ERIC ED438819: OCLC Annual Report 1998/99. A Great Time for Libraries!

62 Pages·1999·2.7 MB·English

by  ERIC

DOCUMENT RESUME
IR 057 644
ED 438 819
OCLC Annual Report 1998/99. A Great Time for Libraries!
TITLE
OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc., Dublin, OH.
INSTITUTION
ISSN-1044-3800
ISSN
1999-00-00
PUB DATE
61p.; For OCLC Annual Report 1990/91, see ED 345 744.
NOTE
Colored photographs may not reproduce adequately.
OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Inc., 6565 Frantz Road,
AVAILABLE FROM
Dublin, OH 43017-3395. Tel: [phone]; Tel: [phone]
(Toll Free); Fax: [phone]; Web site:
http://www.ocic.org.
Reports - Descriptive (141)
PUB TYPE
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EDRS PRICE
Annual Reports; *Bibliographic Utilities; Cataloging;
DESCRIPTORS
Elementary Secondary Education; Higher Education;
Information Services; Interlibrary Loans; *Online Systems;
*Shared Library Resources
Financial Reports; *OCLC
IDENTIFIERS
ABSTRACT
Beginning this annual report is a letter to OCLC members
from OCLC President and Chief Executive Jay Jordan. The report contains the
(2) the year in
(1) program and financial highlights;
following sections:
review, including membership events, online services, strategic alliances,
Forest Press, preservation resources, research, and the OCLC Institute;
(3)
"Celebrating 20 Years of Library Resource Sharing," a report on an essay
contest to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the OCLC Interlibrary Loan
"It's a Great Time for Libraries!" including reports on the CORC
service;
(4)
(Cooperative Online Resource Catalog) project, statewide integrated services
in Florida, innovations in cataloging, promoting global librarianship,
transforming resource sharing, preservation resources, the OCLC Institute,
the Dewey Decimal Classification System, and OCLC/WLN (Washington Library
(6) photographs/listings of Board of Trustees,
(5) WorldCat;
Network);
Executive Committee, OCLC Users Council, and advisory committee members;
(7)
a directory; and (8) financial report.
(MES)
Reproductions supplied by EDRS are the best that can be made
from the original document.
OCLC ANNUAL REPORT
1998/99
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BEST COPY AVAILABLE
U.S. DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Office of Educational Research and Improvement
PERMISSION TO REPRODUCE AND
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DISSEMINATE THIS MATERIAL HAS
CENTER (ERIC)
BEEN GRANTED BY
Q This document has been reproduced as
OC
received from the person or organization
originating it.
LC
__L. Yoakam
Minor changes have been made to
improve reproduction quality.
Points of view or opinions stated in this
TO THE EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES
document do not necessarily represent
INFORMATION CENTER (ERIC)
official OERI position or policy.
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Contents
To the Membership
2
Program and Financial Highligl
4
OCLC Member Libraries
Year in Review
6
Celebrating 20 years of
9
library resource sharing
It's a great time for libraries!
10
WorldCat
32
Board of Trustees
34
Executive Committee
34
Users Council
36
Advisory Committees
38
+Ow
Directory
40
Financial Report
43
The Renton Public Library, Renton, Washington,
became an OCLC member in 1999.
library
Founded in 1967, OCLC is a nonprofit, membership, computer
public purposes of
service and research organization dedicated to the
furthering access to the world's information and reducing library costs.
OCLC
More than 34,000 libraries in 67 countries and territories use
library materials.
services to locate, acquire, catalog, lend and preserve
Researchers, students, faculty, scholars, professional librarians and other
information seekers use OCLC services to obtain bibliographic, abstract
and its
and full-text information when and where they need it. OCLC
(the
member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat
electronic
OCLC Online Union Catalog), which is the most consulted
database in higher education.
OCLC Charter
The purpose or purposes for which this corporation is formed are to
establish, maintain and operate a computerized library network and to
of
promote the evolution of library use, of libraries themselves, and
librarianship, and to provide processes and products for the benefit
of library users and libraries, including such objectives as increasing
availability of library resources to individual library patrons and
reducing rate of rise of library per-unit costs, all for the fundamental
public purpose of furthering ease of access to and use of the ever-
expanding body of worldwide scientific, literary and educational
knowledge.
