Transcript RESOURCE SHARING AMONG LIBRARIES IN DIGITAL ERA

RESOURCE SHARING AMONG LIBRARIES
IN DIGITAL ERA
Role of Consortia
Amitabha Chatterjee
Dept. of Library & Information Science
Jadavpur University
Kolkata 700032
INTRODUCTION
• No library is able to satisfy all the needs of its
clientele
• This gave rise to the concept of Library
Cooperation
• The concept is now known as Resource
Sharing
• Library Cooperation remained confined to
inter-library loan
• Even inter-library loan was not being
practised widely
• Internet and other local and national
networks have facilitated resource sharing
• E-resources have further facilitated
information exchange
• Emergence of library consortia is a
promising development
• Advent of ICT has opened up new
opportunities for greater cooperation among
libraries
• Emergence of Library Consortia is a
promising development for Resource Sharing
SOURCE & RESOURCE
• The concept of Information Resource is often
not defined properly
• Library documents are called Information
Sources as they provide information
• They are also called Information Resources
• But the terms Information Source and
Information Resource are not interchangable
• A Source is one that makes something
available, but a Resource helps in creating
something new
• As a library generates all its services on the
basis of its information sources they can also
be called information resources
• So long libraries were having printed
resources
• Now resources are available in various other
formats, such as AV, digital, etc.
• E-resources are more popular these days
because of their distinct advantages
RESOURCE SHARING
• Resource sharing does not merely mean
mutual sharing of information sources
among libraries
• It will mean utilizing information resources of
one library for generating services of another
library
• Information Resources and Library
Resources are not synonymous
• Library Resources may include other
resources, besides information resources,
like staff and equipment
• Thus Resource Sharing may mean sharing of
all these resources for the mutual benefit of
libraries and their users
• In this sense connotation of Library
Cooperation and Resource Sharing will be
almost same
LIBRARY CONSORTIA
• Consortium literally means “temporary
cooperation of several powers or large
interests to effect some common purpose”
• Library consortium is “a group of libraries
that agree to pool their resources by allowing
the user of each institution some type of
access to resources of all other institutions”
• “It is a community of value creating entities,
generating value through an aggregation of
library units within and across organizations”
PHASES OF DEVELOPMENT
• First phase: several libraries come together
for the mutual benefit of the respective users
– Library Cooperative
• Second phase: Libraries are linked together
with the help of ICT
– Library Network
• Third phase: Libraries come together to
acquire and share e-resources
– Library Consortium
CHANGES IN ENVIRONMENT
• In the first phase the documents were only in
printed format and the stress was on use
through inter-library lending
• In the second phase too documents were
mainly in printed format. Bibliographical
databases of the holdings of all the libraries
could be accessed from any library and
required documents could be procured
through document delivery service
• In the third phase the documents are mainly
in digital format which can be accessed
directly by the users of any library remotely
OBJECTIVE OF CONSORTIA
• Basically consortia have been created for
acquisition and sharing use of e-journals
• It is possible for the users of participating
libraries to access and/or download the
required materials remotely
• The objective of consortia can be widened to
make them efficient instruments of sharing of
all types of library resources
ORGANIZATIONAL MODELS
• A variety of organizational models of
consortia have been developed
• At one end are loosely affiliated buying clubs
aiming at sharing a discounted rate of ejournals and databases
• At another end are tightly integrated
organizations sharing variety of resources
TYPES OF CONSORTIA
Theoretically consortia can be of various
types depending on their characteristics:
By type of libraries covered
– Consortia of multi-type libraries
– Consortia of same type libraries
By geographical area of coverage
– Local level consortia
– State level consortia
– National level consortia
– International level consortia
By subject/discipline covered
– Single discipline oriented consortia
– Multi-discipline oriented consortia
By type of organizational structure
– Loosely knit federation
– Tightly knit organization
By basis of formation
– Non-sponsored consortia
– Sponsored consortia
• Any existing consortium may fall in more
than one category
INDIAN LIBRARY CONSORTIA
• Library consortia have come up in many
countries
• Several consortia have come up in India too:
– Forum for Resource Sharing in Astronomy and
