Ref 340 - 342.99

This section seemed really large, but without Martindale-Hubbel, it is quite small. Martindale-Hubble has to go. We have the 2007 ed and it would cost over $1000 to update. Plus the entire thing is available online, including the legal digests. Here's where they can be found: http://www.martindale.com/ The legal digests can be found here: http://www.martindale.com/legal-library/ (in the "Search Legal Library" box type New York Law Digest--it is a little sticky, but it does work)

I'm also recommending that we discard the old Burton Legal Thesaurus. We had a newer one at one time, but it is gone.

I am recommending that we update Black's Law Dictionary (there is a new ed for $85), and all the Nolo titles (there are new editions for all and they are very affordable).

I am recommending that we keep everything else. The three constitutional law books have a lot of the same cases in them, but not all. Encyclopedia of the United Nations and International Agreements will never be used much, but it was donated by one of the authors, a local person, and it is an expensive set.

Let me know if you think we should discard anything else.

Ref 330-340

There are some major decisions to be made here.
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The top shelf is what I am recommending keeping. Several questions here:
-Small Business Taxation is from 2001. There is a 2008 ed of a similar title available for $150. Worth it? Keep the 2001? Too advanced for our audience?
-Essentials of New Jersey Real Estate is the 2000 ed. There is a 10th (2008) ed available for $47. This is kind of like a study guide. Should it be in circ if we do get it?
-Harris New Jersey Manufacturers Directory is a standing order at $150. Cancel standing order?
-RMA Annual Statement Studies - this is latest ed. No longer published in print--online only at $305
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The 2nd and 3rd shelves is what probably should go. Some highlights:
-NJ Business to Business Directory and NJ Small Business Directory - we had studied this a while ago and found it riddled with errors, and the standing order was cancelled. The eds we have are 2007--time for them to go?
-Wards Business Directory - 2004 edition needs to go
-Corporate Affiliations - 2007 ed. To get a new ed would cost over $2000. I don't think we need this and OneSource. Should we toss the 2007 or wait another year?
-Directory of Top Computer Executives - This was a donation. 2007 ed probably too old to be reliable for this type of info.
-Economic Report of the President - All online
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Let me know what you think. Also, anything else that's on the cart and not mentioned here is fair game.

Rethinking Some Subscriptions

Every fall Jenny and I go through the magazine list to see what we might want to consider dropping due to price and use issues.

The first is an old friend that I never thought we'd ever want to be without--the NADA user guides. When I saw them in the list of subscriptions, I realized that I hadn't used either of them once all year, and even had a hard time remembering where we were keeping them (behind the reference desk). Combined the price is $159. All this info is online. In fact, I found out the rough trade in, average trade in, clean trade in and clean retail prices of my 2002 Acura adjusted for high mileage in about 30 seconds.
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The next title is R&D, subtitle "Technologies & Strategies that Enable Research and Development." It's $117 for 6 issues. I know we have an audience for the scientific magazines, such as Nature, Science, Bioscience, etc., but this one maybe not. Take a look at it.
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The next one is TDR: The Drama Review, subtitle "The Journal of Performance Studies." It's a whopping $199 for 4 issues. It is very academic--too academic? Too expensive? On the other hand, nearly all the larger public libraries in NJ have it.
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Let me know what you think. If you wish to keep them, by all means, speak up.

330-332

We have started the 330's. This is a huge area so I am breaking it down into sections.

Discards:
Business Information - outdated
Encyclopedic Dictionary of Economics - outdated
Economic Indicators Handbook - outdated
County Business Patterns (all) - outdated
Handbook of U.S. Labor Statistics 2004 - outdated and very easy to get on the web
Occupational Projections and Training Data 2006-07 - newer ed on web
O*Net - better on web
Wall Street Dictionary - 1999 - outdated
Thomson Bank Directory - 2006 -too many changes in banking world since then
Savings Directory - same as bank directory
S&P Stock Reports - we discontinued the subscription back in the spring
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of Wall Street Acronyms.... 1992 - outdated
Investment Statistics Locator 1995 - outdated

