The LITA Legislation and Regulation Committee is charged with keeping LITA members informed about legislative and regulatory issues in telecommunications and information technology that impact our libraries. The LITA Blog is the vehicle we have chosen to accomplish this. The Legislation and Regulation category will not duplicate the ALA Washington Office District Dispatch, but will include selected postings from that publication. We will also provide news from her sources such as the Electronic Freedom Foundation and EDUCAUSE. We encourage LITA members to set up a feed for the Legislation and Regulation category to keep current on these issues. And if you can suggest other resources, please let us know.
Category: Committees and Interest Groups
Using Metadata Standards in Digital Libraries presentations
At the Annual 2007 American Library Association conference in Washington in June, the LITA Standards Interest Group sponsored a program entitled “Using Metadata Standards in Digital Libraries: implementing METS, MODS, PREMIS and MIX”. This session explored how libraries are using emerging standards to manage and provide navigation for digital library objects and featured the following: Rebecca Guenther, Library of Congress: Using Metadata Standards in Digital Libraries: Introduction to METS, MODS, PREMIS and MIX Morgan Cundiff, Library of Congress: Using and to Create XML Standards-based Digital Library Applications Nathan Trail, Library of Congress: How to Build, Display and Find METS Objects Brian Tingle, California Digital Library: Use of METS in CDL Digital Special Collections Sarah Shreeves, University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign: Creating Rich Shareable Metadata: the DLF Aquifer MODS implementation guidelines Tom Habing, University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign: METS, MODS and PREMIS, Oh My!: Integrating Digital Library Standards for Interoperability and Preservation Tod…
LITA Education Committee
The Education Committee met for the last time before merging with the Regional Institutes Committee to become the new (ta-da) Eduation Committee. Susan Logue, as LITA board liaison, reported on the board meeting and shared information about the board’s assignments and expectations for the newly merged committee. Included in the charge for the new committee are these points: Create 3-5 short online events Create liaisons to LITA interest groups for ideas Create an education committee wiki and supply editor for it from the committee members Create and maintain list of tools for educational initiatives Monitor delivery of 2 institutional repositories’ offerings including an evaluation tool Goal for the committee is to have two new courses per year Discussion by all members present centered on how to fulfill these assignments, whether it was possible to do so by a volunteer committee, and where to begin. The committee agreed on the need…
Lita ERM Interest Group
Ted Koppel raised some compelling issues during his discussions on Ebooks at the ERM Interest Group last week at ALA. In this entry ERM refers to OpenURL, A-Z list and the subscriptions module of this software. ERM software works fairly well with journal content and I believe that library online journal collections have become far more accessible with OpenURL, but how do we use our ERM systems to make Ebook content more accessible? Koppel’s discussion raised several good questions about Ebooks and ERM. There are several management issues with Ebooks. Who supplies the cataloging/meta data? Does it come from the vendor who sells you the Ebook? How granular should the management be? Should there be restrictions at the chapter level or book level? Does the type of content determine who and what can be accessed? For example, users may only be able to access chapters for a particular text or…
Public Library Technology Interest Group: Small Mid Sized Libraries Facing Tech Challenges (Discussion Q&A)
Scott Reinhart, Associate Director of Operations and Bob Kuntz (IT Manager) from Carroll County Public Library discussed the challenges a small rural library faces as it begins to provide various technologies for its’ patrons and staff. Carol County Public Library is located in a rural area in Maryland. The total population is 163,207. A supportive director enabled many of the improvements. The library participates in a consortium with other systems such as the Health and Mental Health Hospitals. The library serves as an Internet provider (for pay) for general public. Only dial-up service is provided. WIFI is also offered to the public. There are plans to go to fiber optics in the future. The library’s ILS is Horizons and SAM is used for PC reservations. A discussion followed by attendees who also shared their various experiences and challenges with technology and libraries.
