NEBIS Network
Our Services –
Your Added Value
NEBIS –
Network of
Libraries and
Information
Centres in
Switzerland
Contents
NEBIS – 3
Services – 5
Library Management System Aleph – 5 System Operations – 7
Search and Order System – 9 Loan Network – 11
Linking Service to Electronic Media (SFX) – 13 Catalogue Enhancement – 15 External Data – 15 Authority Data – 17 Courses – 19 Consultation – 21 Information – 21
Quality Assurance for the Network Catalogue – 23 Statistics – 25
Network Material – 27
Data Migrations / Holding Mutations – 27 Administration and Coordination
of the NEBIS Network – 29 Other Services – 29
NEBIS is a
network of
around
80 libraries
throughout
Switzerland.
NEBIS
Around eighty libraries all over Switzerland collaborate in the NEBIS network, including the libraries of ETH Zurich, EPF Lausanne and the Swiss federal research institutes, the Zentralbibliothek Zurich, libraries of technical colleges, the Swiss Social Archives, the libraries of the Schweizerisches Institut für Kunstwissenschaft, th e Schweizerisches Institut für Kinder- und Jugendmedien and the
Schweizerisches Nationalmuseum Landesmuseum Zurich. NEBIS is a member of the Informationsverbund
Deutschschweiz (IDS).
Between them, the NEBIS library holdings contain around 15.5 million documents (books, series, journals, electronic publications and non-book materials), approximately 7 million of which can be found in the joint online catalogue. The responsibility for the network resides with the Head Office of ETH-Bibliothek. The NEBIS network headquarters, which is affiliated to ETH-Bibliothek, serves as a central point of contact for the member libraries. It coordinates and manages the network and – together with ETH-Bibliothek’s IT department – offers the libraries a wide range of services.
The library
system Aleph
enables a library to
be presented in all
its facets.
Services
Library Management System Aleph
Network libraries can use the integrated library
system Aleph with its cataloguing,
acquisition/journals, loans and AlephAdm
modules. Aleph enables a library to be presented in all its facets and offers support in handling all key processes:
> Bibliographical datasets, authority data and holding and sample sets are arranged and processed in the cataloguing module. The integrated supplementary component ADAM (Aleph Digital Asset Management) enables digital objects such as images and videos to become accessible. The MARC21 and AACR2-based cataloguing rules IDS (KIDS) are used as a cataloguing format.
> The acquisition/journals module is geared towards the efficient management and control of orders and invoices for monographs, serialisations and journals, and controlling incoming journals and newspapers.
The central
Aleph databases
are available to
all NEBIS libraries.
> In the loans module, loaned media, user data and fees are managed, and the dunning process and fee management are also integrated. NEBIS is involved in the joint user database of the IDS, the Shared User File (SUF).
The data is recorded in central databases. Bibliographical, authority and administrative data is available to all NEBIS libraries for the purposes of sharing.
Besides the production system, separate test and training systems are also available. The production and training system’s GUI can be used in three languages: German, French and English. Italian is also an option as the language of correspondence for communications with customers (users) and suppliers.
Systems Operations
The infrastructure and application operations are guaranteed by the IT services of ETH-Bibliothek and ETH Zurich, which offer the NEBIS libraries a state-of-the-art library system under the guidance of experienced experts.
Searches in
“NEBIS recherche”
work like
popular search
engines and can be
refined via filters.
The services include:
> The provision of a network, server, database and programme infrastructure
> Procurement, operation, configuration and refinement of the central Aleph application and additional tools such as SFX, ARC or Primo
> Support and new releases
Search and Ordering System
The search interface “NEBIS recherche” (http:// recherche.nebis.ch) offers quick and easy access to the NEBIS catalogue. It is based on the product Primo by Ex Libris and has potential for gradual development (e.g. the expansion of the search to additional data sources). Eventually, “NEBIS recherche” is to replace the conventional catalogue search via OPAC, which can also still be used. “NEBIS recherche” is available in German, French and English.
Searches in “NEBIS recherche” work much like in the popular search engines. The list of results is sorted by relevance and the hits can be refined via filters (facets), e.g. by publication year, publication forms or availability.
