But, on this occasion, I hope you do.
Let's face it, many of us read newsletters in piecemeal fashion, if
at all. We receive many publications and there often isn't time to glance
over them, much less digest them.
This column is a request for your assistance. The Library is offering
a number of exciting new services, and we want to reach as many faculty
members as possible with the news. To that end, we're hoping to send
our staff members to academic departments, both to demonstrate these
new technological capabilities and to initiate a major revision of our
Collection Development Policy. All we require from you--in concert with
your Department Chair--is an invitation.
What services am I talking about? Perhaps the most exciting is the
Boston
Library Consortium Virtual Catalog (BLC VC). Although still in its
fledgling stage, when completed, this project will allow you to search
a "catalog" displaying the holdings of BLC member libraries and to borrow
books with the click of your mouse. Books will usually be delivered
to campus in 5-7 days. As of today, the libraries participating are
Brown, Wellesley, UMass Boston, and Massachusetts Biological Laboratory/Woods
Hole Library, but, within a year or so, we will add institutions like
Brandeis, Tufts, Boston College, Boston University, and the rest of
the University of Massachusetts. Because this project is funded by the
Massachusetts Board of Library Commissioners, you will also have access
to the holdings of several large Massachusetts public library systems.
When complete, the VC project will offer you a virtual library of some
30 million volumes.
For the first time this semester, we are also offering an electronic
reserves system. Although copyright remains a challenge when it comes
to digitizing everything, we can link with our more than 3,000 electronic
journals to place articles from them on reserve, as well as scan items,
such as course notes, problem sets or your syllabus, for inclusion on
a web reserves list. Articles in paper form may also be scanned, assuming
that copyright clearance can be obtained. Electronic reserves, of course,
may be read from anywhere on campus, a great convenience for your students.
For further information about this service, contact Reserves at 3-1536.
Brown librarians have begun to work with faculty on the design of course
web pages, taking advantage of our knowledge both of our own general
and Special Collections and of digital resources at other institutions.
This effort is part of the Library's new Digital Initiatives Program,
which aims both to support research and coursework at Brown and to make
Brown's unique collections available to scholars around the world via
the web. Music
133 and Theatre
Arts 126 are among existing courses with web pages developed in
partnership with the Library. Existing projects and course-support options
may be seen at:
http://www.brown.edu/Facilities/University_Library/courses/.
Finally, we ask for your help in creating an interactive, online Collection
Development Policy (CDP). The Library's prior version was first
captured in print in 1984, in a large, complex document which covered
more than 600 pages. Although an impressive undertaking, it has proven
cumbersome to use and is now badly out-of-date. In collaboration with
faculty, we have begun to create web-based policies that will incorporate
information about your department and its curricula with helpful data
about the Library's collections, including links to online resources.
You can view examples of some of our existing CDP websites at the following:
http://www.brown.edu/Facilities/University_Library/collections/colldev/subjects/index.html.
Clearly, this is a project with considerable promise and important implications
for the future. However, it cannot succeed without the active involvement
of faculty, who can help us to build a collection that will not only
address today's needs, but also adapt to new trends and directions.
A vital and adaptable CDP is critical, for example, in helping the Library
support emerging areas of interdisciplinary interest. Its redesign is
the Library's top priority this year, and the chances are good that
you will be hearing from your Collection Development Librarian soon.
These are exciting times for the Library, and we look forward to an
opportunity to demonstrate these projects for you. If you'd like to
arrange for a visit with some knowledgeable librarians, please contact
Ronald Fark, Head of Reference, at 3-2770.
--Merrily E. Taylor
Joukowsky Family University Librarian
