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Established in 2004, the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) Postdoctoral Fellowship Program (program) had as its goal the recruitment, training, and creation of cohorts of new PhDs working within the library or cultural heritage digital environment to help manage, sustain, and generate valuable information in support of research and learning. With the data curation fellowships, introduced in 2012, the goal was for the fellows to "contribute to a more sophisticated understanding of data curation and its often determining role in the conduct of scientific and social science research" (Bishop and Williford 2019). This report: (1) discusses the methodology of the 2018-2022 assessment of the CLIR program; (2) provides an analytical review of prior program assessments; (3) identifies the types of data curated through the fellowships; (4) identifies differences in data curation across the different cohorts; (5) explores the challenges emerging from those curation activities; (6) identifies the impact of the fellows' work on their host organizations and communities; (7) assesses the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and contemporaneous social movement events on the fellows; and (8) identifies future priorities for the program.

This study explores the common barriers and shared visions for creating access to archival collections held by libraries at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). One of few reports that document the needs of HBCU libraries as they relate to archives and special collections. It is based on a series of online focus groups that author Sharon Ferguson Freeman facilitated with HBCU library directors and deans in 2021. The study provides insight into the significance of special and archival collections for HBCU librar­ies and their communities; the management and capacity of archives and special collections; and these libraries' values, priorities, needs, and aspirations. The findings also reveal information related to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on HBCUs and broader topics of significance that were not anticipated when the project began.

In April 2020, the authors, CLIR [Council on Library and Information Resources] fellows in the second cohort of Data Curation for Latin American and Caribbean Studies, virtually convened "Capacity Assessment of Latin American and Caribbean Partners: A Symposium about Open Access, Technological Needs, and Institutional Sustainability." The symposium provided a forum for stakeholders from institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean to share strategies for digital archiving and cultural preservation and to identify common areas of need. The goal of the symposium was for the stakeholders to formulate a set of questions for funders, libraries, archives, and others based in the United States, Canada, and European nations to consider when evaluating grant proposals for digital projects, or when considering post-custodial archival work with institutions in Latin America and the Caribbean. The authors sought to develop recommendations and equitable practices to enhance cultural engagement through collection development that fully acknowledges Latin American and Caribbean organizations as equal partners with a voice in decision making for projects and grant funding.

From 2008 to 2014, the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) administered the Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives program, which granted funds to catalog "hidden" collections of high scholarly value. Generously supported by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the program awarded more than $27.4 million to academic, cultural heritage, and other collecting institutions. To assess the program's impact, CLIR conducted a comprehensive analysis of final reports from all 128 projects funded through the program. This report describes the methods and findings of the analysis, including cataloging outputs, as well as impact on hiring, policies and procedures, communication tools, and research and outreach. The findings of this report are divided into four sections: an overview of project demographics, a summary of project outputs, a discussion of other outcomes, and an examination of the lasting impact of the program.

In September 2015, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) awarded the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) a grant to investigate the early impacts of the National Digital Stewardship Residency (NDSR) programs, in order to inform subsequent development of similar programs by others with a vested interest in building professional capacity to preserve digital information. "Keepers of Our Digital Future" provides a formative evaluation of the early residencies, based on surveys and interviews with NDSR participants and supervisors from the Washington, D.C., New York, and Boston programs. The authors offer a series of findings and recommendations for future programs, noting that as the model is reproduced, there is a greater need for national-level coordination and communication across programs. The following are appended: (1) Study Design and Methodology; (2) Summary and Comparison of NDSR Assessments; (3) Survey Instruments; (4) Interview and Site Visit Protocols; (5) Interview and Site Visit Participants; and (6) NDSR Advisory Board Members. [This report was written with the assistance of Samantha DeWitt, Christa Williford, and Alice Bishop. The foreword was written by Abby Smith Rumsey.]

