The "Q" factor. Agnese Galeffi Danilo Deana. Paper presented at QQML2013. Rome, June 7 th 2013

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1 The "Q" factor Agnese Galeffi Danilo Deana Paper presented at QQML2013 Rome, June 7 th 2013 Quality is an objective that can be reached by implementing a suitable process. The various phases that constitute such a process have to be clearly defined and put into effect at the outset of a project in order to meet the stated objective: Quality. The BEIC Digital Library was conceived of as a complementary component to operate in tandem with a large new physical library that was scheduled to be built in the city of Milan in Northern Italy. This exciting new institution the architectural and library science plans for which can be viewed on the website beic.it was originally intended to be a major research library, a sort of "super" university library for Europe, where all academic disciplines and fields of study could be brought together under one roof. Even if the fate of the physical library remains uncertain you can refer to archived press reports on the subject the digital library, which was inaugurated at the end of November 2012, is now a distinct reality. Given the impossibility of stocking the physical library with ancient volumes or at least, of being able to acquire such volumes on the antiquarian market the original intention was for this digital collection to constitute the cultural background for the tangible (i.e. paper-supported) collections and in-house digital holdings of the physical BEIC. This defining characteristic conditioned the birth and development of the BEIC Digital Library. As mentioned earlier on, quality is the end product of a particular pathway or process, so I would now like to show you the pathway that we've followed a pathway which, in our opinion, has led to the fundamental quality of the BEIC Digital Library. 1 Selection

2 The development of collections represents a crucial element in the formation of libraries, since it profoundly influences what users will be able to find, and, above all, obtain. With the everincreasing volume of digital resources whether they be part of a library's permanent collection or derived from other institutions libraries have increased the potential interest of users who can now tap into a much larger store of material, a situation that frees them from the necessity of being physically present in a particular place in order to obtain information. In addition to acquiring electronic resources, many libraries have embarked on campaigns to digitize their own collections, focusing above all on works and publications which are now out of copyright. But it is a library's collections that determine its fundamental character, which, in a vicious or perhaps better to say virtuous circle, successively determines how collections will develop. The BEIC Digital Library is not a product of the digitization of collections already held; neither is it the digital equivalent of the physical volumes already available on the shelves of some library or another. Instead, one's dealing with a specific selection based on a priori defining criteria. Accordingly, the BEIC Foundation has carefully identified experts in various fields and academic disciplines and entrusted them with the task of compiling lists of what they hold to be key works in their particular area of knowledge. In addition, a number of lesser known topics or categories have been identified so as to afford them more visibility. The works thus selected were then searched for in catalogues so as to locate the best or most complete editions. Once these editions had been located, a verification procedure was carried out in order to ascertain whether or not they had already been digitized by other institutions. If it turned out they had, the BEIC Foundation requested a digital copy from the particular institution concerned. In the opposite case, the Foundation located a library in possession of the specific edition required and arranged for it to be digitized. Needless to say, in a few cases whole funds were selected, which, on account of their particular characteristics, lent themselves to being acquired in their entirety (for example, the Tursi collection owned by the Marciana National Library in Venice - library located just in front of S. Marco basilica specialized in travel literature). We're speaking for the most part, but not exclusively, of old books that are no longer restricted by

3 copyright issues. Following the selection phase, the next step in the BEIC DL's quality assurance process is 2 Description The search for works selected by the appointed experts and scholars generates lists of descriptions retrieved from catalogues. We would have liked to have been able to satisfy ourselves with such data once retrieved, but quality is arrived by adhering to a clearly defined process. At this point it was therefore decided to pass these descriptions on to a group of cataloguers who, for the most part working at home on the digital images, were able to: verify the accuracy of the descriptions add further access points create structural maps (about which I'll have more to say later on) Since the strength of the web lies in navigation, the more logical elements such as links are good links are like bridges that lead you to the right place the more efficient navigation becomes. In addition to the names of the individuals responsible for producing the works (authors and editors), the following information is always added: Uniform titles Subjects and Dewey 22 classification Via the subjects and classes it's possible to provide users with searches which also relate to the semantic content of the resources they are seeking. In Italy, assigning a subject heading to an ancient book is not a common practice; indeed, it seldom happens. This choice means that at a national level, at least we are less than orthodox in our approach, but the BEIC decided to adopt this solution out of a desire to favour the users' search and retrieval possibilities over rigid adherence to customary cataloguing practices. Via the uniform titles it's possible to unite different descriptions that refer to the same work, thereby

4 generating an "FRBRized" catalogue. The identification of a uniform title, meaning to say the name by which a work is most commonly known, is not a simple procedure inasmuch as it sometimes requires verification of the precise content of a resource, irrespective of what appears on the titlepage or on the book's cover, or the language of the translation. 3 Access Finding digital resources is easy these days. Often, however, users will find themselves on their own once they have located what they were looking for. The BEIC Digital Library therefore offers a structural map for all its resources of a textual nature. As you can see, we're looking at a tree-type diagram composed of sections and sub-sections that represent the logical and physical structure of a particular volume. Using the structural map as a guide, the user can "move around" within a document in a meaningful way, gain a clear idea of its constituent parts, and immediately arrive at the part that interests them the most. The drawing of structural maps is entrusted either to partner institutes or the group of cataloguers who collaborate with the BEIC. No precise rules exist for the creation of structural maps. A fundamental understanding of the volume in question is necessary, along with the mental flexibility to meet what one might reasonably consider to be the needs of users. Furthermore, a structural map merges with the bibliographic description, so all the terms become searchable. In order to expedite the creation of structural maps the development of an opensource software (in collaboration with the Florence's Galileo Museum Library) is currently underway. Here are some examples of structural maps: Cauchy, Augustin-Louis, Lessons in Differential Calculus; the map lists all the lessons presented in the publication. Alighieri, Dante ( ), The Divine Comedy (Mediolani urbe illustri : Lud. & Alber. Pedemontani amico Ioveimposuerunt, Anno gratie MCCCCLXXVIII V, Leaf b1c) The map presents, in addition to the preface, the text of the Divine Comedy, followed by some

5 works of a religious nature, such as The Creed, The Seven Sacraments, The Seven Capital Sins, etc. To facilitate access it's possible for a user to save single images on his/her computer, or alternatively save a pdf file that represents a given item in its entirety practically a facsimile, then. In this way, if necessary one can consult the digital object without staying connected to the web, or print it with the greatest of ease. When the typeface used in the printing of a work makes it possible, Optical Character Recognition is used to facilitate a full text search. Conclusion The BEIC DL is a digital entity, but at the same time it's very human, meaning to say that human intervention at every stage of the process is critical to ensuring the attainment of quality. The digital component of the BEIC has appeared on the web quite recently (it was activated at the end of November 2012). So far we haven't got much feedback from our users, which is to say our inboxes haven't received many messages. Rather more interesting are the data harvested from the statistical analyses of the logs that record searches carried out by users. Among the terms that have been searched for are the names of contemporary authors and works (including those associated with the Milan area), but these are completely out of kilter with the essential character of the BEIC Library, which seeks to make available a large selection of the most important works of European and world culture, stretching from antiquity to the present day, in all the main fields of knowledge, from literature to mathematics, from law to medicine, from economics to religion etc. Participation at the QQML conference, and in this session, has provided us with lots of good ideas about how to gauge more efficiently the quality and impact of the BEIC Digital Library; for this we'd like to thank both the organizers and all the other speakers. Slide available at