The Changing Nature of the Catalogue and Its Integration with Other Discovery Tools Karen Calhoun OLA Super Conference, Session 403 February 1, 2007

The Catalogue= 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

February 2007Calhoun4 Libraries Today Starting points:  Technology-driven research, teaching and learning  User self-sufficiency (decrease in guided access to content)  Global “infosphere”  Accelerating shift in information seekers’ preferences for Web-based information and multimedia formats

February 2007Calhoun5 A New Kind of Information Seeker Even more self-sufficient  “Most respondents indicated they have not sought help (64 percent) when using library resources”—OCLC report on perceptions of libraries, 2005 On Web  Popular search engine traffic in November 2005: 5.15 BILLION searches (& Google out front) Expect seamless linking & instant gratification

Loans (All Types) – University of Toronto Central Libraries 2.6 million 2004/05 Down 30% since 1995/96 Source: table1b-collection-use-library-system.pdf

February 2007Calhoun7 A New Kind of Library Build a vision of a new kind of library Examine assumptions Be more involved with research and learning materials and systems Move to next generation systems and services Make library collections and librarians more visible An online social network

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.” Calhoun, Karen. The Changing Nature of the Catalog and Its Integration with Other Discovery Tools. Washington, DC: Library of Congress, 17 March Changing Nature of the Catalog and Its Integration with Other Discoveryhttp://

February 2007Calhoun9 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

February 2007Calhoun10 Methodology Interdisciplinary literature review Structured interviews  23 noted library and information science professionals A business perspective  Product life cycle  Competitive strategy

February 2007Calhoun11 Public Choice

February 2007Calhoun12 Some “vigorous” comments “Fasten your seatbelts, it’s going to be a bumpy ride”—All About Eve

February 2007Calhoun13 The Death of LCSH? Or the Renewal of Subject Searching? What, is she crazy?

February 2007Calhoun14 30 Second Review of Report Findings More critical Less critical “Interviewees’ opinions ranged from the strongly critical to an attitude akin to quiet resignation. There were no strong endorsements for LCSH.”

February 2007Calhoun15 Ray Larson, 1991 “This study has shown that a constant decline has taken place in the use of the subject index in a large online catalog. Title keyword searching, which provides a limited form of natural-language access to the topics of books, was found to be the primary replacement for subject index use. The causes and implications were explored and evidence provided suggesting that user frustration in using the subject index effectively has led to this decline. The two major problems contributing to user frustration are search failure, due to difficulties in dealing with LCSH, and information overload, due to the ever-increasing size of the database.” Larson, Ray. The decline of subject searching: long-term trends and patterns of index use in an online catalog. Journal of the American Society for Information Science Vol. 42, , p. 197

February 2007Calhoun16 Andrew MacEwan, 1998 “Like any other market product in the modern world if LCSH does not change it will sooner or later be abandoned… All of us who use LCSH have a vested interest in seeing it improve.” MacEwan, Andrew. Working with LCSH: the cost of cooperation and the achievement of access: a perspective from the British Library. Presented at the IFLA General Conference,

February 2007Calhoun17 Marcia Bates, 2003 Improving User Access to Library Catalog and Portal Information eport6-03.doc.pdf “I have long been advocating that matching and lead- in terminology be made available for information searchers to help them in their search process (Bates, 1986a). Such an end-user thesaurus would recognize the many variants, informal terms and other terms that users actually input when searching.”

February 2007Calhoun18 The Decline of the Catalog Users taking the bypass  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 tradition unsustainable  “Just how much do we need to continue to spend on carefully constructed catalogs?”—Deanna Marcum, LC Associate Librarian

February 2007Calhoun19 The Catalog in Context, 1 Online catalogs represent one node in the scholar’s information universe

February 2007Calhoun20 The Catalog in Context, 2 As information systems, catalogs are hard to use How OPACs Suck, Part 3: The Big Picture Posted on 05/20/2006 at 10:57:26 AM by Karen G. Schneider how-opacs-suck-part-3-the-big-picture.html

February 2007Calhoun21 The Catalog in Context, 3 New initiatives vie for resources (both human and financial) devoted to producing catalogs

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

February 2007Calhoun23 Affordability and Scalability Expense of cataloging Rapid growth of Web resources and digital assets Need more than descriptive metadata Interoperability issues Competition for Resources to Develop New Library Services Shrinking tech services departments Streamlining tech services workflows Increasing use of external sources of data; automated cataloging methods Changes in Information- Seeking Behavior Preference for online information Reliance on simple keyword search Decline of subject searching Expectation of seamless linking Challenges Facing Cataloging

February 2007Calhoun24 Availability of Catalog Librarians LIS grads not choosing cataloging Graying of the library profession (demographics) Significance of the Catalog Catalog is one part of a much larger infosphere Many new types of scholarly information objects not covered by catalog Future of Individual Library Catalogs Less emphasis on one catalog per library Shift toward multiple catalogs appearing as one catalog; shared catalogs; catalogs interwoven into the Web (Open WorldCat, worldcat.org, former RedLightGreen) Challenges Facing Cataloging, Continued

But … Don’t Cry for Me Argentina!

February 2007Calhoun26 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 US$665 million on books and serials in 2004 The legacy of the world’s library collections is tied to the future of catalogs

February 2007Calhoun27 What To Do About It Revitalize: 1.Develop new uses for catalog data 2.Find new users for the existing product 3.Find new uses and new users

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

Innovations and Cost Reductions Much better linkages: ingest, convert, extract, transfer Interoperate Simplify & exploit all sources of catalog data Eliminate custom practices Automate and streamline workflows Explore automatic classification, subject analysis; reengineer and automate LCSH practice Mine catalog data for new uses; experiment with FRBR (Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records)

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

Improving the User’s Experience: Cover Art, TOC, Reviews

NC State University’s Endeca-Powered Catalog

Expand - CalCat

Social Tagging

February 2007Calhoun35 Stones (Boulders) In the Road Many are not ready for change of the magnitude required Progress toward interoperability is slow Copyright law has not caught up with the digital world Precedents for large-scale collaboration are few There may not be enough money

February 2007Calhoun36 Vision for Change Integrating catalogs with other discovery tools will boost scholarly productivity to new levels Cataloging practice will be sustainable

February 2007Calhoun37 Thank You! Karen Calhoun, Cornell University Library