International Coalition of Library Consortia (ICOLC)

 

 

Press Release for Immediate Distribution- January 27, 1999

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For further information about the statement, contact either:

David Barber, OhioLINK, Phone: 614-728-3600, ext. 328
Email: david@ohiolink.edu

Mona Couts, Triangle Research Libraries Network, Phone: 919-962-8022
Email: couts@email.unc.edu

Ben Lea, University of Missouri-Rolla, Phone: 573-341-4007
Email: bjlea@umr.edu

Mark McFarland, U of Texas System Digital Library, Phone: 512-495-4358
Email: m.mcfarland@mail.utexas.edu

For further information about the ICOLC, contact Tom Sanville, OhioLINK: 614-728-3600 ext. 322 Email: tom@ohiolink.edu

 

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INTERNATIONAL COALITION OF LIBRARY CONSORTIA ANNOUNCES Guidelines for Technical Issues in Request for Proposal (RFP) requirements and Contract Negotiations

Looking to increase the understanding of information usage, the International Coalition of Library Consortia (ICOLC) announces its " Guidelines For Technical Issues In Request For Proposal (RFP) Requirements And Contract Negotiations". This is the third statement issued by the ICOLC to provide an international perspective on preferred practices in the licensing and purchasing of electronic information. This ICOLC document, the work of a committee of ICOLC representatives, is designed to reflect the diversity of resources licensed by the many ICOLC members.

The participating consortia of the ICOLC have a responsibility to their library members to ensure that vendor platforms are robust and reliable; that they are connected to the Internet with adequate capacity to serve their customers; that they are technically compatible with the primary commercial web browsers; that they are ADA compliant; and that they are making adequate preparations toward Y2K compliance.

The Guidelines For Technical Issues In Request For Proposal (RFP) Requirements And Contract Negotiations addresses the nature of the vendor’s content and accessibility and the issues of service, quality, and response time. Based on problems identified during negotiations with the vendor before a contract is executed a variety of actions may be required, including system mirroring and the addition of network or system capacity. These actions may be specified as part of the contract and may include commitments by the vendor should future problems arise.

Elements covered by the guidelines include use of plug-ins and imbedded applications; support of web browsers; use of HTML; meeting ADA requirements in the US; capturing data; multimedia files; uses of Z39.50, HTTP, and stateful and stateless Interfaces; Y2K; access control; security and privacy; and cookie tracking. It deals with issues of systems management and response time requirements.

This statement is endorsed by consortium representatives of the ICOLC from Australia, Canada, Greece, Israel, and the United States,. The complete guidelines can be found at http://www.library.yale.edu/consortia.

About the International Coalition of Library Consortia (ICOLC)

The ICOLC first met in 1996 as the Consortium of Consortia (COC). The Coalition is an informal, international group that currently comprises over 100 library consortia in North America, Europe, Australia, Israel, China, and South Africa. The coalition membership primarily serves higher education institutions by facilitating discussion among consortia on issues of common interest. The ICOLC conducts meetings throughout the year dedicated to keeping its members informed about new electronic information resources, pricing practices of electronic providers and vendors, and other issues of importance to consortia directors and governing boards. The Coalition also meets with the information provider community, creating a forum for discussion about product offerings and issues of mutual concern.

Further information about the ICOLC and its participating consortia can be found http://www.library.yale.edu/consortia.

Adopters of this Statement

This statement was adopted in principle by member representatives of the "International Coalition of Library Consortia" (ICOLC) whose institutions are listed below. This statement does not necessarily represent the official views of each consortium listed. All consortia listed are in the United States unless otherwise noted.

Consortia whose member representatives adopted this statement:

AMIGOS Bibliographic Council, Inc.
Arizona Universities Library Consortium (AULC)
BCR
BIBSAM Sweden
Big 12 Plus
British Columbia Electronic Library Network (Canada)
California Digital Library (CDL)
The California State University
Chesapeake Information Research Library Alliance (CIRLA)
China Academic Library & Information System
The Colorado Alliance of Research Libraries
Committee for Institutional Cooperation (CIC)
Commonwealth Virtual Library (CVL)
Council of Australian University Librarians(CAUL)
Council of Library Directors of the University System of Maryland
Council of Prairie and Pacific University Libraries (COPPUL) (Canada)
Florida Center for Library Automation
Hellenic Academic Libraries Link (Greece)
GALILEO
Illinois Cooperative Collection Management Program (ICCMP)
Illinois Library Computer Systems Organization (ILCSO)
INCOLSA
Israel Center for Digital Information Services
Louisiana Library Network
MERLIN
MIRACL
Missouri Library Network Corporation
MOREnet
Northeast Research Libraries Consortium (NERL)
Network of Alabama Academic Libraries (NAAL)
Nevada Council of Academic Libraries (NCAL)
New England Law Library Consortium (NELLCO)
New York Consortium of Consortia(NY C of C)
Novanet (Canada)
NYCRL
OhioLINK
Orbis
PALINET
Pennsylvania Academic Library Consortium, Inc. (PALCI)
PORTALS
SCELC - Southern California Electronic Library Consortium
TexShare
The Triangle Research Libraries Network (TRLN)
UNILINC (Australia)
University of Texas System Digital Library
Utah Academic Library Consortium
VIVA (The Virtual Library of Virginia)
Washington Cooperative Library Project
Washington Research Library Consortium