April
2-5,
2006
Note: links active when this file was originally written may no longer work.
Federal Depository Library Conference
April
2-5,
2006
One of the most useful sessions at the Conference was a collection of presentations by GPO staffers giving us a somewhat detailed look at how our operations will be affected by the fully functional FDSys (they did acknowledge that a new name is sorely needed for this system, but none seem to be forthcoming). Previously I, at least, had difficulty in seeing just how these new systems will impact our operations. Now I have a better idea.
The system will have both content-related and administrative functions. The content side will involve the searching and retrieval of both full-text electronic documents and cataloging records for these items. Purchase of tangible copies will also go through the same system, and it will be possible to customize the features to allow alerts, subscription to RSS feeds, repeatable searches to find new material of interest, and also retrieval of related information and evaluations/recommendations of related resources. Both pull and push functions will be available for both records and documents. In other words, we will be able to search for and download specific items, but also will be able to have items sent directly to us, in accordance with pre-arranged criteria. Delivery options will be customizable, and batch delivery will be possible. Another important aspect of the content in the system will be the authentication and version control metadata, that will be easily verifiable through the search interface.
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The administrative side of the system has even more features of interest to us in day-to-day operations. We will be able to access "account information," which will include the ability to track claims, access reports (like the PURL referral report), determine the publication status of important items (to answer the perennial question: “will we get ___?”), etc. We will also be able to access and contribute to user support and training. They visualize the available training modules to be dynamic, web-based and portable; that is, we'll be able to "borrow" them for use in our own presentations. Related information could be something like book reviews and/or recommendations of related material. One resource that will probably be dumped into the system right away will be GPO's Browse Topics pages. They also envisage a registry of experts to contact with thorny questions in particular areas. The architecture of the system will be open, which will make it possible to integrate it with other resources, such as our catalogs, periodical aggregators, etc. The system features such as customizable searches, RSS feeds, alerts, related resources notes, and training modules, will be available to anyone: faculty, non-documents staff, the public. This gives us great opportunities to offer training in the use of these features to groups of users. |
To bring you back down to earth a bit, not all features are currently ready. And they don't like giving dates of when various features will be functional. But they are about to hire a Master Integrator, who will shepherd the system into full implementation. My feeling is that we will begin to see some of these whiz-bang features later this year. Hopefully by the end of next year many of them will be in place.
