Hi Everyone,
Here is the original posting:
We have an Instructional Media Center with over 1600 videotapes.
Blank videotapes are getting harder and harder to find, and our
district is no longer repairing the VCRs in the classrooms. Obviously
we are going to have to move to DVDs and DVD players in the
classrooms in the future, and there is no money set aside to complete
such a huge conversion.
What are the rest of you doing? Even if you are dealing with updating
the smaller collections of videotapes found in most school libraries,
I'm hoping you might have some great, affordable ideas.
Donna Guild
Elementary Librarian
San Luis Coastal USD
donnaguild@charter.net
_______________________________________________________________________
Below are the responses I received. Thanks to everyone for your
input. BTW I also researched section 108 of the copyright law, and it
is legal to copy videotapes to DVD when there are no longer video
recorders to play them if they are unavailable on the market.
However, if the videos are available for purchase as a DVD, you can't
copy them.
________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________
Our plan is to buy a machine from Costco for about $260 that will
convert VHS to DVD. We will archive the original and circulate the
copy which we believe will be in accordance with copyright laws.
Our tentative forays into the DVD format have been disappointing.
After paying more for the DVD's I've discovered they scratch and
quickly become unusable either from teacher or student carelessness
in handling. UUGGH! SO..I've gone back to purchasing only in VHS
format. I know I am going back to the dinosaur era but surely the
next best thing to DVD is just around the corner. (Remember laser
discs?)
We have experienced the same problem, tho on a smaller scale. Most
teachers want DVDs now.
I have gradually been buying DVD players for all the different TVs in
the school. When a VCR breaks, I replace it with a DVD/VCR combo. We
will need VCRs for years to come because we have about 500 videos and
I certainly don't have the money to replace them with DVDs even if I
could.
So that's how we handle it. Slowly. Doubling up on the technology.
I have purchased combo VHS/DVD players the last 2 yrs., and placed
them in Science and Soc. Studies rooms. I also purchased single DVD
players that can be checked out for others. I also purchased a DVR
of my own that I will use to record from now on. We have 940
students in Gr. 7 & 8. We only have about 700 VHS tapes. I am
purchasing only DVDs now.
Our district has also puchased a license to use United Streaming
(www.unitedstreaming.com). This will probably cut down on DVD.
purchases. However now everyone wants an LCD projector they can
attach to their computer. This is an excellent source of video
material. You can put in a grade level, you can only play certain
segments of a video. You can even create a quiz over what the
students have seen. Our Sci. and Soc. Studies Dept. love it. We are
gradually pursuading the others to look at it.
Troxell Communications has a great VHS/DVD combo player for around
130.00 I have 2 now and they both work great. It's plug and play
technology.
I am still buying VHS but have acquired some DVDs. We aren't in a
big rush to convert but I suppose it is inevitable.
I found DVD players (Panasonic S27 - recommended by Consumer Report)
at K-Mart on sale for about $60 and our parent organization paid the
bill for those.
Good luck with whatever you decide to do.
I started at least 2 years ago buying materials in the DVD format
where available. All new players are either DVD or combination DVD/
VHS players. We no longer buy VCR's.
The Food City grocery chain has an annual promotion called "Apples
for Students" (originally for helping put Apple computers in schools
but now has a wide variety of offerings). We collect grocery
receipts and turn them in to purchase equipment. We've added several
DVD players that way.
Money from Boxtops for Education is also spent on DVD players, so
now most of the teachers in my 400-student school have one. Since
the price has come WAY down, some teachers have even bought them with
their small classroom allowances.
I'm not in a library (but I was, back in the 16mm movie days <g>),
but consider this. See if the district will authorize replacement
players that are dual vcr/dvd players. Consumer models can be found
in the $75-$200 range. The advantage here is that you don't need to
replace all of your videotapes at once. Your future purchases must be
all dvds. Eventually, you will have a dvd collection, no, or few
videotapes, and it will be time to buy new dvd players to replace the
combination units.
I can't answer you directly but I may know someone that can.
My district belongs to a county wide service http://www.gcava.org/.
The director, Lorriane, is very knowledgeable. While we are still
borrowing video tapes, DVDs are available.
________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________
I've been buying a dual VHS/DVD player to make the transition. We
had this model recommended through our state contract: JVC HR-
XVC18. The price was $114.95.
We are purchasing VHS/DVD combos which we are finding for less than
$100. As I purchase new video materials I will be getting DVDs but
like you said it is impossible to change even a small collection
over. We had to do it when we went from 16 mm 10-12 years ago....
Interesting how long 16 mm were the norm (50 years maybe?), but VHS
has only lasted what... 20 years?
Besides hunting for a grant, you might consider purchasing dual DVD/
VCR players. That way any new purchases will be DVD and you can keep
using the video tapes and replace them at a slower rate (as they wear
out, break, get weeded, etc.)
Right now every classroom has a tv and vcr. Every teacher has a
laptop that can play dvd's. We don't have enough LCD projectors for
everyone to have one to show dvd's through the laptops and I don't
think some of the teachers would use them even if we did. Someone I
spoke with recently suggested buying some dvd players since they're
not that expensive now and starting to buy more dvd's or only dvd's
in the future.
So my problem is that I think a lot of our tv's are so old that
they won't have the capability to hook up to dvd players easily. If
it's complicated and teachers have to check out the dvd players it's
going to be a barrier and obstacle to successful access, which I do
not want to see happening.
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