Transcript SUNCAT: an introduction for the MRC libraries SUNCAT: the Serials Union Catalogue for the UK www.edina.ac.uk/suncat MRC, 14 June 2005

SUNCAT: an introduction for the
MRC libraries
SUNCAT: the Serials Union Catalogue for the UK
www.edina.ac.uk/suncat
MRC, 14 June 2005
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Background
• UKNUC Feasibility Study - 2001
– Serials Report: Tony Kidd, Rob Bull
• SUNCAT Scoping Study - 2002
– Information Power Ltd.
• JISC & RSLP funded
• Purpose - to develop a UK Serials Union Catalogue
• Phase 1 – February 2003-December 2004
• Phase 2 – January 2005-December 2006
• Partnership between the University of Edinburgh,
through EDINA, & Ex Libris
• Associate Partners - Cambridge, Glasgow, National
Library of Scotland, Oxford
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Project Management
• EDINA
Co-directors of SUNCAT Project
Peter Burnhill
Christine Rees
• Ex Libris
Julie Booth
Dominic Nast
• Steering Group (Chair Derek Law)
• Advisory Group (Chair Peter Burnett)
• Bibliographic Quality Advisory Group (BQAG)
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Work Packages
– Systems librarian:
• Morag Macgregor (EDINA)
– Bibliographic Work Package:
• Natasha Aburrow-Jones (EDINA)
• Moira Whitson (EDINA)
– User Requirements Work Package
• Zena Mulligan (EDINA)
• Liz Stevenson (Edinburgh University Library)
• Advisor: Tony Kidd (Glasgow University
Library)
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SUNCAT aims
• SUNCAT: primary aims
– Location of serials, including information about
access
– Source of high quality bibliographic records for
downloading to local catalogues
• Additionally - to raise consciousness of the
importance of quality serials information among UK
researchers and librarians
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Contributing Libraries: Phase 1
British Library
National Library of Scotland
National Library of Wales
Imperial College, London
London School of Economics
Manchester Metropolitan
University
Queens University, Belfast
University of Birmingham
University of Bristol
University of Cambridge
University College, London
University
University
University
University
University
University
University
University
University
University
University
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of
Durham
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Leeds
Manchester
Newcastle
Nottingham
Oxford
Southampton
Wales, Cardiff
Warwick
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User requirements - interface
• User requirements – display and functionality
• Accessibility and Usability
• Aleph 500 already deployed for other union
catalogues
• Dialogue with California Digital Library, and review
of other Union Catalogue OPACs
• User testing
– Focus group - Librarians
– Individual sessions - Researchers & Academic
staff
– Extended testing – Phase 1 Libraries
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Electronic journals
• Increasing proportion of holdings are electronic
• Growing archives of back files
• Preliminary survey of current practice
• Single or separate records
• Access and holdings: subscription information
• Research undertaken
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SUNCAT Phase 2
– Pilot service launched January 2005
– Coverage extended to include a further 60
libraries
– Range of library types extended to include
special libraries, research collections
– Research and development work: ejournals
– Testing and development of interface
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SUNCAT: How does it work?
• Centralised union catalogue
• Records stored in one large database
• Records deduplicated to view using Aleph
functionality
• Records merged “on the fly”
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How does SUNCAT obtain
records?
• Dialogue between library and SUNCAT project team
• Contributing library ftps a file to SUNCAT
• Data specification is drawn up by the team, and
approved by the contributing library
• Data is converted according to data specification
• Data is loaded into SUNCAT
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SUNCAT: Phase 1 contributing
libraries’ LMS
• Aleph
• Endeavor Voyager
• GEAC Advance
• Innopac
• Innovative
• Talis
• Unicorn
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SUNCAT: what is the matching
process?
• Deduplicated union catalogue
• Complex matching algorithm
• Preferred record display
• 3 stage selection process for matching
• List of Common Titles (LOCT)
• Matching above format
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How does SUNCAT work?
Matching
1. Matching algorithm
– identification of candidate pool
– algorithm applied, with points threshold for a
match
2. Selection of preferred record for display
– different points system determines which record
is preferred
3. Composition of display record
– the preferred record has holdings elements from
non-preferred records added for display
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SUNCAT: The Librarian’s Interface
• Download
• Assisted matching
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SUNCAT: Other developments
• Updates
• Notifications
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SUNCAT standards
• Entry standard
• Upgrading standard
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SUNCAT: Entry Standard
• From all data specifications:
Reject records which do not contain the following:
Leader cp 7 =s
008
245$a
852
Reject records which do contain the following:
Leader cp 5=d (initial load only)
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SUNCAT: Conclusions
• “One-stop shop” for researchers and librarians
• Researchers – single tool for location of serials
• Librarians – central source of high-quality
bibliographic records available for download; locate
function for ILL
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SUNCAT
SUNCAT pilot service
www.edina.ac.uk/suncat
SUNCAT Project
www.suncat.ac.uk
Natasha Aburrow-Jones
[email protected]
Zena Mulligan
[email protected]
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