Users can
have documents
from other NEBIS
libraries delivered
to their home
library free of
charge.
which permits online document and copy orders, and the renewal of loans by the users themselves. The users are notified (collection invitations, messages/reminders) by email or post and – for the notification of documents ready for collection – text message.
The libraries have the possibility of utilising the self-issue system by the users online.
Loan Network
The loan network among the NEBIS libraries enables users of the member libraries to have documents delivered to their home libraries from other institutions for collection free of charge. Involvement in the NEBIS loan network is optional for the libraries and can take place as:
> Collection library: the network library takes delivery of documents from other (NEBIS) holdings for their users and forwards them.
> Collection and supply library: i n a d diti o n t o t h e c oll e cti o n li br ar y s er vi c e, it c a n a l s o su p pl y it s ow n d oc um e nt s to o t h er NE B IS l ib r ari e s .
The organisation and management of the loan network takes place centrally, with ETH-Bibliothek acting as
SFX facilitates
context-sensitive
linking to the full
text of an
electronic
publication.
the hub. The dunning process and overall fee management and accounting also takes place centrally.
Linking Service to Electronic Media (SFX)
SFX is used as a link resolver. The product enables context-sensitive linking,
e.g. from the library catalogue to an electronic publication. A single link in the record thus enables the ranges effectively available to every user in the IP range he or she accesses to be presented.
SFX has a central knowledge base in which electronic journals, e-books etc. are presented and can be activated for the libraries that have bought or licensed them. The SFX link server for the NEBIS libraries is operated by ETH-Bibliothek’s IT services, the SFX entity maintained by the NEBIS network headquarters. The network headquarters activates or deactivates the electronic publications in the knowledge base that are registered by the individual libraries. The SFX entity for NEBIS is configured in such a way that the activation of publications and services is possible for every individual library.
Records can be
enhanced with
digitalised front
pages and tables of
contents.
Catalogue Enhancement
The NEBIS libraries have the possibility to supplement records with PDFs of title pages and tables of contents and thus provide the users with additional information on the documents. Two procedures are available to enhance metadata: a manual one and a s e m i - a u t o m a t e d o n e . B o t h u s e A D A M .
> Manual procedure: scanned tables of contents etc. are saved in Aleph via ADAM and attached to the record.
> Semi-automated procedure: in addition to ADAM, a scan interface is used with a specially developed task management system. It enables scan orders to be recorded in Aleph, and their retrieval and the automatic uploading of the scanned objects in ADAM.
The enhanced objects are accessible from the records. As they are indexed, they can be searched for in the NEBIS catalogue.
External Data
An extensive range of external data is available for the formal cataloguing and acquisition of authority data. The following can be accessed via Z39.50:
An extensive
range of
external data
is available for
the acquisition
of catalogue
and authority
data.
> WorldCat
> The catalogues of the other IDS networks
> Data from other libraries and library networks (Swiss National Library (Helveticat), RERO etc.).
Access to the WorldCat data is also possible via First Search.
Authority Data
Different authority files are managed in the NEBIS network for formal and/or subject indexing. These currently include files for:
> People and public bodies
> Different subject indexing systems, pr i ma r i ly : – Universal Decimal Classification (UDC) – Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) – Keywords based on the Subject Headings
Authority File (SWD)
– Pedagogical keywords (based on th e S w i s s S u b j e c t H e a d i n g A u t h o r i t y F i l e (SNS)).
The editorial maintenance of the personal and body data and the classifying subject indexing, which is available in German, French and English, is performed by ETH-Bibliothek.
The use of the authority file is chargeable for MeSH.
NEBIS library
staff can attend
various training
courses.
Courses
The network headquarters offers various kinds of courses. The courses normally take place at ETH-Bibliothek in Zurich in German and, if required, also in French or with a French translation. The number of participants is restricted to eighteen.
The programme
includes:
> Introductory courses on the use of the library system modules and the acquisition rules that apply in the NEBIS network
> Courses on additional modules and other tools such as SFX and ARC
> Workshops and brush-up courses
> Special courses (e.g. for individual libraries)
The courses are primarily geared towards the staff of libraries that have recently joined NEBIS and new members of staff at NEBIS libraries. If there are places available, however, the introductory courses are also open to any externals who are interested. For NEBIS libraries, the workshops and brush-up courses are free, as is attending a fixed number of introductory courses. External participants have to pay for the courses.
