OACIS for the Middle East
(Online Access to Consolidated
Information on Serials)
Presentation to the Middle East Studies Association
and the Middle East Librarians Association
November 2003
Simon Samoeil, OACIS Project Manager
Yale University
OACIS Partners:
Cornell University
Ohio State University
Universitaets-und Landesbibliothek of
Sachsen-Anhalt in Halle, Germany
University of Pennsylvania
University of Michigan
University of Texas
University of Washington
Yale University
Home Page - http://www.library.yale.edu/oacis/
Project progress and targets over three years
• Year One:
- A prototype database to be in place, with selected
records from the participating U.S. libraries.
- A prototype Web-interaction interface for record
display will be mocked up and tested.
- Feedback of the participating/partner libraries will be
sought at several points prior to the completion of a
prototype.
- The first Middle East intern will have worked on the
project, both by learning about its design and
contributing to its development from a Middle Eastern
perspective.
Project progress and targets over three years
• Mid-Year Two:
- All existing compatible records for the partner U.S.
libraries will have been loaded.
-Begin loading records from overseas participants with
compatible standard formats.
- Open the Web site for outside viewers as a work in
progress.
- Seek feedback from a wider group of users, through
online modes such as e-mail and electronic surveys.
Project progress and targets over three years
• End of Year Two:
- Complete the Web-interaction entry form. Libraries
with records already loaded can edit.
- Load records of additional U.S. libraries and the
German partner.
- Load titles from Middle Eastern partners.
- Train second intern who will begin developing a plan
for incorporating his/her library’s serial titles into
OACIS.
- Travel to Germany to exchange systems skills and
work on the project with the Halle staff during Year
Two.
- Start planning for the document delivery pilot project.
Project progress and targets over three years
• Year Three:
- Continue loading additional participant libraries'
records.
- Begin work on importing and including descriptive
information in vernacular scripts using Unicode as the
encoding medium.
- Implement the proposed European site.
- Add holdings of additional overseas libraries, in part
as recommended by our key partners abroad.
- Travel to the Middle East to help establish a World
Wide Web server and mount OACIS at the selection
location. The third Middle East intern will be
instrumental in this task.
- Implement our pilot document delivery project.
Potential Middle Eastern Partners:
University of Jordan, Jordan
American University of Beirut (AUB), Lebanon
Balamand University, Lebanon
Tishreen University, Syria
Assad National Library in Syria
The American University in Cairo
Arab Institute for Human Rights in Tunisia