WESSWEB - Western European Specialists Section

 

Romance Languages Discussion Group
Minutes, ALA Midwinter Meeting
1/21/06 - 10:30-12:30

Agenda
1. Presentation on Electronic Enlightenment Project by Robert McNamee, Director of Research, Electronic Enlightenment.
2. Vendor Cataloging of Western European Materials
" Dr. Donald Panzera, Library of Congress
" Joachim Bartz, Casalini Libri
" Gilles de la Rochefoucauld, Aux Amateurs de Livres
" Oscar Puvill and Dror Faust, Puvill

1. Robert McNamee described the Electronic Enlightenment, a Mellon-funded project run by the Voltaire Foundation and Oxford University.
" The Web as a metaphor for the 18th century; digitization opens up great possibilities for scholars of the period.
" All documents are treated as equal, the "center" is everywhere.
" Use of best scholarly editions (Voltaire Foundation, Cambridge and Oxfore UP). Will include some letters that have never been published before, or never published in full
" Also planning on including German and Italian letters
" Include all annotations, newest editions - to see how different scholars studied different documents
" Resource designed as a "new genre of publishing" - users can add to the collection, can annotate letters.
" Plans to eventually develop teaching packages
" Possibility of including digitized enclosures, translations, mss sources, links to archives and library catalog web pages. Could include high quality images or images of special editions.
" Plan to incorporate ability to make connections with other e-resources (ARTFL, ECCO) - to create "nodes" of information.
" Pricing: still in progress, not-for-profit endeavor.


2. Cataloging Records Options - dialogue between Librarians and Vendors

" To respond to increase in numbers and complexity of options in vendor-supplied cataloging.
" How new cataloging options affect issues of workflow, budgets, and staffing levels.
" Review role of Library of Congress in development of standards, innovations.


Dr. Donald Panzera (LC Chief of European/Latin American Acquisitions Division)
What is LC doing in collaborating with Casalini in cataloging Italian materials? Why? What to expect?
" Shelf-ready pilot project determined feasibility of obtaining shelf-ready books from approval vendors. (outsourcing cataloging on AP books)

" Discussions with Casalini began 2004, project began early 2005
o 2002 - Casalini staff trained in LCSH at LC, followed by quality control survey by LC
o March 2005 training by LC staff in LCSH followed by 2 months review
o July 2005 training in authority work with LC
o 2200 records by CL submitted to LC for review by 9/05, judged ready to begin pilot project

" Casalini has been providing:
o Core-level MARC21 level records compliant with all major cataloging protocols.
o Providing authority records
o Use standard LC tools (Cataloger's desktop, etc), consult with LC staff
o Bibliographic records transmitted electronically to LC

" In current fiscal year, CL provided 4000 bib recs, determined by exchange rate.
o This is only 1% of all pieces in collection in 2004

" Excluded from CL cataloging contract:
o Belles lettres
o Monographs on standing order
o Books with accompanying materials
o Serials
o Multiple sets

" Why feasibility study?
o Can they provide cataloging standards? Yes
o Can they provide as good a service and at a cheaper cost than in-house? Yes
o LC costs are outpacing resources. Print continuing to grow, electronic growing ever faster, both requiring resources
o Job security at LC? Major retirements happening at LC, both by buyout and by age
o Customers now expect instant feedback, instant access to materials, cat. records.

" Need for new business model : less time, less cost
o Cataloging distribution services not allowed to regain cost of providing good for utilities, libraries, by law ( cost+10% max.)
o Cost+10% no longer sustainable - LC needs to collaborate with vendors. LC still foots most of bill, and expects to pay as much as 6x other customers of Casalini libri records. CL larger customers pay more for service, but it is not clear if cost of bib. records access is more. Some libraries have concluded that it actually costs less.
o Even if cost is greater, better, quicker cataloging now available before books arrive (no backlog).
o LC licenses cataloging recs from CL (does not purchase them), so LC cannot distribute them.
o Who will pay? If LC distributes, becomes competitor with Casalini libri.
o Casalini libri and OCLC have agreement - OCLC obtains cat recs directly from CL

" Conclusions
o Each situation has unique characteristics
o Truly possible to reduce costs by outsourcing cataloging
o Need for evaluation of standards and rules, simplification
o Never too soon to seek partners.

