Even as librarians have spent the past twenty years documenting the rich world of scholarly communication beyond the catalog, repositories and catalogs too often remain completely siloed from each other. Current practices and tools to unite the two focus entirely on matching names, an imprecise method requiring substantial time spent on review.…

This article describes the roles of librarians in a research library, particularly in the digital era. Librarians' roles vary from the custodian of resources to providers of a diverse nature of activities ranging from collection development, organization of knowledge, information services, preservation and conservation, and management. Librarians…

In this column, the author discusses how the management of e-books has introduced, at many libraries and in varying degrees, the challenges of maintaining effective technical services workflows. Four different e-book workflows are identified and explored, and the author takes a closer look at how particular variables for each are affected, such as…

John Fiske (1842-1901) was an American historian, philosopher, lecturer, and prolific author. Renowned as a popularizer of evolutionary theory, Fiske rubbed elbows with Charles Darwin and Herbert Spencer. From 1872-79 he served as Assistant Librarian at Harvard University, occupied mainly with what is known today as "Technical Services," i.e.,…

It seems, at times, that a frantic race persists to ensure that a child, in the crucial learning stages of early elementary education, acquires the appropriate reading level before he or she "gets behind." Though there are obvious issues with branding a book "Grade Level One" or "Reading Level 2.2," it is nevertheless…

Libraries and catalogers face choices in the treatment of the growing collections of electronic journals. Policies issued by CONSER and the Library of Congress allow libraries to edit existing print records to accommodate information pertaining to the electronic versions (single record option) or to create new records for them. The discussion…

Outlines the results of a review of the cataloging operations at the library at Curtin University of Technology and the three other publicly funded universities in WAGUL (the Western Australian Group of University Librarians). Identifies cost savings to be achieved by re-engineering cataloging and related operations, and separates them from the…

Discusses the growth, survival and future of library classification schemes. Concludes that to survive, a scheme must constantly update its policies, and readily adapt itself to accommodate growing disciplines and changing terminology. (AEF)

An experiment at the College of Charleston (South Carolina) library examined whether using Blackwell's Library of Congress Machine Readable Cataloging with books without the CIP upgrading would be worthwhile in terms of cataloging productivity and efficiency; it also looked at additional costs involved with the CIP upgrading. (AEF)

Describes the library of the Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC. Highlights include the library director and personnel, promotion of the library's mission, budget, formats and subjects in the collection, cataloging, access policy, patrons, and future plans. A sidebar discusses "One Survivor Remembers" (the 1995 Oscar-winning…

Based on the authors' experiences as catalog, reference, and network resources librarians, this paper examines traditional methods of operation and the emerging blending of duties and the effects on individuals and the profession. Examines changing demands on library users as a cause for the blurring lines. Concludes that catalogers and reference…

Examines the purpose of catalogs, how card catalogs first fulfilled that purpose, and how computers represented a superior and inevitable replacement for it. Describes some recent developments in cataloging and their implications for the future. (AEF)

Addresses changes in cataloging at the University of California, Berkeley. Discusses experimentation with pilot technical services (OCLC PromtCat, Bibliographic Record Notification, and Repeat Search); technical services staff reductions and the emergence of a new staffing model and motivating supervisors and staff to become more flexible and…

Describes the Hosseinieh Ershad Public Library, a model library established in Iran after the Islamic Revolution that contains a predominant religious collection. Reviews the library's historical background, current cataloging system, collections and their circulation, services to blind patrons and children, funding and staff. Photographs of the…

Discusses developments in depository librarianship and refers to changes in library education at Rosary College (Illinois). Highlights include bibliographic system problems, adoption of standardized cataloging methods (MARC format), improvement in document accessibility, costs, the National Technical Information Service, changes in document…