An Overview of "On the Record: Report of the Library of Congress Working Group on the Future of Bibl

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An Overview of "On the Record Report of the
Library of Congress Working Group on the Future
of Bibliographic Control
Special Libraries Association Annual Conference
Seattle, WashingtonJune 16, 2008
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Background

• Working Group was charged to present
• How bibliographic control can support management
  of and access to library materials in the
  evolving information and technology environment
• Recommendations on how the library community can
  move toward this vision
• Advice to the Library of Congress on its role and
  priorities

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The Process

• Three Public Hearings, March-July 2007

Google Campus
LibraryofCongress

• Three topics
• Users and uses
• Structures and standards
• Economic and organization

ALA Headquarters
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The Working Groups Vision of the Future

• The future of bibliographic control will be
  collaborative, decentralized, international in
  scope, and Web-based

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Guiding Principles

• REDEFINE BIBLIOGRAPHIC CONTROL
• a broad definition of bibliographic control
  that embraces all library materials, a diverse
  community of users, and a multiplicity of venues
  where information is sought ... view
  bibliographic control as a distributed activity,
  not a centralized one.

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Guiding Principles

• REDEFINE THE BIBLIOGRAPHIC UNIVERSE
• Libraries of today need to recognize that they
  are but one group of players in a vast field, and
  that market conditions necessitate that libraries
  interact increasingly with the commercial sector
  Rather than relying as heavily as it has on LC,
  the community needs to acknowledge that in at
  least some areas, LC may need to be able to rely
  on the work of others.

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Guiding Principles

• REDEFINE THE ROLE OF THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
• identify areas wherein it LC no longer
  need be the sole provider of bibliographic data
  and to create partnerships to distribute
  responsibility for data creation ... consider
  sharing the standards effort within the community
  and collaborating with other interested
  institutions to create a rational and efficient
  means of managing the standards needed for
  information exchange.

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Findings Recommendations Five Sections
1. Increase Efficiency - Record Production
Maintenance
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• Because the incredible growth in information
  resources is not matched by a related growth in
  library funding, it is necessary to re-examine
  the efficiency with which the work of
  bibliographic control is performed.
• Eliminate redundancies
• Increase distribution of responsibility for
  bibliographic record production and maintenance
• Collaborate on authority record creation and
  maintenance

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• 1.1 Eliminate Redundancies
• Make use of more bibliographic data available
  earlier in the supply chain
• Repurpose existing metadata for greater
  efficiency
• Fully automate the CIP process
• Re-examine the current economic model for data
  sharing in the networked environment
• Develop evidence about discovery tools to guide
  decision-makers

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• 1.2 Increase Distribution of Responsibility for
  Bibliographic Record Production and Maintenance
• Share responsibility for creating bibliographic
  records
• Examine current cataloging programs and
  sub-programs at the Library of Congress
• Expand number of PCC participants
• Increase incentives for sharing bibliographic
  records

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• 1.3 Collaborate on Authority Record Creation and
  Maintenance
• Increase collaboration on authority data
• Increase re-use of assigned authoritative
  headings
• Internationalize authority files

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Processing has never kept up with the
acquisition of unique and primary source
materials. As a result, there are backlogs of
unprocessed collections of these materials at
libraries and repositories across the country
that are not accessible through the libraries
online discovery tools.
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• Make the discovery of rare, unique and other
  special hidden materials a high priority
• Streamline cataloging for rare, unique and other
  special hidden materials, emphasizing greater
  coverage and broader access
• Integrate access to rare, unique and other
  special hidden materials with other library
  materials
• Encourage digitization to allow broader access
• Share access to rare, unique and other special
  hidden collections

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Data that are stored in separate library
databases often do not disclose themselves to Web
applications, and thus do not appear in searches
carried out through commonly used search engines.
Such data are therefore invisible to information
seekers using these Web applications, even though
a librarys catalog may itself be openly
available for use on the Web.
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The Web as Infrastructure Standards
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• 3.1 The Web as Infrastructure
• Develop a more flexible, extensible metadata
  carrier
• Integrate library standards into Web environment
• Extend use of standard identifiers

