ADMINISTRATIVE NOTES Newsletter of the Federal Depository Library Program --------------------------------------------------------------------- May 1, 2000 GP 3.16/3-2:21/07 (Vol. 21, no. 07) --------------------------------------------------------------------- DEPOSITORY LIBRARY COUNCIL TO THE PUBLIC PRINTER SPRING 2000 MEETING RECOMMENDATIONS, ACTION ITEMS, AND COMMENDATIONS RECOMMENDATIONS 1) Revision of the Depository Library Public Service Guidelines Council recommends that GPO reconsider "Proposal 3: Revise the 'Depository Library Public Service Guidelines for Government Information in Electronic Formats' to Establish a Service Requirement for Tangible Electronic Products." (April 2000) Rationale: Council is concerned that the meaning of the phrase "good faith effort" in Proposal 3 is unclear. Council is cognizant of the responsibility of depository libraries to make a "good faith effort" to make electronic products accessible to the public and we realize that the public may at times require assistance rather than simply being given the option of borrowing these products. However, given the eclectic nature of many depository tangible electronic products and their software (or lack thereof), we ask GPO for a more nuanced approach to the problem, and in particular, a clearer exposition of what constitutes a "good faith effort." Further, Council will undertake action to clarify the competencies that depository libraries need to have to comply with enhanced service requirements. 2) GPO Access Gateways Council recommends that GPO capitalize on the experiences and innovative contributions of the GPO Access Gateway libraries by engaging them in discussion to encourage their participation in the evolution from Gateways to potential new partnerships. Rationale: Council recognizes the valuable role Gateways have played in the growth of GPO Access and the expertise the Gateways have developed in providing tailored instructional, navigational, or interpretive content. Council is aware that some Gateways wish to continue in that capacity. Council is also aware that GPO is committed to continuing operation of the SWAIS interface and to maintaining links useful to Gateway sites. Given GPO's commitment, Council believes it is reasonable that Gateways as a separate project be ended. However, Council believes that discussion between GPO and the Gateways may lead to new partnerships based on the accomplishments and innovative spirit of Gateway libraries. 3) Redefinition of Depository Library Size Categories Council endorses the "Proposal 1: Redefine Depository Library Size Categories" (April 2000). Council encourages GPO to update the library size categories at more frequent intervals and to begin to articulate definitions of measures for depository libraries in the online environment. Rationale: Council concurs with GPO that the present definitions which were articulated in 1987 do not adequately reflect the growth of depository library collections and, therefore, place an undue burden on libraries to select beyond their main mission and scope. More frequent updates of the size categories will avoid this problem in the future. However, Council notes that definition of library size by volume count will not be meaningful in a networked information environment and suggests that GPO begin to consider measures of equipment and public service commitments that might better define depository library "size" in the more electronic environment. 4) Decennial Census Information Council recommends that GPO pursue special funding in FY2002 to make 2000 Decennial Census publications and data files available for depository library selection as tangible or Internet products, and to initiate a dialog with the Bureau of the Census regarding preferred options for depository library dissemination of such 2000 Census materials as cartographic line files. Rationale: Decennial census information, including the cartographic line files that are essential to many Census data applications, comprises a fundamental public information resource and a core collection in depository libraries. This data remains useful for many years, and depository libraries provide the permanent public access which communities and researchers need. Online formats alone do not fill the needs of all users, nor are they exact equivalents in every case. The long-term value of this unique body of information justifies distribution in multiple formats. Special funding was obtained and effectively used during the last census cycle to enable the public to have access to this information in multiple formats through depository libraries, and the data still receives heavy use. Council believes that special funds should again be requested to assure similar levels of multi-format access to the 2000 Decennial Census through depository libraries. The continuation of this flexibility in formats will significantly increase the ability of depository libraries to maximize service for their patrons, now and in the future. 5) Increasing Minimum Technical Requirements for Public Access Workstations Council recommends that GPO implement "Proposal 2: Increase The Minimum Technical Requirements for Public Access Workstations in Federal Depository Libraries at Regular Intervals" (April 2000). Rationale: Council recognizes the ongoing need to assure that the technical capabilities of depository libraries are adequate to support access to electronic FDLP publications. Hence, Council supports the proposal that GPO establish a schedule for updating Minimal Technical Requirements for Public Access Workstations at regular intervals. Council is concerned about the impact of these standards upon the inspection process and encourages GPO to articulate their expectations to depository libraries. 6) Electronic Transition Report Council, having accepted in principle the Electronic Transition Committee's Report on GPO's Transition to a More Electronic FDLP, recommends that as GPO staff develop online resources they keep in mind not only FDLP libraries, but also the broad range of constituents who will have direct access to the Collection, including non-depository libraries and the public. Rationale: Council has studied a number of issues related to GPO's electronic transition and reported on their deliberations in the Electronic Transition Report. While GPO has a mandate to serve GPO depository libraries, the Internet environment enables non-depository libraries and the general public to directly use GPO online resources. Council recommends that GPO keep in mind this broader range of constituents as it develops online tools and resources, marketing, training, and outreach for the FDLP. Ben's Guide is a successful example of an online resource that satisfies the needs of both the FDLP and the general public. It is Council's opinion that this will enable GPO to play a more vital role in the dissemination of government information in the electronic environment. 