Meiibersh i
7 ©11t
Hawing completed my first
At this writing, the 15,000
full year at OCLC, I can
libraries that use FirstSearch were
report that the entire
in the process of migrating to
OCLC team of 1,080 employees
the new FirstSearch, which is a
worldwide is fully engaged in
completely redesigned, Web-based
many important projects that will
online reference service. And, in
add substantial value for libraries
fiscal 2000, for the first time, mem-
and their users. Some efforts
ber libraries will receive a discount
entail preserving and enhancing
on their use charges for
traditional services, such as online
FirstSearch and Electronic
cataloging and resource sharing.
Collections Online.
Other projects are focused on
The OCLC Institute conducted
creating new opportunities
40 educational events for 1,114
through the application of new
people during the year. Since its
technology in combination with
totAb-1
founding in 1997, over 2,000
0,.
OCLC's core competencies. We
people have participated in 80
have made significant progress
seminars and programs at OCLC
toward our goal of providing
in Dublin, Ohio, and in on-site
At the Hong Kong University of Science & Technology
integrated solutions for libraries
programs in 14 OCLC-affiliated net-
worldwide.
with Min-min Chang, University Librarian (standing)
work regions as well as in England,
Participation in OCLC has con-
and Ching-yen Daphne Chang, Cataloging Manager,
Iceland, Latvia, Russia and Trinidad
tinued to increase. Approximately
Western Language Materials
and Tobago.
1,300 new libraries joined, which is
The Office of Research launched
the highest number in a single year since the early rapid
one of its most ambitious projects-
expansion of the network in the 1980s. The total number
to datethe Cooperative Online Resource Catalog (CORC),
of libraries participating in OCLC went up by 4,621 to
in which libraries are using automated tools to build a
34,775 in 67 countries.
shared database of Internet resources. This database
In fiscal 1999, for the first time, the OCLC online system
presents users with an integrated view of information
for cataloging and resource sharing handled more than
objects and their descriptions and represents, we believe, a
1 billion messages as libraries continued to increase their
significant advance for libraries that wish to add electronic
use of OCLC services. They cataloged 57.7 million items
resources to their collections. At this writing, librarians
online and via batchload and added 2.2 million records to
in some 150 institutions in Australia, China, Germany,
WorldCat, which on June 30, 1999, contained more than
Singapore, Switzerland, Taiwan, the United Kingdom and
39.7 million records and 720 million location listings.
the United States are participating in this collaborative
Libraries conducted 8.2 million interlibrary loans online.
effort.
Approximately 1,200 libraries used the OCLC ILL Fee
We entered into three important strategic affiances that
Management service to exchange over $5 2 million in
will add significant value to OCLC membershipWLN,
interlibrary loan fees, thereby avoiding processing expenses
PAIS and Pica.
for about 458,000 invoices and a similar number of checks.
Our merger with WLN to form the OCLC/WLN Pacific
The OCLC FirstSearch service grew from 12,000 libraries
Northwest Service Center is providing new opportunities
to 15,000, and library users performed 61.9 million
and synergies for the entire OCLC membership. We have
searches, an increase of 23 percent from the previous
matched some 4.2 million bibliographic records and added
year. The number of e-journals provided by FirstSearch
17 4 million location listings from WLN libraries into
Electronic Collections Online nearly doubled, from 890
WorldCat, and 176 libraries have migrated to the OCLC
journals from 29 publishers to 1,761 from 48 publishers.
Cataloging service. We have integrated WLN services, such
During the year, we introduced the Web-based OCLC
as authority control and collection development, into
Cataloging Express service (OCLC CatExpress), which is
OCLC's offerings. I would like to thank Paul McCarthy,
enabling school and public libraries with low volumes of
Executive Director of OCLC/WLN, Don Muccino, Executive
cataloging to benefit from access to WorldCat and the
Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of OCLC, and
OCLC global library network. Prior to launch, we conducted
the staffs of both WLN and OCLC for making this merger
field tests with libraries in four states and modified the
work to the benefit of our combined memberships.
system based on their input. The service is being well
At this writing, our merger with PAIS, Public Affairs
received.