Members can
take advantage of
a varied range of
consulting
services.
Consultation
The network headquarters offers:
> Solution-oriented advice and a hotline for all Aleph modules
> Advice on policy issues and suchlike
> Advice on issues that might crop up in practice (e.g. regarding the introduction of RFID for loan and return automation).
We also offer advice and support on
> Data migrations
> Retro-cataloguing projects (incl. the allocation of GUI licences)
> Amalgamations of library holdings etc.
Information
Information from the network libraries is communicated via the following channels:
> NEBIS mailing list: the latest information on the system operations (e.g. error reports), changes in the library system, amendments to the regulations etc. are sent via the mailing list – in German and French.
> Network news: this newsletter is published twice a year. It contains articles on current
developments in the network and network libraries, and background information.
Information is
communicated
regularly via
> Homepage of the NEBIS network
headquarters: NEBIS libraries can find all key information on the network on the website (http://www.nebis.ch/verbund/ start.html): contact addresses, course data, regulations for data acquisition, course documents, information on installing Aleph Client etc.
> Network meeting: the annual network meeting offers all members of staff at the network libraries the opportunity to learn about the development of the network and cultivate contacts with members of staff at other libraries.
Quality Assurance for the Network Catalogue
One central pillar of the NEBIS network is the joint catalogue and a great deal of importance is attached to the quality of the data – especially with regard to the traceability and accessibility of the holdings for the users. Quality assurance is provided via:
> The provision of documentation (acquisition regulations etc.)
> The coordination and administration of the regulations for the formal and content-related indexing of the library holdings
Considerable
importance is
attached to quality
assurance for the
joint catalogue.
> The operation of a reporting database in Aleph, through which errors in records etc. can be reported for correction.
The central editorial departments located at ETH-Bibliothek to manage the authority data for people and public bodies and the classifying subject
indexing also contribute towards quality
assurance.
Statistics
The NEBIS libraries receive annual statistical evaluations on:
> Holdings
> Catalogue entries
> Loans
> Users etc.
Moreover, the libraries can obtain various other statistics and work lists from the network headquarters (as a one-off or at regular intervals), e.g.:
> Lists of documents with a particular item or transaction status
> User lists
> Signature lists
The majority of statistics and work lists are compiled via the web-based statistics tool ARC (Aleph Reporting Centre). The NEBIS libraries
NEBIS
libraries receive
various statistical
evaluations.
consumer licences that permit queries for ready-made reports and business licences with which reports can be compiled. Licence and maintenance fees are charged to the library.
Network Material
Network material such as membership cards and barcodes are purchased centrally and supplied to the libraries by the network headquarters.
Data Migrations / Holding Mutations
Data on library holdings that is recorded in different systems to Aleph can be converted and integrated in the NEBIS catalogue. The
integration of e-book metadata that can be obtained from the publishing houses and the recording of the corresponding item data is also offered. The recordings take place three times a year. Data integrations are invoiced to the libraries. Holding mutations that are necessary in the fusion of libraries or displacement of holdings are also carried out.
Catalogue
data can be
migrated into
Aleph from other
systems.
Administration and Coordination o f t h e NEBIS network
The network headquarters advises libraries that would like to join the network, helps them in planning their entry and organises the necessary data migrations. The network headquarters also takes care of the entire administration of the network (finances, contracts etc.).
A discussion forum is provided for the network libraries with the NEBIS coordination committee, which is composed of representatives of the various library types and usually convenes three times a year.
Other Services
The network headquarters also assumes:
> The testing of new software versions for the network (Aleph, ARC, SFX, Primo etc.),
> The evaluation of new tools and processes and their introduction
> The representation of the network libraries on various committees (e.g. IDS workgroups)
Contact ETH Zurich ETH-Bibliothek NEBIS-Verbundzentrale Rämistrasse 101 8092 Zurich Switzerland Tel.: +41 44 632 21 27 Fax: +41 44 632 11 58 [email protected] www.nebis.ch http://recherche.nebis.ch Imprint Publisher: NEBIS-Verbundzentrale Editor: Dr Christine Gross Design: null-oder-eins.ch Printing: Offsetdruck Goetz AG 1st edition: 500 c o p i e s
© ETH-Bibliothek March 2011
