/research/projects/publisherns/default.htm

originally: http://www.oclc.org/research/projects/publisherns/default.htm

Publisher name server

Research project idea

OCLC Research will prototype a service which:

Research goals

The primary deliverable of the project is a service, which will support advanced collection intelligence by: 1. facilitating the reliable clustering of collected objects based on their issuing entity (as can be determined via metadata about the objects), and 2. gaining intelligence about the nature of individual publishers which can in turn be used alone or in tandem with other data sources (e.g., usage logs, holdings) to reveal critical collection intelligence, acquisition patterns and user behavior.

The primary high level requirements are for the service to achieve acceptable reliability in resolving:

Although the impetus to undertake the project is chiefly to facilitate collection intelligence investigations and services, it is anticipated that the prototype service may have value to a wide range of parties inside OCLC including units engaged in activities such as:

This project likely will have potential synergies with OCLC Research's FRBR-related activities such as xISBN, and that the project may itself prove instrumental as a tool in other current or future OCLC Research activities.

Success will be measured in two ways:

The project will be considered complete when:

  1. The prototype service has been built and delivered
  2. The data delivered are complete and reliable in accordance with specified standards
  3. Alternatively, if the proposed service cannot be built satisfactorily within the time allowed and with the resources available, the project shall be considered concluded when a formal determination has been made of same, and the project is discontinued.

Research methodology

The project will adopt two primary research modes:

  1. Consultation: Experts within OCLC will be consulted as specifications are written to assure the best possible results are achieved. Additionally, in anticipation that the service might prove useful beyond the bounds of the research project, input will be sought about non-research requirements and the relative value of various data that might be included in the database.
  2. Prototyping/trial-and-error: Interested OCLC staff will be invited to test and provide feedback on the prototype

Timing

This will be a twelve-month project, divided into three phases:

Resources

Team members