Electronic Reserves Research Articles

Analysis and Design of Electronic Reserves System Based on MVC Model

Analysis and Design of Electronic Reserves System Based on MVC Model

The Changing Market for University Press Books in the United States: 1997-2002

What was the market for university press books in the United States between 1997 and 2002? What impact did shifts in the general reader market and the creation of library electronic reserve capabilities have on university press net publishers' revenues? What impact did Internet bookselling sites have on new and used frontlist titles? The study reported here reviewed the published literature and statistical data sets. We detected (a) a significant shift in the traditional channels of distribution and (b) the emergence of a sophisticated used book market that undermined both frontlist and backlist sales. Based on a review of the empirical data, we present a series of recommendations for the university press community designed to capitalize on the inherent competitive advantages of university presses.

Creating, Designing, and Building an Electronic Reserve System

The purpose of this article is to provide the basic requirements and design for the in-house development of an electronic reserve system and to identify some of the pros and cons of implementing a homegrown system. The requirements contain enough technical detail to give the reader guidance for building a homegrown electronic reserve system, but are described in layman's terms so as not to turn this article into a technical specification manual. These requirements can alternately aid in evaluating third party stand-alone electronic reserve systems and integrated electronic reserve system modules from library automation vendors, or they can serve as a basis for developing a request for proposals (RFP). This article does not address image or text capture hardware, software, or workflow processes needed to populate an electronic reserve system. Instead, it is concerned with the database structure needed to support an electronic reserve system, the system architecture that enables the delivery of digitized course readings to the end user, the user interface that provides access to those images, and the copyright compliance mechanisms. The Web Course Reserve System described in this article is available as a prototype at the following Web site: http://www.uni.edu/∼wynstra/wcrs. This Web site includes scripts and design documents that can be used for recreating this prototype if the reader desires to use it as a starting point for local development.

The Future of Access Services: Should There Be One?

ABSTRACT The creation of “Access Services” departments in academic libraries did not translate into the creation or offering of new services for patrons. Instead, it was typically just the combination of three already existing departments. Recent changes and trends in Access Services, including new NCIP and ISO standards, an increase in the use of electronic reserves, and the availability of items in various formats, now allow librarians to reconsider if this departmental arrangement is the best for today's library customers. This paper argues that the traditional configuration of Access Services needs to be dismantled if academic libraries are to provide excellent customer service to faculty and students.

Copyright Policies and the Deciphering of Fair Use in the Creation of Reserves at University Libraries

This paper stems from the results of a systematic study of research library policy regarding application and interpretation of copyright law to reserves and electronic reserves. A thorough legal framework is provided from which the study's results are interpreted, and suggestions for research library compliance are provided.

Self-Serve Electronic Reserves

This article describes the current workflow procedures and tools that have allowed for a dramatic increase in the number of electronic reserves processed while only requiring minimal staffing increases. This homegrown system meets the demand for rapid scanning requests, easy entry into the library integrated library system, and the transfer of some scanning to the academic departments. This article describes how one small, private liberal arts college is coping with providing timely access to online reserve materials in a manner consistent with current service and copyright principles, while incurring minimal staffing impacts.

Tri-Institutional Library Support

This paper will discuss the trials and tribulations of three separate institutional libraries supporting one new graduate-level academic program. In 2002, a new distance graduate program in Applied Psychology began with technical, administrative, and academic support provided by three separate institutions. While one institution was initially charged with providing the bulk of library services, in reality, libraries at all three have contributed one service or another. The lead library provides remote database access and document delivery, and initially provided electronic reserves. After the first semester and several glitches, electronic reserves were moved to institutional library #2, which was also hosting the course management system. In the fall of 2002, institutional library #3 began to contribute with an information literacy module that has been incorporated into the orientation for all new students.

Can't I Just Listen to That Online?

There has been little published research on the use of electronic audio reserves and music libraries. There have been several studies published to date regarding the use of electronic print document reserves. User responses in these studies are very positive in that they appreciate 24-hour access from any computer with an Internet connection. It is likely that what holds true for electronic print resources will also hold true for electronic audio reserves. This paper seeks to determine how electronic audio reserves are being used now and what their use might mean for the future of the physical musical library. This and other questions are addressed through analysis of written surveys given to students at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill who use electronic access to audio and analysis of usage statistics on the audio file server. It was determined that students greatly prefer to use electronic audio reserves to those physical sound recordings found on reserve in the Music Library. Twenty-four-hour access was indeed the largest factor in choosing a preference, though the ability to listen to reserve recordings from a location other than the Music Library was also a factor.