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• 3.2 Standards
• Develop a coherent framework for the greater
  bibliographic apparatus
• Improve the standards development process
• Develop standards with a focus on return on
  investment
• Incorporate lessons from use into standards
  development
• Suspend work on RDA

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Libraries have tended to equate bibliographic
control with the production of metadata for use
solely within the library catalog. This narrow
focus is no longer suitable in an environment
wherein data from diverse sources are used to
create new and interesting information views.
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Design for Todays and Tomorrows
User Realization of FRBR Optimize LCSH for Use
and Reuse
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• 4.1 Design for Todays and Tomorrows User
• Link appropriate external information with
  library catalogs
• Integrate user-contributed data into library
  catalogs
• Conduct research into the use of computationally
  derived data

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• 4.2 Realization of FRBR
• Develop test plan for FRBR

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• 4.3 Optimize LCSH for Use and Reuse
• Transform LCSH
• Pursue de-coupling of subject strings
• Encourage application of, and cross-referencing
  with, other controlled subject vocabularies
• Recognize the potential of computational indexing
  in the practice of subject analysis

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• As in so many things, education will prove key
  to the professions capability to address new
  challenges in bibliographic control.
• Build an Evidence Base
• Design LIS Education for Present and Future Needs

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• 5.1 Build an Evidence Base
• Develop key measures
• Support ongoing research

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• 5.2 Design LIS Education for Present and Future
  Needs
• Communicate with LIS educators
• Share educational materials broadly via the
  Internet
• Develop continuing education for U.S. library
  profession

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In Summary

• Report presents a vision and broad directions for
  the future
• It is not a specific implementation plan
• A call to action

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Library of Congress Response

• Committed to responding in writing to each of the
  40 separate recommendations, by ALA Annual
  Meeting, June 2008
• Three separate groups in the library reviewed the
  document

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Library of Congresss Categorization of the
Recommendations

• Expected
• Streamline processes
• Greater collaboration
• More flexibility in accepting bibliographic data
  from diverse sources
• Share responsibilities more broadly and more
  meaningfully

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Library of Congresss Categorization of the
Recommendations (continued)

• New ideas
• Increase incentives for sharing bibliographic
  data
• Examine economic models
• Internationalize authority files

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Library of Congresss Categorization of the
Recommendations (continued)

• Controversial
• Give priority to hidden special collections
• Develop a more flexible, extensible metadata
  carrier (than MARC)
• Develop standards with focus on Return on
  Investment
• Suspend work on RDA

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Joint Statement

• Leaders of the Library of Congress (LC), the
  National Library of Medicine (NLM), and the
  National Agricultural Library (NAL) met on March
  10, 2008 to discuss the recommendation from On
  the Record the Report of the Library of Congress
  Working Group on the Future of Bibliographic
  Control to suspend work on RDA

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Joint Statement

• The three national libraries agreed on the
  following approach
• First, we jointly commit to further development
  and completion of RDA.
• Second, following its completion, a decision to
  implement the rules will be based upon the
  positive evaluation of RDA's utility within the
  library and information environment, and criteria
  reflecting the technical, operational, and
  financial implications of the new code. This will
  include an articulation of the business case for
  RDA, including benefits to libraries and end
  users and cost analyses for retraining staff and
  re-engineering cataloging processes

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LC Response

• Delivered June 1, 2008
• On the basis of this internal analysis, the
  Library of Congress accepts and endorses the
  recommendations...We are eager to work with
  colleagues nationally and internationally to
  achieve the visionThis response is not an
  official program statementnor is it an
  implementation plan.

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José-Marie Griffiths

• School of Information and Library Science
• University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
• Email jmgriff_at_unc.edu
• www.loc.gov/bibliographic-future