In 2001, the National Institute for Technology in Liberal Education (NITLE) was created to "stimulate collaboration between selected liberal arts colleges and to act as a catalyst for the effective integration of emerging and newer digital technologies into teaching, learning, scholarship, and information management." In July 2015, NITLE migrated its operations from Southwestern University to the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR). In conjunction with this migration, CLIR initiated a rigorous analysis of NITLE's current condition and the needs of its constituents. CLIR's assessment of NITLE comprises three interrelated activities: (1) composing a history of NITLE and setting it in the larger context of organizations devoted to technology in liberal education; (2) conducting interviews with key stakeholders in NITLE's past, present, and potential future; (3) and designing, administering, and analyzing a survey of current and former NITLE members and interested parties. These activities resulted in a rich, textured picture of the organization and the many ways in which it engaged with its members over the years. Based on the analysis performed for this report, the authors believe that a future organization seeking to serve constituents similar to those served by NITLE should: (1) Maintain a liberal arts college focus; (2) Perform market research to determine how a future organization should support members at the local and/or national level; (3) Clearly articulate the organization's mission, primary audience, and value proposition; (4) Ensure that membership fees are in line with members' perceived return on investment; (5) Develop a culture of ongoing assessment; (6) Regularly communicate with members; and (7) Distinguish the organization from others with similar audience or mission. The following are appended: (1) NITLE Competitors 1997-2015: Audiences, Value Propositions, and Business Models; (2) NITLE Assessment Project: Interview Protocol; (3) Survey Questions; and (4) Organizational Acronyms. (References and Selected Bibliography are included.)

Data are a valuable national resource for a variety of stakeholders across all sectors of society. Dramatic advances in information and communication technology have opened up unprecedented opportunities for broad public access, innovative research, and citizen engagement, but this potential can be realized only if data are properly managed and exposed over time. New U.S. government requirements for exposing and managing federally funded research data add urgency to the call for curating data so that they can be used, re-used, and exploited by future generations. These new requirements have significant implications for cultural heritage institutions in addressing the current deficit in the capacity to support the re-use of data over time and across generations of technology (digital curation) and in enabling collaboration based on shared infrastructure. Cultural heritage encompasses various types of artifacts (analog or digital), as well as attributes and behaviors that groups or societies maintain over time to preserve connections to the past, present, and future. Cultural heritage institutions have a mission to support, perpetuate, and provide access to essential elements of culture as a whole. There are many different types of cultural heritage institutions, but three of the most commonly recognized are libraries, archives, and museums. Materials in their care are vital to the ongoing advancement and perpetuation of the sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities. This report presents the implications for the cultural heritage community of the recent focus on creating public access to data and publications resulting from federal funding, and our recommendations for relevant stakeholders. The recommendations are based on a review of federal agencies' responses to new government requirements, case studies of seven digital curation projects, and an investigation of the current professional capacity for the long-term management of cultural heritage digital content, including data. The following are appended: (1) Analysis of Public Access Plans: Research Design and Methods; (2) Links to Federal Department and Agency Public Access Plans Used for This Report; (3) Projects on Digital Curation Curriculum and Skills Development Funded by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, 2004-2015; (4) Competency Categories and Skills Defined for the Four Curriculum Models; and (5) Job Postings to the American Library Association (ALA) DigiPres Electronic Mailing List, 2013-2015.

This report sheds light on the expertise required to support a robust and sustainable digital scholarship (DS) program. It focuses first on defining and describing the key domain knowledge, skills, competencies, and mindsets at some of the world's most prominent digital scholarship programs. It then identifies the main strategies used to build this expertise, both formally and informally. The work is set in a global context, examining leading digital scholarship organizations in China, India, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, Germany, Mexico, Canada, and the United States. The report provides recommendations to help those currently involved in or considering embarking on a digital scholarship program. Appended are: (1) Profiles of Participating Digital Scholarship Organizations; and (2) Sample Interview Questions. [The foreword was written by Chuck Henry.]

The report explores the revitalization of library publishing and its possible future, and examines elements that influence the success and sustainability of library publishing initiatives. The authors trace the history of library publishing and factors that have transformed the publishing landscape, and describe several significant library-press collaborations forged over the past two decades. Authors include results of a survey they conducted to better understand how current library publishing initiatives are supported financially. They conclude with a series of observations about the range of publishing initiatives in American academic libraries. The report was funded by a grant from The Goodall Family Charitable Foundation. The following are appended: (1) Sources Consulted--References and Bibliography; (2) Survey; and (3) Current Enterprises.

