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Weekly News Digest

June 27, 2013 — In addition to this week's NewsBreaks article and the monthly NewsLink Spotlight, Information Today, Inc. (ITI) offers Weekly News Digests that feature recent product news and company announcements. Watch for additional coverage to appear in the next print issue of Information Today. CLICK HERE to view more Weekly News Digest items.

Mathematics Database zbMATH Rolls Out Enhancements

The FIZ Karlsruhe - Leibniz Institute for Information Infrastructure, a Germany-based, nonprofit information infrastructure organization, created zbMATH, which is edited by FIZ Karlsruhe, the European Mathematical Society (EMS), and the Heidelberg Academy of Sciences and Humanities. FIZ Karlsruhe is a member of the Leibniz Association, an organization comprising more than 80 institutions that promote science and research.

Systems such as zbMATH “are nowadays indispensable for searching as well as for analyzing and visualizing research information. Our requirements have not only broadened but have also become more complex,” according to Marta Sanz-Solé, EMS president. “The new possibilities offered by zbMATH support us not only in finding individual publications but also in analyzing answer sets and thus discovering additional information that leads us to new findings.”

zbMATH is designed to help researchers discover how mathematical topics have evolved over time, what current research is saying about a particular topic, and what areas have had the most growth. FIZ Karlsruhe improved the power of zbMATH's search engine, visuals, and abstracts, making the information on the database more precise. It also added mouse-over functions, scroll-down menus, and mobile optimization.

swMATH, a database for searching mathematical software, was integrated with zbMATH so that publications in zbMATH can be linked from swMATH; swMATH is sponsored by the Leibniz Association’s Joint Initiative for Research and Innovation.

Source: FIZ Karlsruhe

Gale Debuts Four Archives for 19th-Century Research

Nineteenth Century Collections Online (NCCO), Gale’s worldwide, multiyear digitization program, offers rare 19th-century primary sources such as newspapers, maps, and photographs from more than 80 institutions around the world. With the addition of the new archives, NCCO now has eight archives, and the entire program has more than 170 collections.

Since the 19th century is such a popular period of history, NCCO offers “a variety of rare, and cross-curricular content” that researchers can use to discover new areas of study, says Jim Draper, vice president and general manager of Gale. NCCO is valuable to “any institution looking to provide its students and faculty with the ability to perform innovative historical research.”

The new archives cover topics in Europe and Africa; photography; women; and science, technology, and medicine. Their inclusion was decided on by an advisory board of subject matter experts.

The Europe and Africa: Commerce, Christianity, Civilization, and Conquest archive contains sources such as monographs, manuscripts, and newspaper articles that discuss the European conquest of Africa with regard to economics, world politics, and international strategy.

The Photography: The World Through the Lens archive explores the invention of photography, featuring the practice as a technical process, as an art form, as documentary evidence, and as an information type. Sources include landscapes, police photography, war photographs, and photographs of the poor.

The Women: Transnational Networks archive documents women’s movements around the world, with a focus on European and North American women, using serials, books, manuscripts, diaries, reports, and visuals.

The Science, Technology and Medicine, 1780-1925 archive displays the changing 19th-century attitudes toward natural history, physics, mathematics, medicine, and public health in journals and monographs.

Source: Cengage Learning 

Springer Introduces French and Italian Ebook Collections

SpringerLink, Springer’s online ebook platform, collected more than 100,000 ebooks since 2006. These foreign-language additions work toward Springer’s goal of having more than 150,000 ebooks by the end of 2013. The French and Italian ebooks were previously offered as part of Springer’s international package.

Springer’s ebooks are available in PDF and HTML formats, include a search feature, and do not have digital rights management (DRM); users can download, print, and transfer the files as needed. Libraries that purchase an ebook collection do not have to pay recurring license fees.

Springer intends to bring these collections to research institutions and public libraries in a variety of French- and Italian-speaking countries. “Instruction at universities and schools … happens mostly in their native language," according to Dagmar Laging, Springer's vice president of library sales for southern Europe. "With these collections we will be able to connect with new customers who were previously out of reach.” 

Source: Springer Science+Business Media

EBSCO and Ingram Combine Ebook Collections

OASIS allows librarians to look up bibliography information on, search for, and order print books and ebooks from Coutts Information Services, which provides content to more than 5,000 libraries in more than 150 countries. Options in OASIS include customizable local data fields, free MARC downloads, open order online claims, duplication control, access to invoices and shipping information, and order reporting.

By collaborating with Ingram on its collection, EBSCO allows librarians to expand their collection development and order ebooks without changing their workflows. Acquisition services, invoices, and billing are now combined so customers have access to all of EBSCO’s ebook content. Librarians can still manage their orders online, download records, track their orders, and access reports.

Source: EBSCO Information Services 

OCLC Creates Metadata API to Improve WorldCat Cataloging Services

Libraries can use the API to improve existing WorldCat bibliographic records, create new records, and manage their holdings and local bibliographic data. WorldCat also offers OCLC’s existing applications such as Connexion to catalog holdings.

“Release of the WorldCat Metadata API will help library staff and partners create applications that can integrate with the services they choose, to help streamline their workflows and get the most from their services and service partners,” says Kathryn Harnish, OCLC network experience director. The API helps libraries create their own solutions to improve access to their collections.

The OCLC WorldShare Platform recently released other APIs for streamlined library workflows. The new API complements the WorldCat Search API by providing read and write access to bibliographic data. The next phase of the Metadata API will allow libraries to maintain their local holdings records.

Source: OCLC

Credo’s Literati School Adds Financial Aid Finder

“Just as Literati provides context for student research and information literacy,” according to Gail Schlachter, Reference Services Press founder and FundingFinder Express publisher, the new feature “will provide the necessary context for the search for financial aid.”

FundingFinder Express allows students to customize searches, get email alerts for scholarships that match their profiles, and get reminders about deadlines.

Source: Credo