SUNCAT

1
SUNCAT

• Briefing Session
• UKSG Conference March 29-31 2004
• www.suncat.ac.uk

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Background

• UKNUC Feasibility Study
• Serials Report Tony Kidd, Rob Bull
• SUNCAT Scoping Study
• Information Power Ltd.
• JISC RSLP funded
• Purpose - to develop a UK Serials Union
  Catalogue
• Phase 1 February 2003-December 2004
• Partnership between the University of Edinburgh,
  through EDINA, Ex Libris
• Associate Partners - Cambridge, Glasgow, National
  Library of Scotland, Oxford

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Online Union Catalogues in the UK

• Arlis.net
• CAIRNS Cooperative Academic Information
  Retrieval Network for Scotland
• COPAC
• InformM25
• IPCat Italian Periodicals Catalogue
• RIDINGZ39.50 Gateway to Yorkshire Libraries
• SALSER
• UK Japanese Union Catalogue
• UK Union Catalogue of Chinese Books

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Project management

• Project Director Peter Burnhill (EDINA)
• Project Manager Leah Halliday (EDINA)
• Aleph/Systems Noam Kaminer Julia Goldshtein
  (Ex Libris)
• Software Engineer Morag Macgregor (EDINA)
• Special Advisor Slawek Rozenfeld

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Work Packages

• Bibliographic Work Package
• Nathalie Schulz (EDINA)
• Natasha Aburrow-Jones (EDINA)
• User Requirements Work Package
• Liz Stevenson (Edinburgh University Library)
• Tony Kidd (Glasgow University Library)
• Zena Mulligan (EDINA)

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Steering Committee

• Chair Derek Law (JCCS, University of
  Strathclyde)
• Secretary Chris Awre (JISC)
• Chris Bailey (University of Glasgow)
• Peter Burnett (University of Oxford)
• Margaret Coutts (University of Kent)
• Pat Crocker (JISC)
• Clive Field (British Library)
• Andrew Green (National Library of Wales)
• Ronald Milne (University of Oxford)
• Geoff Smith (British Library)

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Bibliographic Quality Advisory Group (BQAG)

• Chair Alason Roberts (University of Edinburgh)
• Hugh Croll (University of Edinburgh)
• Tony Kidd (University of Glasgow)
• Sue Miles (University of Oxford)
• John Nicklen (National Library of Scotland)
• Slawek Rozenfeld (Special Advisor)
• Nathalie Schulz (EDINA)
• Hugh Taylor (University of Cambridge)

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Advisory Group

• Chair Peter Burnett (SUNCAT Steering Committee)
• Frances Boyle (JIBS User Group)
• Caroline Brazier (British Library)
• Alan Hopkinson (SCONUL)
• Shirley Perry (CURL)
• Peter Sudell (Aleph User Group)
• Hazel Woodward (UKSG)

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User requirements

• SUNCAT primary aims
• Location of serials, including information about
  access
• Source of high quality bibliographic records for
  downloading to local catalogues
• Requirement to interoperate with other resources
  and services

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Content

• During Phase 1, the Project is working with
  serials data from 22 UK research libraries to
  establish a critical mass of titles , with good
  geographical coverage and as wide a subject
  spread as possible
• ISSN Register CONSER Cooperative Online
  Serials Programme
• Ex Libris Aleph 500 software, already used by
  other Union Catalogues, notably the California
  Digital Library

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Contributing Libraries

• Cluster 1 Associate Partners
• National Library of Scotland (115k)
• University of Cambridge (206k)
• University of Edinburgh (28k)
• University of Oxford (182k)
• University of Glasgow (26k)

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Contributing Libraries

• Cluster 2
• Imperial College, London (29k)
• London School of Economics (43k)
• Queens University, Belfast (22k)
• University of Birmingham (45k)
• University of Durham (20k)
• University of Leeds (28k)
• University of Manchester (33k)
• University of Newcastle (17k)
• British Library (DSC records 420k)

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Contributing Libraries

• Cluster 3
• Manchester Metropolitan University (13k)
• National Library of Wales (71k)
• University College, London (33k)
• University of Bristol (24k)
• University of Nottingham (27k)
• University of Southampton (25k)
• University of Warwick (30k)
• University of Wales, Cardiff (to be confirmed)

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SUNCAT Bibliographic Work Outline

• How does SUNCAT work?
• Work to date
• Work in progress

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How does SUNCAT work?Conceptual background

• Terminology
• FRBR (Functional Requirements of Bibliographic
  Records)
• Identifiers
• Local control numbers
• ISSN
• SC-ID
• See SUNCAT a modern serials union catalogue for
  the UK by Peter Burnhill et al. Serials 17(1),
  March 2004.

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How does SUNCAT work?General

• Centralised union catalogue
• Records stored in one large database
• Records deduplicated to view using Aleph
  functionality
• Records are not permanently merged

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How does SUNCAT work?Matching

• 1. Matching algorithm
• identification of candidate pool
• algorithm applied, with points threshold for a
  match
• 2. Selection of preferred record for display
• different points system determines which record
  is preferred
• 3. Composition of display record
• the preferred record has elements from
  non-preferred records added for display
  (including holdings)

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Work to dateData loading

• Data files
• CONSER
• ISSN
• Contributing Library files
• conversion specifications
• normalisation of holdings

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Work to dateMatching testing

• Existing Aleph algorithm developed with the
  California Digital Library (Melvyl)
• Table of common titles
• New release of Aleph software in May

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Work to dateStandards

• Work with the BQAG to develop standards
• Entry standard
• Upgrading standard
• Behind the scenes
• Indexing
• Locations information

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Work in progressContributing Libraries Matching
results

• Most libraries will have a mix of full and brief
  records
• Brief records may still match - but incorrect or
  missing data may prevent a match
• Libraries will be asked to check matching, in
  particular unique records

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Work in progressUpdates and deletions

• Initial contributions need to be updated, with
  new, changed and deleted records
• Investigating how this will occur in Aleph
• User requirements work on frequency and method

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Work in progressUpgrading

• SUNCAT as a source of high quality catalogue
  records
• Poor quality preferred records and unique records
  will be identified, and libraries asked to
  upgrade
• Upgrades to be included with updates

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Work in progressDownloading

• Investigating use of Z39.50
• IPR issues
• Notifications
• The ITT for SUNCAT included notification of
  updates to CONSER and ISSN records
• User requirements to be specified

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Electronic journals

• Inclusion mandated by the ITT
• Increasing proportion of holdings are electronic
• Growing archives of back files
• Preliminary survey of current practice
• Single or separate records
• Access and holdings subscription information

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Interface

• User requirements display and functionality
• Accessibility and Usability
• Aleph 500 already deployed for other union
  catalogues
• Dialogue with California Digital Library, and
  review of other Union Catalogue OPACs
• User testing

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SUNCAT development schedule

• Phase 2 January 2005-December 2006
• Expansion of service to include data from 200
  contributing libraries
• Phase 3 2007-
• Steady state service

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SUNCAT at UKSG

• EDINA stand
• Monday 29 March 5p.m.-6p.m.
• Tuesday 30 March 1p.m.-1.45p.m.
• Tuesday 30 March 3.15p.m.-3.45p.m.
• Contacts
• www.suncat.ac.uk
• Nathalie Schulz
• N.Schulz_at_ed.ac.uk
• Liz Stevenson
• L.Stevenson_at_ed.ac.uk