the world’s libraries. connected. moving the past into the present special collections in a...
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The world’s libraries. Connected.
Moving the Past into the Present
Special Collections in a Digital Age
Libraries Australia Forum, 25 October 2012#laf2012
Merrilee Proffitt
Senior Program OfficerOCLC Research
@merrileeiam
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My perspective….
• United States (primarily)
• Research libraries
• Professionally oriented to special collections • rare books, manuscripts & personal papers, archives &
records
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My perspective
•OCLC Research Library Partnership•transnational
•heterogeneous
•Surrounded by smart people
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The Network
Changes
Everything
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• Large backlogs
• Expensive processes
• Increasing demand
• Libraries are not shifting away from print (yet) and demand for electronic
• …all against a backdrop of diminished resources
So what about special collections?
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“More Product, Less Process”
“There is good evidence to suggest that we tolerate this situation in part because our profession awards a higher priority to serving the perceived needs of our collections than to serving the demonstrated needs of our constituents.”
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Taking Our Pulse
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Taking Our Pulse – Key Findings
• The top three “most challenging issues”– Space
– Born Digital
– Digitization
• Tough economy renders “business as usual” impossible
• User demand for digitized collections is insatiable
• Management of born-digital materials is in its infancy
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Taking Our Pulse – Recommendations
• Digitization
– Develop models for large scale digitization
• User Services
– Promote policies that facilitate (rather than inhibit) access
• Born-Digital Archival Materials
– Create a no-expertise-needed program for management
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Shifting Gears: Gearing Up to Get into the Flow
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Shifting Gears – Recommendations
• Access vs. preservation
• Selection has already been done
• Do it ONCE (then iterate)
• Programs not projects
• Be informed by archival description practices
• Quality vs. quantity
• Discovery happens elsewhere
• Partnerships and funding
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Rapid Capture: Faster Throughput
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University of California, Berkeley and University of the Pacific
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Archives of Traditional Music, Indiana University
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University Archives University of Minnesota
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Capture and Release
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Capture and Release – Benefits
• Digital cameras are gentler on collection materials
• Digital cameras facilitate use
• Digital cameras increase researcher satisfaction
• Digital cameras reduce repository workload
• Digital cameras enhance security and save reading room checkout time
• Digital cameras save paper and photocopy toner
• Repositories stay current and resolve an ongoing issue at a time
• Digital cameras reduce liability for copyright infringement
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Scan and Deliver: User-Initiated Digitization
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Scan and Deliver – tiered workflow
A. Review
• How do users request digital reproductions?
• How are requests for copies approved
• How many people need to approve?
• Have the items already been digitized?
• How do you manage copyright & legal issues?
B. Decide
• Will you keep the images?
• Is it useful for you to keep the images?
• Do you have sufficient resources to keep them?
• What resolution is needed for scanning?
• Is the request for high-resolution?
• What metadata will you create?
• Will you scan the whole volume?
C. Scan
• Who digitizes and describes materials?
• Will you perform quality control?
D. Deliver
• How do you deliver digital copies to the user?
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Demystifying Born Digital
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Defining Born Digital
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You've Got to Walk Before You Can Run
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Swatting the Long Tail
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“Well-intentioned practice”
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Archival collections assessment-how to prioritize?
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ArchiveGrid, connecting researchers to primary source materials …
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Sharing Special Collections
•Advisory group made up of special collections and ILL staff
•Streamlining workflows for requests
•Checklist to ensure trust
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• Survey results for UK and Ireland
• Outreach for special collections
• More born digital reports
• Findings from survey of ArchiveGrid users
• Results of ArchiveGrid experiments
What’s next?
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• Big problems can be addressed by…Orienting yourself to the user and their needs
Stepping back and rethinking current practices
Consulting with smart colleagues
Breaking complicated problems into smaller ones
How does this relate?
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Questions?
[Thanks to Trove for the images!]
Merrilee [email protected]