InfoSci@ECU Seminars

Roundtable on Institutional Repositories

David Howard et al. — Sun, 17 Jun 2012 23:15:20 PDT

An Institutional Repository (IR) is a set of services and technologies that provide the means to collect, manage, provide access to, disseminate, and preserve digital materials produced at an institution (Shreeves and Cragin, 2008). The take up of IR technologies in universities has been broadly contemporaneous with the adoption of Web 2.0 technologies, beginning with the release of the first usable system, DSpace, in 2002. Since 2002, IRs have moved from academia to government, museums and corporations. Today, IRs are increasingly seen as a key component of the ‘networked information economy’ (Benkler, 2006). In many institutions, libraries are assuming program responsibility for institutional repositories.

E-book Adoption in Academic & Research Libraries

Pervaiz Ahmad et al. — Sun, 17 Jun 2012 22:38:12 PDT

From a fledgling technology with no proven business models, Electronic books (E-books) have grown in importance. Nowhere is this more apparent than in academic libraries, where E-books in many libraries now account for more than half of the library acquisitions budget (Huthwaite et al., 2011). In situations where funding is scarce and E-book adoption requires substantial budgetary provision, libraries must establish the level and extent of E-book use and ascertain factors that point to the worth of E-books as library resources (Crosetto, 2011, p. 125). Consequently, user needs assessment and the analysis of E-book usage patterns have become key factors in managing library collections effectively (Al, Soydal, & Tonta, 2010).

Roundtable on Australian National Data Service

Mathew Wyatt et al. — Sun, 17 Jun 2012 22:38:11 PDT

The Australian National Data Service (ANDS) (http://ands.org.au/index.html) provides funding to foster partnerships and build infrastructure to enable better local data management in Australian universities and research institutions. Begun in 2008, ANDS has received $72 million of Commonwealth funding. ANDS aims to establish infrastructure and services for an Australian research data commons in which research data with enduring value and the potential for reuse, is preserved and managed for continuing accessibility.

Disability and the Web: Why Website Accessibility Matters

Vivienne Conway — Sun, 10 Jun 2012 22:31:36 PDT

With Australia now transitioning to WCAG 2.0, accessibility has become a critical area requiring a far greater emphasis in the next couple of years. The Australian Human Rights Commission has argued that all Australian websites should meet WCAG 2.0 AA by December 2014. In this presentation, Vivienne will discuss important findings from her study of public library web site accessibility. She will also provide insights into her current PhD investigation and give a first hand account of the Hyderabad conference and global efforts on web site accessibility.