Microsoft Word - ital_march_gerrity.docx


Editor’s Comments Bob Gerrity 
	
  

INFORMATION	
  TECHNOLOGY	
  AND	
  LIBRARIES	
  |	
  MARCH	
  2013	
   1	
  
	
  

	
  

With	
  this	
  issue,	
  Information	
  Technology	
  and	
  Libraries	
  (ITAL)	
  begins	
  its	
  second	
  year	
  as	
  an	
  open-­‐
access,	
  e-­‐only	
  publication.	
  There	
  have	
  been	
  a	
  couple	
  of	
  technical	
  hiccups	
  related	
  to	
  the	
  publication	
  
of	
  back	
  issues	
  of	
  ITAL	
  previously	
  only	
  available	
  in	
  print:	
  the	
  publication	
  system	
  we’re	
  using	
  (Open	
  
Journal	
  System)	
  treats	
  the	
  back	
  issues	
  as	
  new	
  content	
  and	
  automatically	
  sends	
  notifications	
  to	
  
readers	
  who	
  have	
  signed	
  up	
  to	
  be	
  notified	
  when	
  new	
  content	
  is	
  available.	
  We’re	
  working	
  to	
  
correct	
  that	
  glitch,	
  but	
  hope	
  that	
  the	
  benefit	
  of	
  having	
  the	
  full	
  ITAL	
  archive	
  online	
  will	
  outweigh	
  
the	
  inconvenience	
  of	
  the	
  extra	
  e-­‐mail	
  notifications.	
  Overall	
  though,	
  ITAL	
  continues	
  to	
  chug	
  along	
  
and	
  the	
  wheels	
  aren’t	
  in	
  danger	
  of	
  falling	
  off	
  any	
  time	
  soon.	
  Thanks	
  go	
  to	
  Mary	
  Taylor,	
  the	
  LITA	
  
Board,	
  and	
  the	
  LITA	
  Publications	
  Committee	
  for	
  supporting	
  the	
  move	
  to	
  the	
  new	
  model	
  for	
  ITAL.	
  

Readership	
  this	
  year	
  appears	
  to	
  be	
  healthy—the	
  total	
  download	
  count	
  for	
  the	
  thirty-­‐three	
  articles	
  
published	
  in	
  2012	
  was	
  42,166,	
  with	
  48,160	
  abstract	
  views.	
  Unfortunately	
  we	
  don’t	
  have	
  statistics	
  
about	
  online	
  use	
  from	
  previous	
  years	
  to	
  compare	
  with.	
  	
  The	
  overall	
  number	
  of	
  article	
  downloads	
  
for	
  2012,	
  for	
  new	
  and	
  archival	
  content,	
  was	
  74,924.	
  	
  We	
  continue	
  to	
  add	
  to	
  the	
  online	
  archive:	
  this	
  
month	
  the	
  first	
  issues	
  from	
  March	
  1969	
  and	
  March	
  1981	
  were	
  added.	
  If	
  you	
  haven’t	
  taken	
  the	
  
opportunity	
  to	
  look,	
  the	
  back	
  issues	
  offer	
  an	
  interesting	
  reminder	
  of	
  the	
  technology	
  challenges	
  our	
  
predecessors	
  faces.	
  	
  

In	
  this	
  month’s	
  issue,	
  ITAL	
  Editorial	
  Board	
  member	
  Patrick	
  “Tod”	
  Colegrove	
  reflects	
  on	
  the	
  
emergence	
  of	
  makerspace	
  phenomenon	
  in	
  libraries,	
  providing	
  an	
  overview	
  of	
  the	
  makerspace	
  	
  
landscape.	
  LITA	
  member	
  Danielle	
  Becker	
  and	
  Lauren	
  Yannotta	
  describe	
  the	
  user-­‐centered	
  website	
  
redesign	
  process	
  used	
  at	
  the	
  Hunter	
  College	
  Libraries.	
  Kathleen	
  Weessies	
  and	
  Daniel	
  Dotson	
  
describe	
  GIS	
  lite	
  provide	
  examples	
  of	
  its	
  use	
  at	
  the	
  Michigan	
  State	
  University	
  Libraries.	
  Vandana	
  
Singh	
  presents	
  guidelines	
  for	
  adopting	
  an	
  open-­‐source	
  integrated	
  library	
  system,	
  based	
  on	
  
findings	
  from	
  interviews	
  with	
  staff	
  at	
  libraries	
  that	
  have	
  adopted	
  open-­‐source	
  systems.	
  Danijela	
  
Boberić	
  Krstićev	
  from	
  the	
  University	
  of	
  Novi	
  Sad	
  describes	
  a	
  software	
  methodology	
  enabling	
  
sharing	
  of	
  information	
  between	
  different	
  library	
  systems,	
  using	
  the	
  Z39.50	
  and	
  SRU	
  protocols.	
  

Beginning	
  with	
  the	
  June	
  issue	
  of	
  ITAL,	
  articles	
  will	
  be	
  published	
  individually	
  as	
  soon	
  as	
  they	
  are	
  
ready.	
  ITAL	
  issues	
  will	
  still	
  close	
  on	
  a	
  quarterly	
  basis,	
  in	
  March,	
  June,	
  September,	
  and	
  December.	
  
By	
  publishing	
  articles	
  individually	
  as	
  they	
  are	
  ready,	
  we	
  hope	
  to	
  make	
  ITAL	
  content	
  more	
  timely	
  
and	
  reduce	
  the	
  overall	
  length	
  of	
  time	
  for	
  our	
  peer-­‐review	
  and	
  publication	
  processes.	
  

Suggestions	
  and	
  feedback	
  are	
  welcome,	
  at	
  the	
  e-­‐mail	
  address	
  below.	
  

	
  

	
  

Bob	
  Gerrity	
  (r.gerrity@uq.edu.au)	
  is	
  University	
  Librarian,	
  University	
  of	
  Queensland,	
  Australia.