Possible updates and other questions:
Employment, Hours, and Earnings States and Areas 2008 - Cancel standing order? Easily findable on the web.
Summer Jobs Worldwide - This area is no place for this--never seen. Where else can we put this, or cancel standing order?
Encyclopedia of Banking and Finance and Palgrave's - both early 90s, but still valuable? Palgrave's has no update; Encyclopedia of banking has 2002 ed for $425 which I don't think we want.
Directory of Obsolete Securities 2006 - we can get 2008 for about $110 - worth it since new ed is $2500?
Handbook of Fixed Income Securities - 2005 - move to circ since it's a textbook?
Credit Repair - update with 2009 ed for both ref and circ
McGraw-Hill's Interest amortization tables -1993 -can update to 2006 for $4?

REF 310-329

This is a big area, and I am discarding more than I'm keeping. The cart behind the desk is what I am recommending we keep. The two carts in my office I am recommending for discard. Since there are too many discards, I will not list them here, but only mention the notable items.
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Cities of the United States (4 vols) - based on 1990 census data, it is too old. This information is readily available in other sources and on the internet.
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The political dictionaries are all from the early 1990's so they are being discarded. I am purchasing a 2nd ed (2001) of the Oxford Companion to Politics of the World for $17, and also Safire's Political Dictionary 2nd ed (2008) for $9, so that will update that section cheaply.
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Who's Who in American Politics - we have 95-96. 97-98, 99-00, and 01-02. We discontinued the standing order in 2002, so I don't think we need these older volumes. I am considering resubscribing to Marquis Who's Who online. That would take care of this stuff anyway.
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The Congressional Staff Directory, and the Congressional Directory, are not that old, but are not of much value since they are for previous congresses. We discontinued these standing orders since this information is all on the web.
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I can update America's Top Rated Smaller Cities to 2006-07 for $3.50. Statistics Sources can be updated to 2005 (29th ed) for $32 or 2007 (31st ed) for $88.
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Now take a look at what is being kept. We keep Statistical Abstract, not because this information is unavailable on the web, but because it is very handy in its arrangement and extremely user friendly. The same goes for such titles as County and City Data Book and Places, Towns and Townships (which can be updated to 2007 for $16).
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Don't forget the wonderful 5 volume Historical Statistics of the US. Also Congress and the Nation, (back to 1945) which is a historical record of each numbered Congress, and CQ Almanac, (back to 1973) which is a complete record of congressional action for each year. Since the main value of these two titles is historical, I am adding these as I find used copies cheaply in Amazon.
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There are a couple of small, older New Jersey titles that I am recommending for circ. They are on the middle shelf of the cart, on the right.
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I am open to any recommendations and disagreements. If there are items you want to keep or if there are things you think should be discarded, let me know. But, most important, familiarize yourself with what is here.

304-306

We are racing along at a snail's pace through the 300's! I am going to have to step this up and streamline.

As stated in my last blog, I am going to leave on the cart everything I am recommending that we keep, since, even though culling the reference area is important, more important is being familiar with what we are keeping. What I am discarding or transferring to circ I am just going to list here. (Also as stated in my last blog, I am rethinking what I am transferring to circ and will be doing a lot less of this.)

Discard: Ref 304.6 Cen/Uni - All the paperbound 1990 Census stuff (8 vols)

Ref 304.6 Fed - Federal Population Census catalog of microfilm copies (4 vols)

Ref 304.6 Mat - Atlas of the 1990 Censes

Ref 304.63 Vit - Vital Statistics of the United States, 1990 (2 vols)

Ref 305.409 Han - Handbook of American Women's History (1990) - (have the 2nd ed)

Ref 305.8 Afr - African-American Almanac, 6th ed. (already deleted from cat; Ju has 7th ed)

Ref 3035.8 Sta - Statistical Record of Black America, 4th ed (based on 1990 census)

Ref 305.8 Who - Who's Who Among Black Americans, 92-94; 94-95 (ordered 2007 ed for $1.98)
Ref 305.8 New - New Jersey African Americans and the 1990 Census

Ref 305.868 His - Hispanic American Almanac, 1993 (ordered 2007 ed for 59 cents)

Ref 305.868 Sta - Statistical Record of Hispanic Americans (based on 1990 census)

Ref 305.8924 Ame - 2004 American Jewish Yearbook (ordered 2007 ed for $5)

N.J. Ref 306.09749 Rut - Images III; A Report on the Quality of Life in NJ, 1985

These are on a cart in my office if you want to look at them.

