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Biomedical Library Director Dott. Gabriele Mazzitelli Talks About Online Books
In 2005, the Università degli Studi di Roma "Tor Vergata" licensed the entire collection of Elsevier Books on ScienceDirect. Recently Elsevier Account Manager Claudio Colaiacomo spoke with the university’s Biomedical Library Director Dott. Gabriele Mazzitelli, to get his thoughts on the acquisition and online books in general.
What led your library to license the entire collection of Books on ScienceDirect?
Choosing the collection was part of a wider project of renovation our library is undertaking. We are building a new library and thought it important to start off with plenty of brand-new electronic content useful to a broad community of faculty, researchers and students. Also, choosing the collection delivered a strong sign of innovation: The acquisition has brought up-to-date content which is constantly updated and enriched.
Gabriele Mazzitelli
Was space savings a factor that led to your licensing the collection?
Of course it was, even though our new building assures plenty of room. We'd rather have our precious space used for computer or reading rooms than stacking it with books.
What was your library's experience with online books previously?
We were aware of them but did not have in-depth experience with them. Now, I feel we are moving toward an all-digital era especially in the science area.
How are you gauging impacts of the collection?
We're using usage statistics available from ScienceDirect.
How have librarians, students and other researchers reacted to the collection?
Very positive feedback has been received from our professors and researchers. At this time we are still struggling to reach out to our students.
What has been the faculty's reaction overall to the ScienceDirect books collection?
Very good. However we don't have any feedback yet on whether faculty are incorporating the books on ScienceDirect into their course readings or assignments. The collection has only been available to us since last fall, and I feel it takes some time for professors to change their habits.
Do you know if books on ScienceDirect have benefited your users' work?
I have received specific positive feedback from biochemistry faculty and researchers. Methods in Enzymology online is a fantastic resource for them! Now they can read the articles from their labs and offices and be assured of getting the most current material. This is something every researcher is aiming for.
So are you seeing on the horizon a time when academic libraries will be e-only, at least when it comes to STM resources?
Well, 100% digitalization is probably far away. We come from centuries of paper libraries and replacing it all with electronic content is unlikely. Moreover some users are very attached to paper journals even if they are learning to satisfy their need by printing electronic resources. Nevertheless we are definitely moving toward a massive digital library.
I personally feel that despite the nature of resources (print or electronic), it is always important to have a physical place for students and researchers to come to. A sort of place to socialize and find a study-friendly environment. I don't really believe libraries will ever disappear in the future.
What are your personal thoughts on online books?
Having all the Elsevier online books available to our library gives our users a great way to access reference material that would otherwise be difficult to access. Moreover we are guaranteed to have up-to-date resources without worrying about checked-out volumes or missing updates. On the other hand user education is a key factor to determine the success of such a resource. Users are used to digital journals but may not be used to digital reference material. This is especially true for students who are not aware of the amount of information they could be accessing from any PC on campus rather than Google! That said, I still wish to see more and more digital books available online. I envision a time when even textbooks will be available online and students can do their readings from computers on campus or in reading rooms of an all-digital library, with a real roof and real walls though. 
http://biomedicaweb.uniroma2.it
- Book Series: Now more than 150 titles including Advances in Cell Aging and Gerontology and Methods in Enzymology
- Handbooks: Now more than 30 titles including Comprehensive Analytical Chemistry and Handbook on the Physics and Chemistry of Rare Earths
- Reference Works: Now more than 50 titles including Encyclopedia of Language & Linguistics and Treatise on Geochemistry
- In 2007, Books on ScienceDirect is adding more than 4,000 new titles (see page 10)
Want to know more?
- Contact an Elsevier account manager: http://contacts.elsevier.com/
- Visit the ScienceDirect Info site: www.info.sciencedirect.com
