Access to the Directory of CDL-Licensed Content is no longer available.
Your campus' access to article databases and electronic journals is linked from the Melvyl page on Article Databases and E-Journals. Please update your bookmarks to use the appropriate URL.
Background
Although using the campus links may be a different path to get to electronic resources, the links lead to the same resources that were available formerly from the Directory of CDL-Licensed Content.
Information in the Directory of CDL-Licensed Content was being replicated in several places: in campus lists of electronic resources; in the UC-eLinks (SFX) A-Z lists; in the Melvyl catalog; and in local campus catalogs. Most campuses no longer rely on the CDL Directory, but on these other sources for verifying information about and accessing licensed content. Maintaining the Directory was not an automated process; it was updated manually. New digital packages have many titles, some held by multiple vendors. There is a great deal of change and "churn" among the titles, with new titles and dates of coverage being added to and deleted from Directory constantly. Staff time aimed at this labor-intensive process can be put to better use now that other sources duplicate most of what the Directory accomplished.
What did you use it for?
An in-depth analysis of the "hidden uses of the Directory" was completed within the CDL, with remedies addressed for all issues raised. An additional survey that investigated librarian's needs regarding announcements of changes to licensed content was also completed.
Other options
For verifying coverage dates for an electronic resource, the UC-eLinks (SFX) A-Z lists, which is updated on a regular basis by CDL staff, or Melvyl records, maintained by the UCSD Shared Cataloging Program (SCP) staff, can be used. The UC-eLinks list can also be used to determine the part of a vendor package a title belongs to, and to link to the journal at the vendor's site.
CDL staff have compiled a comprehensive list of functional alternatives to the Directory of CDL-Licensed Content.
What's coming down the pike?
The UC Electronic Resources Management System (ERMS) Task Force has recommended Ex Libris' Verde system for managing electronic collections. UC is still in negotiations with Ex Libris. Verde will provide another place to find detailed information about e-resources. More information about this decision will be forthcoming.