Information Service, awaited final approval by the Board of
We enhanced the OCLC CJK library software and intro-
Regents of the University of the State of New York. This
duced new authority control options for libraries. We
alliance will provide libraries with low-cost access to global
began a major project to convert to machine-readable form
content in the humanities, which our members have
approximately 2 million catalog records for Yale University
requested.
libraries.
2
We completed Y2K system changes on schedule and, at
OCLC was in final negotiations with Pica Foundation, a
this writing, were performing final testing of systems.
nonprofit organization based in Leiden, the Netherlands, to
As part of an ongoing strategic planning process, man-
acquire an equity interest in Pica B.V., which provides cata-
agement reviewed with the Board of Trustees updated busi-
loging, interlibrary loan, local systems and end-user services
ness plans, focusing on both short- and long-term
to libraries in the Netherlands, France and Germany. Our
strategies. We reaffirmed our commitment to the basic
affiance with Pica will enrich World Cat and ultimately bene-
principles set forth in OCLC's charter and articulated a
fit libraries throughout our global community. All of these
vision of how OCLC will pursue its public purposes over
alliances are consistent with OCLC's public purposes and
the next decade. This vision, stated simply, is as follows:
will lead to new or better services, to new markets or to
"OCLC will be the leading global library cooperative, helping
lower costs for member libraries.
libraries serve people by providing economical access to
Approximately 5,000 libraries in 66 countries outside the
knowledge through innovation and collaboration."
U.S. are now participating in OCLC. Some 400 libraries in
Both CORC and OCLC CatExpress are examples of how
South Africa are becoming OCLC participants through
OCLC is attempting to translate that vision into value. We
SABINET Online. An accord signed this year with the
are delivering new, integrated services more rapidly than
National Library of Australia is enabling Australian libraries
ever before. We are
to become OCLC mem-
doing this because we
bers. We introduced
NacHng Octag MorE[ry
©112 crur0 ha
have to. Constant tech-
French and Spanish inter- M
nological change, the
coopemthys, hellping DibraDies serve
faces for FirstSearch. In
phenomenal growth of
the coming year, we will
peopDe by prov5dng econom5ca0
the Internet, and the
be working on an Arabic
emergence of
cataloging project with
access to knomilledge through
e-commerce are putting
universities from Saudi
innovaUon and coHaboraUon."
new pressures on
Arabia, Kuwait and the
libraries. OCLC is
United Arab Emirates as
uniquely positioned to help member libraries withstand
well as U.S institutions.
these pressures and thrive in the digital age. The fact that
As a high-tech, global organization, OCLC must recruit
we are constantly challenged to allocate our precious
and retain staff at the same time that it seeks to nurture an
human resources correctly clearly indicates that there are
international outlook among employees who must serve
numerous opportunities to fulfill our public purposes of
libraries worldwide. Due to the worldwide shortage of
increasing access to information while reducing library
information technology workers, OCLC has implemented
costs. We will continue to focus on making libraries the
new, more competitive salary and benefits packages to
portal of choice for knowledge seekers.
recruit and retain qualified technical staff. OCLC's turnover
I would like to thank the Board of Trustees, Users
rate of 6.5 percent in technical fields compares favorably to
Council, U.S. regional networks, international distributors
the U.S. national average of 20 percent. We have also
and libraries for the support and kindness they have shown
implemented continuing education programs for staff on
me during my first year at OCLC. As part of a sustained
doing business internationally.
effort to be out and about in the OCLC community, I visited
In fiscal 1999, revenues were $146.1 million and contri-
all 16 U.S. regional networks and met with thousands of
bution to equity was $7.3 million, or 5 percent of revenue.
librarians in North America, Asia and Europe. From these
Revenues in cataloging, resource sharing and reference
travels and meetings, I have drawn two conclusions. First,
went up as libraries increased their use of these services.
the diverse community of libraries that make up the OCLC
Telecommunications access revenues declined 18 percent
network is committed to the goal of providing information
from the previous year, reflecting the successful migration
to people when and where they need it in a cost-effective
of libraries to new, lower-cost Internet and other telecom-
manner. And second, if we optimize the power of collabo-
munications options. The reduction in telecommunications
ration, this will indeed be a great time for libraries.
costs is in keeping with OCLC's chartered objective of
We will work diligently in 2000 to continue to add value
reducing the rise of library costs.
to your OCLC membership.
