Report for the Library of Congress: Preliminaries Karen Calhoun EndUser Meeting, Chicago April 22, 2006

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser2 The Catalog = The First Self- Service Information Tool

The Way We Worked Books Journals Newspapers Gov docs Maps Scores AV Dissertations Special collections Manuscripts Papers Univ records Journal articles Conference proceedings Etc. Library catalogs Archives Abstracting & Indexing services

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser4 From Dempsey, Lorcan et al “Metadata switch.” In E-Scholarship: A LITA Guide (Chicago: LITA).

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser5 LC Action Item 6.4: “Support research and development on the changing nature of the catalog to include consideration of a framework for its integration with other discovery tools.”

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser6 Objectives Examine the issues broadly (in major research libraries) Describe current situation Assess obstacles and feasibility Create a vision and (actionable) blueprint for change Produce a report to elicit dialogue, collaboration, and movement

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser7 Methodology Interdisciplinary literature review Structured interviews –23 noted library and information science professionals A business perspective –Product life cycle –Competitive strategy

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser8 The Decline of the Catalog Users bypassing the catalog –89% of college students say they begin with search engines vs 2% with library Web pages One piece of a fragmented library information landscape (and hard to use!) –Principle of Least Effort –Metasearch in trouble Cataloging practice does not scale –“Just how much do we need to continue to spend on carefully constructed catalogs?”— Deanna Marcum, LC Associate Librarian

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser9 The Continuing Importance of the Catalog Books and serials are not dead, and they are not yet digital ARL libraries spent the lion’s share of $665 million on books and serials in 2004 The legacy of the world’s library collections is tied to the future of catalogs

Existing New USERS USES Existing users, Existing uses Existing users, New uses New users, Existing uses New users, New uses Examples: -Programs for freshmen -“Push” to course Web pages Examples: -Mass digitization -Large scale integration with other systems -Universal access Examples: -Minor enhancement to existing catalogs Examples: -E-journal discovery -Subject pathfinders -Export to bibliographic management software

EXTEND EXPAND LEAD Improve the user’s experience Greatly enhance delivery (fast!) Standards development/compliance Recycle and reuse catalog data Innovate and reduce costs Invest in shared catalogs Link pools of scholarly data Seek partners Mass collections & catalogs Digitize Open access Participate in the substitute industry “Thirty-two Options & Three Strategies”— A Radical Abridgement

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser12 NC State University’s Endeca-Powered Catalog

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser13 CalCat

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser14 To Learn More… “The Changing Nature of the Catalog and Its Integration with Other Discovery Systems” – “Rethinking How We Provide Bibliographic Services for the University of California” – STF/Final.pdfhttp://libraries.universityofcalifornia.edu/sopag/B STF/Final.pdf

April 2006Calhoun - EndUser15 Implications for the ILS? Extend strategy –“Discovery” layer with ILS back end? Expand strategy (shared catalogs) –Modularity: “Think in terms of linking rather than building” –Web services (importance of standards) Leadership strategy –“Outward integration”-Library collections and other scholarly information objects more visible in the user’s environment –ILS = a service layer for supporting rights management, linking, inventory control, delivery