PUBLIC LIBRARIES: NEW
OPPORTUNITIES IN TIMES OF
CHANGE
Marshall Breeding
Independent Consult, Author,
Founder and Publisher, Library Technology Guides
http://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
Public Libraries in Australia
Public Libraries in Western Australia
Library Journal Automation
Marketplace
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Published annually in April 1 issue
Based on data provided by each vendor
Focused primarily on North America
 Context
market
of global library automation
LJ Automation Marketplace
Annual Industry report published in Library Journal:
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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
Book Image
Publication Info:

Volume 11 in The Tech
Set
Published by NealSchuman / ALA
TechSource
ISBN: 781555707859

http://www.neal-schuman.com/ccl


Next-Gen Library Catalogs
Marshall Breeding
Neal-Schuman Publishers
March 2010
Volume 1 of The Tech Set
Appropriate Automation Infrastructure
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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
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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
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Physical
Social / Community
Digital
Reshaped collections
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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
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Fulfillment activities
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Print circulation Increasing
Increasing reliance on self-service
Direct consortial borrowing
Interlibrary loan activity rising
Increased pressure for resource sharing
Additional public library roles
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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
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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
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Library collections more complex than ever
Library services move diverse
Managing electronic and digital content harder
than managing print
Tech for Physical Libraries
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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
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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
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Moving away from individual record-by-record creation
Life cycle of metadata
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Manage metadata in bulk when possible
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E-book collections
Highly shared metadata
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Metadata follows the supply chain, improved and enhanced along the
way as needed
E-journal knowledge bases (KnowledgeWorks / 360 Core)
Great interest in moving toward semantic web and open linked data
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Very little progress in linked data for operational systems
AACR2 > RDA
MARC > RDF (recent announcement of Library of Congress)
Enterprise connectivity
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Important to be interconnected with the technical
infrastructure of related organizations:
 Council
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services, Campus,
UK: strong dynamic between local council business
systems and that of the library service
Fundamental technology shift
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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
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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
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Largest
Consortium
in US by
Number of
Members
Strategic Cooperation
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Shared infrastructure in support of strategic
collaborative relationships
Opportunities to share infrastructure
Examples:
2CUL
 Orbis Cascade Alliance
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Opportunities to reconsider automation implementation
strategies
One library = 1 ILS?
 Ability to share infrastructure across organizational
boundaries?
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Shared Infrastructure
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Northern Ireland
South Australia
Denmark (tender process underway)
Chile
Iceland
Challenge: Disjointed approach to
information and service delivery
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Library Web sites offer a menu of unconnected silos:
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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
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ETDs, photos, rich media collections
Metasearch engines
Discovery Services – often just another choice among many
All searched separately
Integrated service Delivery
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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
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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
ILS Data
Search:
Scope of Search
Search Results
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Books, Journals, and
Media at the Title Level
Not in scope:
Articles
 Book Chapters
 Digital objects
 Web site content
 Etc.
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Public Library Information Portal
LMS Data
Digital
Collections
Search:
Usagegenerated
Data
Customer
Profile
Consolidated Index
Search Results
Web Site
Content
Community
Information
Aggregated
Content
packages
…
Customerprovided
content
Reference
Sources
Archives
Pre-built harvesting and indexing
Discovery Products
http://www.librarytechnology.org/discovery.pl
Fragmented Library Management
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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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
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Library-specific software. Designed to help libraries
automate their internal operations, manage collections, fulfill
requests, and deliver services
Services
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Service oriented architecture
Exposes Web services and other API’s
Facilitates the services libraries offer to their users
Platform
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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
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Highly Shared data models
Knowledgebase architecture
 Some may take hybrid approach to accommodate local
data stores
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Delivered through software as a service
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Multi-tenant
Unified workflows across formats and media
Flexible metadata management
MARC – Dublin Core – VRA – MODS – ONIX
 New structures not yet invented
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Open APIs for extensibility and interoperability
New Library Management Model
Search:
Unified Presentation Layer
Library Services
Platform
API Layer
`
Digital
Coll
Consolidated index
Self-Check /
Automated
Return
ProQuest
EBSCO
…
JSTOR
Stock
Management
Enterprise
Resource
Planning
Learning
Management
Other
Resources
Smart Cad /
Payment
systems
Authentication
Service
Reassess expectations of Technology
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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
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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
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Transition to new technology models just underway
More transformative development than in previous
phases of library automation
Opportunities to partner and collaborate
 Vendors
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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