ONLINE VS CD-ROM DELIVERY OF
INFORMATION
Leo Waaijers
Everybody in the information chain seems to be nervously exploring the possibilities of new technologies. Authors try desktop publishing, publishers go online with full text databases, libraries test scanning and OCR techniques, to name only a few activities. A common denominator seems to be the uncertainty about the behaviour of the evasive end user. The paper concludes with a suggestion for co-operation between publishers, libraries and intermediaries based on the Dutch saying "cobbler stick to your last". So, the underlying principle for such a co-operation is mutual recognition and respect of the essentials of the various roles of the participating parties. What are these essentials as seen through the eyes of a librarian ? If such a co-operation can be achieved the information medium (paper, optical, magnetic or electronic media) can be chosen to meet the end user's needs instead of playing a role in a diffuse competition amongst numerous suppliers. The question of the end user's needs is raised.
The scene
Recently two interesting projects concerning full text databases have originated in the Netherlands. The initiator of the first project is PICA, a library automation firm and holder of a large central catalogue in the Netherlands. The project as a whole is concerned with fast document delivery from a stock of about 7,000 of the most frequently requested journals. Here, fast means within 24 hours. Initially the delivery will be based on copying and telefaxing the requested articles from the hard copy journal collections of 20 libraries. The main objective in this phase is the improvement of the logistics of the document delivery process within the participating libraries. The next step is the setting up of a central database of current contents of the journals concerned to facilitate the retrieval and ordering of individual articles. The final stage of the project consists of cover to cover bitmapping of the 7,000 journals, thus building up a full text central national database for direct docu-ment delivery. It is very likely that the Dutch Minister of Education will award the project a grant of almost one million pounds.
The second project stems from SURF, the Dutch university network organisation (to compare with JANET in the UK). In this case the plan, which is still in its infancy, is to bring together publishers, libraries and a networker, namely SURF. The basic idea here is that publishers publish, albeit nically, libraries store and deliver, also electro-nically and SURF takes care of the data transfer.
The Delft University of Technology Library has shown keen interest in both projects, amidst an increasing number of reports about similar initia-tives. A few worth mentioning are the Project Mercury set up by the Carnegie Mellon University in co-operation with OCLC and the Bellcore-ACS-Cornell combination, which is working towards including graphics and tables with online docu-ment delivery.There is also the well known Adonis Project, the first commercial venture in this field and which uses CD-ROM as a distributing medium, as does UMI, a joint project of University Micro-films and IEEE. Recently, Faxon announced 'just-in-time' services to supply single articles electro-nically and INIST has already started to scan 2,000 journals on a full text basis.
It would seem that more and more actors on the information stage are exploring new technology, testing its possibilities for storage and delivery of full text documents. Co-operation in this field is not unlikely but from my own observation the combi-nation publisher-library is a rare one. Can it be that some animosity has grown between these former partners? Libraries accuse publishers of abusing monopoly positions to implement annual price increases of 7% upwards, whilst publishers accuse libraries of abusing the legal option of 'fair use' to evade the copyright in the photocopying of journal articles. As a librarian, my opinion at this point is that libraries are the underdogs in both cases. On the other hand, libraries are almost defenceless against the constant escalation of prices. Their only way out is to cancel subscriptions. The con-Interlending and Document Supply, 20 (2), 1992
sequences of such action for the end user can be mitigated by a combination of the co-ordination of inter-library collection and document delivery. However, this way out is limited. As soon as a subscription becomes unique in a country, as is already the case for some 5,000 journals held at Delft University, there remains little to co-ordinate unless one opts for international co-ordination, a complicated and expensive solution. On the other hand, publishers have started a successful and internationally concerted lobby towards legislative bodies for a legal restraint on the royalty free photocopying of journal articles, the so called 'fair use' option. To give an example, a law has been drafted in the Netherlands cancelling the fair use option for prints made from full text databases.This lobby goes hand in hand with attempts to check the already existing copying practices at universities and their libraries, if necessary by going to court.
Programme for co-operation
Today in particular, when publishers and librarians meet on the brink of a new age for document delivery, I should like to examine possibilities for co-operation, especially those in which the two aforementioned antagonists participate. Maybe it is a better alternative to ongoing competition. After all, co-operation might lead to more efficient and standardised processes. As a result, the end user could live in a cheaper and less complicated world. Ignorant though we may be of this speculative phenomenon that we call the end user, it certainly hates to spend money only to get trapped in an intricate world of pricing schemes, delivery times, delivery modes, retrieval languages and so on. As always, co-operation has to do with two aspects: the partners and the product.
