ask a Librarian System, and a Blogging System that not only support internal functions and communications but also deliver current information and access to resources to our user’s desktops. As we begin to explore developments for our next generation of services we realized that the most effective way to deploy these web based services was to integrate our technology and staff into a cross-departmental cyberinfrastructure and collection of working groups that allows us to make rapid changes and develop new tools in a more efficient manner. The suite of technologies comprising our infrastructure is scheduled to include a consortial metasearch product, a re-design of our Content Management System, and development of online applications and access points that support and enhance the research and learning activities of students and faculty. Our main driving factor is the need to meet our users where they are and to allow them to access, acquire, customize, and even re-mix library resources, content, and services for coursework, wired classrooms, and online courses. We will discuss our planning process, how we identified the components of the infrastructure, and how our newly developed content management system allows us to track many of the elements of our cyberinfrastructure.

Cyberinfrastructure? What does it mean to you or to libraries and librarians in general? Definitions: Council of Learned Societies National Science Foundation “Collaboration and technology with an enterprise focus that supports e-research.”

GSU Cyberinfrastructure United Devices harnessing computing cycles on PC’s in campus labs BioCluster computing power for sciences IBM Supercomputer computing power and terabytes of storage SURA Grid computing across the Southeast Southern Light Rail access and connectivity in the region Network upgrade to 100MB connection per desktop and IPV6 for IP Telephony D-Space and ETD’s - repositories

Enterprise Focus Cost Effective Personnel aware of CI vision ISSUES: library I.T. and centralized I.T. Funding priorities? Collaboration? Other? Does your library have its own systems/IT approximately 60% of respondents reported managing their own IT. The percentages were greatest among college and university libraries and public libraries. Who does tech planning? most libraries (approximately 45% of respondents) are using either cross library committees or their IT department doing tech planning. does the planning. does this mean that library it departments are driving IT development in almost half of the reported cases without input from other library units? if so why? What documents have you developed? approximately 43% of respondents reported that they have developed a technology plan. Types of social software for employees? 44% reported that they offer blogs 34% offer wikis

Technology – Core I.T. Hardware, networks, supercomputing, connectivity, bandwidth, system backup, security Software, enterprise licensing ISSUES Library contribution Library utilization Library innovation

Collaboration Regional, national, and international connectivity and utilization of CI’s robust computing power ISSUES Collaboration vs using Shared resources and systems (consortium)

Role of Libraries and Librarians

Role of Libraries and Librarians Library Centric CI - systems and print or electronic resources 95% opacs (GIL) 54% OpenURL Resolver (GALILEO) 44% ERM (needs a CI focus like other state consortium systems ie. GIL/GALILEO being able to mine resource purchases and licensing across organizations) 43% Digital Libraries (State GALILEO/DLG local D-SPACE) Library Content Utilizing CI 50% social software (marketing CI, collaboration for use, CI increase computational research on the content developed using social software (ie. knowledge management/mapping/visualization) 45% interactive tutorials (repository, is there metadata and open access around your tutorial projects?) 20% podcast/videocast (objects, is there metadata and open access, are they disposable or archival?)

Library Cyberinfrastructure Valued Added Content and Services Virtual reference Original content – tutorials, guides Collaborative teaching and learning Collaborate or partner with campus I.T. on new projects Utilize campus I.T. to do our work Collaboration Examples: e-reserves, learning-commons, digital repositories Utilization Build on larger CI – network, connectivity, software and applications Groupwise, Microsoft Office, Endnote, Subscription Databases Using CI to map, visualize, and mine the data and information stored in blogs, wikis, repositories, and the semantic web Using CI to improve metasearch functions and performance

Discussion Training Marketing the library as collaborative entity Communicating the value of librarian expertise data enrichment value added virtual services and digital collections Marketing CI to library users Library innovation empowered by CI

Resources http://ulatmac.wordpress.com/2006/08/23/cyberinfrastructure-and-cni/ http://www.clir.org/pubs/issues/issues53.html http://rac.uits.iu.edu/strategic_planning/docs/IU_CyberinfrastructureResearchTaskforce_FinalReport_2005.pdf http://www.acls.org/cyberinfrastructure/ http://www.nsf.gov/dir/index.jsp?org=OCI http://ella.slis.indiana.edu/~katy/gallery/06-openhouse/ http://www.arl.org/newsltr/229/cyber.html http://www.arl.org/forum04/ http://stephenslighthouse.sirsi.com/archives/2006/02/the_library_20_1.html

Contact Presentation Materials Tim Daniels - timdaniels@gsu.edu www.library.gsu.edu/scholarship/presentations Tim Daniels - timdaniels@gsu.edu Doug Goans - dgoans@gsu.edu