We made significant additions to our technological infra-
structure. We increased our Internet capacity from 84 T-1
lines to 336 and added new, streamlined access options for
libraries outside the U.S. We upgraded hardware for our
systems in cataloging, resource sharing and reference. We
successfully installed disaster-recovery procedures at a
computer center hotsite so that we would be able to
Jay Jordan
recover our data center platforms should a catastrophic
event occur at our computer facility in Dublin, Ohio.
President and Chief Executive Officer
October 29, 1999
3
1-f
Program
1998/99
1997/98
Participating libraries (libraries that use OCLC Cataloging,
Resource Sharing and Reference Services)
34,775
30,154
Average Cataloging and Resource Sharing transactions
per day for online hours, Monday-Friday, excluding holidays
3.4 million
3 3 million
Average Cataloging and Resource Sharing transactions
per second for peak online hours, Monday-Friday, excluding holidays
84.21
81.07
Total Cataloging and Resource Sharing messages processed
1.003 billion
943.3 million
Total number of records in World Cat
(the OCLC Online Union Catalog)
39.7 million
37 5 million
Books and other materials cataloged online
23.1 million
22.4 million
Books and other materials cataloged by batchloading processes*
34.6 million
14 7 million
Cataloging records added to WorldCat**
2.2 million
2 1 million
Duplicate records removed from WorldCat through
the Duplicate Detection and Resolution Program
47,074
50,777
Catalog records generated on computer tape or by
19.9 million
20.8 million
FIT for subscribers
Number of records exported online from WorldCat to local systems
28.5 million
27.0 million
Custom-printed catalog cards ordered
12.3 million
15 3 million
Location listings in WorldCat for library materials
720 million
668 million
Serials Union List volume-specific holdings (LDR)
8.2 million
8 1 million
Online interlibrary loans transacted
8.2 million
8.2 million
OCLC ILL Fee Management service participants
1,228
1,070
Resource Sharing Groups supported
209 groups
203 groups
15,869 libraries
15,508 libraries
OCLC CatCD for Windows database subscriptions
470
572
OCLC RetroCon services projects under way
307
329
OCLC Authority Control services
116 libraries
26 libraries
6,136,794 records
3,197,269 records
OCLC TechPro service cataloging
204,250 titles
162,987 titles
157 institutions
191 institutions
OCLC FirstSearch authorizations
30,351
23,379
OCLC FirstSearch searches
61.9 million
50 4 million
OCLC FirstSearch Electronic Collections Online
1,761 journals
890 journals
48 publishers
29 publishers
OCLC SiteSearch suite licensees
96
92
Dewey Decimal Classification and Relative Index,
edition 21copies sold (published July 1996)
2,135
3,128
Abridged Dewey Decimal Classification and Relative Index,
edition 13copies sold (published July 1997)
4,425
6,823
Dewey for Windows softwarecopies sold
540
675
*Volume varies annually as OCLC loads backfiles for new member libraries.
"While 2,193,005 new bibliographic records were added to WorldCat, the net growth of the database
was 2,145,931 records
because the Duplicate Detection and Resolution program identified and merged 47,074 duplicate records.
