Abstract

Among the best practices of academic journals publishing, this note focusses on the NISO recommendation about the inclusion of supplemental materials. The paper justifies the need to give special treatment to these materials, which require specific metadata. Finally it relates these practices with the deep indexing trend among bibliographic database producers such as ProQuest.

Abstract

In 2010 Thomson launched a new citation index devoted to books: the Book citation index. This new database has opened new possibilities for analyzing fields such as the Humanities and Social Sciences from a bibliometric point of view. However we still know little about their coverage and especially about the scientific publishers that have been taken into account in the construction of this citation database. In this paper we analyze the BKCI coverage: countries, languages, concentration of publishers and finally we compare the database with Scholarly publishers indicators (SPI), produced in Spain by CCHS/CSIC. The conclusion is that Thomson is making the same mistakes as before: a clear Anglo-Saxon bias, a large concentration of publishers and an absence of a number of reputable publishers.

Abstract

The concept of "big data" is explained as a system of analyzing large amounts of data to discover trends, patterns, correlations and even causality to generate predictions. This discipline can be adapted to the context of the daily work of the information professional dealing with "small data" and web analytics. Examples are provided of tools that support the management and analysis of huge amounts of publicly available data.

Abstract

The role of specialized bibliographic databases in the current environment of online information search dominated by search engines and large multidisciplinary databases is described. The databases usefulness for searching specialized information and the need for intermediation of the resource centres for research are discussed.

Abstract

Traditional purchasing processes have become more complex and sophisticated with the appearance of the internet. The increasing number of internet users and the ease of access to information are pushing businesses to revise their communication strategies and management plans for online and offline channels. This study analyses the relationship between the information search and the point of purchase in multichannel environments. The main result of this research is that a comprehensive analysis of the consumer and the ability to track their online and offline purchasing habits can provide businesses with valuable data to deploy information resources in a way that optimally meets consumer needs according to the products offered.

Abstract

The majority of online newspapers provide access to retrospective information through press archive services, a product of great interest for libraries and other information services. The aim of this study is to identify key indicators for the evaluation of digital press archives and also identify examples of good practices in Spain for each of them. We propose a list of twenty-seven indicators grouped into four main sections (general features, contents, query system, and presentation of results), describe each one and include some examples of successful implementation. Methodologically, the indicators are the result of the review of the literature on evaluating web resources, databases and digital press archives, as well as the analysis of press archive services of newspapers from Spain and Catalonia. The use of these indicators can be useful for libraries and other information services to guide their users in consulting retrospective press information.

Abstract

The explosion of information and communication technologies (ICTs) has affected the work routines of professional journalists. Immediacy, one of the essential characteristics that the ICTs contribute to the practise of journalism, has turned the work of journalists into a race, with the databases contributing to the daily work. At present, journalists handle a great number of references relative to databases and rely on the possibility of access to an enormous quantity of information across the internet. In addition, databases have become a means of structuring the knowledge, content and in many cases even the infrastructure of media communication.

Abstract

Given the importance of innovation and technology development in a country’s economy, there has been an increasing need for selecting indicators to measure the degree of innovation of its companies. The indicators related to patents offer an excellent measure of this capability and can be used as an important source of information by innovative organizations, although the studies assessing this utility are scarce. This study, conducted throughout 2007, proposes a technology watch oriented analysis of the level of use of patent databases from more than 500 Spanish companies that have issued at least one patent in the period 1988-1998, followed by discussion of the study results. The analysis took into account global data, company size and sector of activity

Abstract

The Web of Science interface counts at most 100,000 retrieved items from a single query. If the query results in a dataset containing more than 100,000 items the number of retrieved items is indicated as >100,000. The problem studied here is how to find the exact number of items in a query that leads to more than 100,000 items. One way to achieve this objective is presented. The retrieval of the entire scientific production from the United States in a specific year (2007) is counted and an advanced search strategy is designed. Different sections of items can be retrieved using the Source field of the database. A Boolean statement was created with the aim of eliminating overlapped sections and improving the accuracy of this search strategy.

Abstract

An interview with Karen Spence, assistant director of Information Systems, Office of Scientific and Technical Information (OSTI), United States Department of Energy, describes the major OSTI databases, repositories and scientific and technical information co-operation projects (especially on energy and environment).