NISO's Statistics Standard Now Ready for Your Use

[Ann Okerson <ann.okerson@yale.edu>]

And another useful announcement follows..

---------- Forwarded message ----------
To: <LS215@list.niso.org>
Date: Thu, 25 Jul 2002 17:02:33 -0400
From: Vivian Miller <vmiller@niso.org>
Subject: NISO's Statistics Standard Now Ready for Your Use

To:     Library Statistics Forum Participants

From:   Pat Harris, Executive Director, NISO

Subject:        NISO's Statistics Standard Now Ready for Your Use

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As a member of the forward thinking group whose collaborative effort set
the groundwork for the 2002 revision of NISO's Statistics Standard
ANSI/NISO Z39.7, we want you to be among the first to be notified of the
release of the 2002 Statistics Standard as a Draft Standard for Trial Use.
The revised Standard, Information Services and Use: Metrics & statistics
for libraries and information providers, is now on the NISO website.

The Standard is a "live document" on the NISO website:

<http://www.niso.org/emetrics/>http://www.niso.org/emetrics/

Comments on the standard will be accepted through July 31, 2003 and can be
made using the link:
<http://www.niso.org/committees/public/>http://www.niso.org/committees/public/

We have created a listserv to encourage discussion beyond the formal
channels. To subscribe to this listserv, send an e-mail message to:
Z39.7dsftu-subscribe@list.niso.org and use the word "subscribe" as the
subject of your message.  You will automatically receive a confirmation
message.  Respond to the confirmation message to confirm your
participation.

Standards Committee AY, Library Statistics met its deadline to complete
the revision of the base standard and fulfilled the charge to create a web
accessible data dictionary of terms including e-metrics.  "This new
edition of Z39.7 is a major departure from prior versions of the standard.
Not only has the Committee embraced valuable best practices long
recognized by the US library community, we have also incorporated
international definitions," said Denise Davis, Chair of the Statistics
Committee.  "And, by offering this standard in a web-accessible database
we are extending its reach and functionality."  The data dictionary
incorporates de facto library metrics as well as definitions and methods
of measurement adopted by international standards groups and US library
associations.

The committee will continue its work "virtually" to evaluate comments and
recommendations during the trial use period.  Updates to the draft
standard will be made on a quarterly basis beginning in September-October
2002.

Additional information about the status of Z39.7 and the work of Standards
Committee AY can be found on the NISO website at:
www.niso.org/committees/committee_ay.html

Thank you for your support and interest.  Please share this news with your
colleagues and staff.

Sincerely,

Pat Harris