The partners
For partners to work together on a voluntary basis each of them should regard it as beneficial. In this play, which I call 'New age document delivery', potential players are not only publishers and libraries but also producers of bibliographic databases and serials agents. Whilst thinking about the essential aspect of their various roles, I came to a number of conclusions about publishers, bibliogra-phers, serials agents and libraries respectively. Without underestimating the publisher's role in the printing and editing of publications, he is vital as an organiser of the refereeing process. That is what makes or breaks a journal. I understand that for some of their journals, Elsevier rejects 90% of the submitted articles.
Nowadays, most of the articles are abstracted by the author himself. In many cases this is even
obligatory. Nevertheless, nobody can imagine an information world without the work done by the abstracting services. The essence of their role is homogenising the informational soup by applying rules for abstracting (rewriting abstracts if need be) and using one overall format and retrieval language. In fact, they operate as standardising bodies, or should I say templating bodies, and their only flaw is that they are too numerous.
Serials agents do an unbelievable job in logistics, matching hundreds of publishers and libraries for a very irregular product. In fact, nothing is so irregular as a periodical and serials agents are true masters of wholesaling.
Libraries, on the other hand, are real retailers. Of course, they play an invaluable role in building and preserving documentary collections. From a cul-tural point of view these collections are absolutely indispensable but from an informational viewpoint they become more and more means to an end. "From collection to connection!", exclaimed my former colleague Lynne Brindley of Aston Univer-sity in Birmingham, UK and I agree with her. The slogan of the Delft University of Technology Library is: "Tailored information please ... on the spot!" and for the client it is irrelevant where this information comes from, although I am the first one to admit that a good local collection can be very instrumental in making this slogan come true. To summarise, client-orientated new age document delivery requires co-operation between the aforementioned actors. For a project to be suc-cessful it needs the refereeing capacity of one or more publishers, the database management know-how of an abstracting service, the logistical control of a serials agent and the servicing potential of a library. As a consequence, libraries and publishers in particular should recognise and mutually respect each other's role, ie publishers should not try to bypass libraries and serve the end users directly and libraries should abandon the compilation of full text databases by scanning copyrighted docu-ments. Who may I welcome to such a project?
The product
In profiling a possible new product, it is necessary first to mention the features of the existing product that the new one is meant to supersede. So, in this case the question is, what are the characteristics of paper and its alternatives as data carriers?
Paper
Accessibility
The most obvious characteristic of paper is that aids are unnecessary, except sometimes a pair of glasses, to get access to the information.
Timeliness
Paper is a slow medium. For a book one has to reckon in years, for an article in months and for a report in weeks between the conceptualisation and the moment the information catches the reader's eye.
Compactness
Although more compact than its predecessor the clay tablet, paper is an 'empty medium' when compared to its possible successors.
Searchabilily
Although in general, information on paper is packaged in digestible quantities, called articles, paragraphs or books, the retrieval of a specific passage or subject is not so easy.
Preservability
With the exception of a part of the previous century's paper, it is quite easy to preserve paper for many years.
Authenticity
Paper is a reliable medium, information once printed and disseminated is practically impossible to revise.
Appearance
A good looking publication produces status and distinction for its author, a psychological factor not to be neglected.
CD-ROM
Accessibility
Access to the information contained on a CD-ROM requires a CD-drive, a computer, a monitor, a keyboard, software appropriate to that specific CD-ROM and electricity.
Timeliness
CD-ROM is as slow as paper.
Compactness
Although there are reports of information storage in solid crystals that will surpass all the preceding results in this field, for the moment optical (and magnetic) storage is the most compact we have.
Searchability
As soon as the information on the CD-ROM comes into view the dose is overwhelming but for those who master the retrieval language it is possible to meet their own specifications. If the information is spread over several CD-ROMs some difficulties might arise, but I expect that multiple disk drives will solve these to a certain extent. If one wants to
keep the information for further use, a printer is also needed.
Preservability
The preservability of CD-ROMs is currently under discussion. Recent publications in the Netherlands have mentioned a lifetime of 10 years emphasising the vulnerability to scratching in combination with the crucial importance of some individual bytes on an information CD. However, with better produc-tion processes and under good condiproduc-tions it should be possible for CD-ROMs to match the durability of paper.
