Indexes, Abstracts

1. Indexes, Abstracts LIS 704 Summer 2009 Reference & Online Resources

2. Qualities of Indexes and Abstracts • One of the oldest forms of library tools • These began as bibliographic projects launched with publishers back in the 1870s • Poole’s Index • It came from Buffalo – the early development after Poole’s Index

3. Robinson’s Idea • “…invented a loose-leaf system for a subject index to periodicals, and a loose-leaf index to over 200 volumes of essays and general literature. He believed that it was the duty of the librarian to administer his library so that everything it contained should be accessible to every reader, with as little inconvenience as possible. He worried less about how many books his library had, or how much money he had to buy books. It was the usefulness of the books that guided his administration.”

4. Post Poole • One standard guide for periodical literature -- Harvard • From the Library of Congress • From the Arts and Humanities Research Council in Great Britain – The Nineteenth Century Serials Edition

5. Qualities of Indexes and Abstracts in the 21st century • They are often full text, nearly all have abstracts • They are often expensive and come with powerful search engines • Libraries get involved on a limited basis or in direct response to a perception of being “overpriced” • Aimed at users, not librarians • No longer about periodicals, but include other kinds of publications

6. Examples • Jstor • Elsevier Science Direct • Project Muse • Academic Search Premier • Biological and Agriculture Index • Cambridge University Press • Community of Science • History Cooperative

7. Cost and Management Expectations for Libraries • Managing these kinds of resources no longer library-centric • Users seek a way to do “federated” searching of the literature • The fracture of multiple search interfaces vs. the simplicity of Google • Long term preservation and access