Multilingual Access to Subjects (MACS)

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Multilingual Access to Subjects (MACS)
Patrice Landry Swiss National Library
M-CAST Seminar, Prague 24th November 2006
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Approaches to multilingual subject access -
Construction

• Translation (RVM, MESH)
• Satellite thesauri approach (linking various
  online thesauri) with a common search interface
• Switching (Renardus)
• Direct mapping (equivalences between terms in
  different controlled vocabularies or between
  terms and classification numbers)

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Methods used for link storage and access

• Authority records (equivalences coded in a local
  or networked database) RVM, MSAC
• Links database MACS
• Semantic Network (organised structure where each
  unit is linked to a cluster of equivalent terms)
  UMLS

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Why the MACS approach?

• In 1997, the need to find a  neutral  solution
  for linking SHLs forced some national libraries
  to find a solution not based on translation
• Approach to add value to existing data instead of
  creating new data (value added data)
• Linking work and management outside of each
  librarys authority files

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What is MACS?

• A project that is developing a system that offers
  multilingual subject access using current subject
  headings languages (SHLs)
• A project that is based on a coordinated approach
  between national libraries
• A system that will permit users to search library
  catalogues in the language of their choice

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Partners
The British Library LCSH English
Bibliothèque nationale de France RAMEAU Français
3 SHLs
Library of Congress Subject Heading Répertoire
dAutorité-Matière Encyclopédique et
Alphabétique Unifié Schlagwortnormdatei / Regeln
für den Schlagwortkatalog
Die Deutsche Bibliothek SWD/RSWK Deutsch
Swiss National Library project leader SWD/RSWK
Deutsch
On behalf of CENL
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Basic principles

• Equality of languages and SHLs (no pivot) with
  autonomy of each SHL (only local, MACS is an
  external link database)
• Establishment of equivalences (no translation)
  between the SHLs involved (no new thesaurus)
• Equivalence links conceived as concept
  clustersMACS mappings and numeric identifiers
• Consistency of results (goal users retrieval)
• Extensible to other SHLs

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Subject searching in a MONOLINGUAL environment?
Doc. in Russian
Doc. in French
Doc. in German
Doc. in English
Indexer German
indexer assigns headings in German
SH English
SH German
SH Italian
SH French
?
?
?
user has to search in German
User English
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Subject indexing and searching in a MULTILINGUAL
environment
Doc. in Russian
Doc. in French
Doc. in German
Doc. in English
Indexer German
indexer assigns headings in German
SH English
SH German
SH Italian
SH French
user can search in English
User English
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Milestones

• Proposal Feasibility study (1997-1999)
• Prototype development (2000-2001)
• Testing Link Management (LMI) upgrade to
  production database (2002-April 2004)
• New Link Management Interface production database
  accepted by partners (2005)
• New Project Proposal June 2005 (revised August
  2006)
• Move to production adding SWD headings to
  RAMEAU-LCSH links (2006)
• Integration in The European Library end 2006?

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Short overview of the Link management database
and search interface

• The project has produced a Link Management
  Database which presently contains
• - 70000 RAMEAU-LCSH links and 3000 RAMEAU /
  LCSH / SWD links
• A search Interface that was developed as part of
  the prototype and will be fully developed as part
  of the MACS development

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This is the screen where all of the linking work
starts
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Links are organised by domains
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Search is used to locate a link (using either a
term, authority Number or a MACS number
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Display of results from where work on adding
or modifying a link is done
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With the  edit  button a SHL can be modified
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Work is organised in a decentralised
environment and managed by  To Do  And  To
Know 
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Becoming operational (or how to move an
international project into a library)

• The  project syndrome  is a common occurance in
  international projects succesful projects but
  difficulties in moving to production or applying
  results generally
• The MACS project accomplished many tasks with a
  lot of enthusiasm (and human resources, and a
  little money) but .
• The longer a project exists, the more there is
  the risk of staff turnaround and the decrease of
  institutional committment to the project

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The four MACS Project constraints

• Consortium agreement
• Financing
• Human resources
• Strategic

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The solution A new project proposal

• A new project structure with roles and
  responsabilities (project and within each
  partners institution)
• A project manual with specific action plan
• A strategic plan (operational and development)
• Takes in consideration mapping recommendations
  from BS 8723, Part 4 (draft), in particular
  source and target language strategy

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Current activities

• MACS has moved to production (2006) work is
  underway to add SWD headings to RAMEAU-LCSH links
• Search Interface (SI) New interface needs to be
  developed
• MACS linking manual is being written (using the
  BS 8723, Part 4 (draft) as standard source)
• Investigating integration in The European Library
  (TEL)

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Future

• An operational system and cross-language subject
  access to the Catalogues of European National
  Libraries
• THANK YOU!

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Contacts

• http//macs.cenl.org
• Patrice.Landry_at_slb.admin.ch
• Genevieve.Clavel_at_slb.admin.ch