Library Speaker Series: Academic Libraries in the Digital Age

On Monday March 2, join McMaster University Library for,  “Academic Libraries in the Digital Age: Search Engine Optimization and Linked Open Data,” the first in a series of public talks to engage the campus community on issues critical to the future of scholarly research, new technologies and the role of libraries in the academy.

The series will aim to inspire new thinking and an enhanced sense of community – both on campus and beyond.

When: Monday March 2, 2015, 2:00 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Where: Lewis & Ruth Sherman Centre for Digital Scholarship, 1st Fl. Mills Memorial Library

Guest speakers include:

  Kenning Arlitsch

  Dean, Montana State University Library

  Patrick OBrien

  Semantic Web Research Director, Montana State University Library

This event is open to all members of the McMaster community and will include the following sessions:

Session #1: Search Engine Optimization (SEO) for Digital Libraries

2:00 PM – 3:00 PM

Libraries collectively spend millions of dollars each year creating websites and digital repositories, but optimizing for search engines is too often an afterthought and makes digital library use a fraction of what it could be. The overwhelming evidence that users begin their research with search engines should lead libraries to prioritize making their content accessible and comprehensible to these machines. This presentation will provide an overview of four years of research and practice that has led to increased visitation and use of library websites and digital repositories.

Break and Social Time – 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM

Session #2: Semantic Identity for Library Organizations

3:30 PM – 4:30 PM

Library organizations are poorly represented in Semantic Web applications such as Knowledge Cards, which now display to the right of many Google search results. Knowledge Cards provide users with brief information about organizations or people and may include such items as location, description, hours, logos, photographs and reviews. More importantly, Knowledge Cards are a manifestation of what we call “semantic identity,” which establishes the existence of organizations and the scope of their relationships for search engines. This presentation will outline the process and challenges involved in updating library information for participation in semantic web applications.