Form and Genre Access to Academic Library Digital Collections
TL;DR: The goals were to reveal possibilities for improving East Carolina University’s digital collections website, and to stimulate discussion in the metadata community about best practices in form/genre access for library digital collections.
Abstract: This paper provides an examination of how digital collections in academic libraries provide user access to items by form and/or genre. A review of the literature reveals that this is not an area th...
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01 Jan 2007
TL;DR: Provides a progress report on the current project to produce a new English-language cataloguing code called Resource Description and Access that will replace Anglo American Cataloguing Rules (2nd ed.).
Abstract: Provides a progress report on the current project to produce a new English-language cataloguing code called Resource Description and Access that will replace Anglo American Cataloguing Rules (2nd ed.). RDA is scheduled for final publication in 2009.
Part of the "Beyond Limits : Building Open Access Collections" Preconference sessions of the 2007 British Columbia Library Association Conference entitled "Beyond 20/20 : Envisioning the Future".
18 citations
01 Jan 2021
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present the collections of the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism of the University of Sao Paulo (FAUUSP) and describe the implementation of an online interface for those collections, developed with the Omeka S platform for sharing and collaborating with organized and structured data and information.
Abstract: portuguesO artigo tem por objetivo apresentar as colecoes da Faculdade de Arquitetura e Urbanismo da Universidade de Sao Paulo e descreve o processo de implementacao de uma interface online voltado para sua difusao, desenvolvido com a plataforma Omeka S, a partir do qual se pode fazer o compartilhamento e a colaboracao na organizacao dos dados e das informacoes organizadas e estruturadas. Como parte da discussao, resume o momento historico em que se discute a importância dos arquivos e colecoes de design e arquitetura, levantando a historia do catalogo da instituicao e cobrindo questoes que envolvem sua divulgacao online. Apresenta tambem um topico especial de metadados, especificamente o Dublin Core, padrao adotado pela FAUUSP. Os resultados sao discutidos e as perspectivas para a continuidade da plataforma tambem sao comentadas. EnglishThis article aims to present the collections of the Faculty of Architecture and Urbanism of the University of Sao Paulo (FAUUSP) and describes the implementation of an online interface for those collections, developed with the Omeka S platform for sharing and collaborating with organized and structured data and information. As part of the discussion, it summarizes the historical moment in which the importance of the design and architecture archives and collections is debated, discussing the history of the institution’s catalogue and covering issues involving their online dissemination. It also presents a special metadata topic, specifically Dublin Core, which is the standard adopted by FAUUSP. Results are discussed and perspectives for the continuity of the platform are also commented on.
TL;DR: A quantitative analysis of the LCGFT vocabulary within a large set of MARC bibliographic data retrieved from the OCLC WorldCat database suggests that retrospective application of the vocabulary using automated means should be investigated by catalogers and other technical services librarians.
Abstract: The purpose of this paper is to report on a quantitative analysis of the LCGFT vocabulary within a large set of MARC bibliographic data retrieved from the OCLC WorldCat database. The study aimed to provide a detailed analysis of the outcomes of the LCGFT project, which was launched by the Library of Congress (LC) in 2007. Findings point to a moderate increase in LCGFT use over time; however, the vocabulary has not been applied to the fullest extent possible in WorldCat. Further, adoption has been inconsistent between the various LCGFT disciplines. These and other findings discussed here suggest that retrospective application of the vocabulary using automated means should be investigated by catalogers and other technical services librarians. Indeed, as the data used for the analysis show somewhat uneven application of LCGFT, and with nearly half a billion records in WorldCat, it remains a certainty that much of LCGFT’s full potentials for genre/form access and retrieval will remain untapped until innovative solutions are introduced to further increase overall vocabulary usage in bibliographic databases.
TL;DR: In this paper , a team from the University of South Florida undertook the task of migrating over 65,000 digital objects across platforms into a newly consolidated institutional repository comprised of both digital scholarship and collections from multiple campuses.
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14 Jan 2008
TL;DR: This article describes the work of the IFB Chaos Committee, including a summary of its major findings, and recommends the use of the term Created for the creation date of the resource.