Astrophysics (FORSA)
– Indian National Digital Library in Science &
Technology (INDEST)
– INFONET Project of UGC – Health Sciences
Library & Information Network (HELINET)
– CSIR E-Journal Consortium
– DAE Library Consortium
– IIM Library Consortium
FUNCTIONS OF CONSORTIA
• Obviously existing consortia are basically
serving as buying clubs
• With little initiative these can be developed
into effective platforms for sharing valuable
resources of libraries, both printed and nonprinted
• Besides resource sharing, these consortia
can also take up several activities for the
mutual benefit of the participating libraries
INFORMATION RESOURCE SHARING
FUNCTIONS
A consortium can take up following activities
for promoting information resource sharing:
• Cooperative collection development among
member libraries
• Cooperative processing of information
resources acquired through consortium
• Creation of virtual library covering all the eresources available in member lib raries
• Compilation of bibliographical and /or fulltext databases of the holdings of the member
libraries, both print and non-print
• Sharing of information resources, both
traditional and digital, of member libraries
through network or document delivery
service
• Allowing reciprocal borrowing by the
members of all libraries of the consortium
• Supporting member libraries for setting
institutional repositories, e-print archives,
electronic theses collection, etc.
• Digitization of valuable and rare collections
of member libraries available in printed
format and providing access to such
materials to the members of all the libraries
of the consortium
• Developing common interface to catalogues,
databases and e-collection by creating
portals
• Creating inter-operability among member
systems, databases and services
OTHER RESOURCE SHARING FUNCTIONS
A consortium may also share other
resources in the following manner:
• Sharing the storage facilities, thereby
minimizing expenditure on space
• Pooling of expert manpower and promoting
professional development
• Assist member libraries in creating IT
infrastructure
• Facilitating joint preservation and archiving
activities for print and digital materials
• Initiating and supporting research projects of
common interest
• Collectively promoting, marketing and
publicising the library services
MOBILIZATION OF LIBRARY
COMMUNITY
• In spite of the benefits of consortia approach
the library community in general in India is
not actively coming forward to adopt it
• Only a few libraries have formed consortia
voluntarily
• Some others have been induced to join
consortia by the sponsors
• A large number of libraries is still out of the
ambit of any consortium
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The main reasons of this situation are:
Lack of awareness among the libraries and/or
library authorities about the ultimate benefits
of consortia
Conservative mentality of the library
authorities with regard to e-information
resources, specially online resources
Unwillingness of some libraries to share their
resources
Unwillingness of some libraries to share the
burden of resource sharing i.e. serving users
of libraries other than their own
• Uneven development of libraries of different
sectors and slow progress of library
automation
• Inability of many libraries in meeting the
minimum commitment required to join a
consortium due to financial and other
infrastructural constraints
• Lack of demand for resource sharing on the
part of users
• Poor bibliographical control of the holdings
of the libraries
• Lack of sufficient information resources to be
shared
• To harness the enormous benefits of
consortia it is necessary to mobilize the
library community to adopt the method
• Govt. agencies like UGC and CSIR have come
forward to mobilize the libraries being funded
by them
• Steps should be taken to mobilize more
libraries by making them aware about the
benefits of consortia approach and removing
the barriers faced by them in this regard
CONCLUSION
• In India resource sharing has not yet
developed in true sense
• NISSAT has been dismantled
• Library networks, started with much fanfare
have not yet become effective vehicles of
resource sharing
• Happily some consortia have come up, but
they are yet mostly buying clubs
To boost resource sharing activities threepronged approach is needed:
• Strengthening and reengineering of existing
consortia to make them true vehicles of
resource sharing and not merely sharing of
e-journals
• Starting new consortia and networks for
resource sharing on suitable basis
• Linking of the consortia based networks to
achieve nation-wide network of libraries
• Implementation of these steps may take
some time and face many hurdles
• But once done it will be possible to have
effective nation-wide resource sharing
• This will save enormous amount of money
and expedite research at all levels thereby
contributing greatly in national development
THANK YOU