Alma Electronic Resources Management

Alma supports resource evaluation with the Overlap and Collection Analysis feature. With this tool, one can compare the content between two or more resources.

1. Start a New Analysis

• Open the Overlap and Collection Analysis function by navigating to the Resources menu, Advanced Tools section, and Overlap and Collection Analysis.
• Click the Submit New Report button. Make sure Set Comparison is selected and click Next.

2. Select Resources to Compare

• Select a Source Electronic Collection (a collection to which the target electronic collection will be compared). Select a resource that is already licensed by the library to compare a new resource to an existing one.
• Select a Target Electronic Collection (a collection that will be compared to the source electronic collection). For the purpose of evaluating a new resource, select a resource from the Community Zone that the library is considering acquiring. Update the "Compare with Collection Of" field to Community Zone. Alternatively, select a resource already licensed by the library and select Institution Zone for "Compare with Collections Of."

• Once the desired collections have been selected, click Next.

3. Start the Overlap Analysis Job

• Check the box to Use Date Coverage Information in the Comparison and add an optional Report Description. Click Submit when complete.

• The job will start. Click the Refresh button to see the current progress. The job will also be listed in the Monitor Jobs list.

• Use the ellipses next to the job to select View.

• The report(s) will be available to download as an Excel file.

What the Reports Mean:

• Complete Overlap Report: The target collection has equal or greater coverage for the titles listed on the Complete Overlap Report
• Partial Overlap Report: The source collection has greater coverage for the titles listed on the Partial Overlap Report
• Title Overlap Report: Coverage is available for the titles listed in the report from both collections, but the coverage is mutually exclusive
• Unique Titles: Titles listed on this report are unique to the source collection based on match method

Additionally, one can analyze content overlap at bib record level. For example, one can compare print and electronic holdings to determine if a potential electronic purchase will enable the library to weed print volumes and create space in the stacks. The Duplicate Title Analysis job identifies duplicate bibliographic records using one of the following match points:

• System Control Number (035 field) with or without a prefix such as (oclc)
• ISBN
• ISSN
• Other Standard Identifier (024 field)

1. Run the Duplicate Title Analysis job