Abstract
With rapid changes in technology and wider adoption of mobile devices (smartphones, tablets, ebook readers), libraries are constantly challenged to improve services and offer more content in electronic format. Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC) offers a collection of over 200,000 ebooks to its patrons. SIUC's ebook collections include ebook packages from Cambridge, Elsevier, Gale, NewsBank, Oxford, Proquest, and Springer, as well as individual titles purchased via a patron driven acquisition (PDA) model from MyiLibrary. While many e-resources management techniques used for ejournals apply to ebooks, the latter pose a completely different set of challenges. The most challenging issues are compatibility and accessibility of ebooks on a variety of mobile devices; publishers' implementation of digital rights management technologies impeding access and discovery; assignment of numerous standard identification numbers (ISBNs) with implications for cataloging, linking, and discovery; the lack of up-to-date accurate title lists; and the quality of vendor-provided MARC records. This presentation will address the challenges SIUC has faced in dealing with ebooks, the solutions implemented, and expectations about the future direction of ebook management.
Powerpoint slides
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Presented on June29, 2013 at ALA Annual Conference, Chicago, IL.