UpDate - Vol. 15, No. 15, Page 1
December 14, 1995
Online services deliver immediate access to info
Delivering an ever-increasing volume of information to the
University community and citizens of Delaware has always been the
mission of the University of Delaware Library.
With double-digit inflation increasing the cost of print
journals, libraries are relying more and more on technology to bridge
the gap between access and ownership.
At Delaware, members of the University community are now able to
use several online services-some on the UD computing network and
others on the Internet-that provide immediate access to information
that is important to research, teaching and academic study.
Gregg Silvis, assistant director for library computing systems,
is responsible for working with library administrators, faculty and
other users to determine current and future needs. He also works with
staff members in Information Technologies to deliver information,
using the latest campus computer and network technology.
According to Silvis, his objective is to make information
accessible to the faculty and other library users through the campus
network and through external technology, such as the World Wide Web
and the Internet.
"We try to look at all the tools and avenues that are available,"
he said, "and customize them to meet the needs of users at Delaware."
Among the technology-related resources now available on campus
are
* Current Contents/TOC that provides an easy-to-use Web
interface to view table-of-contents pages of nearly 7,000
scholarly journals;
* Library Electronic Resources Network (LERN) that allows
access, through DOS, Windows and Macintosh software, to 10
databases of specific journal article subjects, ranging from
agricultural sciences and medicine to folklore and political
science;
* The AskRef service that allows library users to ask
questions electronically-through either e-mail or U-
Discover!-and receive information that previously was
obtained by calling or visiting the reference desk; and
* OCLC FirstSearch that provides access to a commercial
database system that contains books (WorldCat), articles and
journals (Article1st) and tables of contents (Contents1st).
According to Susan Brynteson, director of libraries, through the
use of these and other avenues still being explored, access to journal
articles not at the University Library is becoming easier and quicker.
Acquiring any article for a member of the campus community when
it is needed is a library goal, she stressed, and its success in
meeting that goal may well result in improved overall access to
journal articles and more effective use of the library's budget.
That budget, as is the case with libraries across the country, is
being strained.
The University of Delaware Library, Brynteson said, is facing
renewing journal subscriptions at price increases of 14-15 percent
overall for the 1996 subscription year, far exceeding the rate of
inflation.
"Despite budget increases," Brynteson explained, "this library
and, in fact, virtually no library can continue to deal with annual
price increases of 14-15 percent."
As a result, the library will work with faculty to identify
journal titles to be canceled in the 1997 and 1998 subscription years.
Since journal support is critical to study, teaching and research, the
faculty will be heavily involved in the project, she said.
Silvis, who is on the front line of searching and developing new
high-tech resources and delivery systems of information for the
faculty, said, "We are shifting from traditional print to electronic-
on-demand delivery. We can accomplish this because of the extensive
computing network in our classrooms, faculty and administrative
offices and student residence halls."
To complement the cable network, Silvis said the University
provost has made a commitment to ensure that hardware is available
over the next four years through the Faculty Desktop Refreshment
Program. By the end of that period, all offices are expected to have
Windows-compatible PCs.
"With the hardware and network moving into place," Silvis said,
"the library is involved in providing the content to go across the
network and deliver the information needed, when it is needed."
Brynteson agreed, stating that the need for access to journal
literature will be met by the library in a variety of ways. Faculty
who need an article from a journal to which the library does not
subscribe may request the article electronically (via EZ Forms or the
World Wide Web) and the library will obtain the article desired at no
cost to the faculty member.
"I believe our document delivery system for journal literature is
superb," Brynteson said. During 1994-95, more than 42 percent of the
6,870 requests submitted by University faculty and staff were obtained
in three days or less.
The library has set up trading agreements with other research
libraries in the area, including Johns Hopkins University and the
universities of Pittsburgh and Maryland, among others. Through these
arrangements, University requests for articles are given priority
treatment. Some articles are faxed, some are transmitted
electronically and some, including books, are delivered via a delivery
service or priority mail.
"The important thing," University Provost Mel Schiavelli said,
"is that a faculty member can obtain information when it is needed in
a timely manner. Technology makes it possible for us to do that.
"The problem we are facing at Delaware certainly is not unique,"
Schiavelli added. "Rising costs and increasing demands for scholarly
information are present on every campus across the country. However,
with our excellent campus information technology system, the programs
we have established and others that we are developing, the University
of Delaware, most definitely, is in the forefront of addressing the
situation and delivering information in a timely fashion to members of
the campus community."
-Ed Okonowicz