The future of interoperability for ILL and resource sharing
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to provide background and context on the need for a new interlibrary loan (ILL) system interoperability standard, describe the basic purpose and structure of ISO 18626, information and documentation – interlibrary Loan Transactions – and outline steps for the new standard’s development and implementation.
Design/methodology/approach
The author’s paper is based on her expertise as a member of the working group TC46/SC4/WG14 Interlibrary Loan Transactions, charged with development, implementation and promotion of the ISO 18626 standard.
Findings
The ISO 18626 standard is needed to replace the outdated standard ISO 10160/10161. It consists of simple messages, namely, a request message; a supplying library message; and a requesting library message. Messages are encoded using XML. Balloting on the draft standard was unanimously approved in December 2013, and a fully developed ISO 18626 standard is expected to be in production in one to two years.
Originality/value
This paper reports on a developing standard that will impact ILL systems used by libraries around the globe.As the world shrinks and user’s demands grow, sending interlibrary loan (ILL) requests to other libraries, especially if multiple computer systems or catalogs are involved, has not simplified correspondingly. Even as individual ILL processes have become more streamlined, the need to interact with libraries – and the ILL systems they use – around the globe has dramatically increased. While an international standard, ISO 10160/10161, has been available for 20 years, the minimal acceptance and use of the standard has not provided the interoperability that we had hoped for and need. Work is currently underway to remedy this situation – a standard for the twenty-first century. This paper will provide the context in which this new standard emerged and was written, as well as outline what the new standard will look like and the next steps once the standard has been approved.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
© Clare MacKeigan, 2014. Thanks to the following for their contributions: Leif Andresen (Danish Agency for Culture/The Royal Library); Katie Birch (OCLC); Ed Davidson (OCLC); and Margaret Ellingson (Emory University).
This paper was originally presented at the 13th IFLA Interlending and Document Supply Conference, in Beijing, China, October16-18, 2013. Published with the kind permission of IFLA. www.ifla.org/. Articles published by Emerald which have their origins in an IFLA project are made freely accessible nine months after official publication. For permission to reuse this article, please contact the copyright holder.
Citation
MacKeigan, C. (2014), "The future of interoperability for ILL and resource sharing", Interlending & Document Supply, Vol. 42 No. 2/3, pp. 105-108. https://doi.org/10.1108/ILDS-01-2014-0012
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2014, Authors