Centralized vs. Distributed Systems: Academic Library Models for GIS and Remote Sensing Activities on Campus

Academic libraries are a prime example of an enterprise whose mission is to support the information needs of its institution. Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing (RS) are popular topics for academic research and are used globally. Two major enterprise information service and data delivery models, centralized and distributed, describe how enterprises approach information sharing. Simply stated, centralized systems provide services and data through a single individual or departmental unit. Distributed systems rely on many interconnected individuals or units to supply services and data. There are advantages and disadvantages to both, which may lead to a hybrid model of combined elements or a movement away from one and toward the other. This article discusses centralized and distributed enterprise information service and data delivery models and how two Florida university libraries deploy these models to deliver enterprise GIS services and data to their institutions’ user communities. Introduction Information services and data products such as those associated with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) and remote sensing (RS) are provided by many public and private organizations. By defi nition, “Any organization [public or private] that needs to support multiple concurrent users accessing a shared information resource” (Rich, Das, & Kroot, 2001) can be called an enterprise. The enterprise’s concurrent users can be both internal and external to the organization. Academic libraries are a prime Centralized vs. Distributed Systems: Academic Library Models for GIS and Remote Sensing Activities on Campus