Editorial

Citation

McGrath, M. (2009), "Editorial", Interlending & Document Supply, Vol. 37 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/ilds.2009.12237caa.001

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: Interlending & Document Supply, Volume 37, Issue 3

Something for everyone in this issue, but we hope that all the articles are of interest to document supply librarians. An increasing number of universities have international campuses. Gaining quick and effective access to the parent collections is often not easy. And then there is the issue of document supply, both returnables and non-returnables. The systems established between “Texas and Qatar” in order to fulfil these needs are described by Zheng Ye (Lan) Yang and Suzanne D. Gyeszly. In 2008 we published an article on the UK Research Reserve written by the project managers. UKRR is an ambitious project that aims to alleviate the problem of space constraints in university libraries. To do so by developing a central repository for unwanted print material with guaranteed long term access linked to a speedy and long term reliable document supply service; Steven Sharp from Leeds University in the UK looks at this pressing issue from the perspective of the university and its users. Since the earlier article UKRR has moved to Stage 2, and all universities in the UK are now being invited to submit material for deposit. COPAC is a merged catalogue that has been heavily used for many years by the UK academic sector. Currently it includes the records of 54 libraries, and Lisa Jeskins and Bethan Ruddock describe its current service and future plans. The British Library has a unique and staggeringly complex goal of converging all its digital material so that it can be effectively and efficiently managed for the benefits of its myriad users. The goal is unique because it is the only national library to combine the large scale servicing of remote users via document supply and a large on site community; Steve Green, their Head of Digital Library Infrastructure, tells the story. The conundrum of using document supply cost effectively in a rapidly changing hybrid environment is tricky. Tim Bucknall takes us through how the University of North Carolina compared conventional subscriptions, Pay Per View and Big Deals and their conclusions. The sudden emergence of large-scale digitisation combined with easy access to the full text will clearly impact on the interlending of returnables. Perry Willet has recently moved to the California Digital Library from the University of Michigan, both of which are the forefront of large-scale digitisation. He gives us an overview of the impact of this phenomenon on document supply. The costs of electronic journals remain stubbornly high, and Golnessa Galyani Moghaddam explains why. Finally your editor, Mike McGrath, reviews the literature for the past three months, which has some particularly interesting material on open access as the debate moves on even further from theory to practice.

And don’t forget the 11th Interlending and Document Supply Conference, to be held in Hannover in October. We carry further details in this issue. It looks to be an exciting conference and your editor will be giving the first keynote. (Always a relief to speak first!)

Mike McGrath