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Products and Services : ProductWorks

Whether it's an enhancement to an existing service or an entirely new way of dealing with library information, at OCLC we're always working to transform our industry research and analysis into useable products. Check here from time-to-time for an inside look at what we're currently working on.

Many of the products "under construction" have one or more hands-on trials or applications. Spend some time experimenting, and leave us comments.

Projects in "the works" are not complete and may not be fully functional or tested. Also, there's never a guarantee that they'll become finished, available products, but we do want you to sample what's cooking in the kitchen. Once a product moves out of "the works," you can look at the History section to find information about its past.

New tools or products

Web-scale management services (04.2009)

OCLC is connecting the technology and capabilities of its member libraries to create the first Web-scale cooperative library management service. OCLC plans to release Web-scale circulation, print and electronic acquisitions, and license management components to WorldCat Local, continuing the progress toward the truly next generation of library services. This continues the 40-years-and-counting strategy of OCLC Cataloging, the benefits of which are visible in global resource sharing via ILL and public access through WorldCat.org.

These new services will support library management for print, electronic and licensed material built on a new, Web-scale architecture that provides streamlined workflows and cooperative solutions. These cooperative services will not only include the functionality of disparate systems, but will interoperate with third-party business process systems, such as finance and human resources, and will reduce the total cost of ownership for libraries. The cooperative nature of the platform will create network effects for libraries with enhanced discovery, resource sharing, and metadata management. Shared collection management information will allow for identity management and business intelligence fueled by data shared through the cooperative and with partners.

Hosted EZproxy (04.2009)

The Hosted EZproxy pilot is designed to help libraries with limited IT resources still deliver a quality experience with eContent access for remote users. Having a hosted access and authentication service means a library will always have the latest network infrastructure, bandwidth and security—but it frees library IT staff to focus on other tasks.

OCLC has invited five libraries to participate in the four-month pilot, which began in April 2009. Pilot participants' feedback will help OCLC better understand the issues to support the hosted EZproxy service. As part of the pilot, OCLC will configure and maintain server operations and provide active monitoring and regular back-ups for off-campus access of up to ten types of electronic resources, such as library databases. The licensed, locally-installed version of EZproxy will continue to be available during the Hosted pilot. For more information or to indicate your interest in a hosted version of EZproxy should the pilot move forward, please contact OCLC.

Send us your comments on the EZproxy hosted pilot.

Network-level solution for e-serials resource sharing

OCLC, SUNY Geneseo's IDS Project resource-sharing cooperative, and Atlas Systems are collaborating on a fulfillment system that will integrate a knowledge base with WorldCat Resource Sharing and ILLiad.  The goal of the project is to automate interlibrary loan requests and ensure effective use of journal articles. This will be done by integrating resource sharing workflows, holdings information in WorldCat and other knowledge bases, and electronic rights management software. The new system will provide a seamless, automated workflow for the request of non-returnable electronic and print items. For more information, contact OCLC.

Send us your comments on the IDS Project pilot.

WorldCat Mobile pilot (01.2009)

OCLC began a pilot of mobile access to WorldCat.org in January 2009 to gather data that will inform the future deployment of access to WorldCat through mobile devices. The pilot is available in the U.K., U.S., Germany, France, Canada and the Netherlands and is expected to last through June 2010.

Mobile access to WorldCat.org provides a convenient way for information seekers to find known items in libraries and identify libraries near their location.

Watch a demo of the WorldCat Mobile pilot
See a quick, 4-minute walk-through of how the WorldCat Mobile pilot functionality looks on a Nokia mobile phone.

How to begin
Using your mobile phone, download the application at www.worldcat.org/m.

Search options
With the application loaded on your mobile device, you can:

  • Search for library materials—Enter search terms such as keywords, author or title
  • Find a WorldCat library near you—Enter your ZIP, postal code or location in the Libraries Locator
  • Call a library—Highlight and click the phone number in a library listing to place a call
  • Map a route—Find the fastest way to a WorldCat library using the mapping software already on your device

WorldCat partnership opportunities
 This pilot was developed through a partnership with the mobile technology organization Boopsie.  To learn more about additional WorldCat partnership opportunities, contact OCLC.

Send us your comments on the WorldCat mobile pilot.

WorldCat® Copyright Evidence Registry (06.2008)

The WorldCat Copyright Evidence Registry (CER) is a community of people, libraries, and other organizations working together to discover and share information about the copyright status of books. The CER is based on WorldCat, which contains more than 100 million bibliographic records describing items held in thousands of libraries worldwide. In addition to WorldCat metadata, the Copyright Evidence Registry uses data contributed by libraries and other organizations. For example, Stanford Copyright Renewal data is searchable within the CER. You can search the Copyright Evidence Registry to find information about a book, learn what others have said about its copyright status, and share what you know.

