At 12:40 PM 8/10/2005, you wrote:
> Do you still maintain vertical files in your library? We don't use them
>(except for local clippings) because we have access to 1000's of journals
>via our state's virtual library service. My concern is SACS and State
>requirements. Also, do you still keep your periodicals for 5 years? Thanks
>in advance for your response.
Tammy:
Sigh.....a perennial problem. I kept periodicals for five years, but
when we began subscribing to on-line periodical databases, three
things happened... 1.) we had far more titles available to us,
titles that could be used by multiple people at once, and 2.)
requests for back issues in hard copy dropped to nearly zero, and 3.)
no one EVER looked at the Reader's Guide anymore. Although I did not
do this prior to retirement, I was very seriously considering keeping
only one year's worth of hard copies. I DID cut back on the
'research only' titles that we subscribed to in hard copy mostly for
patrons like Academic Competition classes and debate teams and the
like... things no one picked up for casual reading. When I left, the
periodicals in hard copy were largely limited to recreational
reading, newspapers, and news magazines. The money saved went to
expanding our on-line database holdings. Today, I would not keep
periodicals in hard copy for more than a year, PROVIDING you have
stable (i.e. reliably funded) on-line access to periodicals and their
backfiles.
Hope this helps.
Mark Williams
Consulting Librarian
Professional Services for Conferences, Districts, Workshops
markwilliams@makaw.net
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