We covered 4 questions/learning objectives, and I'm going to lay them out here:
1. What's the issue with regular links? The issue is that regular old links identify locations, but not the actual item. The problem is that locations of information change and they may move servers, which breaks the link. So, it looks like we need a solution...
2. What does the term "local control" mean and why is it important? This is in relation to OpenURL and DOIs, which I will explain in just a minute. Local control is important because it gives the library (the agency that PAYS for subscriptions and access) to control where a link takes the user. A library maintains its own link resolver server - they want to point patrons to the library's purchased resources, NOT the publisher's website, where the user will be prompted for a credit card number before proceeding.
3. What is a "handle system?" A handle system is an index that will track the location of a certain item. If the location changes, it's updated in an index. When the user clicks on a link (or item), their "request" will run through an index, and will then be directed to the properly updated location of what they're looking for. Some URLs will actually contain the word "handle" in it.
4. DOI, OpenURL - what is the difference?
All of these fit under the "handle system" umbrella.
DOIs (pronounced like Dewey): made up of a prefix and a suffix (refers to the publisher and the item number) is an identifier assigned to an object by the publisher. They determine if this goes to the title level, chapter level, or I suppose, even the page level. They will always point back to the publisher page, so it's hard to have local control with this type of identifier. They're great for citations because they point to the authoritative resource.
OpenURL: the library's personal link resolver identifier. This will point to resources only the library subscribes to or their ILL page. Many publishers will also assign an OpenURL to a resource because they are often used with link resolver software, like SFX. These are often much longer and have detailed information like author's last name, page numbers, etc.
Reading notes on Friday's material:
This is a slight shift from DOI's and OpenURLs over to some readings on eBooks:
"Comparison Points and Decision Points" (outlines vendors for audiobooks)
One of the biggest points made about all e-book formats is that the user does not want to fiddle with technology or feel like they have to learn it. The user wants to listen to or read their good book, not figure out how to make it work. In this article, we look at 4 different audiobook vendors: Audible, NetLibrary, OverDrive, Tumble, and Playaway. The author addresses size and quality of a library's ebook collection as an important factor, especially since digital audiobook collections are currently not very large. Audible currently boasts the largest collection of over 14,100 books. This may also lead to overlapping and duplicates within a vendors collection. While this may not always seem efficient, it also gives the user a choice when selecting a version, voice, and allows them to compare prices.
I found that just like regular libraries, audiobook vendors have to advertise their new Purchase Orders (specific listeners may want more books from their favorite author) and continually bring in new materials. Additionally, content is also occasionally removed from collections.
The author mentions that content should be arranged according to the age of the content: "One simple three-way method of slicing up a collection is into frontlist, backlist, and public-domain titles..." (17) (recently published, older but still protected by copyright, works that are out of copyright and into the public domain). Peters continues on to analyze ebook collections by:
- subject and genre strengths: publisher supplied genres and subject headings may result in a different form of categorization.
- content characteristics: this may include abridged vs. unabridged
- narrators: with human narrated audiobooks, many listeners may have developed a preference for a favorite voice. They are typically narrated by actors/personalities; authors; and professional narrators.
- sound and quality: not usual a big deal because repeated use does not damage the sound.
- languages other than English: it's important for a vendor to have works in other languages (Spanish, French, German, Italian, etc).
- purchase and lease options: vendors may offer a purchase plan or a lease plan, and some libraries like to have the ability to swap out underperforming titles
- cost component: different for each vendor, library must consider what will work best for their budget
- licensing and agreement terms
- key features and accessibility issues
- a few features that a library should consider are: placeholding, bookmarking, skip back, sampling, nonlinear navigation
I didn't list all of the key points librarians should consider, but managing and selecting an ebook vendor will be a major task for an ER librarian!
"An Overview of Digital Audiobooks for Libraries"
This article, also written by Peters breaks down the major services of Audible, OverDrive, NetLibrary, and TumbleTalkingBooks into 6 categories and provides their recommendation:
1. Usage model: all are either single user or concurrent users
2. file format: MP3; Windows Media Audio; Flash
3. number of sound qualities: 4; 1; 2
4. supported devices: various vendors support many devices (as long as they are file format compliant)
5. ownership or subscription: Tumble has the best pricing model (subscribe: select and swap)
6. size of collection: ranges from 100 titles (Tumble) to 23,000 titles (Audible)
The moral of this article: each vendor comes with its pros and cons and no two vendors are alike. It really comes down to what your library needs and which vendor has the most to offer.
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