Information Technologies and Their Impacts on the LIS Field

LIS510

History of Technology

• Technological progress is not new.

• Historical overview. – development of computers and networks in

libraries– development of the Internet, which largely

happened outside libraries.

Early technical advances

• Microphotography in the early 20th century.– It allowed to photograph sheets of paper and

allow to read them with a special device• tremendous savings of storage cost• hard to read

• photocopier, invented in the 1960s, was a great advance in libraries, but brought attacks from copyright holders.

Computers in libraries

• most important application was in bibliographic data, with the development of the MARC record.

• OCLC became a significant organization that allowed libraries – to share MARC records– print catalog cards– interlibrary loan facilities– acquisition support.

Networks in libraries

• also appeared in the 60s. this allowed for online information retrieval, eventually

• in 1964 Lockheed developed the DIALOG system, offering online access to database– this system collects databases– it makes them away collectively or individually

through a search interface

• access to DIALOG was limited to specialized staff.

CD-ROM

• This came along in the 1980.

• It could hold a lot of information.

• It did not need network to use, theoretically. In practice it was hard for two users to use the same CD-ROM without some kind of a network.

• It certainly did not need a remote network, that was where all the cost was.

Integrated library system

• this is a local computer and network application that integrates– acquisition– serials– catalog maintenance– catalog access– circulation records– collection management

• these systems took a while to mature.

OPAC

• an OPAC is an online public access catalog.

• it allowed a user access to the library catalog via a computer terminal

• no need to buy catalog cards and no need to file them.

Linked OPACs

• As more and more OPACs became open access from outside, there was more demand to search many of them at once.

• A special distributed searching protocol, Z39.50 was developed over many years.

Internet

• Internet is not a physical network.• It is as abstraction that allows different

physical networks to work together and appear as one.

• Main facilities– email– remote use of computers– file transfer– World Wide Web

E-mail

• it is the oldest Internet application• also one of the most complex these days

because– old protocols– never designed to deal with spam

• not likely that you will get much involved with running an email system

• Email lists are very important information sources that are not readily found on the Web.

Remote computer use & file transfer

• There are two common protocol– telnet for remote login and use– ftp for file transfer

• some older OPACs may be accessed with telnet• but telnet and ftp are no longer used in private

transaction because they are not secure• ssh (aka secure shell) is a successor to ftp and

telnet.

The Web

• The web is a medium that uses three standards– URI for addressing objects “on the web”– http for transferring these objects– HTML to build a hypertext system to build and

navigate resources.

Web and libraries

• Libraries have become heavily involved in– building web site– buying access to toll-gated web sites– building resources that are indirectly available

on the Web• Web OPACs• archives with machine interfaces

Digital libraries

• Nobody really knows what they are. • Much of the LIS literature discussing digital

libraries in fact addresses web sites. • I like Bill Arms’ definition best. Digital libraries

share the fact that– organized on computers– available over a network– maintain procedures to

• select ∙ make available• organize ∙ archive

Digital library definition

• An informal definition of a digital library is a managed collection of information, with associated services, where the information is stored in digital formats and accessible over a network.

• “managed” in the key word here.

Web Portal

• A portal can be understood as an interface on the web, that allows you to use a digital library.

• Portals can sometimes be personalized.

• Portals may be used as an intermediary for online reference services.

technology and next generation libraries

• five challenges– malleability (information changes)– selectivity (people abandon print-only)– exclusivity (not everyone has access)– vulnerability (print assets are more

vulnerable)– superficiality (some rubbish is on the Internet)

Libraries adapt

• libraries get wired• they offer electronic access

– even to the home user

• shift from information access to community center

• adopt digital reference with 24/7 asynchronous help

• get involved in digital archiving of institutional assets.

Digital library cost

• digital library material will cost more initially because publishers want to see a return in the extra functionality they have developed.

• in the longer run, digital library costs may be lower than in print– lower storage cost– less risk to the items– fewer staff requirements

Digital library cost

• Non-digital libraries are very expensive.• Digital libraries are also expensive. Many

publishers charge more for online editions that for traditional print.

• However the cost of the infrastructure is dropping.

• And there are potentials for changes in the way information is supplied in digital libraries.

Roles for the library with digital material

• investigation what to buy

• negotiation of the purchase

• acquisition of access to a service

• installation of access devices

• training of users

• maintenance: update, migrate, replace

• and in the future, maybe: archiving.

Digital preservation

• this is hugely complicated area

• keeping files is not a big deal as long as one avoids– proprietary formats– removable media

• but this issue of what to preserve is tough when the contents shows lack of fixity.

Impact of technology on staff

• information professionals that are technologically savvy will thrive better than those who are not.

• constant computer use can cause serious health problems

• Problem areas are– bad posture problems at the desk– eye strain

• use of mouse is particularly bad. learn how to avoid using it.

• injuries take a long time to heal

Impact on the mission

• none. libraries are still there to disseminate quality information to the largest number of people

Benefits of digital libraries

• The digital library brings the library to the user.

• Computer power is used for searching and browsing.

• Information can be shared.• Information is easier to keep current.• The information is always available.• New forms of information become

possible.

