Foreword
The Serials Acquisitions Glossary Supplement is a publication of ALA's Association for Collections and Technical Services (ALCTS), Serials Section, Acquisitions Committee. This electronic publication is a supplement to the Serials Acquisitions Glossary published in print format by ALCTS in 1993. The purpose the supplement is to provide a timely and accurate resource for terms not included in the original Serials Acquisitions Glossary. The supplement has a decided emphasis on electronic resources. Terms and definitions used in the supplement were gathered from a wide range of print and web resources. Links are provided to the web resources, which include online glossaries and resources that often lead the user to more in-depth information on a topic.
The original glossary was written from an acquisitions perspective, and this supplement continues that perspective. The purpose of the original was "to gather and define the current, practical, and colloquial terms that underlie the communication between those librarians, vendors, and publishers who participate in the serials acquisitions chain." The purpose of this supplement is to provide a complement and an update to the original list of terms. Specifically, we focused the scope of the supplement on the following areas: basic computer and technology terms; terms related to acquiring and licensing electronic resources; and terms missed in the first glossary.
The committee recognizes that the terminology changes on a regular basis. New terms will be added and existing terms, definitions, and links will be reviewed and updated on a regular basis. Users of the supplement are encouraged to submit new terms and updates to existing definitions for inclusion in the supplement.
It is hoped that this supplement will have the same broad appeal to library staff, vendors, publishers, and other information providers as did the original Serials Acquisitions Glossary. The committee's goal is to eventually combine the Serials Acquisitions Glossary and Serials Acquisitions Glossary Supplement into a single electronic publication.
Marla Schwartz (American University) chaired the Acquisitions Committee during the period when the supplement was first proposed and drafts prepared. Robert Alan (Penn State University), as the subsequent chair, led the effort to further develop and refine the supplement's content and Kimberly A. Maxwell (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) completed the web design and data conversion. Ms. Maxwell followed as committee chair and led the project to completion. Other committee members who worked on the project include: Mae Clark (University of Florida), Lauren Corbett (Old Dominion University), Sandy Gurshman (Faxon/Rowecom), Pat Loghry (Notre Dame University), Emily McElroy (Loyola University Medical Center), James Howard Milhorm (Northern Illinois University), Susan Scheiberg (Rand Corporation), Marie Seymour-Green (University of Delaware), Sandhya D. Srivastaba (Long Island University), and Marjorie Wilhite (University of Iowa).
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To suggest new terms, contact a member of the CRS Acquisitions Committee.
Last updated by Kim Maxwell, kmaxwell@mit.edu, April 25, 2003