In 2013, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation awarded a group of seven librarians from the Research Library Leadership Fellows program of the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) a planning grant to examine the center of excellence (CoE) model for information services. Used in a variety of industries, CoEs are designed to attract the most talented researchers in a particular field, enhance collaboration, and improve access to the resources needed for their research. The planning grant was awarded to determine whether the CoE model could serve as a means to provide the new services required for the effective use of digital information. This report describes the team's approach to examining the feasibility of CoEs in the library setting. The team conducted preliminary investigations of more than 100 centers, which they narrowed to 35 for in-depth research. Interviews were conducted with staff at 19 centers and 7 funding organizations. In their conclusion, the team advises developing "networks of expertise" or "expert networks," instead of CoEs, and provides a series of recommendations for building such networks. The following are appended (1) Centers and Funders Interviewed; and (2) Questions for Interviews.

In September 2002, the Council on Library and Information Re-sources (CLIR) commissioned a survey of North American-based digital cultural heritage initiatives (DCHIs). The purpose of the survey was to identify the scope, financing, organizational structure, and sustainability of DCHIs. To gain a funder's perspective on these initiatives, the survey also included a few public and private funding organizations that support projects with a digital cultural heritage component. Thirty-three organization or projects and five funding agencies or foundations were included in the survey. The findings outlined throughout this report identify concerns about the current status and tenuous state of many digital cultural initiatives. These findings, in concert with the recommendations proposed, offer a blueprint for those exploring appropriate strategies to support and strengthen digital cultural initiatives. The number and diversity of issues that affect DCHIs and jeopardize their future warrant a coordinated and consensus-driven approach to the problem. The report consists of five parts: background; review of Digital Cultural Heritage Initiatives; review of funders of Digital Cultural Heritage Initiatives; recommendations; and summary. Appendixes include a list of participating organizations and contacts; CLIR survey for DCHIs; CLIR survey for organizations funding DCHIs. (AEF)

This study is an outgrowth of recommendations made in a report issued by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) in 2001 (Nichols and Smith 2001). The report made three broad recommendations for addressing print preservation: (1) Establish regional repositories to house and provide proper treatment of low-use print matter drawn from various collections; (2) Investigate the establishment of archival repositories that would retain a "last, best copy" of American imprints; (3) Build interinstitutional networks for information sharing about the status of artifacts and delegation of responsibilities for caring for them. This report examined how, and to what degree, various consortia and university systems are using repositories to move beyond the immediate goal of providing cost-effective collection storage and delivery and to be-gin to cooperatively manage and preserve their research collections. The report also suggests which practices, policies, and programs best foster the equitable sharing of the costs of collections care and to identify which practices and organizational and financial structures best support the integration of cooperative collection development and preservation efforts. Finally, it explores the extent to which the repositories studied represent an emerging architecture of broader cooperation, whereby the participating libraries might move beyond serving their regional communities and participate in a national network for cooperative preservation. A further purpose of this study was to appraise prospects for further rationalization of libraries' efforts to manage the growing print corpus in institutions across the nation. Appendixes include four tables and brief overviews of the Australian National Collections Storage Program, national collections planning in the United Kingdom, and a Collaborative Academic Library Store for Scotland; and information on methodology and sources for the study. (Contains 13 references.) (AEF)

This report provides an overview of selected key national and multinational initiatives in digital preservation occurring outside North America. It examines digital preservation initiatives in four countries--Australia, France, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom--as well as related multinational initiatives. The initiatives were chosen in consultation with the U.S. Library of Congress (LC) and the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) because they were believed to be of particular relevance and interest to the U.S. National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program (NDIIPP).This study aims to put these initiatives into their national and international context and to outline major developments. It presents the key findings from the survey and details of the main initiatives in each country. (Contains 14 references.) (Author)

This report explores the following types of emerging scholarship: (1) experimental--designed to develop and model a methodology for generating recorded information about a historical event or an academic discipline that might otherwise go undocumented; (2) open-ended--generates digital objects that are intended to be added to over time; (3) interactive--gathers content through dynamic interactions among the participants; (4) software-intensive--stipulates that the tools for using the data are as important to preserve as is the content; (5) multimedia--creates information in a variety of genres and texts, time lines, images, audio, video, and file formats; and (6) unpublished--designed to be used and disseminated through the Web, yet not destined to be published formally or submitted for peer review. Examples of new-model scholarship are presented. Enterprise-based and community-based models for preservation of digital content are described. Two related papers are appended: "Organizational Models for Digital Archiving" (Dale Flecker); and "Digital Preservation in the United States: Survey of Current Research, Practice, and Common Understandings" (Daniel Greenstein and Abby Smith). Contains a list of nine references and 15 Web site addresses. (MES)

