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OCLC WorldCat Collection Analysis debuts

Libraries can run the new service online using the 58 million records and nearly 1 billion holdings in WorldCat

Introduced March 11, WorldCat Collection Analysis makes it possible for library staff responsible for collection management to analyze the age and subject content of their own collections, compare their collections with those of peer libraries, and compare, as a group, the level of overlap or uniqueness of their collections.

The new service is designed to provide the most cost-effective way to routinely evaluate collections. It enables library staff to communicate collection decisions to faculty, boards of trustees and administrators, as well as demonstrate financial needs and responsible stewardship of library acquisitions, budgets and collections.

View the news release

Interesting facts about Google from Alan Williamson’s blog

A self-described “Java Mentor, author, BlueDragon architect, CFML guru and generally a good egg,” Alan Williamson attended a presentation by Marissa Mayer, Google Product Manager. Here’s what he found out:

The prime reason the Google home page is so bare is due to the fact that the founders didn’t know HTML and just wanted a quick interface.
They listen to feedback actively. Emailing Google isn’t emailing a blackhole.
Google uses the 20/5 rule. If at least 20 percent of people use a feature, they include it. At least 5 percent need to use a particular search before it will make it into ‘Advanced Preferences.’
The name Google was an accident, a spelling mistake for Googol.
The ‘I Feel Lucky’ button is hardly ever used. However, in trials it was found that removing it would somehow reduce the Google experience. Users wanted it kept. It was a comfort button.

View the blog entry

Dublin Core turns 10

This month marks the 10th anniversary of the Dublin Core, which originated at an OCLC/NCSA Metadata Workshop that took place in Dublin, Ohio, March 1-3, 1995.

The community affectionately described in 1995 as ‘geeks, freaks and people with sensible shoes’ has grown from the 52 original workshop participants into an international community of researchers and practitioners from more than 50 countries—and largely shaped the framework of metadata on the Web.

Read the announcement

Watch the ILLiad International Meeting live on the Web

Couldn’t travel or missed registration for the first ever ILLiad International Meeting? Tune in to the webcast on March 17th and 18th. All events are scheduled for the Smith Boardroom at OCLC in Dublin, Ohio and will be available via webcast. Listen in on all sessions, or just the ones that interest you!

OCLC welcomes these new member libraries

Transportation Development Centre
Location: Montreal, Quebec, Canada
OCLC Symbol: CNTDC
OCLC Network: OCLC Canada

National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum
Location: Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, USA
OCLC Symbol: COWBY
OCLC Network: Amigos Library Services

Longfellow Elementary School
Location: Marion, Illinois, USA
OCLC Symbol: ILLFS
OCLC Network: ILLINET

Cary Junior High School
Location: Cary, Illinois, USA
OCLC Symbol: ILCAR
OCLC Network: ILLINET

Shimer College
Location: Waukegan, Illinois, USA
OCLC Symbol: ILSHM
OCLC Network: ILLINET

University of Sulamania Law School
Location: Sulamania, Iraq
OCLC Symbol: MESLW
OCLC Network: OCLC Middle East and Northern Africa

Membership guidelines and protocols

WorldCat update

WorldCat is the world’s most comprehensive bibliographic database. Updated at a rate of nearly one new record every 10 seconds, WorldCat contains more than 58 million bibliographic records and holding information contributed by more than 8,500 libraries around the world. The new Open WorldCat program makes the items in library collections—physical and digital, popular or special—discoverable by people searching the Internet.

See the latest WorldCat record

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OCLC Abstracts uses the Internet to deliver timely information about OCLC services, programs, news and events directly to subscribers’ desktops. This e-journal augments and complements OCLC’s Web site and print communications.