7) GPO's Cataloging and Locator Services Report Council recommends that GPO proceed with the six "Proposals for Council Consideration" articulated in the report, "GPO's Cataloging and Locator Services Actions in Progress and Proposals for Change" (April 2000). While Council endorses each of the six proposals, we do further recommend that GPO consider strategies for continuing a simple index in the paper Monthly Catalog. Rationale: Council believes that this well thought out review of locator services proposes a reasonable strategy for strengthening cataloging and locator tools on GPO Access. These services were initiated approximately four years ago and have reached the point where assessment and retooling are required. Given the low use and high cost of the Monthly Catalog on CD-ROM and the ready availability of a much better product on GPO Access, the Catalog of Government Publications (CGP), resources used to produce the CD-ROM should be reallocated to other GPO Access efforts. Since the online CGP minimizes the need for the paper Monthly Catalog, desktop publication of the paper product will reduce costs and free resources for other projects, and will meet Title 44 requirements for the production of a list of products. 8) Cataloging and Locator Tools Council recommends that GPO revise GPO Access Finding Aids and Cataloging and Locator tools pages to: o assure that Cataloging and Locator Tools pages conform in look and feel with other pages on the GPO Access site; and o include links (buttons) on Cataloging and Locator tools pages which provide easy navigation within and among these tools; and o establish a Browse Topics pages meta-tag requirement to conform with CORC standards that will facilitate search engine retrieval of Browse Topics pages. Rationale: The Cataloging and Locator Tools pages currently have a different look and feel than other GPO Access pages, as well as a different schema for navigational devices. Council believes that greater conformity within the overall GPO Access site would ease use of these pages, especially to the broader community of users beyond depository libraries. As an example, adding a uniform set of navigational buttons to the Cataloging and Locator tools pages similar to those on the branches of government pages, would improve navigation among the tools. Additionally, the establishment of a meta-tag requirement for Browse Topics would ensure that pages contributed by all volunteers participating in the Browse Topics partnership will be uniform for Web search engines and available for CORC. 9) Microfiche Congressional Bills Council recommends that GPO continue distribution of the microfiche version of congressional bills until such time as the electronic version can be certified as authentic. Rationale: Council recognizes that due to fiscal constraints, GPO has to make difficult decisions regarding formats and that Congress is pressuring GPO to eliminate dual distribution of FDLP titles altogether. Nonetheless, Council is aware of concerns within the FDLP community about ending distribution of the microfiche version of congressional bills until the electronic version that is available through GPO Access can be authenticated as official. There are currently no government-wide information policies or procedures to address the important issue of authenticating electronic government information, including core legal titles that are increasingly becoming available in electronic formats. Council believes that GPO should take a pro-active role in this arena similar to the leadership they have demonstrated in bringing together key stakeholders to discuss solutions to ensure the permanent public access of electronic government information. ACTION ITEMS 1) Core E-Competencies Council recognizes the need to revise the service standards for electronic resources along the lines suggested in "Proposal 3: Revise the 'Depository Library Public Service Guidelines for Government Information in Electronic Formats' to Establish a Service Requirement for Tangible Electronic Products." (April 2000). In order to help depository libraries comply with such standards, we have charged a working group to examine the service standards and propose to Council and GPO a list of core competencies for the FDLP libraries at the fall 2000 meeting. This list of core competencies will help target training needs and provide standards for evaluating depository services. 2) Partnerships The Partnership Working Group will work with LPS's Electronic Collection Manager on providing greater visibility and understanding of the partnership program. The group will investigate adding a database of partnership opportunities to the GPO Administrative website for the use of LPS, libraries, consortia, and Federal agencies. 3) Access America Council will monitor developments regarding Access America and similar initiatives. These initiatives may establish important portals for access to Web based Federal government information and voluntary standards for those information resources. COMMENDATIONS 1) Council commends GPO's Cataloging Branch for having attained a nationally recognized level of quality and expertise in cataloging. OCLC has granted National Level Enhanced status to GPO's catalogers which authorizes them to modify all OCLC records. Further evidence of this expertise is provided by an invitation from the Library of Congress to GPO to join the Bibliographic Cooperative program of the national Program for Cooperative Cataloging (PCC). With its prior membership in other PCC organizations, GPO's recent membership in the Bibliographic Cooperative makes GPO a full member of all components of PCC: Bibliographic Cooperative, Name Authority Cooperative, Subject Authority Cooperative, and the Cooperative Online Serials Program. Council further commends GPO's Cataloging Branch for its support of OCLC's CORC (Cooperative Online Resource Catalog) Project. GPO's leadership in the cataloging of online resources has provided OCLC with more than 4,000 GPO-produced records that OCLC has selected for extraction to seed the CORC database. The Branch is to be further commended for its participation in the evaluation of CORC software and the continued development of this important resource. 2) Council commends GPO Electronic Information Dissemination Service (EIDS) for its ground breaking report on search engine indexing of GPO Access web pages, and especially the outreach and follow up with commercial search engines, and for continuing efforts to improve web metrics and provide helpful reports on usage of GPO Access. These efforts help educate the FDLP community on search engine efficiency and are essential to the further development and enhanced accessibility of GPO Access. 3) Council commends GPO for working with the Supreme Court of the United States in developing an official Supreme Court website accessible to the public through GPO Access. Special recognition is given to the GPO Production Department and Electronic Information Dissemination Service (EIDS) for their tireless efforts in responding to the unique needs of the Court. Council hopes that this joint initiative between the Court and GPO will serve as a model for other Federal courts. 4) Council commends GPO Library Programs Service (LPS) and Electronic Information Dissemination Service (EIDS) for the development of Ben's Guide to U.S. Government for Kids. As the educational component of GPO Access, and locator service to age-appropriate online educational resources about government for students, parents, and teachers, Ben's Guide provides a vital reference and educational tool for students and the educational community and serves as an important step to increase public awareness of our government and the Federal Depository Library Program. 5) Council commends GPO for its leadership in convening government-wide discussions on the need for the implementation of permanent public access to Federal government information. GPO's leadership role advances understanding of permanent public access and strengthens working relationships between GPO and other Federal agencies.