4
1997/98
1998/99
Financial
$ 136,217,100
$146,128,800
Revenues
$ (5,640,800)
(5,278,000)
Member Participation Credits
$
$ 130,939,100
$140,488,000
Net revenues
7,308,400
Contribution to corporate equity
9,406,300
$
$
$ 114,461,100
Total corporate equity/net worth
$122,317,700
$229,813,100
Total assets
$ 192,215,700
Percent Change in
Revenue & Contribution
Equity & Assets
HEPI and OCLC Prices
60%
$200
$125
50%
$100
$150
-G 40%
0
$75
"a
30%
E $100
E
$50
E
20%
$50
$25
10%
1
$0
$0
0%
95 96 97 98
92 93 94
1997/98
1998/99
1998/99
1997/98
90
99
91
fiscal year ended June 30
fiscal year ended June 30
fiscal year ended June 30
HEPI
Contribution
Revenue
Assets
Equity
OCLC
HEPI: Higher Education Price Index Base year 1986
3.,iikcidtc12;601241,14,N)
OCLC Member Libraries
General members do all their
iSclibbh216M2,15:44
glii:OloeielliO1 (WA%
current cataloging online or
supply current cataloging
Other49111.(677%))
information to OCLC by
(7.5%)
computer tape or file. These
Resdarch 1641T,(4118f/d),
general members participate in
100 (1g2%)
IStat47Provrnce
r
OCLC's governance by electing
IFideial Government,
delegates to the Users Council.
gobliclif056)1(12.2%)
;:StMe/Munorial Government
.dia1ieR9 ,0)
Procegingaenters111,
Total Members: 8,650
(32)
IFoundajpiffalfiassociations 262
iclalLOARRAD
iinior/Cciththrullity
101iralaSthliii1F400ff(018/4
-.Orb '3.70%
Ir
opationAti681(q.9%)
ilaX6031019%).?,
5
ear in R view
Mem ership Events
Library leaders from 120 research
Twenty publishers of over 800
universities and institutions in 23
journals start participating in OCLC
The library system of the
countries meet at OCLC for the
FirstSearch Electronic Collections
Universidade Estadual Paulista, Sao
17th Annual International
Online, bringing the total number
Paulo, Brazil, becomes the second
Conference of Research Library
of publishers and titles to 48 and
OCLC member in Brazil.
Directors. (March 1999)
1,761, respectively.
(July 1998)
OCLC receives ISO 9001
The Baltimore County Public
registration for Design and
Library, Baltimore, Maryland, first
Development of Automated Library
among major U.S. public libraries
Services, Databases and
for circulation per resident, becomes
Telecommunications Facilities with
an OCLC member library.
provisions for User Documentation
(August 1998)
and Technical Support.
Bibliotekstjanst, OCLC's
(August 1998)
distributor in Sweden, and the
OCLC's new Journal Licensing
The OCLC Users Council
OCLC TechPro service begin work
Program offers integrated services
unanimously adopts a resolution,
to restore the catalog of rare
for electronic subscriptions, access
materials from the main public
"Shared Commitments to the OCLC
and archiving of titles available
WorldCat Principles of Cooperation,"
library of Linkoping, Sweden, which
through OCLC FirstSearch
that reaffirms the commitment of
burned to the ground in 1996.
Electronic Collections Online.
OCLC, the networks, and member
(November 1998)
(August 1998)
libraries to cooperation and shared
The National Library of China, the
responsibility for building access
Eighteen years of the Facts on
largest library in Asia and the fifth
and content for digital libraries.
File World News Digest becomes
largest library in the world in terms
(May 1999)
available on the OCLC FirstSearch
of size of its collection, becomes an
service. (August 1998)
Nine hundred directors of OCLC
OCLC member to do its current
member libraries and other OCLC
cataloging online with OCLC and to
The Combined Higher Education
community leaders attend the
participate in the OCLC Interlibrary
Software Team (CHEST) begins
OCLC President's Luncheon during
Loan service. (December 1998)
offering new OCLC FirstSearch
the American Library Association
service packages to the United
The Hennepin County Library,
Annual Conference to celebrate the
Kingdom higher education
Minnetonka, Minnesota, known for
20th anniversary of the OCLC
community under a five-year
its commitment to advancement in
Interlibrary Loan service.
agreement with OCLC.
the field of subject headings,
(June 1999)
(September 1998)
becomes an OCLC member.
(March 1999)
OCLC releases French and
Online Services
Spanish language interfaces for
Through an agreement reached
OCLC expands Internet capacity
the OCLC FirstSearch service.
with the Illinois State Library, more
to the equivalent of more than 300
(September 1998)
than 1,000 small Illinois libraries
T-1 lines.
will become OCLC members,
ID.
