Almost Ready for Prime Time ILLiad Z39.50 Searching & ISO ILL Margaret W. Ellingson / Western ILLiad Users Meeting / Portland, OR May 20, 2004
EMU / RLG:GAEG Processed 13,552 Borrowing Requests & 31,210 Lending Requests in 2002/03 Implemented ILLiad Lending in October 2000 and Borrowing in January 2001 Began using ISO ILL in August 2003 (end of RLIN ILL) Member of GETS, ARCHE, GOLD, ASERL & RLG resource sharing consortia
Z39.50 An ANSI/NISO standard that enables the searching of different systems through the use of a single user interface – specifies how the two systems communicate with each other but not how the search results are presented to the user
ISO ILL Protocol / IPIG Profile Standards that enable the transmission of ILL messages between different systems from a single user interface (peer-to-peer or distributed ILL) – ISO ILL Protocol = ISO & – ILL Protocol Implementers Group (IPIG) Profile
ISO ILL Protocol / IPIG Profile They specify: – the type, format & sequence of ILL messages (APDUs) – the roles of participating libraries (e.g., requester & responder) – the service types (loan, copy, etc.) – communication options (TCP/IP direct connect or )
ISO ILL Protocol / IPIG Profile They do not specify: – how request information is presented in the local system – how bibliographic or location information is searched or transferred into requests – how users, billing, or copyright are managed – how statistics &/or reports are generated
Why ISO ILL (Peer to Peer)? Maximize electronic processing of ILL requests in a single system Interact with any other ISO ILL system worldwide Choose the BEST lender available overall Simplify staff training Eliminate or minimize transaction-based ILL costs on “legacy” systems
Peer-to-Peer Environment A whole different ball game: – System interoperability not guaranteed – Underlying protocol unfamiliar to most users – Direct communication between requesting and responding system – User interface, terminology, and functionality differ between systems – Not one, but two copies of request & tracking info – Communication problems can result in out-of-synch transactions
ISO ILL Compliant Systems OCLC ILLiad (OCLC/Atlas Systems) – & ILL Manager (RLG) – VDX (Fretwell-Downing) – OCLC – (current system) – (new system)
Interoperability Testing Vendor to vendor User to vendor User to user Details, details, details…
Interoperability Testing “All ISO” or “retrofitted” system? Documentation? – local system documentation for ISO ILL (if available) – protocol documents, especially ASN.1 Index ( Access to vendor support?
System Prep for ISO ILL Install/Configure ISO ILL service Install/Configure Z39.50 searching Create new library address records – ISO ILL library symbols (format is name authority:symbol, e.g. RLG:GAEG or OCLC:EMU) – ISO ILL addresses &/or IP numbers – Priority for lender string construction
Testing Tips Use test system, if possible Test as many request scenarios as reasonably possible Test as both requester and responder and/or add notes about actions taken Track all successes, failures, questions and answers
Request Scenarios (Loan &/or Copy) Both – Message – Status-Query/SOER – Expired Requester – ILL-Request (expiry date) – Conditional-Reply (Y/N) – Cancel – Received – Renew – Returned – Lost
Request Scenarios (Loan &/or Copy) Responder – ILL-Answer- Conditional (date-for-reply) Retry Shipped Unfilled Locations (refer/forward) – Cancel-Reply (Y/N) – Renew-Answer (Y/N) – Overdue – Recall – Checked-In
Troubleshooting Is the problem with the requesting or responding system? Is the problem a protocol/profile issue or is it related to – operator ignorance or error? – the local application? – system configuration? – network configuration or instability?
Interoperability Issues Resolved Automatic forwarding of unfilled requests Referral of requests among “branch” libraries using same system Sending due date on copy requests Sending correct payment type Copyright compliance display Lots of “how do we?” questions
Interoperability Issues Outstanding Improved reliability/flexibility of Z39.50 searching & lender string construction messaging (not TCP/IP Direct Connect) – Firewall problems, Network instability, Workstations turned off Sending/importing of electronic delivery addresses & service information Forwarding of “Borrowing” notes to all potential lenders Use ISO Service Type to designate loans & articles
Borrowing Z39.50 Searching & ISO ILL Sending
Lending ISO ILL Request Processing
Interoperability Update In Production: – OCLC ISO ILL Gateway with ILL Manager, ILLiad & VDX – OCLC ILLiad with ILL Manager Actively Testing: – OCLC ILLiad (Atlas) with Docline (NLM) – ILL Manager (RLG) with VDX users Ontario Council of University Libraries
Additional Resources Other ILL Management Systems: – Clio – Millennium (Innovative Interfaces) – OpenILL (University of Winnipeg) – Resource Sharing System/RSS (Dynix)
Coming soon: ISO ILL v. 3 Undo Standard request referral method (redirect) Flexible delivery address formatting (to match delivery method) List delivery methods in preferred order (mix physical & electronic) Not Found as Cited as a Conditional reply
Questions? / Discussion