Electronic Reserve: A Manual and Guide for Library Staff Members (review)

Electronic Reserve: A Manual and Guide for Library Staff Members (review)

The Changing Market for University Press Books in the United States: 1997-2002

What was the market for university press books in the United States between 1997 and 2002? What impact did shifts in the general reader market and the creation of library electronic reserve capabilities have on university press net publishers' revenues? What impact did Internet bookselling sites have on new and used frontlist titles? The study reported here reviewed the published literature and statistical data sets. We detected (a) a significant shift in the traditional channels of distribution and (b) the emergence of a sophisticated used book market that undermined both frontlist and backlist sales. Based on a review of the empirical data, we present a series of recommendations for the university press community designed to capitalize on the inherent competitive advantages of university presses.

A Socio-technical Analysis of Electronic Reserves in Academic Libraries: Approaching the Virtual Desk

A Socio-technical Analysis of Electronic Reserves in Academic Libraries: Approaching the Virtual Desk

Penfield Library Electronic Reserves Initiative

The State University of New York College at Oswego's Electronic reserve program has been established as a successful highly popular service offered to the university community. The following article chronicles the birth pangs of the service and provides an example of a Docutek supported Electronic reserve service implementation and first year operation.

Docutek

Dr. Philip R. Kesten, a physics professor at Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, California, co-founded Docutek Information Systems, the parent company for the popular electronic reserves product ERes, in the mid 1990s. This article looks at how and why Dr. Kesten became involved with electronic reserves and where the company hopes to go with its product.

Electronic Reserves, Library Databases and Courseware

This article discusses the evolution of e-reserves at Philadelphia University, a private institution with 105 full-time faculty and several hundred more adjuncts, from a stand-alone, library-controlled service to an integrated, faculty-driven operation. This change was made possible by the advent of ERes, its unique DocuFax module, and the institution's courseware system. Working together, these systems allow the faculty to largely eliminate the need for manual document scanning, increasing the speed, efficiency and degree of faculty control over the e-reserve process. Uploading content from or linking to content in library databases further eliminates scanning. This process is discussed and illustrated in the article. The complementary nature of ERes and course management software, and why both are needed, is a focal point of this article. The implications of this complementary relationship for copyright, licensing agreements, and information literacy are discussed.

Migrating to a New Reserve System

Randall Library, UNCW, recently migrated from its established electronic course reserve system to Docutek's ERes course reserve system. This article reviews the migration path and discusses decision points and events along the way, the impact on reserve processes and workflow and challenges yet to be met.

Embracing Fair Use

The Library's Circulation Department at Colorado State University-Pueblo began using Docutek's ERes system on a limited basis during fall semester 2002. The nuts and bolts of implementing the ERes system were relatively simple compared to the challenge of revising our reserves policy to accommodate electronic reserves. While the staff realized the necessity of tightening up lax practices that become more glaring in electronic format, convincing the university community proved more challenging.

Docutek's ERes Electronic Reserve Software

This paper covers selected shortcomings in Docutek's ERes system for electronic reserves. Some of the topics include an inability to customize some pages or find certain usage statistics, a high number of steps to add a document to a page, some difficulties in cross listing courses and deleting faculty accounts and a lack of options for creating non-course pages. While there are a number of items mentioned as problems within ERes, the system remains a terrific choice for institutions looking for an efficient and effective way to make faculty course materials available on the Web. Docutek is planning a major upgrade with v5 that may answer some of the questions raised in this article.

ERes

The success of a 24×7 electronic reserves service requires a well configured and robustly managed system. Based upon a five-year successful experience of supporting Docutek's ERes system at Saint Louis University, this paper discusses and examines the technical issues affecting the proper operation of the system. Areas covered include selecting an adequate server and scanner; proper server management; reducing PDF file size using various Acrobat 6 features; and interoperability between ERes and other systems.

A Consideration of Docutek's Electronic Reserve System in a University's Courseware Environment

On many college and university campuses, electronic reserve systems often operate concurrently with courseware products. In this article, consideration is made of the pros and cons of such efforts along with a table that compares features of three systems. The table can be used for advising faculty and comparing systems.

Cost Comparison of Photocopying vs Printing Articles for Reserve Reading

ABSTRACT The following is a cost comparison of students photocopying print reserve readings for a typical college course versus printing out hard copies of the same articles if they are offered as electronic reserves at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. The prices quoted were taken from the website of a major office supply company the week of December 19. Photocopying costs were current for the academic year at the University, as are the printing costs from public stations in the W. E. B. Du Bois Library.