Authenticity
So far, I have not heard of counterfeiting a CD-ROM. Considering the technique used I do not think falsification is easy but whether this applies to a rewritable CD has yet to be seen.
Appearance
Ever seen a glossy CD-ROM? Moreover, since a one to one relation between an author and a CD will be quite rare the personal satisfaction factor of this medium will be correspondingly small.
Online databases
Accessibility
Online access to a full text database requires a computer with monitor, keyboard, modem plus communication software and electricity. With this equipment one has to work through a labyrinth of protocols, terminal emulations, baud rates, parities and stop bits to find the treasure in its centre. Moreover, before starting the journey one should go through some administrative procedures to acquire the right shibboleths, that is access codes, user-IDs and passwords. Bon voyage!
Timeliness
Yes, the ideal of instantaneous and worldwide communication of information is possible through this medium. In fact, in the pre-publishing world subject oriented groups of scientists have already organised their own fully electronic information exchange using abstracts and preprints.
Compactness
The electronic and magnetic data storage on which a computer relies is even more compact than the device that takes its name from this capacity, the compact disk. However, all three are in the same order of magnitude and, as mentioned, new storage media are emerging.
Searchability
The amount of information that is available through a full text database cannot be grasped by an individual; however, he who masters the appro-Inlerlending and Document Supply, 20 (2), 1992
priate retrieval language can meet his own needs. Again, to capture the information a printer is needed.
Preservability
In the end the durability of computer data comes down to the durability of magnetic tapes, which is not too good. The problem of the preservation of information stored in computers has still to be solved. Not only does the data carrier as such play a role, but the pace of the introduction of successive technologies is also an inhibiting factor for preservation. Moreover, does a virus-proof database exist?
Authenticity
As long as Dutch teenagers can hack a Pentagon computer and find top secret information about the deployment of tanks during a war in an Arabian desert, online databases are not the best safeguard of authenticity and intellectual proprietorship. The validation that comes from dissemination of the information is missing in this case: all information is centralised in one place.
Appearance
I do not think you will impress your relatives very much by telling them that your brilliant thoughts are electronically stored somewhere in a giga computer together with hundreds of thousands of other brilliant thoughts. As a publication is a child to an author, a hard copy edition is a child of flesh and blood, its electronic counterpart is a child in the world of virtual reality.
To summarise this part of the paper, I made a table and I forced myself to reduce reality to its basic colours. Because of the controversial restoration of the world famous painting of Newman, the question "Who is afraid of red, yellow and blue?" is topical in the Netherlands. To paraphrase, "Who is afraid of simplicity?". Sometimes, I am not.
Paper CD-ROM Online Accessibility + -Timeliness Compactness Searchability Preservability Authenticity Appearance -+ + + -+ + + + -+ + + -Table 1. Characteristics of information products The table does not have any scientific pretension but merely reflects my opinion as a librarian. Since
paper still has essential pluses where its competi-tors have not, my conclusion is that it will be with us for quite some time to come. Further, it is noteworthy that paper and online full text databases are fully complementary. CD-ROM seems neither fish nor flesh; maybe it is good red herring.
End user benefit
Before coming to more stringent conclusions, I will introduce a phenomenon with which I might have started, namely the end user.It is quite remarkable that we know much more about each other, I mean about libraries, publishers and so on, and our products than we know about our clients. To my knowledge, the end user has never been thor-oughly studied. Does he get what he asks for and, if so, is that what he really needs?To that question I have no reply and maybe it is too general. 'End user' is a generic term that covers a great variety of clients of a great variety of information suppliers. So, I can only talk about my end users; ie researchers, teachers and students looking for information in the field of science and technol-ogy. Even then, I must admit that I do not have much systematic knowledge about their needs. We have done some product reviews for specific services and next year we will start library user groups to become better acquainted with our customers. In the meantime I have to lean on the numerous incidental contacts we have. Doing so and wondering how most of my end users will behave when they look for information, be it a book, a report or an article, I come to the following conclusion. Even if I assume that my end user is fully equipped with and knowledgeable about new information technology, he has a PC, modem, CD-drive and fax at his disposal, in general he or she will avoid this machinery because my end user is a one stop shopper. His enthusiasm is directed to research, teaching or learning but not to do-it-yourself information-broking. Therefore, my first conclusion is that as long as remote information sources are widely dispersed, all with their own retrieval languages and all accessible through their own electronic trails we can never expect much of them. Secondly, CD-ROM will not help the end user. Since no one CD will ever contain all the information he wants (but will provide an overdose of information he does not want), he will need a lot of CDs. As a consequence, he has to attend a CD handling course instead of a telecommunications course.
