Research Libraries – Page 2

Paywall: British Library: "User-Centred Collecting for Emerging Formats"

This paper provides an overview of the work conducted at legal deposit libraries to better understand access requirements for emerging formats, from a user’s perspective and with a focus on web-based interactive narratives. . . . It also considers how existing tools and methodologies, such as web archiving, can be adapted and built to support the collection of emerging formats. Finally, it delves into different research projects conducted at the British Library around archiving and performing quality assurance for interactive narratives, collecting contextual information, and lessons learnt from exhibiting born-digital content in a physical space.

https://doi.org/10.1080/13614568.2024.2389101

"’Academic Publishing is a Business Interest’: Reconciling Faculty Serials Needs and Economic Realities at a Carnegie R2 University"

Introduction: This article explores faculty conceptions of academic publishers, their willingness to circumvent paywalls and share content, and their understanding of who holds the responsibility to pay for this body of scholarly work to which they all contribute.

Methods: The authors conducted semi-structured interviews with 25 faculty at their Carnegie R2 university to explore scholars’ perspectives with respect to the costs of serials and the responsibilities of the University and library in support of scholarly publishing.

Results: Participants reported a broad spectrum of perspectives with respect to circumventing publisher paywalls and offered nuanced practices for interacting with paywalled content. They explained which library services work well and offered suggestions on how best to support faculty needs for serial literature. Although most participants agree that the University has the responsibility of making academic literature available to the community, they differ in their conceptions of academic publishers as good-faith partners in the knowledge enterprise.

Discussion: The results suggest a great deal of ambiguity and diversity of beliefs among faculty: some would support boycotting all commercial publishers; some understand academic publishers to be integral to the dissemination of their work, not to mention tenure and promotion processes; and many acknowledge a variety of tensions in what feels to them an exploitative and fraught relationship. These findings have implications for library services in acquisitions, collection management, scholarly communication, discovery, and access.

https://doi.org/10.31274/jlsc.16232

"Cost, Advocacy, and a Mechanism for Transformation: The Proposed Power of Open Access Funds"

As paid open access becomes a mainstream academic practice, stakeholders must evaluate their role in the system. While open access advocates develop new ways to support the publication process and funding structure, commercial publishers continue to pivot to maintain their profit, relevance, and power in the publication system. This article provides the details of Montana State University’s Open Access Author Fund as an evaluation of the service and its impact on the local publishing ecosystem. As stewards of publicly funded knowledge, it is essential to critically analyze each new publishing route before adopting and supporting it. Especially when models claim to transform the system, librarians need to understand how an action changes the system, for whom, and at what cost.

https://tinyurl.com/524sp3tz

"Back to Basics: Considering Categories of Data Services Consults"

Consultations are fundamental to data librarianship, serving as a vital means of one-on-one support for researchers. However, the topics and forms of support unique to data services consults are not always carefully considered. This commentary addresses five common services offered by data librarians—dataset reference, data management support, data analysis and software support, data curation, and data management (and sharing) plan writing—and considers strategies for successful patron support within the boundaries of a consultation.

https://doi.org/10.7191/jeslib.931

"Big Ten Academic Alliance welcomes UCLA, USC, Oregon, and Washington"

The Big Ten Academic Alliance is thrilled to welcome the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), the University of Southern California (USC), the University of Oregon, and the University of Washington. This expansion increases our membership to 18 institutions and includes a historic affiliation with the University of Chicago. . . .

With the new members, Big Ten Academic Alliance institutions now boast 75,000 instructional staff, 810,000 students, $17.4 billion in annual research expenditures, and 145 million library volumes—25% of all print titles in North America.

https://tinyurl.com/3re7py7s

Ithaka S+R: Governance and Business Models for Collaborative Collection Development

This guide presents a series of takeaways and examples to illustrate the characteristics of successful collaborations as well as the potential risks they face. Rather than focusing on enabling technologies, we consider how collaborations start, evolve, function, engage members, and are sustained over time. To inform this guide we closely observed eight collaborations within the United States and Canada:

Eastern Academic Scholars’ Trust (EAST): Founded in 2015, EAST’s more than 170 members together work to secure the print scholarly record in support of teaching, learning, and research, maximize retention commitments, and facilitate access.

HathiTrust: Launched in 2008, and now with 213 supporting members, HathiTrust’s mission is to contribute to research, scholarship, and the common good by collaboratively collecting, organizing, preserving, communicating, and sharing the record of human knowledge.

Ivy Plus Libraries Confederation (IPLC): IPLC is a voluntary union of 13 academic libraries with strategic priorities including collaborative collection development, resource sharing and discovery, and leadership to change the scholarly communication system.

Ontario Council of University Library (OCUL): OCUL, an academic library consortium with 21 member libraries, supports collective purchasing, shared digital information infrastructure, advocacy, assessment, and professional development.

Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID): With over 1,200 members, ORCID is a global initiative to enable transparent and trustworthy connections between researchers, their contributions, and affiliations.

Triangle Research Libraries Network (TRLN): Founded in the 1930s, TRLN is a collaboration of four research libraries from North Carolina committed to marshaling members’ financial, human, and information resources through cooperative efforts.

Virginia’s Academic Library Consortium (VIVA): Founded in 1994, VIVA, a consortium of 71 academic libraries in Virginia, supports cooperative purchasing, shared e-resources and print, and open and affordable course content initiatives.

https://doi.org/10.18665/sr.321102

| Artificial Intelligence |
| Research Data Curation and Management Works |
| Digital Curation and Digital Preservation Works |
| Open Access Works |
| Digital Scholarship |

Paywall: "Exploring the Use of Generative Artificial Intelligence in Systematic Searching: A Comparative Case Study of a Human Librarian, ChatGPT-4 and ChatGPT-4 Turbo"

The findings suggest that AI could expand the scope of search terms and queries, automating the more repetitive and formulaic aspects of the systematic-review process, while human expertise remains crucial in refining search terms and ensuring methodological rigor. Meanwhile, challenges remain for AI tools’ capacity to access subscription-based or proprietary databases and generate sophisticated search strategies.

https://doi.org/10.1177/03400352241263532

Associate Vice Provost for Collections & Scholarly Communications at University of Pennsylvania

The University of Pennsylvania Libraries invites applications for the position of Gershwind & Bennett Family Associate Vice Provost for Collections & Scholarly Communications. This senior strategic leadership role, reporting directly to the H. Carton Rogers III Vice Provost and Director of Libraries, is pivotal in overseeing a wide array of outward-facing services. These encompass academic and student engagement, research services, community engagement, collection strategy, scholarly communications, and the administration of eleven departmental libraries and centers that serve professional schools and specific subject areas.

Job Ad

Director, National Agricultural Library

Directs, oversees, and defends the development and execution of Agency program goals and resource requirements to the Department, OMB, and Congressional officials.

Facilitating cooperation and coordination for the agricultural libraries of colleges, universities, USDA, in conjunction with private industry and other research libraries.

Responsible for providing leadership and direction in the formulation, implementation and evaluation of the development and execution of broad programs of library and technical information services.

Overseeing the application of advanced computer and telecommunications technology for the worldwide collection, evaluation, and dissemination of specialized information in the agricultural and related sciences.

Job Ad

University Librarian and Dean, University Library at University of Saskatchewan

Reporting to the Provost and Vice-President Academic, and as one of the senior leaders in the university, the University Librarian and Dean plays a central role in setting strategy and overall direction; advises the President, the Provost, and other Vice Presidents; works collaboratively with and supports other leaders to achieve university goals; uses influence to align the University Library with university priorities; and models institutional values and competencies. With six locations across campus, the University Library is essential to students and researchers’ success. The University Library operates in an environment where its services and resources are multi-faceted, technologically rich, and continuously changing. The successful candidate will lead a team of approximately 115 faculty and staff members to meet and exceed the needs of a university that is a member of the U15 group of major research-intensive universities in Canada, one that welcomes more than 26,000 students from over 130 countries..

Job Ad

Paywall: "Social Media Archiving in Practice: A Troubled Landscape in Review"

This article looks at several notable examples of major social media data loss that have already taken place in recent history and examines one of the largest institutional attempts to preserve social media thus far in the Library of Congress’ Twitter Archive. By exploring some of the key challenges that arose during this attempt which ultimately grounded the project, this article aims to better understand what continues to keep the practice of social media archiving at bay, and what large scale changes might be necessary to make any further progress in the field.

https://doi.org/10.1080/0361526X.2024.2367405

"Empowering Knowledge through AI: Open Scholarship Proactively Supporting Well Trained Generative AI"

Generative AI has taken the world by storm over the last few years, and the world of scholarly communications has not been immune to this. Most discussions in this area address how we can integrate these tools into our workflows, concerns about how researchers and students might misuse the technology or the unauthorised use of copyrighted work. This article argues for a novel viewpoint that librarians and publishers should be encouraging the use of their scholarly content in the training of AI algorithms. Inclusion of scholarly works would advance the reliability and accuracy of the information in training datasets and ensure that this content is included in new knowledge discovery platforms. The article also argues that inclusion can be achieved by improving linkage to content, and, by making sure that licences explicitly allow inclusion in AI training datasets, it advocates for a more collaborative approach to shaping the future of the information landscape in academia.

https://doi.org/10.1629/uksg.649

"On-Demand Circulation of Software Licenses: Checking Out Software on Patron’ Own Devices"

