PUBLIC LIBRARIES: NEW OPPORTUNITIES IN TIMES OF CHANGE

Marshall BreedingIndependent Consult, Author, Founder and Publisher, Library Technology Guideshttp://www.librarytechnology.org/http://twitter.com/mbreeding

08 March 2013 PLWA 2013 Biennial Conference

Summary

Public libraries face many challenges in the ways they serve their communities in these times of great change in society and technology.  Interest in e-books has taken off, presenting enormous opportunities—if libraries can navigate through all the obstacles—to deliver lending services that delight their customers.  Finding new ways to foster engagement with their communities stands as a paramount concern.   Libraries have a growing set of options to bring in the character of social networks into their sphere.  Most importantly, libraries can work to become a hub for their community, expanding beyond traditional methods of library service.  Marshall Breeding will present his view of the role of libraries in this critical time of change and some of the ways that libraries can improve their standing in their communities in the way that they shape their services and in their use of technology.

Library Technology Guides

www.librarytechnology.

org

Public Libraries in Australia

Public Libraries in Western Australia

Library Journal Automation Marketplace

Published annually in April 1 issue Based on data provided by each vendor Focused primarily on North America

Context of global library automation market

LJ Automation Marketplace

Annual Industry report published in Library Journal: 2012: Agents of Change 2011: New Frontier: battle intensifies to win hearts, minds

and tech dollars 2010: New Models, Core Systems 2009: Investing in the Future 2008: Opportunity out of turmoil 2007: An industry redefined 2006: Reshuffling the deck 2005: Gradual evolution 2004: Migration down, innovation up 2003: The competition heats up 2002: Capturing the migrating customer

Cloud Computing for Libraries

Volume 11 in The Tech Set

Published by Neal-Schuman / ALA TechSource

ISBN: 781555707859

http://www.neal-schuman.com/ccl

Book Image Publication Info:

Next-Gen Library Catalogs

Marshall BreedingNeal-Schuman PublishersMarch 2010

Volume 1 of The Tech Set

Appropriate Automation Infrastructure

Current automation products out of step with current realities

Centered on transactional support Proliferation of disconnected tech components Majority of automation efforts support print

activities Management of e-content continues with

inadequate supporting infrastructure Need better virtual presence that covers full

breadth of library collection and services Library users expect more engaging socially aware

interfaces for Web and mobile

Allocation of resources

Libraries need flexible technical infrastructure that responds to changing priorities

Collection funds devoted mostly to e-content

Allocation of technology infrastructure and personnel devoted mostly to management of print

Not hardwired to specific content media, workflows, or services

Technology to support all faces of public libraries

Physical Social / Community Digital

Reshaped collections

Monographs: transition to e-books underway Demand for e-book discovery and lending For academics, E-books now largely delivered

through database aggregations Digital collections: local libraries and cultural

organizations actively involved in digitizing unique materials

Journal content: mostly delivered electronically Media collections: LP, CD, DVD, Blu-Ray to

streaming Heritage print collections will remain indefinitely

Fulfillment activities

Print circulation Increasing Increasing reliance on self-service Direct consortial borrowing Interlibrary loan activity rising Increased pressure for resource sharing

Additional public library roles Beyond content fulfillment Centers of community engagement Technology access for the under-served Ready reference > in-depth research

support Improve Literacy, promote reading, etc Facilitating use of technology Stimulate creativity: Maker spaces

Public Library Issues

Greater concern for e-books and general article databases

Management: Need for consolidated approach that balances print, digital, and electronic workflows

Emphasis on technologies that engage users with library programs and services

Cumulative effect

Library collections more complex than ever

Library services move diverse Managing electronic and digital content

harder than managing print

Tech for Physical Libraries

Content stations: Catalog stations, e-book kiosks, specialized resources

Self-service (RFID) – increasingly duplicating LMS / Online catalog functionality

Digital signage and exhibits Computing: Wi-Fi – PCs – printing Multi-media tables Device Lending – increasingly self-service Anything to spark collaboration and

engagement

Social Computing

Web 2.0 as a separate activity often counter productive

Important to have social orientation built directly into the software and services that comprise library infrastructure

Avoid jettisoning patrons out of the library’s Web presence

Find ways to effectively connect with users, connect users to each other, and especially to connect users to library content and services

Key Context: Changed expectations in metadata management

Moving away from individual record-by-record creation Life cycle of metadata

Metadata follows the supply chain, improved and enhanced along the way as needed

Manage metadata in bulk when possible E-book collections

Highly shared metadata E-journal knowledge bases (KnowledgeWorks / 360 Core)

Great interest in moving toward semantic web and open linked data Very little progress in linked data for operational systems AACR2 > RDA MARC > RDF (recent announcement of Library of Congress)

Enterprise connectivity

Important to be interconnected with the technical infrastructure of related organizations: Council services, Campus,

UK: strong dynamic between local council business systems and that of the library service

Fundamental technology shift Mainframe computing Client/Server Cloud Computing

http://www.flickr.com/photos/carrick/61952845/

http://soacloudcomputing.blogspot.com/2008/10/cloud-computing.html

http://www.javaworld.com/javaworld/jw-10-2001/jw-1019-jxta.html

Mobile Computing

Cooperation and Resource sharing

Efforts on many fronts to cooperate and consolidate

Many regional consortia merging (Example: suburban Chicago systems)

State-wide or national implementations Software-as-a-service or “cloud” based

implementations Many libraries share computing

infrastructure and data resources

Illinois Heartland Library Consortium

LargestConsortiumin US by Number of Members

Strategic Cooperation

Shared infrastructure in support of strategic collaborative relationships

Opportunities to share infrastructure Examples:

2CUL Orbis Cascade Alliance

Opportunities to reconsider automation implementation strategies One library = 1 ILS? Ability to share infrastructure across organizational

boundaries?