This report describes Biblored, the library network in Bogota, Colombia, that received the 2002 Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Access to Learning Award. Biblored is a network of 19 libraries that attract about 200,000 users per month and serve some of the poorest neighborhoods in Bogota. The network's success in making information and information technology accessible to city residents, and in developing services and programs geared toward users' special needs and interests, earned it the award, which includes a one-million dollar grant to expand services. Drawing on extensive interviews of the network's users and planners, this report tells the story of how the library network was born, the challenges it has faced, and the impact it has had on the lives of Bogota residents. (Author)

The collection and long-term preservation of digital content pose challenges to the intellectual property regime within which libraries and archives are accustomed to working. How to achieve an appropriate balance between copyright owners and users is a topic of ongoing debate in legal and policy circles. This paper describes copyright rights and exceptions and highlights issues potentially involved in the creation of a nonprofit digital archive. The paper is necessarily very general, since many decisions concerning the proposed archive's scope and operation have not yet been made. The purpose of an archive (e.g., to ensure preservation or to provide an easy and convenient means of access), its subject matter, and the manner in which it will acquire copies, as well as who will have access to the archive, from where, and under what conditions, are all factors critical to determining the copyright implications for works to be included in it. The goal of this paper is to provide basic information about the copyright law for those developing such an archive and thereby enable them to recognize areas in which it could impinge on copyright rights and to plan accordingly. (Author)

With funding from the Institute for Museum and Library Services, the Council on Library and Information Resources, ARL (Association of Research Libraries), the University Libraries Group, and the Regional Alliance for Preservation conducted a joint study in 2001 to examine the state of preservation programs in American academic libraries. The study was conducted in two phases and relied on qualitative as well as quantitative data gathering. In Phase I, statistical information and other quantitative data relevant to preservation activity were collected in a survey of 116 libraries from the University Libraries Group, major non-ARL land grant institutions, and leading liberal arts colleges in what is informally known as the Oberlin Group. These data were compared with information that had been published in ARL Preservation Statistics for 2000-2001. Phase II focused on obtaining qualitative data to complement the statistical data. Qualitative data were gathered by means of 20 site visits to institutions that represented the three surveyed groups plus the ARL. Appendixes include the survey form with data and instructions, site visit interview questions and a list of institutions responding to statistical survey, Phase I. (Author)

This report draws on the results of a survey and case studies of Digital Library Federation (DLF) members (Council on Library and Information Resources - CLIR). The survey was intended to document how DLF member libraries are focusing their digital library programs: how and under what circumstances their programs were initiated; the influences that shaped their development; the programs current organization and funding; and the challenges they anticipate. The study began with a survey questionnaire circulated to the academic libraries that were members of the DLF in January 2001; 21 institutions responded. Extensive interviews were conducted with key staff members at six DLF member libraries: the California Digital Library (CDL), Harvard University, Indiana University, New York University (NYU), the University of Michigan, and the University of Virginia. The report is divided into two main sections. Contents of the first section include: Introduction; Aspiration and the "Skunk Works": The Young Digital Library (origins, funding, and characteristics); Rolling Projects into Programs: The Maturing Digital Library (characteristics, technical and organizational integration, and marketing and promotion); and From Integration to Interdependency: The Adult Digital Library (digital libraries as infrastructure, move toward permanent funding, continued experimentation, deep interdependency, and competition within the university). Case studies of the six universities are reproduced in the second section. Appendixes include: survey respondents and principal preliminary results from the survey data. (Contains 19 references.) (AEF)

Research libraries are taking on a range of new roles in the digital age as they become more deeply engaged in the creation and dissemination of knowledge. While some of these roles are extensions of traditional library activity, others are large new. This book explores some of these emerging functions, and includes several examples of how more libraries and library organizations are forging new services in areas of collection development, information access, and user services. The book also touches briefly on the continued importance of library as place, and it suggests where new roles might emerge. The book is divided into three main sections. The first, The Evolution of Library Roles discusses three phases: (1) The Growth of Distributed Technologies; (2) The Development of Open Paradigms and Models; and (3) The Emergence of the Library as a Diffuse Agent. The second section, Library Roles in a Digital Age, discusses collection development, information access, user services, and the library as place. The third section, Realizing Diffuse Roles for Libraries, deals with tangible and intangible investments. (Contains 39 references.) (AEF)

