Announcements about electronic resources
From time to time on this blog, I will be posting information about electronic resources relating to the fields of literature, comparative literature, and occasionally folklore. Sometimes I will feature resources that we already have and may have had for quite some time, providing an overview of the resource and giving tips on how to make the most of it. An example of this might be Early English Books Online (EEBO) or Literature Online (LION).
On other occasions I may announce a resource that I am thinking of acquiring or that the UC system may want to purchase collectively. In these situations, I may announce a trial subscription or ask for your feedback on whether you think we ought to spend our limited funds on this particular resource. When I do announce these trials or ask for feedback, I will try to remind you that a trial subscription does not guarantee that we will acquire the resource. In fact, I may have to go further in cases where the resource is extremely expensive or being considered at the UC system-wide level: I may need to tell you that even if you tell me that this resource is a “must-have,” we may not be able to acquire it if the vendor is not willing to negotiate the price to a range we can afford.
If your strong opinions don’t guarantee a purchase in these cases, why do I solicit them in the first place? As painful as it is to discover that I (or the UC system) cannot purchase a resource that is clearly desirable from the point of view of scholars, it does help me to know what you want so that I can keep my eyes out for opportunities to acquire it in the future or to seek out lower-cost (or open access!) resources that cover similar ground. It also gives me a stronger position from which to lobby the UC system for higher-cost resources.
I have been addressing electronic resources in this post, but I will also announce and feature print resources every so often. The issues surrounding the acquisition of print materials are somewhat different, so I will discuss them in a separate blog entry at some point. Of course, do feel free to ask questions if they occur to you before I get around to blogging on them.
