This article discusses the construction of Qatari heritage in the context of pre-conceived ideas of ‘cultural heritage’ predominant in the global and regional spheres that operate in this country. It considers the location of Qatar within Middle Eastern heritage discourses and debates, and identifies productive similarities as well as unique avenues for further discussion. The authors identify the challenge of formulating methodologies that are able to recognize, accommodate, encompass and reflect local heritage dialogues and practices that exist in Qatar, which may aid in further researching the wider Arabian Peninsula, its histories and heritages.

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‘There is no heritage in Qatar’: Orientalism, colonialism and other problematic histories

In this article, I examine the growing influence of nongovernmental organizations and the changing role of the state in cultural heritage policy. These processes rely on an accelerated transnational circulation of policy ideas grounded in a notion of culture as development and participation. In the occupied West Bank, several local but internationally funded organizations work to preserve the historic built environment, supplanting the heritage agency of a beleaguered, nonsovereign Palestinian Authority. In Italy, the government itself has disempowered its own heritage agency. Neoliberal cultural policy discourse has inspired legislative reform that has left the Italian heritage management severely underfunded. In both Italy and Palestine, the lack of state involvement has given nonstate actors increasing responsibility for heritage and blurred the boundary between the state and these nonstate entities. Contrasting colonial and noncolonial contexts, I show how quasi-colonial conditions of fragmentation and forms of state failure are spreading under neoliberal globalization. I argue that the current rearticulation of the discourse of heritage and cultural policy is intertwined with a general transformation whereby the contours of the state are increasingly frayed and its functions disassembled across a broad terrain.

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Heritage beyond the Nation-State?: Nongovernmental Organizations, Changing Cultural Policies, and the Discourse of Heritage as Development

Next Generation Discovery

The process of information- and inspiration-seeking behaviour amongst artists and designers often involve direct observation, note-taking, collecting materials and image samples, recognising styles, analysing movements, patterns, textures, as well as experimenting with different materials and techniques. They also rely heavily on having access to a variety of visual resources, both physical and digital, during the process of inspiration-seeking. However, there have been few studies on how art and design students look for and use information in the digital age, especially in the context of the library. This paper reports on an empirical study of the inspiration-seeking process and other information-related behaviour of students at the Hong Kong Design Institute (HKDI). An online questionnaire was created to ask the HKDI students specific questions: the types of library preferred; students' comfort level with the HKDI Library; student respondents' information needs; and their preferred sources for inspirati...

Information for Inspiration: Understanding Information-Seeking Behaviour and Library Usage of Students at the Hong Kong Design Institute

Application of adaptive boosting (AdaBoost) in demand-driven acquisition (DDA) prediction: A machine-learning approach

In January 2012, Kent State University Libraries implemented a six-month pilot project for a Demand-Driven Acquisitions (DDA) ebook purchasing model that uses a combination of the acquisition services provided by the primary book jobber (YBP) and the access services provided by a well-known ebook distributer (eBrary). Using the book jobber mediated DDA model provided the library with selected discovery records that closely matched specifications of the library's print approval plan. This report provides an assessment of the DDA acquisition model as compared to that of the print books approval model in terms of budget, costs, workflow, subjects, publishers, and publication dates. Because DDA empowers library users to choose which ebooks are purchased based on actual use, this assessment also compares ebook usage from a DDA discovery pool with print book circulation of an equivalent amount of recent print acquisitions. The results of this study will help answer some of the key questions about the DDA acquis...

A Comparative Study of Print Book and DDA Ebook Acquisition and Use

Ebook ROI: A Longitudinal Study of Patron-Driven Acquisition Models

In 2012, Kent State University Libraries implemented a pilot project for a Demand Driven Acquisitions (DDA) ebook purchasing model that used a combination of the acquisition services provided by the primary book jobber (YBP) and the access services provided by an ebook distributer (eBrary). Using the book jobber mediated DDA model provided the library with selected discovery records that closely matched specifications of the library's print approval plan. New discovery records were added to the catalog each week as new DDA eligible ebooks became available. In this article the author provides an overview of the pilot project with an emphasis on the technical services aspects, implementation, and implications for a sustainable acquisitions model.

Technical Services Workflow for Book Jobber-Mediated Demand Driven ebook Acquisitions

Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) has been commonly adopted by academic libraries in the United States for acquiring e-books in recent years. Implementation of the e-book DDA model varies by library. This paper introduces and demonstrates a scenario analysis approach for libraries to evaluate, identify, and select a DDA plan that works best for them based on their DDA program data. This approach helps address some key questions facing libraries with a DDA e-book program: How may a DDA program be evaluated under different scenarios? Does a short-term loan (STL) option make sense? And, is the current DDA implementation a good fit for the library? The implications and related issues are discussed.

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Notes on Operations: A Scenario Analysis of Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) of E-Books in Libraries

Patron-Driven Acquisitions (PDA) is a new model used for e-book acquisition by academic libraries. A key component of this model is to make records of e-books available in a library catalog and let actual patron usage decide whether or not an item is purchased. However, there has been a lack of research examining the role of the library catalog as a tool for e-book discovery and use in PDA. This paper presents a case study of using PDA for e-book acquisition in an academic library, with a focus on the role of the library catalog in this purchasing model. The implications and challenges are also discussed.

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Kay Downey

Papers

A Comparative Study of Print Book and DDA Ebook Acquisition and Use

Ebook ROI: A Longitudinal Study of Patron-Driven Acquisition Models

Technical Services Workflow for Book Jobber-Mediated Demand Driven ebook Acquisitions

Notes on Operations: A Scenario Analysis of Demand-Driven Acquisition (DDA) of E-Books in Libraries

Library Catalog Log Analysis in E-book Patron-Driven Acquisitions (PDA): A Case Study