ACQNET v1n105 (September 19, 1991) URL = http://hegel.lib.ncsu.edu/serials/stacks/acqnet/acq-v1n105 ISSN: 1057-5308 *************** ACQNET, Vol. 1, No. 105, September 19, 1991 =========================================== (1) FROM: Christian SUBJECT: Who's new on ACQNET today (8 lines) (2) FROM: Tom Leonhardt SUBJECT: Staffing, output measures (13 lines) (3) FROM: Doug Duchin SUBJECT: Staffing (8 lines) (4) FROM: Karen Schmidt SUBJECT: Staffing (11 lines) (5) FROM: Lenore Wilkas SUBJECT: Spanish vendors (13 lines) (6) FROM: Martha Kellog SUBJECT: USBE (10 lines) (7) FROM: Wanda Dole SUBJECT: Women studies approval plans (8 lines) (8) FROM: Mary McLaren SUBJECT: Schwartz Hill Book Company (12 lines) (9) FROM: Richard Jasper SUBJECT: Chinese vendors (9 lines) (10) FROM: Scott Wicks SUBJECT: PVLRC complaints (14 lines) (11) FROM: Rosann Bazirjian SUBJECT: East View Publications, Slavic periodicals (10 lines) (12) FROM: Karen Schmidt SUBJECT: Acquisitions education (11 lines) (1) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: September 19, 1991 From: Christian Subject: Who's new on ACQNET today Gail Defendorf Head, Order Unit Kansas State University Library E-mail: GDEFEND@KSUVM.BITNET (2) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 18 Sep 1991 08:06:45 EDT From: Tom Leonhardt Subject: Staffing, output measures Regarding adqequacy of acquisitions staffs (the question from Peter Stevens), has anyone considered or is anyone now using output measures? I was recently on a doctoral committee that read a dissertation on output measures as a means of evaluating community college libraries and learning resource centers. Many directors that were interviewed were in favor of such measures but did not want to have their numbers compared with other libraries. But that may be one way of showing extraordinary efficiency and perhaps overload. Orders produced per FTE? Items input/FTE? I have not given this any thought at all but it may be a place to begin. (3) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 18 Sep 91 09:16:12 EDT From: "Douglas Duchin" Subject: Staffing Doug Phelps at Vanderbilt did a great deal of study on the staffing, dollars, and speed involved in acquisitions. While his focus was on approval plans vs firm orders, he probably accumulated a large amount of data along the way. You might want to contact him. (4) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 19 Sep 1991 12:07:15 CDT From: Karen Schmidt Subject: Staffing Back in 1987, I did a survey of ARL acquisitions departments that addresses the question in part (see: LAPT 11 (1987): 35-44). The data I gathered indicated that for a $1.5 million material budget, 2 librarians and 15 support staff are perceived as adequate (for both monographs and serials acquisitions.) This number is the critical mass, and I did not project for larger budgets. In any event, a more complete study should be made, with a different focus - but these data from 1987 could be a start. (5) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 18 Sep 91 09:09:01 -0400 From: "Lenore Wilkas" Subject: Spanish vendors After our long-time Spanish dealer, Barbazan, ceased doing business, we have dealt with a Spanish agent who came highly recommended by several of our peer institutions. This agent has provided us with inaccurate invoicing, incomplete volumes, no response to claims, and several standing orders which have gone unserviced. We would really appreciate some help from anyone having a fairly large Spanish collection as to who they feel is a reliable, responsible, and RESPONSIVE Spanish agent. We still adhere to country-of-origin agents, for the most part, but if there is a Spanish dealer outside of Spain that fills the bill that's fine, too. (6) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 18 Sep 91 11:23:06 EDT From: Martha Kellogg Subject: USBE We have received the 1992 invoice for USBE membership: $150.00, up from $100.00 last year. Does anyone have experiences (positive or negative) with USBE since it reorganized under Zubal, especially with obtaining missing single issues of serials? We have not had much luck, but have heard conflicting stories of USBE's success in supplying missing issues. I would be interested in hearing if other academic libaries are considering dropping membership in USBE. (7) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 18 Sep 1991 11:47 EDT From: "Wanda V. Dole" Subject: Women studies approval plans Does anyone know of an approval or notification slip service for Women's Studies? (8) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 18 Sep 91 12:01:30 EDT From: Mary McLaren Subject: Schwartz Hill Book Company Replying to the query about Schwartz Hill Book Company: A representative called on us last November, so I will share my notes from that visit. They are a book company which acts as a direct sales rep for Wiley, Oxford, St. James, Routledge, and Panel Publications. They are also wholesalers for Garland, McGraw, and Beacham. They specialize in reference works, and the inventory I was given that day included works published by Gale, Houghton Mifflin, and others. Their address is Bethel, Connecticut. (We have not ordered from them, so I cannot speak to their service.) (9) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 19 Sep 91 08:56:07 EDT From: Richard Jasper Subject: Chinese vendors Thanks to Ann Palomo (Cleveland Public), Caroline Early (NAL), Heather Miller (SUNY-A), and Karen Feeney (UCSD, who replied under "separate cover") for their words of wisdom on Chinese vendors. We will add these names to our list and see what results we have. That's ACQNET for you: Interactive Acquisitions in Process! (10) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 19 Sep 91 08:41:47 EDT From: Scott Wicks Subject: Reports concerning questionable performance by publisher/vendor I agree with Caroline Early that it is too easy to state incorrect, perhaps libelous, information by e-mail. I can even remember a case from last year. However, I expect that any complaints would be investigated and would not be reported to consumers without some review by an editorial board. I can't imagine Christian allowing himself to be sued because of ACQNET. [You bet! Actually that's why it took the Datamics responses so long to get back to you. The Editorial Board was kicking around how to handle them. We have evolved a policy which I will write up as soon as I can. C.] ACQNET is definitely one avenue which should be used to publish such relevant (and verifiable) information. (11) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 19 Sep 1991 11:13:13 EDT From: Rosann Bazirjian Subject: East View Publications, Slavic periodicals We recently received a letter from East View Publications in Minneapolis, MN., indicating that they are now the exclusive distributors for a list of 8 Soviet periodical titles. They ask that we "switch vendors" in order to provide uninterrupted service in our current subscriptions. We have also just received an invoice from Kubon and Sagner, our current vendor for those titles, that we have been asked to pay. Has anyone received this letter from East View? (12) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 19 Sep 1991 12:07:15 CDT From: Karen Schmidt Subject: Acquisitions education The latest JAL features a symposium on library education - I am mildly thrilled to note that acquisitions is mentioned as something that should be taught in library school. It's not the most overt reference to our work, but at least it's there. I think it's high time one of the rank and file looked at the difference between what library administrators/educators think library school should be and what new librarians wish they had been taught - would the twain ever meet? ******* END OF FILE ****** ACQNET, Vol. 1, No. 105 ****** END OF FILE *******