Shared Infrastructure

Northern Ireland South Australia Denmark (tender process underway) Chile Iceland

Challenge: Disjointed approach to information and service delivery

Library Web sites offer a menu of unconnected silos: Books: Library OPAC (ILS online catalog module) Articles: Aggregated content products, e-journal

collections OpenURL linking services E-journal finding aids (Often managed by link resolver) Subject guides (e.g. Springshare LibGuides) Local digital collections

ETDs, photos, rich media collections Metasearch engines Discovery Services – often just another choice among

many All searched separately

Integrated service Delivery

A unified interface that takes full responsibility for customer experience

Avoids abrupt hand-offs Does not jettison customers away from

the library presence Inward vectors of engagement

Integrating e-Books into Library Automation Infrastructure

Current approach involves mostly outsourced arrangements

Collections licensed wholesale from single provider

Hand-off to DRM and delivery systems of providers

Loading of MARC records into local catalog with linking mechanisms

No ability to see availability status of e-books from the library’s online catalog or discovery interface

Online Catalog

Books, Journals, and Media at the Title Level

Not in scope: Articles Book Chapters Digital objects Web site content Etc.

Scope of SearchSearch:

Search Results

ILS Data

Public Library Information Portal

Search:

Digital Collections

Web Site ContentCommunit

yInformatio

n

…Customer-providedcontent

Reference Sources

Search Results

Pre-built harvesting and indexing

Conso

lidate

d In

dex

LMS Data

Aggregated Content packages

Archives

Usage-generate

dData

Customer

Profile

Discovery Products

http://www.librarytechnology.org/discovery.pl

Fragmented Library Management LMS for management of (mostly) print Duplicative financial systems between library and local

government or other parent organization E-book lending platform (multiple?) Interlibrary loan (borrowing and lending) Self-service and AMH infrastructure Electronic Resource Management PC Scheduling and print management Event scheduling Digital Collections Management platforms (CONTENTdm,

DigiTool, etc.) Discovery-layer services for broader access to library collections No effective integration services / interoperability among

disconnected systems, non-aligned metadata schemes

Library management systems Traditionally focus on circulation,

cataloging, and acquisitions Neglect patron-facing services New generation needs to operate as:

Customer relationship management Enterprise Resource Management Collection management Patron discovery and service fulfillment

Automation priorities

Current LMS model focuses on technical services

Discovery interfaces and catalog address patron self-service

General absence of customer relationship management How can new generations of technology

infrastructure provide tools to facilitate research support, reference, and other public services

Need to generate performance metrics for these critical library services

Comprehensive Resource Management

No longer sensible to use different software platforms for managing different types of library materials

ILS + ERM + OpenURL Resolver + Digital Asset management, etc. very inefficient model

Flexible platform capable of managing multiple type of library materials, multiple metadata formats, with appropriate workflows

Open Systems

Achieving openness has risen as the key driver behind library technology strategies

Libraries need to do more with their data Ability to improve customer experience and

operational efficiencies Demand for Interoperability Open source – full access to internal

program of the application Open API’s – expose programmatic

interfaces to data and functionality

Libraries need a new model of library automation

Not an Integrated Library System or Library Management System

The ILS/LMS was designed to help libraries manage print collections

Generally did not evolve to manage electronic collections

Other library automation products evolved: Electronic Resource Management Systems –

OpenURL Link Resolvers – Digital Library Management Systems -- Institutional Repositories

Library Services Platform

Library-specific software. Designed to help libraries automate their internal operations, manage collections, fulfill requests, and deliver services

Services Service oriented architecture Exposes Web services and other API’s Facilitates the services libraries offer to their users

Platform General infrastructure for library automation Consistent with the concept of Platform as a Service Library programmers address the APIs of the platform to

extend functionality, create connections with other systems, dynamically interact with data

Library Services Platform Characteristics

Highly Shared data models Knowledgebase architecture Some may take hybrid approach to accommodate

local data stores Delivered through software as a service

Multi-tenant Unified workflows across formats and media Flexible metadata management

MARC – Dublin Core – VRA – MODS – ONIX New structures not yet invented

Open APIs for extensibility and interoperability

Con

solid

ate

d in

dex

Unified Presentation LayerSearch:

Digital Coll

ProQuest

EBSCO…

JSTOR

Other Resource

s

New Library Management Model

`

API Layer

Library Services Platform

LearningManageme

nt

LearningManageme

nt

Enterprise ResourcePlanning

Enterprise ResourcePlanning

StockManagement

StockManagement

Self-Check /

Automated Return

Self-Check /

Automated Return

Authentication

Service

Authentication

Service

Smart Cad /

Payment systems

Smart Cad /

Payment systems

Discovery

Service

Reassess expectations of Technology

Many previous assumptions no longer apply

Technology platforms scale infinitely No technical limits on how libraries share

technical infrastructure Cloud technologies enable new ways of

sharing metadata Build flexible systems not hardwired to

any given set of workflows

Reassess workflow and organizational options

ILS model shaped library organizations New Library Services Platforms may

enable new ways to organize how resource management and service delivery are performed

New technologies more able to support strategic priorities and initiatives

Time to engage

Transition to new technology models just underway

More transformative development than in previous phases of library automation

Opportunities to partner and collaborate Vendors want to create systems with long-

term value Question previously held assumptions

regarding the shape of technology infrastructure and services

Provide leadership in defining expectations