The Miami University Libraries (MUL) developed an open-source Software Checkout system to allow patrons to make use of software licenses owned by the library. The system takes advantage of user-based licensing under the Software as a Service (SaaS) license model and vendor-created APIs to easily and legally assign access to users. The service currently supports Adobe Creative Cloud, Final Cut Pro, and Logic Pro software. MUL has successfully used this software for three years. This article describes the expansion of offerings and the increasing use of the service over that time. Built on a model developed by Pixar for managing employee software licenses, the Software Checkout system is believed to be the first of its kind for circulating licenses to library patrons. Both this lending model and the open-source software developed by MUL are available to other libraries. This paper is intended to prompt libraries to take advantage of the legal and technical environment to expand software license sharing to other libraries.

https://tinyurl.com/yx4fyw98

"NGLP [Next Generation Library Publishing] Awarded IMLS Funding to Move ‘From Pilot to Production’"

The Educopia Institute, in partnership with Open Weave Consulting, Inc., Cast Iron Coding, California Digital Library, Stratos, and Janeway, has been awarded $249,999 from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) to expand digital infrastructure options for library publishing programs that are open source, community-led, and grounded in academic values.

The project, to be implemented with the University of Iowa Libraries, will advance existing Next Generation Library Publishing (NGLP) infrastructure and service models by delivering a production-ready version of its modular, open-source display layer, Meru, that rivals proprietary publishing solutions; migrating a pilot library publisher into the NGLP ecosystem; and producing a suite of replicable tools, resources, and workflows that will enable other library publishers to follow suit. The University of Iowa Libraries will collaborate with the NGLP team to build out a production-ready instance of Meru that showcases its full publication portfolio.

https://tinyurl.com/6ajbmux8

"Kara Whatley Appointed Mu Vice Provost and University Librarian"

Whatley is currently the university librarian at California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and serves as the chief executive of the Caltech Library system.

Whatley’s previous roles include positions of increasing leadership at Texas Tech University Libraries and New York University Libraries.

https://tinyurl.com/42nxuvpd

Paywall: "The Conflicting Needs of Now and Forever: Designing Streaming Media Services at an Academic Library"

This article provides an in-depth look at the changing demands of collections and services in addressing faculty requests for media, and outlines both a collection and a service strategy developed by librarians at the University of South Florida Libraries to provide faculty and students with access to diverse media titles in formats ranging from physical to streaming.

https://doi.org/10.1080/1941126X.2024.2337581

"Rob Ross Named Dean of University Libraries for Ohio University"

Ross currently serves as the executive director for NC LIVE for the NC State University Libraries. In this position, he serves as the chief administrative officer for the 209-member library cooperative that provides electronic resources, library software, and professional development to all UNC System universities, private colleges, community colleges, and public libraries in North Carolina. . . .

Before joining the NC State University Libraries, Ross served as the director of implementation programs for OCLC, Inc., in Dublin, Ohio; as interlibrary loan supervisor for Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts; and as library associate for the University of New Orleans.

https://tinyurl.com/f8kr8v4w

"Data Competency for Academic Librarians: Evaluating Present Trends and Future Prospects"

This paper reports an investigation into the perception of academic librarians on data competency in their daily roles across various library departments in the United States and Canada. . . . The findings reveal a complex engagement pattern with data tasks, with librarians in data-specific roles dedicating a considerable portion of their work to these activities, while the majority engage less frequently, indicating that data tasks are a minor part of their overall responsibilities. . . . Our study identifies a crucial need for improved competencies in data management and collection development. . . Additionally, our findings reveal a critical gap between academic libraries’ demand for data skills and the content coverage in MLIS programs, emphasizing the need for curriculum updates to prepare librarians for the evolving information landscape.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2024.102897

Paywall: "Top IT Challenges in ARL Libraries"

This study presents the results of an online survey of Association of Research Libraries (ARL) academic library members to identify the biggest challenges they perceive in the area of information technology organization and management. This article compares their responses with challenges reported in earlier studies to identify new and changing trends as well as ongoing challenges that remain.

https://doi.org/10.1080/01930826.2024.2351245

ARL Poll: "AI and Libraries: Strengths in a Digital Tomorrow"

The poll results from the ARL/CNI 2035 Scenarios exploration reveal diverse strengths that research libraries can harness as they navigate AI-influenced futures. These strengths underscore libraries’ vital role in maintaining information integrity and ensuring equitable access amidst the challenges posed by AI advancements. For libraries, these insights emphasize the importance of continuing to build on these core competencies while staying adaptive and responsive to emerging technological trends. Leveraging the ARL/CNI 2035 Scenarios and continued attention to the broader strategic landscape will enable libraries to be proactive and remain relevant and effective as custodians of knowledge in an increasingly digital and AI-driven world.

https://tinyurl.com/38mmuxnb

Paywall: "Job Advertisements for Data Visualization in Academic Libraries: A Content Analysis of Job Postings"

The objectives of this study are: i) to identify the responsibilities that professionals working in the DV field are expected to undertake, and ii) to analyze the current stated qualifications and competencies required for DV-related positions.. . . The findings indicated that library professionals in the field of DV are increasingly tasked with a broader spectrum of responsibilities and duties, with a pronounced preference for those demonstrating expertise in cross-disciplinary domains and possessing exceptional general competencies, in addition to the requisite professional qualifications and skills, such as interdisciplinary liaison and commitment to equity and diversity..

