RE: Message from Kevin Guthrie, JSTOR's President

["Sloan, Bernie" <bernies@uillinois.edu>]

I'm wondering if anyone has developed a reliable method for predicting the
number of simultaneous users one might need to license for a given
database. (I realize that there are all sorts of variables that factor
into this).

Ten years ago I was trying to calculate the number of simultaneous users
needed for 39 libraries to access a database. I made an educated guess
(which was way too high) and gradually worked my way down to the right
number (which took several license years). I was just wondering if anyone
has improved on the "educated guess" method to calculate the initial
number of simultaneous users.

Bernie Sloan

-----Original Message-----
From: BARBARA SCHADER [mailto:bschader@library.ucla.edu] 
Sent: Monday, December 16, 2002 5:38 PM
To: liblicense-l@lists.yale.edu
Subject: RE: Message from Kevin Guthrie, JSTOR's President

I totally agree with Jim Morgan regarding simultaneous user licenses.  I
too much prefer to sign simultaneous user licenses and receive monthly use
logs so I can monitor actually use and adjust the number of paid
simultaneous users accordingly.

There are numerous problems with the FTE pricing model.  The most onerous
for me is that it is based on hypethetical/potential use NOT actual use;
the numbers for FTE pricing are impossible to accurately obtain for major
universities.  I refuse to sign FTE pricing models.

I was also very disappointed that FTE pricing models received much
attention at the last Charleston Conference but virtually nothing was said
of the alternative simultaneous user pricing model.

Barbara Schader
UCLA Biomedical Library
Head, Collection Development