Digital Collections of the CDL

The California Digital Library (CDL) is building a shared digital collection to serve the University’s academic information needs.  The CDL collection consists of both material licensed by the CDL and electronic collections licensed by selected campuses.  We conceive of the CDL as a virtual library.  Access to materials in the CDL may vary according to campus location and user affiliation (UC, industry, public library, etc.).

Materials in all the tiers described below are part of the CDL, provided that they are accessible through the CDL Web site using CDL access tools.  Materials in Tier 1 will generally be of interest to a discipline in which the CDL is building a collection, with the approval of the Systemwide Library and Scholarly Information Advisory Committee.  Material in Tiers 2 and 3 might be of interest to any discipline, including those approved for CDL collection building.

Tier 1– Material that is funded, in whole or in part, by the CDL.

Tier 2– Material that is funded by two or more campuses.

Tier 3 — Material that is paid for by only one campus.

As recommended by several advisory groups during the planning process, the Science, Technology, and Industry Collection (STIC) is the first of a series of focused collection development efforts.  The CDL also includes additional titles and items outside this subject area.

The Operations and Planning Advisory Group (OPAG), which advises the CDL on issues related to policies, procedures, and operations of the California Digital Library, is now looking at other possibilities, and will make recommendations shortly regarding the next shared digital collection.