Relevance Recognized: Value-Added Cataloging for Departmental and Digital Collections

A medium-sized academic library's cataloging department describes the strategies employed when requests for materials-cataloging services from university departments outside the library, followed by the initiation of an Institutional Repository (IR) project, brought opportunities to redefine its perceived role. A service-oriented mindset facilitated the creative repurposing of staff, students, and skills in order to integrate these new formats and processes (both physical and digital) into departmental workflows. Cataloging staff rose to the challenges, gaining satisfaction with new skills learned and a sense of accomplishment at creating order from chaos

Cataloging Electronic Theses and Dissertations: Updates and Perspectives from the Mississippi State University Libraries

Over the last two decades, electronic submission of theses and dissertations has become more common, and cataloging processes have evolved as well. At the same time, the Resource Description and Access (RDA) cataloging guidelines, which are better designed to describe digital resources, was widely implemented in 2013 in order to replace the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules (AACR2), which emphasize the description of a physical item. These changes have brought unceasing challenges into cataloging workflows. Especially with the development of linked data and the semantic web, catalogers consistently need to adapt measures to local conditions. This paper describes the recent issues that have occurred at the Mississippi State University Libraries and how local practices addressed these concerns to enhance bibliographic data and authority data for better discovery of Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

Cataloging Electronic Theses and Dissertations: Updates and Perspectives from the Mississippi State University Libraries

Over the last two decades, electronic submission of theses and dissertations has become more common, and cataloging processes have evolved as well. At the same time, the Resource Description and Access (RDA) cataloging guidelines, which are better designed to describe digital resources, were widely imple-mented in 2013 in order to replace the Anglo-American Cataloging Rules (AACR2), which emphasize the description of a physical item. These changes have brought unceasing challenges into cataloging work-flows. Especially with the development of linked data and the semantic web, catalogers consistently need to adapt measures to local conditions. This paper describes the recent issues that have occurred at the Mississippi State University Libraries and how local practices addressed these concerns to enhance bib-liographic data and authority data for better discovery of Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs)

An Analysis of Using Expert Systems and Intelligent Agents for the Virtual Library Project at the Naval Surface Warfare Center-Carderock Division

The Virtual Library Project1 at the Naval Surface Warfare Center/Carderock Division (NSWC/CD) is being developed to facilitate the incorporation and use of library documents via the Internet. These documents typically relate to the design and manufacture of ships for the U.S. Navy Fleet. As such, the libraries will store documents that contain not only text but also images, graphs and design configurations. Because of the dynamic nature of digital documents, particularly those related to design, rapid and effective cataloging of these documents becomes challenging. We conducted a research study to analyze the use of expert systems and intelligent agents to support the function of cataloging digital documents. This chapter provides an overview of past research in the use of expert systems and intelligent agents for cataloging digital documents and discusses our recommendations based on NSWC/CD’s requirements

HELIN Cataloging Policies and Procedures Manual

HELIN Cataloging Manual - Nov. 2011 revisio

In Search of a New Model: Library Resource Sharing in China - A Comparative Study

This paper reviews the framework of library resource sharing (LRS) in China and examines, from a comparative perspective, cases of recent development, particularly in the 1990s and early 2000s. Highlights include: (1) historical review of LRS in the U.S. and China, particularly in the areas of print union catalogs and union lists, online bibliographic utilities, and interlibrary loan; (2) literature review of Chinese publications, and LRS issues and challenges in China; (3) Analysis of three LRS models to provide a contextual grasp of a paradigm shift taking place in China; and (4) comparative analysis of LRS objectives, structure, and governance, etc., in the U.S. and China. The study also underscores the imperative for building a national digital library system in China to gain a competitive edge in resource sharing and to support the country’s rapid social and economic growth. At this stage of development, the success of China Academic Library & Information System provides a convincing argument for a national digital library system with its methods of governing, financing, and development

Preparing LIS Students for a Career in Metadata Librarianship

This study examines the field of metadata librarianship and its emergence from the field of traditional MARC cataloging. Through a survey distributed to academic librarians, public librarians, digital librarians, special librarians, corporate librarians, archivists and others currently working with metadata, data was collected to determine what Library and Information Science students interested in metadata librarianship need to know to pursue a career in this field. The data collected includes job titles encompassing metadata work, the typical career trajectories of those working in the field, education and training received both prior to and after entering the metadata field, and the most frequently used metadata standards in modern library and information science environments. The results of the study revealed the LIS courses metadata specialists have found most useful to their current work, which standards are most frequently being used and areas where LIS programs could improve current course offerings to provide adequate preparation for LIS students interested in this area

The Metadata Education and Research Information Commons (MERIC): A Collaborative Teaching and Research Initiative

The networked environment forced a sea change in Library and Information Science (LIS) education. Most LIS programs offer a mixed-mode of instruction that integrates online learning materials with more traditional classroom pedagogical methods and faculty are now responsible for developing content and digital learning objects. The teaching commons in a networked environment is one way to share, modify and repurpose learning objects while reducing the costs to educational institutions of developing course materials totally inhouse. It also provides a venue for sharing ideas, practices, and expertise in order to provide the best learning experience for students. Because metadata education has been impacted by rapid changes and metadata research is interdisciplinary and diffuse, the Metadata Education and Research Information Commons (MERIC) initiative aims to provide a virtual environment for sharing and collaboration within the extensive metadata community. This paper describes the development of MERIC from its origin as a simple clearinghouse proof-of-concept project to a service-oriented teaching and research commons prototype. The problems of enablers and barriers to participation and collaboration are discussed and the need for specific community building research is cited as critical for the success of MERIC within a broad metadata community

Evolutionary Subject Tagging in the Humanities; Supporting Discovery and Examination in Digital Cultural Landscapes

In this paper, the authors attempt to identify problematic issues for subject tagging in the humanities, particularly those associated with information objects in digital formats. In the third major section, the authors identify a number of assumptions that lie behind the current practice of subject classification that we think should be challenged. We move then to propose features of classification systems that could increase their effectiveness. These emerged as recurrent themes in many of the conversations with scholars, consultants, and colleagues. Finally, we suggest next steps that we believe will help scholars and librarians develop better subject classification systems to support research in the humanities.NEH Office of Digital Humanities: Digital Humanities Start-Up Grant (HD-51166-10