Week 12 Readings

Week 12 (or: almost done with the semester)
Readings for this week:
Implementing Policies for Access Management by Arms
Chapter 6 Economics by Arms
Chapter 10 Economics by Lesk

Security and economics, I have to admit, are not issues that ever really occurred to me when I thought about the tasks of starting and maintaining a digital library. Although they are obviously extremely important, I did not realize that myself or my institution would really need to take extra measures to ensure security for the digital library.
According to Arms, (who has a lot to say on this topic), in Implementing Policies for Access Management, security is usually motivated by payments. Institutions wish to have control over those who are accessing digital materials because they require payment for access. I find this to be very true at the University of Pittsburgh. Because a log-in is required for those hoping to access the internet and the academic research databases, it can get a little hectic at the reference desk when patrons that are not university-affiliated wish to use the computers.
The general access model that Arms describes appears overly simple. But this is only in appearance. What allows for complexity is what Arms calls, "dynamic evaluation of roles, attributes, and policies." Keeping all important information in a container that can be stored in a repository allows for better control and security.
Authentication is one way to make certain that only users who are allowed access will receive access to digital publications. Payment and then agreements regarding password access also help to establish rules and boundaries about who is allowed access.
A great point that Arms brings up is that of interoperability. Access can be given through the attributes used for the DL, but if not all digital libraries are using the same system with attributes it may not work seamlessly.
Operations involving the different types of enforcement of policies for access can be technical, legal, contractual, and institutional. These can be helped along by an access statement issued to users and possible users.

While Lesk takes his chapter on Economics to a different level, explaining the investments libraries make and the money that is saved by utilizing institution-wide subscriptions, he also comments fundamentally on access and usage. Both cost and quality of materials are based on the simple supply-demand model.
Costs and funding for libraries are going up as publishers are deciding not to print journals and instead to offer them electronically only. While this is often a higher subscription rate for libraries with added paper costs for printing that either the library or its users have to pay for, it is also easier for patrons. Therefore the system is in high demand.
Digitally this makes interoperability extremely important. But is it working? According to Lesk the funding for libraries is an important aspect of the system. (Well, not according to Lesk ONLY, it's rather obvious without his input that it is an important asepct of the system.) Bundling journals helps to alleviate extra costs but it does create the problem of repetition and payment for journals and databases that a library may already have paid for through someone else.
Lesk mentions the idea of the digital cash register that is attributed to Ted Nelson. This idea that inserting a quote from another author will lead to the patron or user having to pay for the use and viewing of the quote is dubbed by Nelson as transclusion. The idea of micropayments is relatively new and I'm not sure that if it is widespread it is called the same name.
The issue of access is not only one that patrons have to deal with, but libraries as well. While they used to own all of their materials because they were physically purchased and placed within the library, now the idea of borrowing and access is the main privilege that is paid for. Publishers mainly only allow access to materials that are currently paid for. But once a library stops paying for their subscription, they do not have access to previous issues that they "paid for." This is a potentially negative position for libraries.
While Lesk's position on economics regarding digital libraries does not seem to be particularly positive, he does point out some major aspects that libraries need to be aware of and to deal with.

Arms also writes a chapter on Economics and he is slightly more hopeful when speaking about the ways that libraries can overcome their problems with ownership and access. Arms really focuses on how library environments are changing quickly and libraries need to accept and adapt to all the digital changes that are being made so quickly. Greed and fear: these are the driving factors behind publisher's business decisions. According to Arms. While he does not have particularly positive things to say about how publishing houses are running their business and dealings with libraries, he is fairly positive in his returns on libraries. Libraries strive for access for the people. Many different kinds of users and access for all, hopefully.
Arms cites different research organizations that are open to working interoperably with libraries to create access for its materials. This provides an open framework for communication and interchange between "publishers" and libraries. How this relates to economics is a slightly different matter.
Arms brings up the interesting point of tv and how ppl pay for tv. They are fine with regular payments that are not one-time or spontaneous. While physical materials and publishing is no longer the norm with journals, it is also becoming slightly less prominent with books. Companies like ebrary are promoting online access to books where users have to follow parameters for printing. Copyright laws are the reason that patrons cannot print more than a few pages at a time, depending on the book.
All of these readings have had some enlightening aspects but not many for me.

Muddiest Point
Have you seen social impacts on libraries from personal experience?

Week 11 Readings

This week's readings:
William Arms' A Viewpoint Analysis of the Digital Library

Wade Roush's The Infinite Library

and Social Aspects of Digital Libraries by the UCLA's Final Report.

In Arms' chapter, the viewpoint that I found most interesting was the viewpoint of the user. While the organization's viewpoint and the technical viewpoint were enlightening, I do not think that they are as important as the viewpoint of the user. After all, it's the user that is the sole focus while creating a digital library. Technology, irrelevant? Organizations, not important? As a user of digital libraries, I would say this is true. Users who know nothing about the way a digital library is put together do view things this way. I'm wondering how UCLA found this information about users.

While the user's viewpoint is very limited, they do seem to see the importance of the Google Book Project. Google is digitizing many of the world's old books that are both valuable and beyond copyright issues. They are even digitizing books that are still within copyright. It's a big controversy. The idea of digitization has become much more mainstream than it ever was before. This means that librarians and those that are adept at working with digital libraries will have more job security. And why not? Larger digital libraries will lead to more jobs, but different kinds of jobs. I think the whole point of this reading is to express how long it can take for users to gather information, even from a digital library. The author talks about the Bodleian Library at Oxford and how the old texts are not easily accessible. Requests have to be sent to view the materials, and materials are not able to be checked out. But with a digital library access to materials can be next to instant. Making these materials digital is not an instant process. It can take a very long time to scan and upload a book to a digital environment.

"Social Aspects of Digital Libraries" is a very long document that goes over different points dealign with art in digital libraries. Because art is in image format it is handled a little differently in the digital environment. Based off of a workshop that took place, the goals being to inform researchers about what takes place regarding social aspects of digital libraries and and assess how well digital libraries are working out. The workshop discussed the same user-centered, organizational-centered and technical-centered aspects of DLs. The seamless interaction between all parts of a digital library are what were stressed at this meeting. They talked about allowing users to have a part in constructing digital libraries. I think this is a great idea! By allowing users to get behind the scenes and give suggestions from more than a creative viewpoint it will allow those that are familiar with the technical aspects of DLs to see it from a truly end-user perspective. This will also provide ways for users to gather information on how better to use a DL.

Muddiest Points from Week 10 Lecture:
How necessary is it for our groups to have a set schedule/timeline for our DL project? After viewing other DL proposals I am thinking that we may be behind and while working with a professor gives us access to a lot of great materials, it will make it harder to do things earlier than they need to be done. What is a suggested timeframe to stay on top of all the work?