2. SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
“Libraries are not about books; they were, are, and will be about
facilitating communication across space and time. Books have
been a way to do that historically, but today there are other, often
better, ways to accomplish this. Libraries need to become facile at
supporting all sorts of media, and they must continue to embrace
the new, or face the consequences of losing relevance to the
mainstream culture”.
- Mark Sandler
3. TOPICS OF DISCUSSION
Defining Digital Libraries
Advantages vs. Disadvantages of Digital libraries
Examples of different library settings and their digital collection
Weeding in a digital library
4. DEFINING DIGITAL LIBRARIES
Digital Library – A library in which collections are stored in digital
formats and accessible through computers
Function of a digital library:
Access to large amounts of information to users wherever they
are and whenever they need it.
Access to primary information sources.
Support multimedia content along with text
Network accessibility on Intranet and Internet
User-friendly interface
5. ADVANTAGES VS. DISADVANTAGES OF
A DIGITAL LIBRARY
Advantages Disadvantages
Nearly unlimited storage space at Lack of screening or validation
a much lower cost Lack of preservation of a fixed copy (for
the record and for duplicating scientific
Re-allocate funds from some staff, research)
collection maintenance, and Lack of preservation of “best in class”
additional books.
No physical boundary Difficulty in knowing and locating
everything that is available, and
Round the clock availability differentiating valuable from useless
Multiple access information.
Enhanced information retrieval. Job loss for traditional publishers and
librarians
Preservation for some print Costs are spread and many become
material hidden.
6. PUBLIC LIBRARIES AND DIGITAL
COLLECTIONS
Looking at the big picture
299 Public libraries participated in a survey about digital
collections
How the numbers add up about increasing a digital collection
What type of digital items are in demand
What Patrons have been requesting since the digital rise
Print vs. Digital in the Public Library
7. DIGITAL COLLECTIONS FOR THE
DIGITAL NATIVES
Who are the Digital Natives?
How children view the digital world
Open access
Digital Libraries and Digital Design Features
Using Digital Children’s collections in your library
International Children's Library
8. ACADEMIC LIBRARY AND DIGITAL
COLLECTION
When looking at Academic
libraries, need to consider:
Core Values: equity of
access intellectual freedom,
open access, stewardship
and trustworthiness
Scholarly communication
issues
Author rites and copyright
issues
Acquisition of digital material
Develop tools for digital
material
9. WAYS TO REDEFINE COLLECTION
DEVELOPMENT IN THE NETWORKED
AREA
Focus on what is sustainable
Consider what a collection does rather than what a collection is
As our parent institutions are changing, so must we
We must make strategic decisions about what formats we support in
the multi-format universe
Changing current practices will add value for our patrons
We must seek the right balance between competition and
collaboration
We must seek creative partnerships with publishers and vendors
We need to exploit our new understanding of the collection to the
best of our ability.
Collection librarians must expand their skills and expertise
10. WEEDING A DIGITAL COLLECTION
Ebooks should be treated the same way as physical collections with
guidelines for retention based on use, accuracy of information and
relevance to the patron
Knowing the numbers
Ebook vendors and customer needs- OverDrive
OverDrive Video
http://ebooks.nypl.org/A55F27A7-AB28-49FF-B295-
1803F6D87A09/10/257/en/Default.htm
Standards to your eBook collections
Ebooks need to be manually weeded when materials become
outdated, demand decreases and relevance can be compromised
Ebook platforms are not merged with the ILS
11. THINGS TO CONSIDER WHEN
WEEDING
OverDrive reports- Turnover Rate by Subject
B&T Axis 360 – Top Circulation by Subject
Create a plan to use information as it becomes available
Take steps to be proactive in pursuing outdated material
When purchasing new titles in popular subjects check holdings to
look for titles to weed
When considering the purchase of backlist titles, look at the other
titles by that author to inform your purchases and consider
weeding