T A B L E   O F   C O N T E N T S
M A Y / J U N E   2 0 1 3
Volume 19, Number 5/6

doi:10.1045/may2013-contents
ISSN: 1082-9873

E D I T O R I A L

Acquisition, Access, and Preservation
by Laurence Lannom, Corporation for National Research Initiatives

A R T I C L E S

NDSA Storage Report: Reflections on National Digital Stewardship Alliance Member Approaches to Preservation Storage Technologies
Article by Micah Altman, MIT Libraries; Jefferson Bailey, Metropolitan New York Library Council; Karen Cariani, WGBH Media Library and Archives; Michelle Gallinger, Jane Mandelbaum, and Trevor Owens, Library of Congress

Abstract: The structure and design of digital storage systems is a cornerstone of digital preservation. To better understand ongoing storage practices of organizations committed to digital preservation, the National Digital Stewardship Alliance conducted a survey of member organizations. This article reports on the findings of the survey. The results of the survey provide a frame of reference for organizations to compare their storage system approaches with NDSA member organizations.

Choosing a Sustainable Web Archiving Method: A Comparison of Capture Quality
Article by Gabriella Gray and Scott Martin, UCLA Library

Abstract: The UCLA Online Campaign Literature Archive has been collecting websites from Los Angeles and California elections since 1998. Over the years the number of websites created for these campaigns has soared while the staff manually capturing the websites has remained constant. By 2012 it became apparent that we would need to find a more sustainable model if we were to continue to archive campaign websites. Our ideal goal was to find an automated tool that could match the high quality captures produced by the Archive's existing labor-intensive manual capture process. The tool we chose to investigate was the California Digital Library's Web Archiving Service (WAS). To test the quality of WAS captures we created a duplicate capture of the June 2012 California election using both WAS and our manual capture and editing processes. We then compared the results from the two captures to measure the relative quality of the two captures. This paper presents the results of our findings and contributes a unique empirical analysis of the quality of websites archived using two divergent web archiving methods and sets of tools.

A Model for Providing Web 2.0 Services to Cultural Heritage Institutions: The IMLS DCC Flickr Feasibility Study
Article by Jacob Jett, Megan Senseney and Carole L. Palmer, University of Illinois

Abstract: The Flickr Feasibility Study, which was launched by the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) Digital Collections and Content (DCC) project in 2009 to determine how aggregators might provide intermediary services for cultural heritage institutions wishing to engage in Web 2.0 initiatives, shed light on both needs and models for aggregation services. This article provides an overview of the study's findings, including the efficiencies that aggregation services such as the DCC can afford cultural heritage institutions when they act as intermediaries to facilitate Web 2.0 participation. Also discussed are the outcomes of the study's conversations with Yahoo, Inc. representatives regarding aggregators as members of the Commons on Flickr and the complimentary cultural heritage spaces that aggregation services can help their member institutions to create outside of the Commons. Finally, the ample rewards in long-tail community engagement and user-generated metadata that cultural heritage institutions can reap when they expose their collections to Web 2.0 communities, are highlighted.

Unlocking Open Educational Resources (OERs) Interaction Data
Article by David Massart and Elena Shulman, ZettaDataNet, LLC

Abstract: Each time a teacher or a learner interacts with an Open Educational Resource (OER), these interactions produce data. This "interaction data" includes "artifact data" routinely captured during any online interaction by Web server logs (e.g., users' browsers, users' IP addresses) and "social data" created during Web 2.0-style interactions with resources (e.g., tags, comments, ratings, favorites). Interaction data can serve a number of purposes in a period of increased interest worldwide in OERs quality and uptake. First, interaction data is a valuable source of analytics about OERs and typical audience profiles. Second, combined with metadata, interaction data can enhance searching, ranking, and recommendations of learning resources. However, obtaining this data is not always easy since OERs, in particular, are generally dispersed among different systems where the interactions between resources and their users take place. This paper describes approaches to unlocking, collecting and aggregating this interaction data.

