It has been suggested with some frequency in this journal that issues in collection development can often be traced to definitions which derived in turn from varying theories…
Abstract
It has been suggested with some frequency in this journal that issues in collection development can often be traced to definitions which derived in turn from varying theories about the role of the library in society. This seems particularly true in the case of a term very much in vogue of late: information.
The common practice of celebrating the end of one decade and the beginning of another at the outset of the decennial year, while a triumph of impatience over calendric accuracy…
Abstract
The common practice of celebrating the end of one decade and the beginning of another at the outset of the decennial year, while a triumph of impatience over calendric accuracy, represents an eager need to invest the otherwise random events of life with structure and meaning. Collection Building shares with the Gregorian calendar the lack of a year zero; still, the passage of the odometer from nine to ten inspires a pause for that simultaneous look backward and forward.
Each special collection starts out as a core assemblage of books. As the collection's size increases, its quality (it is assumed) does as well. If a library is lucky, it will have…
Abstract
Each special collection starts out as a core assemblage of books. As the collection's size increases, its quality (it is assumed) does as well. If a library is lucky, it will have a bibliographer in charge of such a collection: someone knowledgeable of the ins and outs of his or her discipline; someone who keeps “current with a discipline's investigations and monitor[s] its evolutions.” In reality, however, the person in charge of developing a particular collection often may not have a good scholarly foundation in the subject, particularly in a public library, where there is less of a tradition of hiring subject specialists as bibliographers than there is in academic libraries. Once a collection has grown considerably in size and scope, and has benefitted from the tastes and choices of a number of bibliographers of varying backgrounds and qualifications, it becomes necessary to assess the quality of the collection. One practical way to evaluate and build a collection, which can be used by those who do not possess a thorough scholarly foundation in the subject in which they collect, is outlined below.
Examines the question of whether private library funds — often acquired by libraries through fundraising efforts — threaten the allocation of local public funds. Reports…
Abstract
Examines the question of whether private library funds — often acquired by libraries through fundraising efforts — threaten the allocation of local public funds. Reports interviews with US librarians and government officials selected by convenient sampling. It is clear that concerns exist despite earlier statistical studies giving no basis for concern. Discusses protection of funds by means of funding partnerships, certain safeguards in setting up library foundations, and appropriate library advocacy. Lesgislators indicate they are listening to libraries' needs. Suggests that librarians take the initiative in protecting funds.
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Few issues in recent times have so provoked debate and dissention within the library field as has the concept of fees for user services. The issue has aroused the passions of our…
Abstract
Few issues in recent times have so provoked debate and dissention within the library field as has the concept of fees for user services. The issue has aroused the passions of our profession precisely because its roots and implications extend far beyond the confines of just one service discipline. Its reflection is mirrored in national debates about the proper spheres of the public and private sectors—in matters of information generation and distribution, certainly, but in a host of other social ramifications as well, amounting virtually to a debate about the most basic values which we have long assumed to constitute the very framework of our democratic and humanistic society.
NANCY ALLEN is Communications Librarian at the University of Illinois, Urbana, where she has previously held the positions of Assistant Undergraduate Librarian and Reserve Book…
Abstract
NANCY ALLEN is Communications Librarian at the University of Illinois, Urbana, where she has previously held the positions of Assistant Undergraduate Librarian and Reserve Book Librarian. She earned her M.S. in Library Science at the University of Illinois, Urbana. Ms. Allen's writings have appeared in American Libraries, Film Library Quarterly, and Journalism Quarterly. She is author of Film Study Collections: A Guide to Their Development and Use.
ROBERT J. ARMAO served for six years as an aquatic biologist for an environmental consulting firm before earning his M.L.S. at the Syracuse University School of Information…
Abstract
ROBERT J. ARMAO served for six years as an aquatic biologist for an environmental consulting firm before earning his M.L.S. at the Syracuse University School of Information Studies. He received a B.S. from Fordham University and studied marine science at Long Island University.
SHERRIE S. BERGMAN is College Librarian of Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts. She served previously as director of the Roger Williams College Library and on the library…
Abstract
SHERRIE S. BERGMAN is College Librarian of Wheaton College in Norton, Massachusetts. She served previously as director of the Roger Williams College Library and on the library reference staff at the New School for Social Research.
In the fall of 1982 the RLIN (Research Libraries Information Network) computer system, which serves the Research Libraries Group (RLG) incorporated a new interlibrary loan…
Abstract
In the fall of 1982 the RLIN (Research Libraries Information Network) computer system, which serves the Research Libraries Group (RLG) incorporated a new interlibrary loan subsystem which has the potential to facilitate fast and efficient interlibrary loans among members of RLG. At present, RLG consists of 24 general or fully participating members — all of which are major research libraries including the New York Public Library — and 13 special libraries such as the Museum of Modern Art. As one of its primary functions, RLG maintains a benignly liberal interlibrary loan policy for general member institutions. Not only will these members lend the same materials as they circulate to their own patrons; in many cases such normally forbidden interlibrary loan items as rare books and reference books may be lent (providing of course the lender is agreeable). And, of special importance to library patrons, photocopying, in most cases, is provided free of charge as long as the request is reasonable and within copyright restrictions. It must be stressed however that each member library is still responsible for maintaining a collection commensurate with the needs of its patrons. Thus, RLG is not meant to be a substitute for collection development of any member institution but rather to expand the availability of materials to libraries within the system.