Global library cooperative OCLC, US, has announced that it is collaborating with ImagineEasy Solutions, LLC to create a customisable library version of ImagineEasy Solutions' EasyBib.com service, an online citation site on the Web. The EasyBib Library Edition service will be rolled out in a beta testing phase with select OCLC member libraries this month.
EasyBib is an automatic bibliography composer, used by more than 23 million unique visitors in the past year. More than 500,000 new citations are added each day during peak periods of use, such as at the end of university terms. Students simply search or enter bibliographic data of a particular source and EasyBib formats the citation, alphabetises the works cited list and exports it to word-processing software. Students can also use EasyBib's notebook feature to dynamically organise their research information associated with their citations.
Jointly designed by OCLC and Imagine Easy Solutions, EasyBib Library Edition will provide an opportunity for libraries to reach students where they already go for help with citation formatting. The Library Edition is expected to offer a variety of features designed to extend library reach and usage. OCLC will be the exclusive provider for EasyBib Library Edition, and a provider for EasyBib School Edition, EasyBib's standard institutional service.
The library cooperative is currently working with a set of member libraries that will serve as test sites for the beta service of Library Edition, which is expected to be available in the US and Canada by spring 2011.