C O N F E R E N C E   R E P O R T S

"Curate Thyself" and the DigCCurr Experts' Meeting: Communication, Collaboration, and Strategy in Digital Curation Education
Conference Report by Alex H. Poole, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Abstract: A three-day event combining "Curate Thyself", a day-long DigCCurr PhD Symposium led by the DigCCurr team of faculty and Ph.D. fellows, and a two-day DigCCurr Experts' Meeting, was held in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, March 17-19, 2013. The event marked the closing of almost 7 years of funding from the Institute for Museum and Library Services (IMLS) for DigCCurr (Digital Curation Curriculum) projects at the School of Information and Library Science (SILS) at UNC-Chapel Hill. The event drew nearly 60 attendees from the United States, Canada, and Europe. Nearly all of the attendees were affiliated with iSchools, primarily doctoral students and faculty members. Not merely a capstone for DigCCurr, however, the very successful event proved an ideal forum for discussing strategies, including developing future initiatives, seeking funding, refining teaching methods, implementing course materials, and developing programs and curricula.

Developing Cyberinfrastructure for Earth Science: an Opportunity for Collaboration
Conference Report by Sarah Ramdeen, University of North Carolina

Abstract: Providing access to digital resources enables scientists to ask and answer questions in ways they could not in the past. There is increasing interest and research in how to create the infrastructure necessary to support science data and its use, and the field of Earth Science is joining the conversation. As part of a series of domain-specific workshops hosted by EarthCube, a National Science Foundation program, the Cyberinfrastructure for Sedimentary Geology workshop was held on March 25 and 26, 2013 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Representatives from the sedimentary community gathered to discuss cyberinfrastructure issues relating to Earth Science data and the future development of the EarthCube program. During the workshop, participants discussed challenges to conducting scientific research in this domain; identified current resources; and discussed the potential impact of EarthCube on the future of research and pedagogy. Workshops such as this one are important to the field of information and library science, as they offer opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration. Library professionals have expertise and experience to add to the conversation as EarthCube moves forward.

N E W S   &   E V E N T S

In Brief: Short Items of Current Awareness

In the News: Recent Press Releases and Announcements

Clips & Pointers: Documents, Deadlines, Calls for Participation

Meetings, Conferences, Workshops: Calendar of Activities Associated with Digital Libraries Research and Technologies

F E A T U R E D   D I G I T A L
C O L L E C T I O N

The Trial Pamphlets Collection at the Cornell Law Library consists of 450+ pamphlets ranging in date from the late 1600s to the late 1800s. The vast majority of the pamphlets are from American trials; approximately 8 percent of the pamphlets are reports of British trials and make up the earliest trials in the collection (late 1600s — early 1800s).

These pamphlets were produced quickly and inexpensively, and then sold on the street soon after the trial to a mass audience. The paper used to print the pamphlets was of a lower quality and the pamphlets were not bound. Thus, the pamphlets were not meant to survive much past their initial use. The collection was purchased in 1927 and bound together in the same year with little concern for pamphlet preservation. In 2011, Cornell University Library received a grant from the Save America's Treasures Grant Program to preserve and digitize the collection.

Trial pamphlets are contemporary accounts of trials that involved prominent citizens or that dealt with especially controversial or lurid topics. They were sold to an eager public as both a form of entertainment and as cautionary tales. Some include the details and illustrations of scandalous crimes and others include "execution sermons," which were meant to serve as moral lessons to readers. Most include valuable information not available elsewhere such as verbatim transcripts of testimony and arguments of counsel, depositions of parties, and illustrations or copies of evidence used in the trial.

As a collection, these trial pamphlets are a unique resource that captures a formative period in American history from the early years of the republic, through the turmoil of the Civil War, to the emergence of the United States as a leading industrial nation in the late 1800s. The pamphlets mirror the political, social, and economic transformation of the United States during this period. While each individual trial pamphlet is a valuable snapshot of a period in American legal and social history, by tracking the changes in the content of the pamphlets over time, researchers can track the evolution of the United States as it was reflected in the courts.

D - L I B   E D I T O R I A L   S T A F F

Laurence Lannom, Editor-in-Chief
Allison Powell, Associate Editor
Catherine Rey, Managing Editor
Bonita Wilson, Contributing Editor

|  Mirror Sites | Export Citations: RIS or BibTeX