Of course, there are exceptions. If my end user is a specialist in a narrow monodiscipliniary field he will have his 'own' specific database for informa-tion. Once he has written an appropriate 'script' in his communication software program one push of Inlerlending and Document Supply, 20 (2), 1992
the right button will bring him to his database. These databases are in fact subject-dedicated and moderated bulletin boards with abstracts, preprints or so called 'scholarly skywriting', ie brief accounts of current ideas and findings. As a consequence of this development the concept of peer-review has come under debate.
There are other exceptions to be considered: my end user can go to the bookshop and buy his book or he may have subscriptions to a couple of journals or write directly to the author of a report to request a copy.
But, in general my end user still comes to the library. He might change this attitude when electronic one-stop shopping comes to realisation. Assuming that such an electronic information shop is as user friendly as a library the end user will take its higher price for granted in return for on the spot delivery of the information. Such a 'tele-library' must be based on full text databases that address the seven general criteria considered earlier.To set up such a database, various specialised experiences must be brought together, which brings me back to my appeal for co-operation. Only if and when such databases can be set up will the gradual replace-ment of paper as an information carrier seriously commence.
In this scenario there is no place for CD-ROM as a bulk carrier of information. This does not mean that the CD is a lost medium but it is a special purpose medium; it can fill niches. For example, the substitution of paper for CD-ROM in the case of bibliographic data enhances searchability. Because this type of CD will always be installed in a professional setting, the consequential loss of accessibility poses no problem.Also, appearance plays no role. To date, the Delft University of Technology Library has subscriptions to 15 relevant bibliographic databases on CD. The students really love the medium. Since we are planning a new building, we had to estimate, among others things, the number of paper based bibliographies twenty years hence and we said zero. Since bibliographic CDs only replace the paper version, additional online searches are still necessary but in many cases one can use the same query profile for both the CD-ROM and the online database.The only prob-lem that remains to be solved is the question of whether to cancel the paper duplicate.For various reasons we have not cancelled the paper version in half of the cases.
A further example of an advantageous application of CD technology in the information world is the
storage of reports. Here the CD is a substitute for microfiche and again the improved searchability is a decisive factor. Possibly, the WORM version of the CD is more appropriate here, and for the scanning of these reports we are awaiting better compression and OCR techniques. Finally, to be competitive with the existing archival techniques the price must go down.
My last example is a negative one and concerns Adonis.I do not believe in this full text application of CD-ROM. It appears weeks after its paper variant, gives information packaged in quantities that almost nobody needs and, with a subscription price of US $12,000 excluding royalty payments for every printout, regardless of whether this is a 'fair use' copy or not, is far from cheap. It also requires the availability of a PC, CD drive and a laser printer. Of course, some very big libraries and wealthy pharmaceutical companies can afford it but I doubt if that will be a basis for economic viability.In the meantime, which of the subscribers dares to cancel his paper duplicates? After all, who guarantees that the product will survive economically, not for-getting, technically?
Conclusion
For the client or end user, information is a means to an end. He does not want to go to too much trouble to get it. The modern library, still based on paper as a bulk carrier for information, offers him one-stop shopping for all his information. It does so cheaply and within a reasonable time. The main advantage that full text databases can offer him is speed but at a higher price and with more effort on his part. He is prepared to pay to some extent but he certainly does not want the trouble of non-standard access to all kinds of full text databases, all with their own retrieval languages, not being sure if he can still find the article he read last year or that what he reads is the original article. What he wants is standard and easy access to a whole range of reliable databases in his field which he can query in one language, namely his own, and where he can get help easily if need be. So, he wants the electronic version of his own good library but much faster and then he accepts to some extent the unavoidable cost increase. Why do we not offer him that?
Full text databases can be helpful for that, but they are only a stage in the process just as printed books and journals are. The uphill climb to gather, review, select and edit the information brings us only halfway to our clients. From there it is necessary to go back downhill with the whole process of disclosure, dissemination, possible matching with other databases, making available through the network, securing and preservation. At the end of
the road there must be a service rendering organisation to help the (potential) clients by giving courses, answering questions, issuing passwords and so on. To set up the whole trip a range of expertise has to be brought in.May I leave the final conclusion to the reader?
Note
An updated version of the paper originally presen-ted to the STM Seminar "Publishers and librarians: the technology link", December 1991, London.
