[14861] in Public-Access_Computer_Systems_Forum
NEWS RELEASE From ALCTS Metadata Enrichment Task Force
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Judith R. Ahronheim)
Wed Jul 30 20:12:13 2003
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 2003 10:02:23 -0400
From: "Judith R. Ahronheim" <jaheim@UMICH.EDU>
To: PACS-L@LISTSERV.UH.EDU
Reply-to: Public-Access Computer Systems Forum <PACS-L@LISTSERV.UH.EDU>
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<Pine.SOL.4.44.0307301000251.13358-100000@robotron.gpcc.itd.umich.edu>
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Please consider distributing the following announcement to your listserv
members:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 7/18/2003
CONTACT: Metadata Enrichment Task Force (Judith Ahronheim, chair)
Email: 2_3@worktools.si.umich.edu
Phone: 734-936-2407
Fax: 734-615-9788
The ALCTS Metadata Enrichment Task Force (METF) would like to announce the
availability of the final draft of Marcia Bates' report, Improving User
Access to Library Catalog and Portal Information, for public review at
http://lcweb.loc.gov/catdir/bibcontrol/actionplan.html. The document
comprises a state of the art review and recommendations regarding section
2.3 of the Library of Congress Bicentennial Action Plan:
Explore ways to enrich metadata records by focusing on providing
additional subject access mechanisms (e.g., front-end user thesauri) and
increasing granularity of access and display (e.g., by enabling
progression through hierarchy and versions and by additional description
information including summaries).
The METF welcomes public comment on the report at:
2_3@worktools.si.umich.edu.
Dr. Bates' recommendations include the development of a clustered
vocabulary approach to melding natural language terms utilized by users
with the many controlled vocabularies assigned to the works they are
searching for. Her approach combines the use of subject specialists to
build the vocabulary with input from search terms being used by users. The
vocabulary database would then be available to libraries and commercial
firms for the price of a share in its maintenance. Such cooperative
members would be able to install the vocabulary in their catalogs, portals
and websites in a manner suited to their individual needs.
In addition, Dr. Bates proposes a staged, cooperative approach to
bibliographic families based on Bradford distribution to identify the
largest and most problematic bibliographic families and to provide
relationship information for objects within them. Such relationship
information could be shared in much the same way as bibliographic records
are.
The report further provides an extensive review and bibliography that
spotlights issues and research in the field of information seeking
behavior.
The Metadata Enrichment Task Force welcomes comments from readers
regarding the report and its recommendations. The Task Force is
particularly interested in knowing whether the library community has
confidence in this approach, whether it would be willing to participate in
the construction of the recommended tools, and whether vendors would be
interested in using the tools. In addition, any comments on parallel
approaches to these issues and how they might interoperate with the report
recommendations would be welcome. Please direct such correspondence to:
2_3@worktools.si.umich.edu.
The METF is a task force appointed by the American Library Association's
ALCTS Division and is directed by priorities stated in the LC/ALCTS Action
Plan.
Dr. Marcia Bates, the report author, is a well established consultant in
the areas of system search strategy, user-centered design of information
retrieval systems, and information seeking behavior. A professor in the
UCLA Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, she has more
than thirty years of experience in libraries and information science
research.
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Judy Ahronheim University of Michigan Graduate Library
Metadata Specialist Room 112-E Hatcher N.
jaheim@umich.edu Ann Arbor, MI 48109-1205
734-936-2407 Fax: 734-615-9788