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2024.102896

"Librarian Faculty Status: Exploring Inequality Regimes in a Comparative Case Study"

Faculty status for librarians is one of the most debated topics within academic librarianship (Bailey & Becher, 2022). Professional associations argue that faculty status benefits librarians, but little empirical work has explored how faculty status plays out in real-world settings (Galbraith, Garrison, & Hales, 2016). This study investigates whether faculty status helps librarians overcome barriers using a comparative case study of two academic libraries representing polarity on this issue. One library offers librarians tenure-track faculty appointments; the other classifies librarians as staff. Through qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews, the study explores administrative obstacles faced by librarians and whether faculty status ameliorates them. This study also examines if debates over librarian faculty status ignore inequality regimes (Acker, 2006) that may appear in both faculty and staff settings. Surprisingly, findings reveal faculty status is associated with more workplace hierarchies and stress, especially for female librarians. Contrary to claims made by faculty status proponents, most librarians feel equally undervalued by disciplinary faculty regardless of status. Ultimately, blanket recommendations for faculty status seem ineffective, and nuanced solutions tailored to local contexts better serve librarians. This study encourages an honest dialogue to empower librarians based on individual needs, not rigid assumptions.

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acalib.2024.102887

Paywall: "Are We Relying on the Wrong Data? Analysis of E-journal Usage Data at Seven R1 and R2 Research Universities"

Using data from seven R1 and R2 universities in Ohio, this study seeks to determine the extent of usage of full-text e-journal articles stored across multiple platforms. . . . The overarching goal of the analysis is to identify where exactly usage occurred for this e-journal content within the different platforms, especially in cases where an individual title has duplicate full-text access.. . . Findings raise significant questions about end-user behavior in terms of student’ and faculty’s ability to locate full text, regardless of whether it is discoverable from Google or other commercial search engines. The findings also suggest a strong connection between EBSCO usage and the academic calendar, with peak usage (as a percentage of overall usage) occurring in October, November, March, and April. Lastly, findings for Taylor & Francis e-journals within EBSCO call into question what these duplicate holdings mean for "big deal" subscription packages.

https://doi.org/10.1080/1941126X.2024.2337578

"Artificial Intelligence’s Role in Digitally Preserving Historic Archives"

The term "Artificial Intelligence" (AI) is increasingly permeating public consciousness as it has gained more popularity in recent years, especially within the landscape of academia and libraries. AI in libraries has been a trending subject of interest for some time, as within the library there are numerous departments that serve a role in collectively contributing to the library’s mission. Consequently, it is imperative to consider AI’s influence on the digital preservation of historic documents. This paper delves into the historical evolution of preservation methods driven by technological advancements as, throughout history, libraries, archives, and museums have grappled with the challenge of preserving historical collections, while many of the traditional preservation methods are costly and involve a lot of manual (human) effort. AI being the catalyst for transformation could change this reality and perhaps redefine the process of preservation; thus, this paper explores the emerging trend of incorporating AI technology into preservation practices and provides predictions regarding the transformative role of Artificial Intelligence in preservation for the future. With that in mind, this paper addresses the following questions: could AI be what changes or creates a paradigm shift in how preservation is done?; and could it be the thing that will change the way history is safeguarded?

https://doi.org/10.1515/pdtc-2023-0050

"Association of Research Libraries and Coalition for Networked Information Publish AI-Influenced Scenarios for Research Environment"

The Association of Research Libraries (ARL) and the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) are pleased to announce the publication of The ARL/CNI 2035 Scenarios: AI-Influenced Futures in the Research Environment. These scenarios explore potential futures shaped by the rapid growth of artificial intelligence (AI) and its integration within the research environment.

Developed through a robust, member-driven process, these scenarios serve as a strategic resource to aid leaders in the research environment in navigating the complex landscape of AI technologies. Library directors, IT leaders, funding agencies, academic presidents and provosts, and those working in scholarly publishing are among the many individuals who will find these scenarios useful. By examining diverse futures, ARL and CNI aim to equip their members with the foresight needed to proactively address the challenges and opportunities that AI presents.

https://tinyurl.com/24c7s7wn