This report presents the results of a survey of Digital Library Federation members that examined the kinds of assessments they were conducting, what they did with the results, and what worked well or not so well. The first section of the report is an introduction that describes the report structure and summarizes challenges in assessment. The second section presents results related to user studies, including surveys (questionnaires), focus groups, user protocols, and other effective research methods. The third section addresses the following questions related to usage studies of electronic resources: (1) What is transaction log analysis? (2) Why do libraries conduct transaction log analysis? (3) How do libraries conduct transaction log analysis? (4) Who uses the results of transaction log analysis? and (5) What are the issues, problems, and challenges with transaction log analysis? The fourth section covers general issues and challenges in planning and implementing a research project. The fifth section presents conclusions and considers future directions. Appendices include: references and a selected bibliography; a list of participating institutions; the survey questions; and traditional input, output, and outcome measures. (MES)

This study explored the perspectives and information behaviors of scholars in the humanities. The following general questions were examined: How do humanities scholars think about, organize, and perform their research? How are information sources used throughout the research process? And, how do electronic information sources affect work practices? In addition, the research also looked at two specific questions related to research library collections and services: What functions and characteristics make one resource better than another? And, how can the traditional role of the library as a repository for printed works be reconciled with the provision of virtual, unallocated resources? Participants were 33 humanities scholars from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the University of Chicago. Data were collected by project-based semi-structured interviews, selected case studies, and follow-up semi-structured interviews. Findings are reported in the following areas: (1) ways of reading, including chaining to enable reading; (2) collaborative networking; (3) researching and searching, including collections as capital, many states of primary materials, multitude of sources, access tools for speed and scope, diverse skills and strategies, generic searching problems, and browsing across collections and tools; and (4) ways of writing, including information management, accretion, and refinement, as well as oscillating and overlapping synthesis work. One of the last sections is "Trends: The Evolving Information Environment for Humanists." Methods are appended. (Contains 29 references.) (MES)

This report discusses the ways in which artifacts and their physical frailties affect their research value--originality, faithfulness, fixity, and stability--over time and how libraries can minimize the risk of unacceptable loss of that value. It investigates the specific issues around selected media, such as paper-based printed matter, moving image and recorded sound materials, and objects that exist in digital form, and points to two key strategies currently in use in libraries that can be scaled up to deal with a problem of this magnitude. The first strategy is preventive maintenance, which most often entails storing items under optimal conditions to retard rates of natural decay. Prevention also includes such techniques as deacidifying items printed on wood-pulp paper, stabilizing bindings and encasing fragile items, and improving care and handling techniques for all library materials. The second strategy is the use of surrogates to reduce the stress of handling. For research purposes, digital surrogates in particular were found to be quite acceptable and were even preferable to the originals in a number of cases. Surrogates, especially when networked, have the added benefit of increasing access to an item and of providing convenience of access to items housed at distant or disparate locations. (Contains 68 references.) (MES)

In February 2001, the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) and the National Initiative for a Networked Cultural Heritage (NINCH) convened a meeting to discuss how museums and libraries are building digital collections and what business models are available to sustain them. A group of museum and library senior executives met with business and legal experts, technologists, and funders to discuss the challenges that cultural institutions face when putting collections online and to identify some models for sustainability that support the core missions and do not conflict with the internal cultures of nonprofit entities. Speakers were asked to outline the elements of their business models, describe how they were developed, and predict their prospects for the future. Six approaches are outlined, ranging from two enterprises that have been providing access to scholarly journals online for several years to new initiatives that are based on collaborations among institutions. This report summarizes the information shared by presenters, followed by the discussions that ensued among participants. Discussion of the presentations focused on the following four topics: business models, scalability, organizational impact, and sustainability. On the basis of the day's discussions, the group was asked to propose an agenda for action. In addressing the short- and long-term needs of museums and libraries, participants identified four distinct areas that deserve the greatest attention: elements of a sound business plan, elements needed to sustain digital efforts at all types of institutions, inter-institutional issues, and funding. These recommendations and next steps appear at the end of the report. An appendix includes a list of participants. (Contains 21 references.) (AEF)

