Prospector Director's Meeting

Prospector Director's Meeting

Prospector Annual Reports

Slides

 

Old Annual Reports 

 

Publications

Publications

Collaborative Librarianship
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/collaborativelibrarianship/

Collaborative Librarianship is an open access journal which focuses on library collaboration and partnerships. It was founded in 2009 by Ivan Gaetz and originally hosted by the Colorado Alliance of Research Libraries on OJS.  In 2016, Michael Levine-Clark and Jill Emery took over as Editors-in-Chief and the journal was migrated to the Digital Commons platform licensed through the University of Denver.

Charleston Advisor
http://www.charlestonco.com/

This peer-reviewed publication is the leading source of in-depth reviews of e-resources for libraries.  All member libraries of the Colorado Alliance have free access to this journal paid for by the consortium. The journal was originally published by The Charleston Company but was sold to Annual Reviews in June 2022. In the years 2017-May 2022 a sister database called ccAdvisor was available to Alliance members which offered a database-driven approach to all reviews in TCA. However, this partnership between ACRL and the Charleston Company ceased when the journal was sold to Annual Reviews.

 

 

Events

Events

2022

2021

2020

2019

Diversity & Inclusivity in Collection Building Workshop
July 11, 2019
Location: Anderson Commons at the University of Denver

FOLIO Meet-Up
June 4, 2019
Location: Anderson Commons at the University of Denver

ACRL Scholarly Communication RoadShow
May 24, 2019
Location: Auraria Campus, Denver, CO

2018

OER: From Vision to Action Conference
August 1 & 2, 2018
Location:  Auraria Campus, Denver, CO

2016

Library Assessments Workshop
November 18,2016
Location: Anderson Commons at the University of Denver

Alliance Shared Print Trust Workshop
September 12, 2016
Location: Anderson Commons at the University of Denver

The Demand Driven Acquisitions (DDA) Model for Print Books in Academic Libraries
February 25, 2016
Location: Morgan Library, Colorado State University

2014

Sharing Colorado's Unique Digital Collections
November 13, 2014
Location: Holiday Inn Cherry Creek, Denver, CO

CLiC Spring Workshop: Showcase of Colorado Alliance Services
March 3, 2014
Location: Two Rivers Convention Center, Grand Junction, CO

Next Generation Integrated Library Systems Conference
April 4, 2014
Location:  Holiday Inn, 455 South Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO

Featured Speakers:
Brad Wheeler, Indiana University, keynote
Innovative Interfaces, Sierra
Ex Libris, Alma
Kuali Foundation, OLE

Prospector Pre-Conference at the ILL Conference
April 17, 2014
Location: Cheyenne Mountain Resort

CLiC Spring Workshop: Showcase of Colorado Alliance Services
April 25, 2014
Location: Colorado State University-Pueblo, Pueblo, CO

2014 Copyright Conference at UCCS
June 10, 2014
Location: University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
Co-sponsored by the Alliance along with CLiC

Research Data Management Conference
July 11, 2014
Location: Holiday Inn, 455 South Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO

Digital Public Library of America
November 13, 2014 (New Date)
Location: Holiday Inn, 455 South Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO

2013

Mendeley/SWETS Program 
September 30, 2013, Alliance Training Room

ADR Metadata Day 
September 10, 2013, Alliance Training Room

Hosted Biblioboard presentation demo
May 20, 2013

Colorado ILL Conference 2013 (co-sponsor)
April 18-19, 2013

Hosted Credo Reference Literati demo
January 16, 2013

2012

Code of Best Practices in Fair Use: A workshop for library directors & legal counsel
August 24, 2012

Prospector Users' Group meeting at the Colorado ILL conference 2012
April 2012

2011

Staying on TRAC: Digital Preservation Implications and Solutions for Cultural Heritage Institutions (co-sponsor)
July 7-8, 2011

Alliance eBook Conference
March 16, 2011

2010

Cyberinfrastructure 2010 in the Rockies – A Human Centered Approach
August 13, 2010 (co-sponsor with CSU)

Alliance Round Table: Circulating Non-book Material and Equipment
April 9, 2010

All-Alliance Conference: Digital Repositories, Data Curation, and the Cloud
January 28, 2010 - Preconference on the Alliance Digital Repository
January 29, 2010 - All-Alliance Conference

2009

Alliance Round Table: The Future of Electronic Reserves
September 25, 2009

Alliance Round Table: Digital Audio
September 11, 2009

Alliance Round Table: Learning Objects
June 26, 2009

Alliance Round Table: Microfiche Scanning 
February 19, 2009

Special Projects

Special Projects

SILLVR (Streaming Interlibrary Loan for Video Resources)

In January 2020, the Alliance in collaboration with Auraria Library began a pilot for lending streaming video resources from several vendors.  In 2020 this included SWANK who can only lend streaming videos to academic libraries and Films on Demand (FOD).  After the first year, FOD dropped out of the pilot and was replaced by Alexander Street for their AVON streaming videos.  More information is available from Rose Nelson (rose@coalliance.org) or George Machovec (george@coalliance.org).

