- Unique match and merge technology leverages subject terms in A&I databases from ProQuest and others to optimize discovery of a library's collection

SEATTLE, March 7, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Serials Solutions®, a ProQuest® business, announced today the Summon® discovery service now includes content from more than 100 abstract and indexing (A&I) databases – including nearly 90 ProQuest databases. Unlike other discovery services, A&I content in the Summon service is leveraged through a unique match and merge technology that combines different types of data and information from multiple sources creating a single record optimized for discovery. For mutual subscribers, this unique approach exposes A&I resources to more users, directs researchers to full text when available, and maximizes the value and usage of A&I content for libraries.

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Match and merge technology combines, normalizes and corrects from multiple sources full text and metadata, such as abstracts, subject terms, thesauri and controlled vocabularies, citation counts and enrichment data. Bringing together this information enhances relevancy and increases discoverability of content, whether a user searches with natural language queries or database-specific controlled vocabularies.

"We are helping libraries maximize their investment in A&I resources and facilitating information literacy by helping users discover these specialized databases," said John Law, vice president, discovery services, Serials Solutions. "Leveraging rich A&I subject terms through our match and merge technology, combined with our pioneering database recommender feature, exposes more users to A&I databases and improves the discovery of items – even when full text is available."

The Summon service supports discovery of A&I databases regardless of where the library purchased the database or which provider hosts it. This approach ensures that relevant results are not biased toward any particular provider or vendor. A&I content indexed in the Summon service spans diverse disciplines and includes databases such as the MLA International Bibliography, Thomson Reuters Web of Science(SM), HAPI (Hispanic American Periodicals Index), SveMed+ and L'Annee philologique. Recently indexed in the Summon service, including more than 20 formal thesauri curated by expert editors, and more than 100 different controlled vocabularies, the internationally renowned A&I titles from ProQuest include:

• Aqualine
• Aquatic Sciences & Fisheries Abstracts (ASFA)
• ARTbibliographies Modern (ABM)
• British Humanities Index (BHI)
• British Nursing Index (BNI)
• Design and Applied Arts Index (DAAI)
• ESPM: Environmental Sciences & Pollution Management
• International Bibliography of the Social Sciences (IBSS)
• International Index to Music Periodicals
• International Index to Performing Arts
• Linguistics and Language Behavior Abstracts (LLBA)
• Sociological Abstracts
• Technology Research Database
• Water Resources Abstracts
• Worldwide Political Science Abstracts

"The addition of these databases delivers value to libraries unlike any other discovery service and encourages use of A&I databases for deeper, discipline-specific searching," said Law. "With our match and merge technology preserving metadata from all sources, Summon records often have more subject terms associated with them, and sometimes up to five times as many as other discovery services, ensuring researchers are searching the richest possible representation of metadata."

Used by more than 500 libraries in more than 40 countries, the Summon service is the first and only discovery service based on a unified index of content, leveraging its unique "match and merge" technology to combine rich metadata and full text from multiple sources to ultimately make items more discoverable. The Summon unified index has grown from 200 million items at launch to more than one billion items – with the vast majority of article and book content full-text searchable. Proven to increase usage of library resources, the Summon service consistently meets user expectations by delivering innovative new features for enhancing discovery.

About Serials Solutions www.serialssolutions.com
Serials Solutions provides industry-leading technology solutions for libraries worldwide. The company helps libraries work better by providing innovative, practical Software as a Service (SaaS) solutions for discovery and management. Driven by a comprehensive knowledgebase and coupled with unparalleled client support services, these solutions uniquely merge unsurpassed understanding of libraries. Serials Solutions is a dedicated partner of libraries working to remain vital and relevant to their users and communities.

Serials Solutions, a ProQuest business, is headquartered in Seattle, Washington.

SOURCE Serials Solutions