| 1. Where does money come from for state-wide database licensing?
In 2002, Senator Beth Edmonds sponsored a bill that legislated $200,000 a year to the Maine State Library for databases. That same year the Rosen Bill legislatively granted $500,000 a year for two years to the University for databases to serve academic and research needs. In short, the state has a whole has $700,000 with which to license databases. $200,000 is specifically for the State Library and $500,000 is specifically (by legislation) for the University System. In reality the UM and MSL work together in database purchasing to maximize value for all Maine libraries.
2. How was the decision made as to which databases to purchase?
In the spring of 2001 a group with representatives from a variety of Maine libraries met to identify the types of resources needed for a well-rounded, on-line reference library. This group, which included a public librarian, a University System rep., a private college rep, a school librarian, and two people from the Maine State Library) identify the following priorities:
General Public and Academic Journals and Magazines
Business Journals and Magazines
K-12 Resources (magazines and literature in particular)
Newspapers
Encyclopedia
Reader's Advisory
Education
Health and Medicine
Agriculture
and, if possible, OED and PoemFinder.
This spring a Request for Information (titles available and pricing) was sent to a number of vendors many of whom had been suggested by Maine librarians. In May representatives from the University and the Maine State Library met to review this information and make purchasing decision.
3. What criteria were used?
Usage figures were studied. We are adding ProQuest Newspapers this year. This too was a difficult decision because the subscription price is pretty steep. However, many people have request this service which provides full text articles from over 400 state, national and international newspaper.
(If you total just the above items, it is easy to see how fast the MSL's $200,000 is spent.
4. What are we getting next year and when will we start accessing them?
The titles marked "new" below will be available on or about July 1, 2003
Academic Search Premier
AccessScience (new)
Agricola
Annals of American History (new - comes with Britannica)
Aquatic Sciences and Fisheries Abstracts (new)
BIOSIS Previews
Business Source Premier
Contemporary Authors
Contemporary Literacy Criticism Select
EconoLit (new)
Encyclopedia Britannica
Encyclopedia Britannica (School Edition)
ERIC - Education
Food Science and Technology Abstracts (new)
Gale Business and Company Resource Center
Gale Dictionary of Literary Biography
GeoRef (new)
Health Source: Consumer Edition
Health Source: Nursing and Academic Edition
Literature Resource Center
MAS Ultra - School Edition
MasterFILE Premier
MEDLINE
Middle Search Plus
Nature (new)
NetLibrary
NoveList
NoveList k-8
Primary Search
ProQuest Newspapers (new)
Scribner Writers
Twayne's Author Series
ValueLine Investment Survey (new for public libraries)
ValueLine Research Center (new for academic libraries)
Wildlife Worldwide (new)
Zoological Record
Databases cancellations:
ABI/Inform Global
ABI/Inform Trade and Industry
Alt HealthWatch
Business Source Corporate -for Cooperate libraries
Computer Source (a subset of Academic Search Premier)
EBSCO Animals
Funk and Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia
Legal Collection (a subset of Academic Search Premier)
Lit Finder (Poem, Essay and Short Story Finders - Poem Finder has received
negative reviews from users who found some citations incomplete and/or
inaccurate)
Newspaper Source (replaced by ProQuest Newspapers)
Oxford English Dictionary (use statistics did not justify the expense)
Professional Development Collection from EBSCO
Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection from EBSCO
Religions and Philosophy Collection from EBSCO
Sociological Collection from EBSCO
Vocational and Career Collections from EBSCO
The citations from these collections are still available from Academic
Search Premier. We are no longer paying for EBSCO to pull them out and
reorganize them under these specific subject areas.
Regional Business News
Searchasaurus for Kids
TOPIC Search
Wall Street Journal (available in ProQuest Newspapers)
If you have further questions, I will do my best to find answers! Thanks all,
Linda H. Lord
Director of Library Development
Maine State Library
64 State House Station
Augusta, ME 04333
(207) 287-5620
linda.lord@maine.gov <mailto:linda.lord@maine.gov>
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