Demand-Driven Acquisition of E-books

In May 2012, the Alliance launched a Demand-Driven Acquisitions (DDA) e-book pilot with nine of its member libraries. This pilot project worked with three partner organizations: YBP, EBL, and ebrary. The goal of the pilot is to examine costs and usage after a year and determine whether to continue the DDA program, add more publishers, and expand or narrow the group of participating Alliance institutions.  Since the program began ProQuest has consolidated EBL and ebrary into their Ebook Central platform and is still operational as of 2021.

Beginning in fall 2021, ProQuest will began a one year pilot with the Alliance to test interlibrary loan for owned ebooks from six publishers in this program.  The Alliance is one of the participating consortia and will lend these ebooks through the Prospector union catalog.

For more information about the pilot program, contact George Machovec, Executive Director, at george@coalliance.org.

Selected Historical Projects Which Have Ceased

Heritage West Metadata in Omeka

Heritage West was a search interface that allows you to simultaneously search digital collections from cultural heritage institutions in Arizona, Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming. Originally produced as part of the Colorado Digitization Program (CDP), this historical database is now hosted by the Alliance using the Omeka software. Though no updates or changes are being made to the metadata currently in Heritage West, the Alliance is examining several possibilities for re-use of the Heritage West metadata in digital repositories or other metadata aggregation sites.

Archivists' Toolkit Sites for Alliance Members

 The Alliance is offering free hosting of Archivits' Toolkit for its members. Archivists' Toolkit is open-source software for archival description and other archival management tasks. If you are interested in the software, contact George Machovec, Executive Director, at george-at-coalliance-org.

Prospector FAQ knowledge base

In the summer of 2013 the CO Alliance launched the Prospector FAQ website which captures the in-depth knowledge and expertise from Document Delivery and Catalog Reference committees and presents it in a searchable easy to use knowledge base for library staff.  The knowledge base includes Prospector specific policies and practices for borrowing/lending, holds, paging slips, record loading and other relevant issues. Much of the content has been culled from the Prospector listservs, committee minutes and other knowledge that has been generated over the years. 

High Speed Microform Scanner

A high speed microform scanner has been acquired by a cluster of libraries in the Colorado Alliance of Research Libraries to provide the opportunity for library-initiated and scanning projects of library materials.  The scanner is currently housed at the University of Colorado at Boulder and can be used for the digitization of microfilm and microfiche for both single items as well as larger scale projects. This shared hardware and service provides improved patron access to microform materials through digitization. Historically libraries have made substantial investments in various microformats and this service brings new and improved use to these collections, many of which are not available in other formats. The project also opens the door for grant funding as libraries look to digitize important historical materials. This shared scanner ceased operation in 2019 as most member libraries now have their own equipment and the original high speed scanner is no longer operational

Microform scanner policies for the initiative were jointly developed by the Alliance and participating libraries. Please contact CU/Boulder for details on the initiative.

Events, Projects and Publications

Events, Projects and Publications

The Alliance works together with members to build products, services, and solutions for emerging library issues.

Alliance News and Updates

Find out what's going on with the Alliance.

Projects

The Alliance assists its members with organizing and managing projects that might not be feasible at a single library. Many of these projects are experimental or pilot projects designed to test out new resources or solutions.

Events

The Alliance organizes workshops, one-day conferences, and other events for its membership, and sponsors regional library programs and events. Visit the Events page for information about past and upcoming events.

Publications

Learn more about the journals that the Alliance hosts or supports, and view recent publications about Alliance products and services including white papers and conference presentations.

Listservs

The Alliance hosts listservs for its various services, projects and committees. These lists require a user to subscribe to a list. You can view and subscribe to the available lists by going to our listserv site. Your request will be reviewed and if approved you will be added to the list.

Each list also has an archive of previous posts that you can access once you are subscribed to the list. You will also be able to unsubscribe from the list at any time.

