Berichten getagged Ain Uljas

Last day of my apprenticeship in the University Library

ubetom

ubetom

Today my last day of my apprenticeship in the University Library.
On this blog you have been reading about the things I’ve done this last three months.
Next monday my colleagues of the Library Faculty of Arts expect my back in the Harmonie building.
It has been a quite interesting period. Completely something else than in the Faculty of Arts.
My Estonian colleague Ain Uljas will continue a part of my project, the Groningen version of FeedNavigator. Good luck with it, Ain!

Yesterday we had the official presentation of the reorganization plan of the Groningen University Library. That is connected to my work in the Library Faculty of Arts.
At Faculty of Arts, again, I will have a lot of tasks, serving the staff & students of the Faculty: preparing library classes for the students of History, lending & information desk, helping & advising students with literature searching, database instruction, MS Office help, and computer problems. And more.

But, according to mr. Klugkist, the head librarian of the University Library in Groningen, helping students with computer & database problems, is not a task of library people. He thinks it is something for computer staff. I do not agree with him.
I think librarians can teach students more complete, than IT staff can.
It is not just solving printing problems! I think in our library (three computer rooms;about 70 computers) it is very helpfull to have at least one IT librarian, a specialist in helping students, and also staff, who have computer problems, advising in literature searching and database questions.

It think it is good for a library to give a complete service to their customers, advising, searching, problem solving, and more.

And not to be dependent on a computer helpdesk which is on a distance, and often only does react only after 24 hrs, or longer.
That is just a question of quality!

Okay, enough about this.

Now something else: since I’ll join my Arts colleagues again, I think of changing the name of this blog: Ubetom will become Elbetom (pronounce: “elbay” in dutch, short LB. LB is LetterenBibliotheek, that is the Library of Arts.
But the URL probably will stay: ubetom.wordpress.com.

Colleague MiTho proposed VeBeTom. VeBe = VakBibliotheek, that is Discipline Library, that will be the new name after the Library Reorganization.
Well, maybe it’s better to keep my name, in these uncertain times.

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Enhancing PurpleSearch: December news.

blikslager1In the enhancing project of PurpleSearch, until now the following has happened:
* I have compared a few search systems (Xerxes , VuFind, Primo Iowa / Kopenhagen / Vanderbilt).
* We received a database with peer reviewed journals, from David Walker (CalState University) – Thank you very much!
* A new trainee, computer science student, Ain Uljas from Tartu, Estonia, came to Groningen. He’ll also be involved in the programming part for PurpleSearch the coming year.ain
* We made a plan to build a database, necessary to enhance PurpleSearch:

- Make an ISSN database; we try to get the ISSN data out of the catalogue and the SFX data.
- Connect to the ISSN database holding information of the University of Groningen catalogue. Information how is available.
- Connect to the ISSN database impact factors we get from ISI Web of Science.
- Connect to the ISSN database subject information from the dutch central catalogue NCC, GOO, from Library of Contents, LC, and DDC. We hope to develop FRBR faceting options in PurpleSearch, using GOO, LC, and DDC codes to refine a search result.
- Connect to the ISSN database tables of contents of journals. We hope to find this maybe in Ulrich’s, or via electronic journals publishers & aggregators.
- Connect to the ISSN database of journal covers. We hope to find them, maybe in Ulrich’s, or via electronic journals publishers & aggregators.

Why do we use a static database, and not a live connection to updated sites, such as XISSN service of WorldCat?
- We think we can make a faster service, when we host data in Groningen, instead of using WorldCat or other data.
- The XISSN of WorldCat service probably costs money.
- We hope to develop some smart programming, so that we can update parts of our ‘static’ ISSN database.
- When the database is ready, and we have done some more programming, new services will be available in PS.
So let’s go for it!

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