A to Z Lists and Journals
I am slowly but surely adding my journal print holdings in my A to Z list from Ebsco and I keep thinking there has got to be a better way to do this. Right now I have to upload a tab delimited file of all of my journal holdings with their starting date and end date (I leave the end date blank if we have a current subscription). Now I did this once already at a different library 5 years ago (with Serials Solutions) and I would have thought things would have changed and been a little easier or less time consuming since then. Not really.
What would be nice is to have the ability to add my print holdings as I added my electronic holdings. As it is now, I feel like I have gone through my holdings list at least twice. Once to add the electronic holdings and once to add the print holdings. Every time I make a change to my print collection I have to upload those changes. Not too complicated, but it is annoying and time consuming. I feel like I am "touching" each journal at least twice, and doubling my work.
While I was updating my holdings, my mind wondered to another issue that has been creeping up. Wouldn't it be nice to have the ability to search the A to Z list using the PubMed title abbreviation of a journal? My patrons who have a citation listing the abbreviated title get frustrated trying to guess the real title of the journal in order to find out if the journal is available full text.
For example they don't know if Clin Orthop Relat Res is Clinics in Orthopedic and Related Research, Clinics in Orthopaedic and Related Research, or Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research (correct title).
I suppose they could browse through all of the "C" journal titles, but if you activated online access to Open Access titles they are are going to be clicking through a bunch of screens before they find the correct result. Speaking of browsing, don't even try browsing through anything with the first word of "Journal" in the title unless you have lots of time to kill. Patrons could also search for the word "Orthopaedic" as a title word, but that assumes that they know that it is spelled "Orthopaedic" not "Orthopedic," which is not the usual spelling here in the States.
Just some thoughts as I gradually update my holdings in our A to Z list.
3 Comments:
I maintain a Reference Manager database that I identify holding information about print, electronic or print with e-access including start and end information for e- or print journals. There are plenty of fields to include journal abbreviations, if the journal is indexed in databases we use. I use keywords to describe Open Access or Embargo period journals with subject.
This allows me to pull off A-Z lists, or produce files in various formats (csv, HTML) or I can write my own file format. These can usually be batch imported or uploaded into other systems such as ACS ChemPort, link resolvers, etc.
It does not make up for a complete solution that is missing from the subscription agents or some of the print holding serial solution software.
I maintain a Reference Manager journal holdings database with e-, print or both. There are enough fields to record start and end year, vol & issue details. I record other useful information such as journal abbreviation, URLs (Home page, RSS, JCR). I use keywords to identify Open Access, Subscription, embargo periods plus subjects. Which databases we use is a journal indexed in. How/where to resolve links to our preferred source DOI look-up, search or to publishers URL.
From this information I can search and pull of various A-Z lists. Produce files in various formats (CSV, HTML, XML) I can quickly write my own output file format or style.
The files produced can be successfully loaded into ACS ChemPort or Link resolvers etc.
This is not ideal solution for shortcomings in subscription agent or serial management software, but it works.
I agree that A to Z should accept MEDLINE abbreviations. Keep calling/emailing Tech Support and it might get on their to do list. I know it took several years of phone calls and emails to get Nursing Economic$ indexed as Nursing Economics rather than Nursing Economic.
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