The CER pilot was launched in July 2008 to explore the feasibility of building a cooperatively created and maintained repository of copyright evidence. Participants in the pilot are using the tool to discover, analyze and share the copyright status of books to build the repository. The goal of the pilot is to define and offer an effective solution for addressing orphan works and other critical copyright issues.

Send us your comments on WorldCat Copyright Evidence Registry.

Cooperative Collection Management Trust (CCMT) (03.2008)

The Cooperative Collection Management Trust (CCMT) is a group of institutions connected by the need to reduce the costs and footprint associated with physical storage and management of print materials while maintaining access to the content. OCLC is leading a pilot program that seeks to address these needs across a variety of institutions in North America.

Send us your comments on the CCMT pilot.

Shibboleth (06.2005)

Shibboleth utilizes the existing campus identity and access management infrastructures to authenticate individuals for access to restricted digital content and secure online services.

History

WorldCat Basic API (12.2009)
The WorldCat Basic API is a simple interface into WorldCat that anyone and everyone in the world can use. It is a mashable access point for noncommercial lightweight apps built by developers who may or may not have ties to the library community. The WorldCat Basic API uses OpenSearch and return feeds in Atom and RSS. Results include OCLC number links to WorldCat.org, ISBNs and formatted citations for up to 1,000 requests/day. Get more details on the OCLC Developer Network wiki.

WorldCat Search API (06.2008)
The WorldCat Search API provides machine-to-machine access to WorldCat bibliographic records and holdings organized to group similar editions of the same item together.

WorldCat Navigator: Resource Sharing solution (04.2008)
WorldCat Navigator is a new consortial borrowing solution that provides seamless resource sharing within your library consortia and beyond. The service manages returnable and nonreturnable items, and integrates with circulation systems to create a superior discovery-to-delivery tool that saves time for library users and increases efficiency for library staff. for library groups. Learn more.

Next Generation Cataloging Pilot (11.2007)
The pilot explored upstream metadata capture and enhancement using publisher and vendor ONIX metadata, and resulted in launch of a new service, OCLC Metadata Services for Publishers.

WorldCat Local (04.2007)
WorldCat Local allows libraries to combine the cooperative power of OCLC member libraries worldwide with the ability to customize WorldCat.org as a solution for local discovery and delivery services.

Open WorldCat Reference Services Pilot (06.2005)
This successful pilot resulted in the Open WorldCat and WorldCat.org programs which provide users with a more intuitive mechanism for obtaining search assistance.

Open WorldCat Holdings display using Google Maps (06.2005)
While not introduced into production after this pilot project, this functionality may be implemented for future products.

OCLC Terminologies Pilot (07.2006)
The successful pilot culminated in the OCLC Terminologies service. It provides access to multiple thesauri for libraries, museums, and archives to create consistent metadata for their collections providing mappings across thesauri to assist in relating terminology.

eSerials Holdings Pilot (06.2006)
The pilot resulted in the eSerials Holdings service which makes it easy for library staff and patrons to find and use full-text electronic journals in library collections.

Closed Dates in Authority Records RSS feed (03.2006)
OCLC now provides an RSS feed to announce headings to which death dates have been added. The feed was made available on March 31, 2006.

Wiki WorldCat (WikiD) Pilot
Open WorldCat users are able to add their own content to authoritative WorldCat information about library-held titles. Available under the Details and Reviews tabs, this functionality permits those who have located library items through Open WorldCat to return to the interface and add evaluative content.

FireFox Search Extensions
OCLC developed several FireFox search extensions for you to more readily use Webjunction, FirstSearch, and QuestionPoint.

More FireFox Search Extensions
OCLC has developed two Open WorldCat FireFox extensions that return Yahoo! and Google search results limited to “Find in a Library” links.

Buying Links on Open WorldCat (08.2005)
Open WorldCat users can purchase books from the “Find in a Library” interface through links to partner Web retailers.

COinS (03.2006)
OCLC added COinS to its Open WorldCat web pages. Context Objects in Spans represent a standardized way to embed citation metadata into a web page.

OCLC OpenURL Resolver Registry
OCLC's OpenURL Resolver Registry provides a means by which individuals and information partners can maintain OpenURL resolver information in a single location and utilize this information across services in the information industry.

WorldCat Collection Analysis demo
WorldCat Collection Analysis lets you analyze your collection and compare it to other collections without requiring you to expend extensive staff, time, or financial resources.

'Find in a Library' on Google Scholar
Find in a Library lets you locate books, videos and other materials in a library near you. This service is built into Google Scholar. When your Google Scholar search term matches the title of a library-owned item, the search result for that item will include a “Library Search” link.

Yahoo! Toolbar with WorldCat searching
A special edition of the Yahoo! Toolbar for the Internet Explorer Web browser with built-in functionality to search libraries via WorldCat.