# Presentation: 118948

## Knowledge Base: Archiving Q & A

**ALA Midwinter, January 2002**

**Knowledge Base: Archiving Q & A**

***Collaborative Digital ***
***Reference Service***

**Abigail Grotke, Library of Congress**

## CDRS Process

**Library**
*Patron*

**Knowledge**
**Base**

**Answering**
**Library**
*Librarian*

**ILL, Document**
** ****Delivery**

**REQUEST**
**MANAGER**

**SEND QUESTION**

**GET QUESTION**

**AUTOMATIC or MANUAL                           KB SEARCH**

**NOTIFICATION**

**NOTIFICATION**

**EDITED**
**Q & A**

**GET**
**ANSWER**

**SEND**
**ANSWER**

**Member **
**Profile**

**Member **
**Profile**

**Member **
**Profile**

** ****Traditional and **
**Online Resources:**
**Catalogs, **
**Web Resources, **
**Print Resources, **
**Subject Specialists**** **

***CDRS Process***

## Why Create a KB? Cons:

**Concerns raised in a recent discussion on an e-ref listserv:**
**Diversity of questions make reuse of answers unlikely**
**Factual questions the exception, not the rule**
**Patrons merit some human contact in the information-seeking process**

## Why Create a KB? Pros:

**Why *****not***** give patrons vetted Q&A related to their subject and let them decide if the information is useful? **
**Patrons not exactly sure what what they need or are asking for**
**Enjoy thrill of accidental discovery**
**Diminish “current events” frenzy of librarians answering the same question again and again**

## The Work of Librarians Is Relevant

**If reference librarians treat the product of their work as dispensable and not worthy of archiving, how are others to find it valuable? **

## Development Issues to Consider

**What records are included?**
**What fields are included or omitted?**
**How much gets edited?**
**How do is information kept fresh?**
**How much can be automated?**

## Sources of KB Data

**Question and answer sets from CDRS**
**Members' ready-reference files**
**Databases of answered e-reference questions**
**Potential arrangements with publishers**

## Knowledge Base Workflow

**Editorial **
**Guidelines**

***Knowledge Base Workflow***

**CDRS **
**or other **
**source**

**Inactive**
**KB **
**Records**

**Volunteer ****Editor**

***Q & A ***
***sets***

**Active **
**KB **
**Records**

**Deleted **
**Records**

**CDRS**
**Members**

** ****End **
**Users**

## Technical Specifications

**Custom-designed and built by OCLC based on CDRS requirements**
**Back-end database: Sybase**
**Keyword search applied to:**
**	****     ****Question and Answer fields**
**	****     ****Keyword fields**
**      **

## Slide 10

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## Slide 13

## Slide 14

## Developing an Editorial Process

**Ad-hoc editorial board: LC, OCLC, CDRS members**
**Draft of guidelines**
**Tested by volunteer editors**
**Issues discussed by board, guidelines revised**

## Refining the Editorial’s Role

**Level of editing required**
**Style guide and preferences**
**Importance of source citations**
**Review dates**
**Update field for additional information supplied by editors**

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## Outstanding Issues

**Intellectual property**
**Q & A ownership**
**Language and cultural**
**Dewey vs. LC Subject class**

## Collaborative Digital 

**http://www.loc.gov/cdrs/**

***Collaborative Digital ***
***Reference Service***