Changed Looks for the Melvyl Catalog and A&I Databases

The graphics currently used for the Melvyl Catalog, California Periodicals Database, and the CDL-hosted abstracting and indexing databases will be updated in January to fit into the new CDL web site graphic design.  For example, the CDL logo will appear in the upper left corner of the page and will serve as a link to the CDL Web.  It is important to stress that functionality will remain the same (other than the addition of “Update” and “Request”).  Only the graphic design and the location of some descriptive information will change.  A full description of these changes has been sent to various groups, including HOPS and the User Services Group.

With a constantly growing collection of resources, and new and evolving tools to use them, the historical distinction between a monolithic “Melvyl System” and “everything else” is less and less useful to describe UC-shared digital collections.  The graphics and location changes that are taking place in conjunction with the January 20th CDL opening are the initial steps in a transition that will create a distinction between the Melvyl Union Catalog and other content, services, and tools.  The CDL hosts not only the Melvyl Catalog and California Periodicals databases and abstracting and indexing databases, but other databases such as the Online Archive of California finding aids, as well as various access and discovery services and associated tools for these and other resources.

We realize that this transition will take some time and has far-reaching implications for describing, presenting, and teaching the use of these resources.  Continued collaboration with campus staff, such as the discussion and endorsement of the overall strategy by SOPAG at their November meeting, is critical to a successful transition.  In early January, we will begin several strategies that reinforce this collaboration, including soliciting your concerns, producing adaptable descriptive materials, and announcing plans for CDL Update sessions.