Abstract: ="This article describes the work of the IFB Chaos Committee, including a summary of its major findings." Refinement(s) for element: Date Date refinements are generally useful in situations where more than one date is needed, and the difference between the dates may be important to users. Note that the first five Date refinement terms were among the earlier ones approved by DCMI, and the naming convention of the time was not to include "date" as part of the refined term. The most recent ones reflect changes in the naming convention used, in which the name of the refined term expresses more clearly the relationship to the parent element. When using date refinements it can be unwise to insert a text string that repeats the distinction created by the refinement itself. For instance, the string "Valid 20010211" in a statement where the refinement "valid" is used might show up in a labelled display as: VALID: Valid 20010211. Created Label: Created Term description: Date of creation of the resource. Guidelines for creation of content: If the date of creation of the resource is known, and that date is important to note specifically (e.g., there are other relevant dates to record), use the term Created for the creation date of the resource. Note that the "one-to-one" rule requires that the creation date be that of the resource being described, not any early version from which the current resource is derived. Valid Label: Valid Term description: Date (often a range) of validity of a resource. Guidelines for creation of content: If the resource is only valid or relevant for a particular date or range of dates, the term Valid may be used to express those dates. This may be particularly important if the resource will be retained over time but its use is valid only during a particular period or until a particular date. Available Label: Available Term description: Date (often a range) that the resource will become or did become available. Guidelines for creation of content: In general, the term Available should be used in the case of a resource for which the date of availability may be distinct from the date of creation, and the date of availability is relevant to the use of the resource. Issued
118 citations
TL;DR: The paper provides a framework that organizes the range of research about genres of digital documents, as well as the use of genre as a lens for understanding communications in organizations, to be helpful to those reading this research or planning their own studies.
Abstract: Purpose
– To introduce the special issue on “Genres of digital documents.” While there are many definitions of genre, most include consideration of the intended communicative purpose, form and sometimes expected content of a document. Most also include the notion of social acceptance, that a document is of a particular genre to the extent that it is recognized as such within a given discourse community.
Design/methodology/approach
– The article reviews the notion of document genre and its applicability to studies of digital documents and introduces the four articles in the special issue.
Findings
– Genre can be studied based on intrinsic genre attributes or on the extrinsic function that genre fulfills in human activities. Studies on intrinsic attributes include classifications of genres as clusters of attributes, though these classifications can be problematic because documents can be used in flexible ways. Also, new information technologies have enabled the appearance of novel genres. Studies on extrinsic function include ways to use genre for education or information accesses, as well as the use of genre as a lens for understanding communications in organizations. The four articles in the special issue illustrate these approaches.
Originality/value
– The paper provides a framework that organizes the range of research about genres of digital documents that should be helpful to those reading this research or planning their own studies.
77 citations
"Form and Genre Access to Academic L..." refers background in this paper
...Digital collections are often populated by a variety of items that would not typically be described in a traditional library catalog at such a level of granularity, such as one letter or one photograph (Kwasnik & Crowston, 2005, p. 80)....
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Journal Article•
TL;DR: A research protocol is outlined that would provide guidance for identifying Web document genres, for observing how genre is used in searching and evaluating search results, and finally for representing and visualizing genres.
Abstract: We discuss the issues of resolving the information-retrieval problem in large digital collections through the identification and use of document genres. Explicit identification of genre seems particularly important for such collections because any search usually retrieves documents with a diversity of genres that are undifferentiated by obvious clues as to their identity. Also, because most genres are characterized by both form and purpose, identifying the genre of a document provides information as to the document’s purpose and its fit to the user’s situation, which can be otherwise difficult to assess. We begin by outlining the possible role of genre identification in the information-retrieval process. Our assumption is that genre identification would enhance searching, first because we know that topic alone is not enough to define an information problem and, second, because search results containing genre information would be more easily understandable. Next, we discuss how information professionals have traditionally tackled the issues of representing genre in settings where topical representation is the norm. Finally, we address the issues of studying the efficacy of identifying genre in large digital collections. Because genre is often an implicit notion, studying it in a systematic way presents many problems. We outline a research protocol that would provide guidance for identifying Web document genres, for observing how genre is used in searching and evaluating search results, and finally for representing and visualizing genres.