This report focuses on practices related to the selection and presentation of commercially available electronic resources. As part of the Digital Library Federation's Collection Practices Initiative, the report also shares the goal of identifying and propagating practices that support the growth of sustainable and scalable collections. It looks in depth at how a number of leading research libraries select, license, present, and support the use of commercial online materials. Uncovering a variety of practices, the author is careful to identify those that converge and illuminate the most effective means for integrating commercial online materials into library collections. The main body of the report discusses 10 issues and practices related to selection and presentation. The first issue is the economic context of electronic resource selection. Discussion of this topic focuses on the two most visible means libraries have developed for dealing with the pricing of electronic resources: consortial purchasing and alternative scholarly communication initiatives. The next two sections cover selection policies and strategic plans, and organizational matters. The remaining sections deal more directly with operational questions and are organized roughly in a "resource life cycle" sequence. The discussion starts with initial selection issues and proceeds through ordering and purchasing, establishing and organizing access, providing support, and evaluating and assessing how information is used. The report concludes with a discussion of some local databases and systems devised to support or help rationalize the treatment of electronic resources. The most promising selection and presentation practices are assembled and briefly discussed in the concluding section. Many local practice documents and related Web links are cited throughout the report; these references, as well as additional relevant documents and Web links, are organized into a table in Appendix A. Appendix B provides a table of function and data elements for managing electronic resources. (Contains 130 references.) (AEF)

The purpose of this report is to identify and synthesize existing practices used in developing collections of free third-party Internet resources that support higher education and research. A review of these practices and the projects they support confirms that developing collections of free Web resources is a process that requires its own set of practices, policies, and organizational models. Where possible, the report recommends those practices, policies, and models that have proved to be particularly effective in terms of sustainability, scalability, cost-effectiveness, and applicability to their stated purpose. The report outlines similarities and differences between print and free Web resources and describes how the nature and complexity of free Web resources comply with or challenge traditional library practices and services pertaining to analog collections. Several methods of data gathering were used, including interviews with librarians, Web browsers, and subject gateways. The findings that emerged from the research done for this report document that developing and managing collections of free Web resources has wide-ranging, long-term implications for human resources, organizational issues, and fiscal matters that extend well beyond the circle of individuals responsible for selecting these resources. In addition to the specific collection development policy issues of collection scope, selection criteria, and resource discovery, a discussion of the broader issues pertaining to managing collections of free Web resources is included. The report consists of 10 sections: (1) "Introduction"; (2) "Why Select Free Third-Party Web Sites?"; (3) "Identification, Evaluation, and Selection"; (4) "Access: Resource Discovery and Added-Value Functions"; (5) "Data Management: Collection Maintenance, Management, and Preservation"; (6) "Multilinguality"; (7) "User Support; (8) "Human Resources: Organizational and Financial Issues"; (9) "Future Directions: Nurturing Sustainability"; and (10) "References." (Contains 51 references.) (AEF)

This report offers a case study in the advantages and disadvantages of depository libraries, their economics, and the practical and political issues associated with their creation. As director of the library at Amherst College, the author played a key role in establishing the initial off-site storage facility, as well as in broadening its service to the Five Colleges, Inc. (Amherst College, Hampshire College, Mount Holyoke College, Smith College, and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst). As libraries change in response to budgetary constraints as well as developments in information technology, the Five College Library Depository model suggests new possibilities for collection management and ways for libraries to reframe their service missions. The questions facing all academic libraries--to what extent can they provide access to materials that they do not own, and which materials must they preserve for future generations--are examined in this report. Contents include: alternatives to open-shelf storage of library materials; continuing net growth of paper collections; off-site storage considerations; establishment of the Amherst College Library Depository; the proposal for a Five-College Library Depository; anticipated implementation and operation; Five-College Collection Management Committee; academic department reactions to the proposed depository; and a national trend toward academic depository libraries. (Contains 34 references.) (AEF)

The Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) brings together experts from around the country and around the world and asks them to turn their intelligence to the problems that libraries, archives, and information organizations face as they integrate digital resources and services into their well established print-based environments. In 2001, the shape and form of the library in the digital age continued to be at the center of work by the CLIR. This document is the annual report (2000-2001) for the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR). It begins with acknowledgements, listing of staff and distinguished fellows, a letter from the CLIR Chairman, and a message from the CLIR President. Next, the programs are discussed, including: resources for scholarship; preservation awareness; digital libraries; economics of information; leadership; and international developments. Publications, advisory groups, and grants and contracts are then listed. Financial statements follow, including: independent auditors' report; statement of financial position; statement of activities and changes in net assets; statement of cash flows; notes to financial statements; and schedule of functional expenses. (AEF)

In April 2000, the Digital Library Federation commissioned three reports to address broader concerns about digital collections in research libraries. This report synthesizes the nearly 10 years' experience that libraries have had digitizing items from their rare, special, and general collections, and making them available online. The report demonstrates that digitization programs work best where their role within a library's collection development strategy is clearly understood, and identifies several roles that such programs can play. The author muses about the extent to which digitally reformatted special and rare collections can actually support scholarly research, and looks at whether leading research libraries in particular might more usefully focus on digitizing general as opposed to special and rare collections. The report opens with points to consider in developing a sustainable strategy. The second section addresses identification, evaluation and selection, discussing polices, guidelines and best practices, and rationales for digitization. The third section focuses on institutional impacts and discusses treatment and disposition of source materials, scalability, intellectual control and data management, coordinated collection development, funding, preservation, and support of users. A final section addresses challenges in evaluating costs and benefits, and offers recommendations. (Contains 47 references.) (AEF)

This paper provides a snapshot of developments in the electronic journal industry. The first section identifies issues affecting librarians and publishers, including: (1) issues of common concern to both publishers and librarians, e.g., lack of comparable data, lack of context, incomplete usage data, marketing, content provided, interface affecting usage, economic model, and user privacy; (2) library issues, e.g., budget justification and impact on selection; and (3) a publisher issue, internal applications. Quantitative measures are discussed in the second section, including what data elements should be collected and data reliability. The third section suggests a meeting at which publishers who have already implemented statistical functionality can share what they have learned, including producing useful data and interpreting the data. Appendices include summaries of interviews with librarians and publishers, the ICOLC (International Coalition of Library Consortia) "Guidelines for Statistical Measures of Usage of Web-Based Indexed, Abstracted, and Full Text Resources," and descriptions of related industry initiatives. (Contains 13 references.) (MES)

Given the right hardware and software, digital information is easy to create, copy, and disseminate; however it is very hard to preserve. At present, it is impossible to guarantee the longevity and legibility of digital information for even one human generation. Migration can be defined as the periodic transfer of digital materials from one hardware/software configuration to another or from one generation of computer technology to a subsequent generation. In 1998, the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) asked the Cornell University Library to undertake a risk assessment of migrating a handful of common file formats. This report is the fruit of their investigation. It is intended to be a practical guide to assessing the risks associated with the migration of various formats and to making sound preservation decisions on the basis of that assessment. The paper starts from the premise that migration is prone to generating errors and provides practical tools to quantify the risks. It organizes migration into a sequence of discrete steps and offer assessment tools to manage each of those steps. The process is presented in a workbook that can guide digital preservation specialists in their day-to-day operations. Two case studies are also presented--one for image files and another for numeric files. Findings and Recommendations are discussed under four areas: Migration Risk Can Be Qualified; Conversion Software; Access to Format Data; and Public Access Archives of Format Information. (Contains 29 references.) (AEF)

This report provides an overview of knowledge organization systems (KOSs) and includes pertinent examples of their application to digital materials, offering extensive practical information for institutions embarking on digital library initiatives. The first section of the report defines the general characteristics of KOSs, with emphasis on their connection to a particular view of the world. The historic origins and uses of KOSs, in libraries and in other information management environments, are described, and various types of KOSs are discussed. The second section provides examples of how KOSs can be used to enhance digital libraries in a variety of disciplines, and describes how a KOS can be used to link a digital resource to related material. The third section discusses how KOSs can be used to provide disparate communities with access to digital library resources by using a KOS to provide alternate subject access, to add a new mode of access to the digital library, to provide multilingual access, or to support free-text searching. The report concludes with a discussion of issues to consider when using KOSs with digital libraries. It provides a framework for the design, planning, implementation, and maintenance of KOSs in digital libraries. (Contains 36 references.) (AEF)