Gilles de la Rochefoucauld /Aux Amateurs de livres

Chronology :
" 1998 - Aux Am started providing acquisition records
" 1999 - MARC21 standards
" 2002 - e-orders, general invoices, availability to customize 9XX invoice field data
" 2004 EU title notices both HTML and MARC21 formats
Currently provides:
" Minimum level acquisition records with invoice data in MARC21 - free of charge
" Since 1/2005 - began offering full cataloging
o Currently 9000+ full records
o since June 2004 N. American cataloger on staff

Full cataloging practices:

" Book in hand, original cataloging, use current AACR2 practice, full descriptors
" LC authority verification - searches LC authority files
" Assigns LC call #s
" Complete LCSH
" Constructs heading, unit title if needed
o Only 1 record for multivolume works, sets
" Using LC standards, unlike BNF and Electre.

Currently propose:
" All acquisitions records free of charge
" Full records on approval books: euro 5.50 each
" Full records on other titles: euro 12 each


Joachim Bartz, Casalini libri

Much of what he prepared was already covered by Dr. Panzera

" In response to customers' demands, Casalini libri offers 3 types of bib records:
o Basic (acquisitions - OCLC), not fully AACR2 compliant
o Enhanced (plus LC call# and LCSH) - since 2002
o LC Core level records - since Oct. 2005

" Why?
o High costs of cataloging (esp. from authority work)
o Wide spread of titles offered (20,000/yr in database)
o Average sale is low (less than 5)

" Economic expectations of Casalini and LC:
o To secure income to sustain service
o High contribution to cost from LC
o Reduced #s of books cataloged
o 10 major libraries participate
o OCLC contribution to cost this year.

" Do libraries actually want this service?
o Need more participants to sustain service, need early commitment (spring 2006)
o Capacity exists to increase # of titles cataloged
o What level/kind of cataloging do libraries require?
o Income requirements - library community needs to figure out how much and who is willing to pay.

Oscar Puvill - Puvill Libros
" US MARC records
" Agreements with LC and OCLC to supply database
" 30-35,000 records/year.
" Staff trained by LC in 1994
" Have provided shelf-ready materials to Spanish libraries since 2001
o biggest source of growth for company
" Cataloging
o Can be done online or library can downloaded using Z39.50
o Need library's standards
o Potential for full-cataloging

Discussion:
(didn't catch names of all participants)

Katia Radics, UCLA
" cooperative nature of cataloging - still working
" economics/business model - not working - reason for change
" Is there a possible economic model where cooperatively libraries pay less for cataloging provided by vendors? Can this be sustained?
" Reply by Panzera: LC's response is to include non-library participants (vendors) in cooperative cataloging process

Harvard College cataloger
" Cost of authority work
" As user behavior changing, libraries asking about changing access points - more access pts, keywords
" Mentioned Jan 2006 California report - recommendation to discontinue uniform subject headings, continue authorities for names, series.

Catherine Tierney, Stanford University
" Technical services understand that economic model unsustainable as is. Looking for a new system.
" SUL can pay vendors for good record, immediate record - TS interest to make the system affordable
" Now many records in our catalogs not full.

Jane Maddox, Aux Am
" Records itself not main cataloging cost
" Cost is rather the lack of use of the book, staff costs for searching, creating need to maintain standards. Record can be just as good if provided by vendors
" Question is to get the record immediately into the system.

Dr. Panzera
" Central cataloging approach is no longer sustainable
" Need greater participation in new system for lower cost per item for libraries
" How helpful/necessary is the series in deriving access? General agreement that it is very important

Jeffy Larsen
" Role of national utilities in sharing of cataloging costs -
" Why not put pressure on the utilities?

Charlene Kellsey, U of Colorado, Boulder
" In US, fewer and fewer catalogers, especially with language skills
" Need help from vendors for cataloging to make titles accessible

3. General Announcements
" Jeffry Larsen - searching for a successor as RRE editor
" WESS newsletter - deadline in early spring




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