Over 1,200 libraries use the
9 0 0 o
adding approximately 25 million
iitgalices
Recherche simple
,
OCLC ILL Fee Management service
new holdings to WorldCat and
(Z.vrn
to reconcile more than 450,000 ILL
facilitating resource sharing among
Recherch,
Recherche
transactions, saving libraries
all Illinois libraries. (March 1999)
aim
e4 in:
approximately $15 million in
Classem
011.1
..
The Bibliotheque nationale du
Be2latiartata
administrative costs.
Quebec, Montreal, Canada, becomes
an OCLC member to contribute its
cataloging to WorldCat.
(March 1999)
6
The National Library of Australia
The OCLC RetroCon service
Virtual Academic Library
and OCLC reach an accord that
starts converting approximately
Environment (VALE) and OCLC
enables the 1,300 Australian
2 million catalog records into
provide public and independent
libraries that use the National
machine-readable form for the Yale
colleges and universities across
Library's new Kinetica resource
University libraries. (April 1999)
New Jersey with seamless access
sharing service to become full or
to shared electronic information
To expand authority control
partial OCLC members.
resources using the OCLC
options for libraries, OCLC
(February 1999)
Site Search suite of software.
combines the OCLC Authority
(November 1998)
Control service and the WLN MARC
Record Service under the new
OCLC CJK 3.0 software, an
OCLC Authority Control suite of
enhanced version of software that
Online Tour - Minn Reading Room
services. (May 1999)
supports cataloging in Chinese,
Rxx is Pro 01.01014,1,im, ot.tiblity
Japanese and Korean scripts,
..:k:7=1.
OCLC releases an enhanced
skilectons ntri.hlam
becomes available. (January 1999)
'leading illarn,ana
version of the Cataloging Label
r4hes WI at
1r,
Era!
Program, version 1.20. (June 1999)
OCLC releases a new version
....ding Room
..etee
Mrs
d
of the OCLC Cataloging Micro
Strat gic ADDiances
Enhancer for Windows software,
kle.
Deople mfAing
version 1.10. (January 1999)
SABINET Online, an OCLC
distributor in South Africa, and
The British Library Document
OCLC announce plans for the 400
OCLC and PAIS, Public Affairs
Supply Centre Urgent Action
Information Service, sign a letter of
plus libraries of SABINET Online to
Service becomes available to OCLC
intent that could lead to the merger
migrate to the OCLC Cataloging
Interlibrary Loan service users. With
service. (August 1998)
of PAIS and OCLC. PAIS, a non-
this service, requests for documents
profit corporation with offices-in
are processed within three hours of
Jean Touzot Libraire Editeur, a
New York City, publishes the PAIS
receipt through the OCLC ILL
general agent for French language
International database, which
service. ( January 1999)
materials located in Paris, France,
contains over 450,000 records of
starts contributing bibliographic
OCLC participates in the College
abstracted and indexed literature
records to WorldCat.
of DuPage "Periodical Database
from over 120 countries.
(September 1998)
Teleconference: A National Forum,"
(February 1999)
to discuss search engines, areas of
OCLC and WLN merge. WLN
coverage, costs, title selection,
users begin migrating to OCLC
connections to other software,
cataloging and resource sharing
PAII5
archival issues and full-text/image
services, and the WLN Union
options. (February 1999)
Catalog is merged with WorldCat.
Records from HARRASSOWITZ,
WLN full member libraries become
OCLC starts providing Internet
a bookseller and subscription agent
OCLC general members.
services to libraries in 14 countries
based in Wiesbaden, Germany, are
( January 1999)
through Digital Island, a global
added to WorldCat. (March 1999)
applications network. Digital Island
OCLC and Pica Foundation sign
bypasses the domestic and
a letter of intent that could lead to
international Internet infrastructure
the establishment of a jointly
and replaces it with a managed
owned organization to better serve
service directly from OCLC to key
the European library community
networks and Internet service
(April 1999)
providers in served countries.
(February 1999)
T1
C a
Library Automation Fi On/ne Services,
7