Recommend deprecating Worldcat links.

[Eric]

Because Worldcat has begun putting in critically disabling (imho) limits on use, and because IMSLP and Wikipedia pages often use - I am a culprit here - Worldcat/OCLC links as evidence that things exist - I would recommend going past the Worldcat page to one of the libraries that Worldcat usually points to and linking there instead, when and as possible, rather than using the WC template.

[kosboot]

The downside of linking to a library is that many libraries update their ILSs, invalidating their links. Library cataloging has changed greatly in the past 13 years (or so) and many are changing their vendors or updating their software. But OCLC accession numbers don't change. I think that is a more reliable reference point, even if OCLC can be frustrating.

[Eric]

I think it’s on the verge of dropping toward that break-even point myself, where its dead, misleading and invalid links to other libraries, its insistence one create an account (only available to institutional users, I think) before lowering the rate-limit boom, etc, make it underusable.

OTOH if all this is truly only happening to me, I should withdraw the objection.

[Davydov]

It's happening for me too, Eric, but I found it is possible to set up a personal Worldcat account without being an institutional user.

Frustratingly there are still plenty of dead links leading to items apparently not held by any library, and no clue as to where the original entry came from. Combine that with the constant "Checking to see if you are human" pages every 30 seconds or so, and we've moved a long way from the quick and helpful resource that Worldcat used to be.

[Sallen112]

Yeah I just noticed that just now that for Worldcat to even expand out a section to see more info for on a link, you need an account now. Unfortunately this is happening everywhere now by the looks of it. In my opinion of course we should try to credit where you go such information, I do try my hardest to find the person's birth and death info on the usual websites like VIAF or Musicsack or other websites out there, but I am getting to the point where even just linking to websites now are even breaking templates we had setup for Hindemith Foundation as well, now twice are broken across the board to the current website and now you have to use Wayback Machine to use the older version of the same website, which means now you have no access to the current version of the same website. All this means to me is that its getting too hard to keep doing source linking to websites anymore and upkeeping that is starting to become more annoying than anything else and I am just starting to lean toward not even requiring linking to websites at this point, if they break oh well I guess. I guess check to see if Wayback Machine has the link to the website that was working. Your much better off linking to things inside IMSLP than outside now because were in control of our URL we have setup for our site.

I think we might want to rethink the whole idea about sourcing to websites now in general. I know we don't want to have a policy of not having no links at all or go by a more honor based system for cross checking information but that can lead toward giving false information is the problem going this route.

[Eric]

I'm absolutely fine with our sources being print citations, but not fine with them being TMB (trust me bro), to the extent that anyone cares about my opinion!!!

[Eric]

Interestingly, if the item is at NMI for example (or perhaps at one of the other libraries one of whose catalogs is a Worldcat subcatalog), and one opens NMI's link at NMI-Worldcat (linked to from NMI Bibliotheek and doing a search...), then the additional information link, with key etc., works. Hrm.

[Sallen112]

I'm absolutely fine with our sources being print citations, but not fine with them being TMB (trust me bro), to the extent that anyone cares about my opinion!!!

I would be fine with this as well, just emphasizing my previous point however, we should still strive as a community to link to things, but I would just personally not put a ton of effort to constantly fix linking all the time. The World Wide Web is far bigger than anyone can imagine at this point, so I think we should just focus on maybe the Print Citation as an idea going forward but detail this out accurately and precisely of course on the workpages in the General Info section.

And while Internet Archive Wayback Machine is a backup option, its not a forever solution, what if a lawsuit brings down the entire Wayback machine? That is in my opinion the problem with linking now, it can be redirected or changed at any time with no way to stop that. I much prefer solutions for a library like ours that can preserve accurate information where possible but plain text might be our best option here. And keep this in mind always, any information written on our site URL is what we control and can keep the linking working properly, not outside of it.