FAQ: Library Content Comparison System

FAQ: Library Content Comparison System

The Gold Rush® Library Content Comparison System allows libraries to load their MARC records for either individual or comparative analytics. Remember if you are in a group each library must license the service and load their records for comparative analytics. However, there is still great value even if only one library loads their records for individual library analytics. Here are Frequently Asked Questions about the Content Comparison System as well as documentation. 

I would like a basic overview of Gold Rush Collection Analysis.

Gold Rush Overview

How do I export records from Gold Rush?

Options when exporting 

Suppressing Duplicate Records 

 

Where can I view some key components of the system?

Basic system functions

What are some tips in working with Facets?

Using the publication location facet

How can I create a list of items to weed?

Create list of items to weed

How do I create a list of retention commitments for a particular collection?

Create list of retention commitments

How can I compare a subject or LC class of one library to a group of others?

Compare one library to a group in subject area of psychology

How do I use the pivot table option in the content comparison system?

Creating a pivot table

How can I use the tool to analyze how diverse my collection is compared to other libraries in the consortium? 

Diversity Use Case

Why was the system developed?

The Gold Rush®  Library Content Comparison system was developed to allow libraries to load their MARC records and compare them with other libraries in the system. It was initially developed to support the Shared Print program of the Colorado Alliance of Research Libraries, but is now available to any library or consortium for a modest fee.

What are some use cases for the system?

There are a many possible use cases for the system, some of which could include:

  • Shared Print programs among a group of libraries so that libraries can make better decisions about what to weed or put in storage.
  • Adding a new program at an institution and the library wants to see how their collection compares to an institution that has a similar program in the same area.
  • Cooperative collection development. Analyze your collective holdings to provide additional information to help reduce collection overlap, get improved discounts for backfile purchases, etc.
  • Performing quick exports of data sets for participation in other cooperative programs.
  • Analyzing a collection for accreditation or membership in another organization.
  • Aggregating your group's holdings for exporting to discovery layers either in total or a tailored set

How much does it cost to participate?

Libraries in the Prospector union catalog (Colorado/Wyoming) may use the Library Content Comparison System for free but records need to be loaded from an institution's local integrated library system.

Other libraries or consortia, outside of the Prospector family, may license the system for a low annual fee or may also license the tool on a project basis for any predetermined period of time. There are no set-up charges and the fee is determined by how many MARC records will be contributed. Please contact the Colorado Alliance office if a project-specific quote is desired at help@coalliance.org:

  • Less than 1 million MARC records - $1,000/library/year
  • 1 million to 2 million MARC records - $1,750/library/year
  • 2 million to 3 million MARC records - $2,500/library/year
  • 3 million to 4 million MARC records - $3,250/library/year
  • 4 million to 5 million MARC records - $4,000/library/year
  • 5 million to 6 million MARC records - $4,750/library/year
  • 6 million to 7 million MARC records - $5,500/library/year
  • 7 million to 8 million MARC records - $6,250/library/year
  • 8 million to 9 million MARC records - $7,000/library/year
  • 9 million to 10 million MARC records - $7,750/library/year
  • 10 million to 11 million MARC records - $8,500/library/year

Discounts are available for consortia or groups of libraries joining under the same contract. We recoginize that there are many specialized use cases and if this pricing doesn't work we are happy to talk with you about your specific situation.

  • 2-10 libraries - 10% discount
  • 11-20 libraries - 20% discount
  • 21-50 libraries - 25% discount
  • 50+ - Contact the Alliance to work out deep discount arrangements specific to your needs

How do MARC records get into the system?

Libraries may submit a set of records which will be loaded on behalf of subscribing libraries. The records will be submitted via secure FTP (SFTP) and libraries will have the option of identifying a record set either as a full load which will replace an existing data set or an update which will be incrementally added to the existing data set already loaded. See Upload Guidelines.

Libraries may also load special MARC record files from a vendor or perhaps as part of consideration pool for weeding or storage. Please contact our office for the details on doing this.

How often are records loaded?

The Gold Rush system is updated and reindexed once per month.  Many libraries script this process so that it automatically happens. 

How are records matched in the system?

MARC records are matched in the system via an algorithm which includes portions of the title, author, publisher, imprint date and a few other elements. The system does not use ISBNs, ISSNs or OCLC numbers since many records do not contain these elements (particularly older records or non-monographs). The current match key match key documentation is available online. Questions and more information about the matching algorithm are available by sending an email to goldrush@coalliance.org.

To see a match key just go into the system, run a search and view the full MARC record and the match key will be clearly labelled near to top of the record.

Can multiple libraries be compared?

Yes, you can compare your library holdings to one or many other libraries.

