Thursday, September 6, 2018
Guest Post by Maureen Welch
I encourage all libraries to share their collections as freely as possible via interlibrary loan, but not everything is available to travel. Due to age, rarity, or a patron's deadline, sometimes finding a digital alternative is the best way to provide excellent library service. Plus a great internet search engine is immensely helpful for verification.
Here are a few ways the IFLS Library System has filled area ILL requests when getting the physical material wasn't possible or would have exceeded our cost limit.
Internet Archive & Internet Wayback Machine
T
he Internet Archive is a treasure trove of public domain materials, but I have also found its Internet Wayback Machine very useful. Recently, a patron requested obituaries from an out-of-state newspaper which was not easily available, but Ancestry Library Edition had citations in their U.S. Obituary Collection which included website addresses. Those URLs were no longer working, but when I pasted them into the Internet Wayback Machine, I found the full text newspaper available. A few snips later, the patron had copies of the obituaries requested.
HathiTrust Digital Library
For any titles and periodicals with a copyright before 1923, I check both the Internet Archive and HathiTrust. Beyond public domain materials, limited view items can help with verification as well.
Genealogical materials are a challenge for any ILL librarian but more & more of these sources are being digitized. I use Google a lot but it has led me to the FamilySearch Research Wiki often enough that it's now in my bookmarks. One example was the ability to find online records for a Norwegian parish.
OverDrive MarketPlace
Many libraries consider purchasing new print items that their patrons are requesting, but you may also want to check for availability through OverDrive MarketPlace. IFLS has purchased an ebook through our OverDrive Advantage account to fill a request because it was less expensive than the combined costs of an out-of-state library charges and postage. Since the patron was comfortable with the ebook format, it was a win/win solution for everyone including the additional patrons who have checked it out.
For additional resources, the Wisconsin Interlibrary Loan Guidelines includes a document with a list of Open Resources for ILL
Please do share your collections because items sitting on a library's shelf are not serving their purpose. And remember to explore or ask your ILL guru for alternative sources as needed.
Written by: Maureen Welch, Indianhead Federated Library System