LITA Standards Interest Group program
At the Annual 2007 American Library Association conference in Washington in June, the LITA Standards Interest Group sponsored a program entitled “Using Metadata Standards in Digital Libraries: implementing METS, MODS, PREMIS and MIX”. This session explored how libraries are using emerging standards to manage and provide navigation for digital library objects and featured the following: * Rebecca Guenther, Library of Congress: Using Metadata Standards in Digital Libraries: Introduction to METS, MODS, PREMIS and MIX * Morgan Cundiff, Library of Congress: Using and to Create XML Standards-based Digital Library Applications * Nathan Trail, Library of Congress: How to Build, Display and Find METS Objects * Brian Tingle, California Digital Library: Use of METS in CDL Digital Special Collections * Sarah Shreeves, University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign: Creating Rich Shareable Metadata: the DLF Aquifer MODS implementation guidelines * Tom Habing, University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign: METS, MODS and PREMIS, Oh My!: Integrating Digital Library…
ERM and e-Books
Firday June 22, 2007 LITA ERM Interest Group did a managed discussion on e-books. Ted Koppel, Verde ERM Product Manager (ExLibris) gave the talk. (Note: Verde just starts working on e-books management system.) His function in this talk was basically asking questions and raising awareness on e-books management. Koppel suggested that we start thinking about e-books management now. Even though many libraries are just getting used to e-journals management and might still learning the ins and outs of the licensing management stuff, many of these libraries are already delivering e-books. Start thinking on usage scenarios such as use for e-learning, e-reserve, and e-books as e-textbooks. Other e-books scenario are possible: single use circulation, institutional repositories, archiving and preservation especially in the wake of the digitization projects from Google and other commercial companies. There are several functional areas that a library needs to consider, ask, or make decisions: Acquiring e-books commercially…
BIGWIG Business Meeting Notes, Annual 07
Jason Griffey, In-Coming Chair reports What is BIGWIG? A working IG interested in social and emerging technologies. We do our work and discussions virtually using all tools possible. We are not a simple discussion group. Our current structure is as follows: We have an incoming chair, two co-chairs, and an outgoing chair. One chair is always in movement up and down. This will give the group continuity needed for projects as there will always be a chair with experience in office. We also have a Technical Coordinator who does back end work on the blog and a Volunteer Coordinator who organizes blogging efforts for conferences. New positions possibly needed: election interviews coordinator podcast volunteer coordinator Do we want to be a formal committee now that we are doing more committee-like work? Action: Michelle Boule will post committee requirements to the listserv for discussion Michelle Boule, Co-Chair, reports Blog Update categories…
Membership Committee Meeting Sunday 8am – 10am
The Membership Committee was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed at 8am on Saturday morning. What more do you want? Able Chair Pat Ensor got through the two hour agenda with flexibility and grace. She brought news from ALA including discussions and evaluation of the re-branding of our Open House as LITA 101 and its inclusion in the general information for new conference attendees at the beginning of the conference program and in other promotional materials. The idea seems to have brought many new faces to the Open House on Saturday. Another ALA initiative includes ideas for recruiting students and Committee members will be scrutinizing the report on this idea, which includes developing LITA contacts on campuses with Library and Information Science Programs. The Committee discussed our possible connections with the newly formed Assessment and Research Committee, reviewed the Open House and discussed future plans, reviewed the Happy Hour and got a volunteer…
Notes from the LITA Standards IG meeting
Todd Carpenter, NISO’s new Managing Director (since September 2006) gave a talk about the new NISO organization that has evolved out of the recommendations from the 2005 “Blue Ribbon Panel” that reviewed the organization. He started by reiterating facts and perceptions about NISO — that it is the agency responsible for ANSI Z39 standards and the ANSI representative to the ISO TC46; that standards formation under NISO is a long, arduous process measured in years; that NISO has been reactive to situations within the community and has not been engaged in the incubation or early development of standardization efforts; and that it is focused on internal communities (libraries) rather than engagement with other groups and industries with similar needs to libraries. NISO status As a snapshot of what it is now, Todd said that NISO has 3 full-time professional staff, a dozen or so consultants and partners that make up…