What is the purpose of the search box?

The search box allows one to search the entire database of all libraries that have been loaded into the system. The "all fields" search indexes almost the entire MARC record. If multiple words are entered, the system does a logical "OR" between the words (but a logical "AND" can also be used.) If you want to search an exact string put the phrase in "quotes." Additional indexes are available for author, title and publisher.

If you only enter terms in the search box and don't select libraries to compare, the entire knowledgebase will be searched. However, if you also select libraries that you want to compare, the particular word/phrase will only be applied to those libraries.

How are the facets used?

Once a search or comparison is done between libraries, users may narrow the results of the comparison with the facets on the left. It is possible to create facets from any elements of a MARC record. If you don't see the facets you need, please contact the Colorado Allliance office at help@coalliance.org to discuss what should be added.

How can searches be saved?

It is possible to create complex queries in the system using the search box, facets and the selection of multiple libraries. By selecting the "Save Search" button these queries can be named and saved for later execution. Use the "Load Search" button to see a list of all saved searches.

How can records be exported?

Once data sets have been created it is possible to export the records in raw MARC, XML, Excel or a delimited format (useful when a delimited set of over 1 million is needed). Select "Export Records" to see the export options. The system will generate a file of the records that have been selected and you will receive an email with a link to the file.

Generic MARC records are being exported and you may not necessarily be receiving back the MARC records that were originally ingested. The Colorado Alliance office will be happy to discuss with you ways to handle these records for special projects.

It typically may take a few minutes to a few hours to receive your exported data set depending on how many records were requested. At the present we have limited exports to sets of less than 5 million records. If you need to export more, this can easily be done by contacting our office. The reason for this limitation is to make sure that monster data sets are not accidentally created that could fill-up directories, since many libraries may be doing this at the same time.

Can Gold Rush load circulation counts?

Gold Rush can load circulation counts if the library can supply them embedded in the MARC records that are deposited.  These circulation counts then become a facet in the system where the library can limit a result-set by circ counts of interest (e.g. I want to see everything that has never circulated; or I want to see all results with 3 or more circulation count)

How do I compare journal publisher lists, aggregators, and indexing/abstracting services?

This feature is available in the Gold Rush® Decision Support system, which is separate from the Library Catalog Comparison System. Subscribers to the Library Content Comparison system may use the Gold Rush® Decision Support at no extra charge. Subscribers to the Gold Rush® Decision Support System may just add the difference from their $650/year fee to upgrade to the Library Content Comparison System.

FAQ: Gold Rush® Decision Support

FAQ: Gold Rush® Decision Support

Can more than one database be compared at a time?

Yes, users may compare one-to-one, one-to-many, or many-to-many databases at the same time. Just type in multiple database names in each Set and the system will combine them.

Are all reports run in real-time?

Yes, no matter how many databases are compared the system will provide fast real-time comparisons.

Sometimes when I try to run a report I get an error message that says "An error has occurred!" What's wrong?

When entering databases into a box you will get a pull-down list which matches the character string you have entered. You must select from this pull-down list for a report to properly run. If you just type in a database or provider and just hit carriage return without selecting from the pull down list you will get the error "An error has occurred!". Remember that the system sometimes takes a few seconds for a pull-down list to appear from which you select databases, so give the system a few moments to catch up to you.

How often are databases updated?

Databases are updated on different intervals depending on issues such as how often the publisher or vendor provide us updates and their level of use. After logging into Gold Rush® Decision Support, a list of database updates is provided. This list can be filtered (searched) by entering words into the search box. It can also be sorted (by tapping on a column header) or downloaded.

A database load appears to be old or a title list is not available in Gold Rush®, how do I get these updated or added?

By sending an email to help@coalliance.org. Staff at the Colorado Alliance will work on getting a new database added or existing databases updated as quickly as possible.

What elements are used in title list comparisons?

Title lists are compared with ISSNs or eISSNs. We recognize that not all journals have these elements and that there are issues with title changes and the way vendors/publishers report these fields. So, Gold Rush® comparisons may not always be perfect or exact but should be considered as just one tool in a broader decision making process.

Are dates used in Gold Rush® comparisons?

Gold Rush® loads dates into title lists (when available) but they are not used in the comparisions. However, any date information that has been loaded will be displayed so that this information can be easily viewed.

I know Gold Rush® compares journals, can it be used to compare books or ebooks?

At the present, Gold Rush® only provides comparisions for journals/periodicals.

Are open access titles included?