62 citations
"Form and Genre Access to Academic L..." refers background in this paper
...Unlike some other metadata elements, form and genre are “implicit,” meaning that they are elements that someone needs to supply (Crowston & Kwasnik, 2003, p. 345)....
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...Crowston and Kwasnik (2003) paper “Can Document-genre Metadata Improve Information Access to Large Digital Collections?” answers this question in the affirmative by arguing that form/genre information adds useful context and purpose to documents, but acknowledges that it is not often implemented in…...
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...Genre incorporates “both form and purpose” (Crowston & Kwasnik, 2003, p. 345)....
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...While library catalogs have traditionally been more likely to exploit subject metadata than form/genre metadata, “topic alone is not enough to define an information problem” (Crowston & Kwasnik, 2003, p. 348)....
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50 citations
Journal Article•
TL;DR: This paper explores cataloging in the Age of Google and asks readers to consider if the detailed attention librarians have been paying to descriptive cataloging can still be justified, and if cost-effective means for access should be considered.
Abstract: This paper explores cataloging in the Age of Google. It considers what the technologies now being adopted mean for cataloging in the future. The author begins by exploring how digital-era students do research--they find using Google easier than using libraries. Mass digitization projects now are bringing into question the role that library cataloging has traditionally performed. The author asks readers to consider if the detailed attention librarians have been paying to descriptive cataloging can still be justified, and if cost-effective means for access should be considered. ********** My career in librarianship has included work in cataloging, which I have always understood to be a major part of library functioning. But I did not fully realize how major until I made a discovery when I became associate librarian of the Library of Congress. The discovery was--financial the Library of Congress is investing in cataloging at the rate of $44 million a year! You can well appreciate that a cost of that magnitude really got my attention. If such an expenditure produces great benefits for the Library of Congress, libraries across the country, and others around the world, then we can justifiably argue that the $44 million is well spent. But in the age of digital information, Internet access, and electronic key word searching, just how much do we need to continue to spend on carefully constructed catalogs? That is the question I have come here this evening to pose--how should we think about cataloging in the Age of Google? I have not come to say that we no longer need the cataloger-produced bibliographic entry. I recognize that my own institution, the Library of Congress, created the bibliographic structure that is used by nearly every library in this country and by many around the world. Before starting any revolution against that structure, I want to take care to consider the potential consequences. But I have many questions about cataloging, and I believe we must face them together and begin answering collectively. I therefore welcome the invitation to speak here as an opportunity to begin that discussion. I need your advice, your judgment, and that of others in the library and research communities to consider what the technologies that all of us are now adopting mean for cataloging in the future. I ask you to think of this evening as the first step in a longer exploration of a difficult issue. Using the Library versus Googling Let me begin with a practical demonstration of the question's importance--an example of how digital-era students work. Let us suppose that you are a librarian at a small college near the middle of the continental United States. Let us even suppose that yours is the library whose Web site I recently picked at random to see what digital resources it was offering. I am pleased to tell you that I was impressed. In addition to an electronically searchable catalog of your own physical holdings, I found that you offer fourteen EBSCOHost online databases, thirteen online databases from OCLC FirstSearch, eleven InfoTrac online databases, five Lexis Nexis online databases, three Proquest online databases, and at least nine other online resources, including encyclopedias, dictionaries, electronic books, and materials for research on current issues. Consequently, users of your library have online access to literally hundreds of scholarly journals and other resources on all kinds of topics in a wide range of academic fields. Now let us suppose that I am one of your college's students with a term paper coming due. Let us also suppose that I have been assigned to write about the foreign policy of President Fillmore. In the old days, I might have walked to your library, looked in an encyclopedia there for "Fillmore," searched your paper card catalog to identify books on Fillmore, located these books by call number on a shelf, and looked through their tables of contents and maybe indexes to find what they contained on foreign policy. …
49 citations
"Form and Genre Access to Academic L..." refers background in this paper
...(Marcum, 2006), however the full text is not standardized and controlled the way metadata is....
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...Some have questioned the continued value of metadata in the digital age when full text is indexed and available (Marcum, 2006), however the full text is not standardized and controlled the way metadata is....
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