Library Resources in the Networked Environment or, Its all about service(s) (and data…) Kevin Kidd Library Applications & Systems Manager Boston College.

Library Resources in the Networked Environmentor, It’s all about service(s) (and data…)

Kevin KiddLibrary Applications & Systems Manager

Boston CollegeUniversity Libraries

NISO ForumBoston, MA

October 8-9, 2009

Libraries have traditionally served the function of providing access to information/knowledge by collecting, cataloging and curating books and other physical objects.

The keyword here is ‘access’. Libraries have done an astounding job of providing reliable access to disparate information across a multitude of subjects, formats and forms

BUT, is information access still the primary role libraries (need to) play?

Maybe, But Maybe Not. . .

Now we have the Internet.

(Obviously)

It may be that the primary problem libraries have to solve now is not access to information

Indeed, access to information has never been easier

We face many new problems, though:

Information Overload

Lack of Context

Disorganization of Data

Barriers to Data Manipulation / Integration

These problems point us in the direction we (at Boston College) feel we need to go

We think libraries can (and, indeed, should) do the following:

Filter Information and Help our Patrons Make Informed Choices (a simultaneously modern and retro role for libraries)

Provide Resources Where and When they (are likely) needed (Contextualization)

Make the Info and Resources We Provide Much More Useful to Our Users

Systematically Acquire and Prepare Data to Facilitate All of the Above

In short, the biggest technology development issue facing libraries today may be the question of how we create a network environment which

Is Rich in Services

Meshes with User Behavior in Useful and Convenient Ways

Saves Our Users Time

So, how do we begin to approach these goals?

We think libraries can - and indeed should - do (or at least think seriously about doing) the following:

Organize Online Information to Help our Patrons Make Informed Choices (a role both modern and retro for libraries)

Provide Resources Where and When they (are likely) needed (Contextualization)

Make the Info and Resources We Provide Much More Useful to Our Users

Systematically Acquire and Prepare Data to Facilitate All of the Above

The First Grand Goal: Organize Online Information to Help our Patrons Make Informed Choices

This has to do – in a broad sense – with preparing data to be useful in decision systems.

For example, if we want to build a system which recommends resources to our users, we need to understand and build data structures to do so.

Item vs. User-Based Recommendations

Relating Resources to Local Programs of Study or Majors

On the library staff side: organize and normalize statistics

The Second Grand Goal: Provide Resources Where and When they (are likely) needed

Much of the power of so-called Web 2.0 Applications is driven by User Profile / User Behavior Data

At Boston College, before a student ever logs-in, we know a lot:

We know his/her major

We know his/her current course schedule

We know his/her school

We know his/her degree program

We know what he/she has checked-out currently & in the past

What can we do with this profile information? Actually, a lot.

The Third Grand Goal: Make the Info and Resources We Provide Much More Useful to Our Users

This is really about contextualized use of resources and information. For example:

At BC, when you save something to an ‘e-shelf’, we know you’re doing research (and it’s probably pretty important) :

It would probably be useful to give you some options, at the moment you save the record/PDF, etc. You might want to:

Find a similar book/article

Annotate and/or associate this thing with other stuff in your e-shelf

re-format, print, share, review, cite, translate or tag this thing

Fourth Grand Goal: Systematically Acquire and Prepare Data to Facilitate All of the Above

Truly revolutionary library applications should involve users both explicitly - through reviews, tags, ratings, messages, etc - and implicitly, by aggregating user and usage data as a side-effect of the use of the application.

User and Usage data is, perhaps, the most useful and most under-utilized data to support the development of new library services:

Data – real data – is the key.

We have a lot to do.

Thank You

• Questions?• contact: [email protected]