Gold Rush® does contain many open access title lists such as the Directory of Open Access Journals, BioMed Central, PubMed Central, publisher-based open access packages, and others.  It is an interesting exercise to compare commercial packages against some of these open access title lists to determine coverage and overlap.

Can I compare indexed-only databases?

When title lists are loaded in Gold Rush® the system retains not only what journals are full-text but also what are indexed-only titles. These are included in the comparison reports. One can even compare citation-only databases to determine overlap.

Why do some title lists not include dates?

Publishers, vendors, and libraries supply the title lists which populate Gold Rush®.  In some cases these entitites provide lists which do not include dates. In these cases, the date fields are left blank.

Why do dates sometimes only appear in the "Notes" field and are not included in the normalized dates for citations or full-text?

Some databases have complex date fields showing gaps, volumes, and other special notes. In these cases, Gold Rush® does not attempt to normalize the data but instead loads these more complex statements into a notes field. This is particularly true for metadata received from library catalogs or shared print archiving metadata sets. 

Can I download results?

You can easily download results in popular formats such as Excel, .csv, and PDF. Just select a particular list (unique, common or all journals) and when the list appears on the screen buttons will provide different options. The system also offers the ability to capture comparison charts in popular image formats.

Can I email results?

Although results are returned in real-time to your Web browser, there is a radio button that can be selected that will allow you to email a spreadsheet of the full results. Results will be sent to your login email address. Because of the size of these spreadsheets, an email will be received with a link to the file since many comparisions are so large they would be rejected by your local email system.

Is there a way to compare all journals in all databases to which I subscribe to other databases?

If your library only subscribes to the Decision Support (Reports) portion of Gold Rush®, please provide an export from your current ERMS/link resolver system and we can load it on your behalf as a new "title list" in Gold Rush® so you can use it for future comparisons. The minium required information in the list is a title and ISSN (and/or eISSN) but dates of coverage are also helpful. It's best to get this list in a delimited (e.g. .csv, xlsx) format. If your library uses Gold Rush® for A-Z and link resolver services, just contact goldrush@coalliance.org and ask that your holdings be added as a separate title list in Gold Rush® for comparison purposes.

Gold Rush® Documentation (A-Z and Link Resolver)

Gold Rush® Documentation

Gold Rush® Licensing Options

Gold Rush® Licensing Options

There are a variety of licensing options for Gold Rush®.  Select the one that works best for you. To license Gold Rush® or get a custom quote for a group contact us at: goldrush@coalliance.org.  

 

Gold Rush® Licensing Options
Type of LicenseSingle Library2-10 Libraries11-20 Libraries20+ Libraries
Decision Support Only$650$585$550$500
A-Z and Link Resolver
(includes Decision Support)		$2,000$1,800$1,700$1,500
ERM/Subcriptions
(includes Decision Support)		$2,000$1,800$1,700$1,500
Gold Rush® Complete
(Includes all modules)		$4,000$3,600$3,400$3,000

LIBRARY CONTENT COMPARISON SYSTEM


License Library Content Comparison System (Also includes Gold Rush® Reports at no additional cost)

  • Less than 1 million MARC records - $1,000/library/year
  • 1 million to 2 million MARC records - $1,750/library/year
  • 2 million to 3 million MARC records - $2,500/library/year
  • 3 million to 4 million MARC records - $3,250/library/year
  • 4 million to 5 million MARC records - $4,000/library/year
  • 5 million to 6 million MARC records - $4,750/library/year
  • 6 million to 7 million MARC records - $5,500/library/year

Discounts are available for consortia or groups of libraries joining under the same contract. We recognize that there are many specialized use cases and if this pricing doesn't work we are happy to talk with you about your specific situation.

  • 2-10 libraries - 10% discount
  • 11-20 libraries - 20% discount
  • 21-50 libraries - 25% discount
  • 50+ - Contact the Alliance to work out deep discount arrangements specific to your needs
About Gold Rush®

About Gold Rush®

Gold Rush® was originally developed in 2001 by the Colorado Alliance of Research Libraries to help its member libraries organize their electronic resources. At this time, ERMs were not available in the commercial market place. In 2003, the Alliance began offering Gold Rush® to libraries outside of the consortium. Since this time, libraries throughout the nation have licensed Gold Rush®. In 2016, Gold Rush altered its focus to collection analytics and developed the Gold Rush Library Content Comparison System. The classic Gold Rush services of ERM, link resolution, and A-Z services are still used by a variety of libraries but most now view Gold Rush as an analytics tool.

Gold Rush® continues to be a popular tool due to its regularly updated knowledgebase, it is cost effective, and offers strong customer support.