This report examines the experiences and contributions of the archival community--practicing archivists, manuscript curators, archival academics, and policy makers who work to define and promote the social utility of records and to identify, preserve, and provide access to documentary heritage regardless of format. The report addresses how the archival science perspective, which brings an evidence-based approach to the management of recorded knowledge, can make a major contribution to a new paradigm for the design, management, preservation, and use of digital resources. It traces the historical development of archival principles and practices and examines, with reference to key research and development projects, how they are currently being transformed into the digital environment to address issues including: information overload; dynamism in documentary forms; pervasive heterogeneity in information resources and media; documentation of relationships within and between resources; resource validation; granularity of description; and exploitation of context and structure in collections of documents. The report concludes with a discussion of what is needed from the archival, library, and other information communities engaged in the development and preservation of digital resources in order to achieve the full potential of cross-community dialog and development. (Contains 64 references.) (AEF)

This annual report of the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) begins with a list of staff, a letter for the Chairman of the Board, and a message from the CLIR President. Activities for 1999-2000 in the following areas are then summarized: (1) resources for scholarship, including the artifact in library collections, collections/content and the World Wide Web, and authenticity in the digital environment; (2) preservation awareness, including preserving multimedia resources, recorded sound in peril, and digital preservation; (3) digital libraries, including the Digital Library Federation program and communications infrastructure; (4) economics of information, including electronic journal usage statistics, a Stanford University study on scholars' use of electronic journals, economics of digital library collections, a Columbia University Press study of online resources, responsibility for digital archiving, and managing cultural assets from a business perspective; (5) leadership, including the Frye Leadership Institute, College Libraries Committee, Patricia Battin Scholarship Endowment, and Zipf Fellowship; and (6) international developments, including preservation awareness in Brazil, capacity building in South Africa, a survey of preservation science research, access to manuscripts and archives, and translation of encoded archival description standards into Spanish. Lists of publications, advisory groups, and active grants and contracts, as well as financial statements, are included. (MES)

The Making of America (MoA) Testbed Project, coordinated by the Digital Library Federation, is a multi-phase endeavor. Its purpose is to investigate important issues in the creation of an integrated but distributed digital library of archival materials (i.e., digitized surrogates of primary source materials found in archives and special collections). Drawing on the example of the MoA II Testbed Project, this report examines an object-oriented approach to digital library construction, the collection of structural and administrative metadata, and the development of tools to assist scholars. It is divided into four main parts: (1) the "Executive Summary" provides an overview of the MoA II Testbed Project and describes the content and objectives of the report; (2) Part 1, "Project Background," describes the history of the project and outlines the activities to be undertaken during each of the three phases (i.e., planning, research and production, and dissemination); (3) Part 2, "The MoA II Digital Library Service Model," reviews the technical details of the model for digital library objects and briefly describes the three layers of the project--services, tools, and digital library objects; and (4) Part 3, "Implementing the Service Model," discusses the use of tools in the digital library, presents an overview of structural and administrative metadata, and provides recommendations for the collection of metadata. (Contains 26 references.) (MES)

The project to translate into Portuguese and disseminate preservation knowledge was part of a broader partnership between the Council on Library and Information Resources, which incorporates the former Commission on Preservation and Access, and a consortium of Brazilian archival, library, and museum institutions. The partnership was intended to serve as an information network for preventative conservation for all Brazilian institutions with collections on paper and film and in digital form. This included federal, state, and municipal institutions; public and private museums; universities; and local cultural institutions and foundations. Following the project's successful first phase in 1998, it received the highest cultural heritage award presented by Brazil's Ministry of Culture. This report gives an overview of the project that discusses the origins, organization and funding, objectives, and results. It then outlines "The Blueprint Phases One: 1996-1997" which discusses the documentation in Portuguese, institutional database, core workshops, and regional workshops. "The Blueprint, Phase Two: 1998-1999" discusses new workshops, survey, Web site launch, and publications. Lessons learned and recommendations are also outlined. Appendices include the translated titles, institutional database questionnaire, and contact information for collaborative institutions and workgroup members. (AEF)