Out-of-Print Digital Scanning: An Acquisitions and Preservation Alternative
L. Suzanne Kellerman
This article describes the in-house operational procedures developed at the Penn State University Libraries to produce facsimiles of hard-to-locate, out-of-print (OP) titles using digital scanning technologies. Since the out-of-print scan (OP/Scan) reproduction service was launched in 1995, more than a hundred titles have been added to the libraries’ circulating collections. This process, a collaborative effort by the Acquisitions Services Department, the Preservation Department, the Office of Interlibrary Loan, and the University’s Office of Copyright Clearance, has enabled the libraries to reduce the turnaround time for acquiring OP titles from years to only several months. Operational procedures developed by the four library units, including identification and selection, copyright considerations, materials preparation, scanning, and associated costs are described.
Practitioner Perspectives on Cataloging Education for Entry-Level Academic Librarians
Karen M. Letarte, Michelle R. Turvey, Dea Borneman, and David L. Adams
The role of cataloging education within the library profession is a topic of considerable interest and debate. Fifty-five heads of reference and sixty-five heads of cataloging in Association of Research Librarians institutions responded to a survey based upon the Association for Library Collections and Technical Services Educational Policy Statement, Appendix: Knowledge and Skills, Intellectual Access and Information Organization, concerning the importance of cataloging competencies for all entry-level academic librarians. The survey found that practitioners agreed upon a definite set of core cataloging competencies that all entry-level academic librarians should possess. This finding holds larger implications for library education for academic librarians and for the profession as a whole.
Cataloging Efficiency and Effectiveness
Cheryl McCain and Jay Shorten
Efficiency and effectiveness of technical services units are difficult to measure, analyze, and compare, partly because operations are complex and vary substantially from one library to another. Cost studies have been widely conducted as a means of measuring the cost efficiency of specific technical services tasks. Since data on costs are not necessarily comparable among institutions, other quantifiable measures of efficiency and effectiveness would enhance managerial decision-making. This article reports the analysis of data compiled from a survey of twenty-six academic libraries. It seeks to supplement the findings of cost studies by providing measures of efficiency and effectiveness for cataloging departments based on reported productivity, number of staff, task distribution, and quality measures such as backlogs, authority control, and database maintenance. Benchmark productivity levels for six libraries with “best practices” are identified.