UL2003: Incorporate Electronic Resources

Arizona State University Libraries
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Initiative Area II: Incorporate Electronic Resources

Goal A: Maximize the Value of the Libraries' Electronic Collections to our Customers

Strategy 1: Delineate a marketing/public relations program

Delineate a marketing/public relations program that will announce, publicize, and favorably position the Libraries' electronic products and services within the ASU community. Communicate this plan to the Libraries.

Strategy 2: Implement plan

Immediately begin public implementation of the above plan. Create and announce SMART goals. Announce owners and deadlines. Time: First phase of implementation, August, 1999.

Strategy 3: Improve existing tools

Continuously improve existing tools and create any new tools that will provide simple and direct access to electronic products, including full text journals. All tools must be user friendly and user based.

Strategy 4: Establish timely procedures to manage e-resources

Establish timely procedures to manage e-resources: selection, licensing, acquisition, providing access and ongoing maintenance. These procedures should allow for effective communication with internal and external customers.

Strategy 5: Investigate the value added electronic services of current vendors

Investigate the value added electronic services of current vendors, including serial vendors, available and suitable for the main libraries of Arizona State University. These added value services, that include (but are not limited to) article level linking with major indexing and abstracting services, seamless order record transition, electronic claiming, and licensing facilitation, will maximize the value of the Libraries' electronic collections to our customers by incorporating electronic resources into the Libraries' catalogs, records, and routines. This group will recommend to the Dean of Libraries a vendor (or vendors) that provides the best serial management system with these value added electronic components.

Goal B: Statistics/Evaluation

Compile accurate use statistics of the Libraries' electronic resources. Create a quarterly report for the Libraries listing each database or e-journal title, platform, dollars spent on product, status of continuing/non-continuing, customer use, customer turndown, and any other appropriate information regarding customer use of electronic resources. Statistics must be compatible with ARL reporting and comprehensive to enable the Libraries to make appropriate selection/retention decisions.

Goal C: Authentication

Electronic resource vendors typically utilize simplistic methods for authenticating users: IP Address/URL filtering; and/or username/password submission. For public institutions--and especially university libraries--neither of these methods is satisfactory. When using username and password authentication, it is inadvisable and impractical to give out user ids and passwords to all our patrons, so they must be handled by a library system after a patron has been authenticated. IP filtering works only when you know in advance all the IPs that need to access the electronic resources; which is often not the case in the academic environment. Here, students and faculty often utilize Internet Service Providers that randomly assign IP addresses from one session to the next, and these ASU affiliates frequently attempt to access our resources from anywhere in the world.

Authentication problems can be ameliorated by the use of an authentication mechanism that fits between the user's client and the vendor's server. This is a University-wide issue, although ASU has dealt with only a small part of the problem. The ASU I.T. department does have mechanisms in place to authenticate and authorize users--for access to I.T. resources on I.T. servers--but they cannot be used to authenticate library patrons, accessing remote electronic resources. All of the I.T. authentication systems currently in production have prohibitive limitations, either because the Libraries does not have access to these systems, or because they require extensive additional hardware and software (on servers and client workstations), or because the patron's identifying information is not available in an appropriate database.

To solve this problem, the ASU Libraries must create its own authentication system. While this is not a problem unique to the ASU Libraries, it is a problem that has not turnkey solution. Throughout the country, libraries are struggling with this problem, and attempting to create customized solutions. When the University catches up to the Libraries in this area, our system will be superceded by the ASU-level system. In the meantime, we require a secure system that can be used to authenticate valid users attempting to access electronic resources from vendors, utilizing both IP filtering and user id/password authentication.

Goal D: Digitization

SMG, the Special Materials Group, was established in 1997 by the Head of Preservation to be a forum to identify and address the conservation needs of UL departments which had major holdings that were in one way or another special, either by content, format, archival or artifactual. Membership departments were: Architecture and Environmental Design Library, Department of Archives and Manuscripts, Government Documents and Maps Department, Music Library and Special Collections Department.

In 1997, DAM took the initiative to use scanning technology as a means of providing fast and inexpensive photoduplication services for their processed/indexed photo collections. The lessons learned led to the development of a structure within SMG to explore this technology for other projects. LIST and Original Cataloging and Special Languages became partners at this point. A set of criteria for project submission was developed, evaluation system devised, review committee established, the Scanning Review Team. Four projects were selected and submitted to the Dean for approval. Personnel and equipment were added to LIST. LIST created a web site for SMG containing pertinent documentation on approved projects for year one in 12/1998. With year one projects well underway, SMG departments submitted year two project proposals by 2/15/1999.

Strategy 1: Create sustainable structure for utilizing scanning technology

Create sustainable structure for utilizing scanning technology as a means to facilitate and/or enhance access and preserve library collections.

Strategy 2: Enable users to locate, examine and duplicate scanned images

Enable users to locate, examine and duplicate scanned images through ASU's Online System.

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Page Compiled by: Anne M. Platoff
2000; Last Updated: July 28, 2000
URL: http://www.asu.edu/lib/library/ulsp/ul2003/eresources.htm