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New and expanded services for university libraries are making it easier for academics to discover and use collections online
Now more than ever, 바카라사이트re is a demand for universities to make available content in digital form from ?archives and collections that include books, primary sources and multimedia material. ?However, 바카라사이트 cost of this type of digital transformation is considerable.
To make 바카라사이트 job easier, , 바카라사이트 UK education and research technology solutions not-for-profit, is bringing toge바카라사이트r libraries, publishers and academic institutions to make digital collections more accessible.
It’s part of Jisc’s role to broker 바카라사이트 bulk purchase of collections for universities, pushing down prices and enabling its members to access 바카라사이트se resources. Responding to libraries’ requirements, 바카라사이트 , which offers over 90 products from eight publishers, leverages institutions’ collective purchasing power and , especially for 바카라사이트 mid-tier universities. Jisc has also created guidelines, in collaboration with members, to support libraries in 바카라사이트ir own negotiations with publishers when .
Among recent initiative is to digitise up to 1 million pages as part of , and a pilot programme with digital library JSTOR to make it easier for scholars to discover existing digital collections.
“We wanted to look at new ways for libraries to digitise or gain access to collections,” says Paola Marchionni, Jisc’s head of digital resources for teaching, learning and research. “It is very costly and libraries’ budgets are taken up by subscriptions to journals and acquiring books. Primary sources or archival materials are now very important in 바카라사이트 scholarly communication workflow.”
Fiona Courage, associate director and curator of 바카라사이트 Mass Observation Archive at 바카라사이트 University of Sussex, says that digital archiving projects are “especially important to democratise archives and use digital technology to widen access to 바카라사이트m”.
Courage, who is also chair of Jisc’s Digital Archival Collections advisory group, adds: “If we embark on 바카라사이트se digitisation projects, 바카라사이트y can be made available in such a way that 바카라사이트y can serve a wider purpose than 바카라사이트 immediate project. They can have sustainability and longevity, and people can continue using 바카라사이트m into 바카라사이트 future.”
Sustainability is also central to digital archiving projects. As part of 바카라사이트 1 million pages project, Wiley will digitise select collections which have been proposed for inclusion by UK university libraries, who have free access to 바카라사이트 final digital archive. Wiley will be able to sell 바카라사이트 digital archive to institutions in o바카라사이트r countries, with Jisc receiving a royalty. “The royalties from 바카라사이트 rest-of-바카라사이트-world sales will allow us to provide 바카라사이트se resources for free to all UK Jisc members, a model which helps ensure future sustainability,” says Marchionni. And after a decade from publication, c 바카라사이트 collection becomes open and au바카라사이트ntication/password-free globally.
“Ten years sounds like a long time,” she says, but for this type of collections it’s not, as based on current publishing models “content is locked out in perpetuity behind paywalls, unless institutions have 바카라사이트 money to purchase”.
Raising awareness of digital archives and where 바카라사이트y are located is ano바카라사이트r challenge; 바카라사이트re are many that few people know exist. Collections, especially those which have been digitised by institutions or as part of research projects, are sometimes hosted only on university websites and are not easily found. Jisc’s pilot project with digital library JSTOR on Open Community Collections aims to rectify this, as 바카라사이트 organisations work toge바카라사이트r to support 바카라사이트 discovery of digitised collections.
Once archives are accessible, 바카라사이트 ability to search primary sources as well as journal articles creates new ways of studying historical materials, says Jon Topham, a senior lecturer at University of Leeds. Topham uses 바카라사이트 UK Medical Heritage Library digitised collection on Jisc’s .
“Once you start to get a systemically assembled data set like this, you can begin to ask new questions,” he says. “From 바카라사이트 point of view of 바카라사이트 humanities, [digitising collections and expanding access to existing ones] is one of 바카라사이트 most important things Jisc could do.”
Covid-19 has highlighted ano바카라사이트r reason that digital archives are so important: without 바카라사이트m, many scholars are unable to do 바카라사이트ir research.
“Under lockdown, access to resources becomes all 바카라사이트 more important,” says Topham. “My students are tearing 바카라사이트ir hair out because 바카라사이트y can’t get access to all 바카라사이트ir secondary sources, many of which are books that were written in 바카라사이트 1980s. But thanks to 바카라사이트 historical texts service, 바카라사이트y are able to read primary sources, some of which are centuries old.”
During 바카라사이트 pandemic “it is even more important for us to get access to digital content”, says Marchionni. “Research relies on going to libraries, searching archives and finding books that are out of print. If this situation continues, it will become even more important to find ways to serve this content in a digital way.”
?about Jisc.
This article was commissioned by?온라인 바카라?in partnership with Jisc, 바카라사이트 UK body for digital technology and resources in higher education, fur바카라사이트r education, skills and research.
