National bibliographic records in the digital information environment: metadata, links and standards
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/EUM0000000007136 |
| Date | 01 March 1999 |
| Pages | 16-32 |
| Published date | 01 March 1999 |
| Author | Michael Day,Rachel Heery,Andy Powell |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Library & information science |
NATIONAL BIBLIOGRAPHIC RECORDS IN THE DIGITAL
INFORMATION ENVIRONMENT: METADATA, LINKS
AND STANDARDS
MICHAEL DAY, RACHEL HEERY
and ANDY POWELL
{m.day; r.m.heery; a.powell}@ukoln.ac.uk
UK Office for Library and Information Networking, University of Bath
Bath BA2 7AY
This paper reviews BIBLINK, an EC funded project that is attempt-
ing to create links between national bibliographic agencies and the
publishers of electronic resources. The project focuses on the flow of
information, primarily in the form of metadata, between publishers
and national libraries.The paper argues that in the digital informa-
tion environment, the role of national bibliographic agencies will
become increasingly dependent upon the generation of electronic
links between publishers and other agents in the bibliographic chain.
Related work carried out by the Library of Congress with regard to
its Electronic CIP Program is described. The core of the paper out-
lines studies produced by the BIBLINK project as background to
the production of a demonstrator that will attempt to establish some
of these links. This research includes studies of metadata formats in
use and an investigation of the potential for format conversion,
including an outline of the BIBLINK Core metadata elements and
comments on their potential conversion into UNIMARC. BIBLINK
studies on digital identifiers and authentication are also outlined.
INTRODUCTION
National libraries, as they have developed historically, are important organisa-
tions which collect, preserve and make available publications which are seen as a
major part of a particular nation’s history and cultural heritage [1]. In support
of these ‘core’ roles, nearly all national libraries have taken on the important task
of managing a national bibliography, variously viewed as an official record of a
nation’s intellectual heritage or of its publishing output. Production of national
bibliographies is closely related to the process of legal deposit, a process that
varies significantly between countries worldwide. One of the most important
challenges facing national bibliographic services is the increase in electronic pub-
lication as, traditionally, electronic resources have neither been covered by legal
deposit legislation nor included in national bibliographies.
The BIBLINK project emerged as an initiative amongst a group of European
national libraries to address the future role of national bibliographies in relation to
electronic publications. In order to place BIBLINK in context we will briefly
review some of the current concerns for national bibliographic services.
16
Journal of Documentation, Vol. 55, No. 1, January 1999
© Aslib, The Association for Information Management.
All rights reserved. Except as otherwise permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act
1988, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise without the prior
written permission of the publisher.
Aslib, The Association for Information Management
Staple Hall, Stone House Court, London EC3A 7PB
Tel: +44 (0) 171 903 0000, Fax: +44 (0) 171 903 0011
Email: pubs@aslib.co.uk, WWW: http://www.aslib.co.uk/aslib
16
Journal of Documentation, vol. 55, no. 1, January 1999, pp. 16–32
The national bibliography is typically a record of what is legally deposited,
and the legacy of print culture means that in many countries legal deposit is
limited to books. Legal deposit policy is now being reconsidered to take account
of electronic publication with several national libraries moving towards experi-
mental deposit of ‘physical’ electronic publications. The position as regards net-
worked information is more complex, where the document may be dynamic and
not easily isolated for deposit. A recent international review of the deposit of non-
print material gives an account of the legal situation, and the situation in practice,
in a number of European countries, the US, Canada and Australia [2]. It reveals
that progress towards ‘comprehensive’ legal deposit is far from straightforward,
involving an interaction between definition of policy, realistic implementation of
that policy and the availability of technical solutions.
The nature of electronic networked information means it is no longer easy to
define ‘publication’: the low entry cost of placing information on the World Wide
Web and the ease of revision has led to a vast body of dynamic information, much
of which is transitory in value. Although it may be relatively easy to achieve
deposit and selection of tangible electronic artefacts such as CD-ROMs, it is far
more difficult to decide what is worth collecting from the web, and whether
selected material can be deposited in any meaningful way.
Increasing globalisation of information and the publishing industry prompts
the question ‘Which publications contribute to the cultural heritage?’. It may be
possible for those countries to formulate a collection policy where linguistic pat-
terns are well defined and the size of the publishing industry is relatively small.
But it is becoming increasingly problematic in relation to networked information
aimed at an international audience. Selection will be required, but the criteria for
selection of electronic material are yet to be fully explored and defined.
Selection itself is not new, rather the scale and nature of the material. For
printed material there have been criteria for inclusion in national bibliographies
over and above deposit, for example the
British National Bibliography (BNB)
currently selects from material received at the Legal Deposit Office of the British
Library by applying an exclusion policy whereby reports are excluded and
entered into the SIGLE system, and Stationery Office publications are listed else-
where. Various approaches to selection are emerging. Some countries, such as
Norway, are collecting not only electronic artefacts but are taking snapshots of the
World Wide Web in their domain area. There is acknowledgement that some
selection will be required regarding what is to be preserved over time, and
the technical barriers to provision of access remain. The National Library of
Australia is proposing to select exemplars of various genres of electronic materi-
al such as home pages: ‘It has never been possible to collect everything in print:
the rapidly increasing availability of electronic materials makes it likely that some
materials will not be collected at all, and others only by sample’ [3].
The development of national bibliographies is connected to the concept of
Universal Bibliographic Control (UBC) which, together with the International
MARC Programme, is a Core Programme (UBCIM) of the International
Federation of Library Associations (IFLA) [4]. The purpose of UBC has been
defined as ‘making use of and exchanging worldwide bibliographic records creat-
ed nationally, but [which are] based on internationally accepted bibliographic
January 1999 BIBLINK
17
Journal of Documentation, Vol. 55, No. 1, January 1999
© Aslib, The Association for Information Management.
All rights reserved. Except as otherwise permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act
1988, no part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in
any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise without the prior
written permission of the publisher.
Aslib, The Association for Information Management
Staple Hall, Stone House Court, London EC3A 7PB
Tel: +44 (0) 171 903 0000, Fax: +44 (0) 171 903 0011
Email: pubs@aslib.co.uk, WWW: http://www.aslib.co.uk/aslib
To continue reading
Request your trial