Managing and evaluating digital repositories

Introduction: We examine the role of the digital repository manager, discuss the future of repository management and evaluation and suggest that library and information science schools develop new repository management curricula. Method: Face-to-face interviews were carried out with managers of five...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Information research 2008-03, Vol.13 (1)
Main Authors: Zuccala, Alesia, Oppenheim, Charles, Dhiensa, Rajveen
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Administrator Role
Archives
Computer Software Evaluation
Electronic Libraries
Evaluation
Information Science
Information Science Education
Institutional repositories
Library Administration
Mail Surveys
Management
Occupational Surveys
Performance Factors
Program Attitudes
User Needs (Information)
User Satisfaction (Information)
Users (Information)
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Summary:Introduction: We examine the role of the digital repository manager, discuss the future of repository management and evaluation and suggest that library and information science schools develop new repository management curricula. Method: Face-to-face interviews were carried out with managers of five different types of repositories and a Web-based survey was carried out with users. The LexiURL Web link evaluation software provided a "webometric" basis for investigating potential users online. Results: Few managers had received any formal training. The repositories were relatively new and web statistics had been used by the managers to monitor their success. The LexiURL analysis indicated that the networks associated with the repository sites were predictable and made sense to managers because expected co-links and known links appeared in the network diagrams. Users of the repositories discovered them through friends and colleagues. Conclusion: Digital repositories require ongoing evaluation to determine their quality and new directions for growth. A LexiURL analysis could be carried out by managers every four to six months and used as a complement to transaction log file analyses. Repository managers will need formal training in the future and we suggest a set of modules that would be suitable for a specialist programme. (Contains 9 figures and 1 table.)
ISSN:1368-1613
1368-1613