Technological change

• Electronic storage is becoming cheaper than paper

• Personal computer displays are becoming more pleasant to use

• High-speed networks are becoming widespread

• Computers have become portable

Metadata

• Metadata is data about data. The distinction between data and metadata depends often on the context.

• Metadata is often divided into– descriptive metadata– structural metadata– administrative metadata

Metadata

• Structured data about data

• Priscilla Caplan:– “Metadata really is nothing more than data

about data; a catalog record is metadata; so is a TEI header, or any other form of description. We could call it cataloging, but for some people the term carries excessive baggage, like Anglo- American Cataloging Rules and MARC.”

MARC21MARC21

Text Encoding InitiativeText Encoding Initiative

Dublin CoreDublin Core

Encoded Archival DescriptionEncoded Archival Description

Extract,convert to

MMFFormat& load

Extract,format &publishmetadata

SQL,ODBC,HTTP

SQL,ODBC,HTTP

MasterMetadata

File(SQL)

MARC RECORDSfrom Columbia OPAC

(NOTIS), OCLC, RLIN, etc.

NON-MARCMETADATAfrom DL projects &publishers

DISTRIBUTED USER INPUT viaCustomized Web / SQL-based input forms

DIRECT USER QUERIES& specialized reports using industrystandard SQL products

HTML, XMLpages, menus & digitalobjects for ColumbiaDigital Library

USMARCformatted output

SGML, DUBLIN COREformatted output

Columbia University MASTER METADATA FILE PROJECT

DIRECT STAFF INPUTvia customized web / SQL-basedinput forms

The Web as a Digital Library

• The Web is the most rapidly growing information system in the world:– An electronic publishing medium– An advertising medium– A market-place– A collaboration medium– A library

• BUT IS IT REALLY A LIBRARY?

What is a Digital Library

• Libraries support five classes of functions in support of cultural, technical, and scientific information services: SCOAP– Selection– Collection– Organization– Access– Preservation

The Web is About Access

• The rest is left as an exercise to the reader (and the writer, webmaster, publisher, researcher, librarian, secretary, etc.)

• “The Web is a library with the pages torn out, scattered randomly, without a naming system, catalog, or classification system. It has no walls. Unfortunately the roof is gone, too.”

Digital Library Myths

• Soon everything will be digital

• Digital is better than print

• Digital replaces print

• Digital is cheaper than print

• Digital serves all disciplines equally well

• All digital library projects are worth our attention

Issues & Trends: The Hybrid Library

• Libraries are, and will remain, a varied and complex mix of collections and services

• Collections will continue to be in print, electronic, and digital formats

• Services must increasingly be disconnected from time and place

• Staff will be called upon to gain new competencies and fulfill new roles

Issues & Trends: Indexes

• Authentication issues • Lease v. purchase (continued access &

preservation)• The plethora of databases available often leaves

the user adrift• Problems that need solving:

– Robust authentication– Integration of access (one-stop searching, linking to

content, etc.)– Advice and guidance on database selection

Issues & Trends: Content

• Are we are still in “low hanging fruit” mode?

• Will we will continue to have “islands” of digital content in a “sea” of print?

• Therefore…– We need to integrate access to information in

all forms– We need to make print more desirable

Issues & Trends: Access Systems

• Being “Out of Their Way”: Why?– Our users simply want to get their work done– Anything extraneous gets in their way– Over-complicated search systems hinder access for the majority

• Being “Out of Their Way”: How?– Simplify the front end– Complicate the back end:

• Pre-processing the query• Post-processing the results• Filter options• Sort options

– Provide ways the user can control and personalize their interface

Issues & Trends: Services

• Users will increasingly expect to be served where, when, and how they wish

• For the first time in our history, libraries now have serious service competitors

• Being “In Their Face”: Why?– Many catalogs and search systems are difficult to understand

and use – Users need help at the moment they get stuck — email is

inadequate– Unless assistance is obvious and convenient, the user will

remain stuck– Other, readily available information sources, can be convenient

but inadequate (web search engines, for example)

What’s in the digital library?

• Items ?• Material ?• Documents ?• Objects? • Digital Items ?• Digital Material ?• Digital Documents ?• Digital Objects ?

Five Suggestions for the Internet (Debora Seys)

• On the Internet no one knows you’re a librarian

• Truth, beauty and satisfaction are in the eye of the beholder

• Maybe the haystack knows a lot more about the needle than we think

• It’s a whole new ballgame

• The Internet will win

Questions for discussion

• Is technological change evolutionary or revolutionary? Is there a little bit of Luddite in each of us? How can librarians manage the technological change that is always pushing them, and how can librarians accommodate the disquiet of technophobic patrons?

• Librarians and information professionals play an “intermediary role.” How does it fit into the new social context created by new information technologies, e.g. the Internet and World Wide Web, to promote information services?

• Is the content of the World Wide Web (in your opinion) mainly information or communication?

Questions for discussion

• What are the ways that one can evaluate the content of the World Wide Web? What is our role as information professional in evaluation of Web content?

• What is a digital library?

• Do we still need a physical library?

• What forces are driving the development of digital libraries?