OCLC: Soup to Nuts?
Posted On Aug 16 2006OCLC has announced another important acquisition in a long series of wins that have kept libraries, members, and industry pundits busy guessing what’s next. Following a distribution partnership that dates back to 2002, OCLC has acquired DiMeMa (Digital Media Management), the creator of CONTENTdm digital management software. Greg Zick, the former University of Washington professor who founded the company in 2001, will become vice president of OCLC Digital Services. DiMeMa staff (11 employees) will remain in Seattle. A busy year at OCLC: 2006-Aug: OCLC acquires DiMeMa / CONTENTdm 2006-Aug: OCLC launches Worldcat.org 2006-Jun: RLG membership approves merger with OCLC 2006-Apr: …
Topsy Turvy Summer
Posted On Aug 7 2006This summer has seen no shortage of interesting announcements in the library automation world. At first glance, things seem upside down in a library world where the Library of Congress can be accused of abandoning the profession, and internet behemoth Amazon.com announces that it will supply MARC records! The many happenings at LC have been given plenty of digital and print ink, so I won’t belabor the debates here. In “The Changing Nature of the Catalog and Its Integration with Other Discovery Tools,” (pdf) Karen Calhoun makes several (and some radical) suggestions that are shaking things up. Combine that with …
Hereby Resolved
Posted On Jul 18 2006When you see a lot of library technology (or read a lot of press releases about library technology), you tend to get slightly jaded about the next great new thing. One of the phrases that makes me cringe (and I hear it nearly every day) is “Do you wanna see something cool?” Worse yet, if one is a so-called “trend-spotter,” then there is no time to linger on the day’s coolness before looking for new technological pastures to mow down. I think I have earned a reputation for lingering. Maybe it’’ my Type ‘A’ personality or twisted practicality, but I …