Here is a summary of sessions I attended, if you wish to view all of the presentations at ALA this year please visit the conference wiki http://wikis.ala.org/annual2008/index.php/Annual_2008

One of the newest trends in the Web 2.0 world is to combine one, two or even three web 2.0 type technologies to create a new service that provide a unique experience for library users. Four panelists discussed how their libraries recombined and remixed Web 2.0 technologies to create innovative ‘mash up libraries’. David Lee King, Digital Branch & Services Manager at the Topeka & Shawnee County Public Library gave an example of his library’s mashed up service of embedding the instant messaging system widget Meebo on the library’s web site and the ILS ‘no result pages’. This allows a user to instantly send a message to a librarian asking for help f he/she encounters difficulties while searching for a resource on the website or in the OPAC. Other mashed up services include using Google maps to display bookmobile routes; and integrating a university course management system such as Blackboard with a list of library resources on a specific subject area, a photo of the subject librarian and a schedule of all courses being taught on campus - all on one web page.

Catalogers, be warned, 2009 will witness the long awaited implementation of two revolutionary changes in cataloging: The release of RDA (Resource Description and Access) which has been described as a new bibliographic standard for resource description and access designed for the digital world, and the implementation of the conceptual standard FRBR (Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records). RDA will replace the existing standard Anglo American Cataloging Rules (AACR) currently used by catalogers.

Here is a brief summary of the RDA update forum held at the conference:

·         The consultative phase of RDA with groups inside and outside the library community has been completed and RDA is currently in production with an expected release date of the online product in late 2009/early 2010.

·         Public and academic libraries will be involved in reviewing and providing feedback on the online product before RDA is released as a subscription based licensed product by ALA.

·         A working group has been established by LC to ensure the compatibility of RDA with Marc 21. Thus catalogers will not have to recatalog older bibliographic records created using AACR2

·          ALCTS (Association for Library Collections and Technical Services) announced its plans to scheduled pre-conferences at ALA 2009 on FRBR and RDA.

·         Creation of a blog at the end of 2008 as a form of communication among the various communities which will be using RDA.

RDA Implementation Task Force PowerPoint presentation is available at:

    RDA homepage: http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/jsc/rda.html

 

Aligned with the development of RDA is the implementation of the FRBR (Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records) conceptual model which establishes the hierarchical relationships of an author’s work by grouping different editions, translations, or physical formats into one multilevel bibliographic record. The hope is that this new conceptual model will simplify the cataloger’s task of cataloging multiple works by one author ( for example translations in different languages or the availability of the work in different formats), thus helping users to quickly find, select, identify and retrieve resources in the online catalog. RDA was developed on the FRBR conceptual model. FRAD (Functional Requirements for Authority Data) is a conceptual model, similar to FRBR, but created for authority records that is required to support authority control and for the international sharing of authority data.

 

OCLC Fiction finder is a good example of FRBR at work. OCLC Fiction Finder is available at http://fictionfinder.oclc.org/

I enjoyed attending this session for two reasons (i) it was standing room only which meant that attendees wanted to hear what the debaters had to say and take advantage of the opportunity to voice their opinions on the catalog (good news for us catalogers) and (ii)the session was conducted as a true debate with a moderator and five well known figures in the library world (Roy Tennant OCLC, Stephen Abram SirsiDynix, Karen Coyle Library Consultant, Joseph Janes University of Washington, and  Karen Schneider owner of the blog Free Range Librarian . The main point highlighted throughout the debate is this:  the OPAC is here to stay! BUT there will be significant changes in the future (these changes are already evident in some catalogs),  including user friendly cloud tags or keywords added by patrons, patron supplied summaries, reviews and ratings, book cover art, faceted browsing, and federated searching to allow full access to all the resources in a library’s collection (print, AV, electronic, digital).

Examples of OPACS with these features:

California State Library, Fresno http://iii.lib.csufresno.edu/

Nashville Public Library http://nplencore.library.nashville.org/iii/encore/app

VuFind http://www.vufind.org/

North Carolina State University Libraries http://www.lib.ncsu.edu/catalog/

Ann Arbor Public Library http://www.aadl.org/catalog

University of California Berkeley http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/

At this presentation five panelists ( Roy Tennant (OCLC), Martha Yee (UCLA), Tim Spalding (founder of Library Thing), and Diane Hillman (Information Institute of Syracuse) discussed the future of what is now being referred to as next generation catalogs. Discussion centered on how catalogers and other metadata specialists can use emerging technology tools such as WorldCat Local (a single interface or discovery tool to search local and global  library resources with the added bonus of embedded social networking features), the eXtensible Catalog (a catalog built on open source applications created to simplify users access to all library resources digital and non-digital), and Library Thing (web 2.0 tool which allows the user to catalog their library online). All these tools share similar functionalities such as faceted browsing, social tagging, relevance ranking, Did you Mean… feature, Popular choices, New Library Additions and federated searching. Each panelists emphasized the importance of enriching the end users search, discovery and delivery experience while using the OPAC, going so far as to suggest re-structuring the OPAC to create a more Google-like interface.  

Jennifer Bowen presentation on the the eXtensible Catalog http://www.extensiblecatalog.info

Library Thing http://www.librarything.com

WorldCat local http://www.oclc.org/worldcatlocal/

OCLC president Jay Jordan gave an extensive overview of OCLC new products and services at the annual ALA OCLC breakfast update. Here is an overview of his presentation:

A new publication titled From awareness to funding: a study of library support for America is now available for download or ordering www.oclc.org/reports/funding

A new NetLibrary Media Center described as a free enhancement to the NetLibrary eAudiobook platform was recently launched. This Media Center offers enhanced searching, single click checkout and the ability to download to a portable device. http://www.oclc.org/audiobooks/default.htm

A project is underway at OCLC to control all personal name headings (over 26 million) in WorldCat bibliographic records. This project when completed will result in bibliographic records being updated automatically if the heading in the authority record changes. More information available at: http://outgoing.typepad.com/outgoing/2008/04/controlling-nam.html

WorldCat identities http://orlabs.oclc.org/Identities/  is a recently concluded project where OCLC created a summary/biographical page for every personal name found in bibliographic records in WorldCat in a user friendly interface. Users of this graphical interface can view all the works written by an author , works written about the author, a graphical timeline showing their publication history, list all the languages in which the author’s works were published in, view cross referenced names found in the author’s authority record, and view the associated subject headings of all published works (viewed as a clickable cloud tag)

WorldCat xISSN http://www.oclc.org/xissn/default.htm is a new Web service  that supports management of  serials information. Users can supply an ISSN to find out about title changes, and find the electronic ISSN for a print title or vice versa. xISSN is available at no charge to OCLC cataloging members.

 After success pilot projects at the University of  Washington http://www.lib.washington.edu/  and the State Library of Ohio http://winslo.state.oh.us/, OCLC has launched WorldCat Local as a purchased product available to libraries www.oclc.org/worldcatlocal. WorldCat local offers the same features as WorldCat.org but with the added advantage of searching library resources at three tiers locally (all library resources in its collection), through a consortia (e.g. OhioLink Libraries) or globally (all WorldCat Libraries). Some key features include:

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