Southeastern News Online July, 2004 Vol. 2  No. 2

FirstSearch Base Package with Wilson Full Text -
A Tremendous "Deal"

Southeastern continues to offer the FirstSearch Base Package with Wilson Full Text as one of the resources subsidized with RBDB funds. This resource was chosen by the members of the Electronic Resources Advisory Committee (ERAC) beginning in 2001.

We sent information about FirstSearch to libraries in the region and have it posted on our website. Let me take this opportunity to point out that the FirstSearch package and subsidy is worth looking at in more detail. Here are answers to some questions that we have been asked by library staff:

Why should my library be interested in this package?

There are several reasons to subscribe to this package, the first two are that this package provides unlimited searching to your patrons for WorldCat and the Wilson Select Plus, which contains over 1600 full text titles. Citations in other FirstSearch databases, like ArticleFirst, Medline or ERIC link to the full text content in Wilson Select Plus. For example, if someone is searching ArticleFirst, there are direct links to the content in Wilson Select Plus.

What is unique about these databases?

WorldCat, one of the premier databases in FirstSearch, is the world’s largest collection of records for materials cataloged worldwide. Worldcat is a great tool for patrons to search for books and journals (choose your material type) available beyond the SENYLRC region and linked to OCLC’s ILL system. This database was originally available to library staff because it was the tool used for cataloging. Now anyone with access can search over 52 million records from OCLC member libraries.

We already subscribe to several full-text aggregated collections (name your collection: EBSCO MasterFile Select – NOVEL; EBSCO Academic Search Premier; Proquest’s Research Library). How much unique full text is there in Wilson Select Plus?

Wilson Select Plus is also unique. I just tried out SerialsSolutions new Overlap Analysis service, which can be used to identify the different holdings in database collections. I compared the content in Wilson Select Plus with several other collections: MasterFile Select, Academic Search Premier and ProQuest Research Library. When compared to each of these collections, Wilson Select Plus had over 1,000 unique titles. Serials Solutions provides a list of these titles as part of the Overlap Analysis service. I can’t tell you if these are desirable titles or not, but there is certainly some content in this collection that does not overlap with other aggregated collections.

How much does this cost?

The cost for the FirstSearch Package is $350 for public, school, hospital and special libraries; $525 for academic libraries. The subscription year is July 1st, 2004 to June 30th, 2005.

How much money is my library saving?

Without the SENYLRC license, this is what a library would have to pay for Wilson Select Plus: The list price for an individual institution to add Wilson SelectPlus to the FirstSearch Base Package is based upon FTE or population served. This is in addition to the cost of the FirstSearch Base Package. For example, unlimited use subscription prices begin at $2,850 for a 4-year collegewith 500 FTE and at $6,050 for community colleges and public libraries. If a library wished to subscribe to Wilson Select Plus only from OCLC (without the FirstSearch Base Package) the price begins at $6,400. This opportunity via SENYLRC results in a savings of several thousand dollars.

This all seems too good to be true. What’s the catch?

There is one limitation. SENYLRC shares a subscription to this package with the South Central Regional Library Council and the Central New York Resources Council. All three councils share fifteen (15) simultaneous user ports to FirstSearch. This means that 15 users can be logged on to this package at one time and perform unlimited searches. The 16th person will be turned away until someone else logs off and frees up a port. At times there is contention for these ports during the academic year – in particular when students are working on research papers. Contention is not an issue at other times. We purchase access by port and it is not possible to add ports for these peak periods only. We monitor the statistics and add ports when necessary.

Is it still possible to subscribe?

Definitely. However, the cost is not pro-rated.

How do I subscribe?

If your library would like to subscribe to this FirstSearch package, please visit this web page for a sign-up form: /firstsearch.htm. Just complete the form and fax it back to us. If you have any questions, please call or email Tessa Killian (Contact Tessa) or (845 691-2734). Any library in the SENYLRC region is eligible.

By Tessa Killian, Member Services Librarian

Contents | People in the News | Calendar of Events | Job Opportunities | SENYLRC Home