Reference Inventory - 300's

The 000s, 100s, and 200s were easy, but now we come to the massive 300 area. What we are covering here is the 300-304 area, and boyoboy is there some obscure stuff here.
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The discards and those that I am transferring to circ are clearly marked on the cart. Just some notes:
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The International Library of Afro-American Life and History, although dated in appearence and language, is still very interesting, so Terri and I thought it should go into circ, along with three NJ titles on various aspects of the people of New Jersey.
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Those books I recognized when I saw them, but the International Encyclopedia of Communications from 1989 I must confess I have never used or even seen. Given that, is this something that we should discard? I haven't decided. Let me know what you think.
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Go back to the shelves and see what I have left--all the symbols books, the 5 volume set Encyclopedia of Sociology (2000), the 3 volume set Encyclopedia of Violence, Peace & Conflict (1999), Encyclopedia of Terrorism (2003), and more.
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Remember, the point of this inventory is not only to discard unused items, but also to remind ourselves of what is there. Let me know what you think--I'm open to any suggestions.

Reference 200's Inventory

After going through all of the 200's, there are some books that I think should be discarded and some that should be changed to circ. Each category is labeled on the black book cart. Some exceptions:
The Routledge Dictionary of Religious & Quotations should be recataloged to the quotations reference area.
The Yearbook of American & Canadian Churches was a standing order which I have cancelled, although we will keep the 2009 for the time being.
The Catholic Almanac we cancelled as a standing order in 2006. These older editions should probably be discarded.
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Let me know if you disagree with any of these decisions. Also, let me know if there is anything on the shelves that you think should be discarded. I am open to any and all suggestions.
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Also, take a look at some of the items there that you may have forgotten (or never knew about) such as the wonderful How to be a Perfect Stranger which tells the visitor exactly how to act in any house of worship; the Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, which steers the user to every usage of every word in the Bible; the excellent Encyclopedia of African and African-American Religions; the great mythology titles; and Islam: A Guide for Jews and Christians.

Reference 100 Review

I have just finished going through the Reference 100 shelf. All my recommendations are in red.

It's a relatively small area that is made up largely of multivolume sets, all of which I think we should keep because they are classics in the field and widely held, although I'm not sure spending the money on the available updates is a wise use of our funds. They are:

Encyclopedia of Philosophy (8 vols, 1967 with 1996 suppl; 3770 holdings) - There is an 8 volume 2nd ed which is available for $1162 and was published in 2005 to wide acclaim, but Booklist warned "don't be too quick to retire your first edition..."

Encyclopedia of Occultism & Parapsychology (2 vols, 2001; 838 holdings) - Still in print

Encyclopedia of Psychology (Kazdin, 8 vols, 2000; 2324 holdings) - Still in print

Encyclopedia of Psychology (Corsini, 4 vols, 1994; 3631 holdings) - 2001 revision available for $1200

Encyclopedia of Human Behavior (4 vols, 1994; 1445 holdings) - Still in print

Encyclopedia of Human Intelligence (2 vols, 1994; 1422 holdings - no update, no longer in print

Encyclopedia of Ethics (2 vols, 1992; 1797 holdings) - 2001 update available for $820

Encyclopedia of Bioethics (5 vols, 2004; 1624 holdings) - still in print

Single volume works (these are all on the cart):

One Hundred Twentieth-Century Philosophers (2001, 724 holdings)

Encyclopedia of Learning and Memory (1992, 1465 holdings) - no update

Encyclopedia of Sleep and Dreaming (1992, 1680 holdings) - no update

Astrology Encyclopedia (1994, 1593 holdings) - updated with 2nd ed in 2003 which is no longer in print

Oxford Dictionary of Psycyology (2001, 2346 holdings) - 3rd ed, 2009 is available for $18--I recommend that we purchase it.

Mental Measurements Yearbook (13th ed., 1998, 286 holdings) - 18th ed will be out in the fall for about $200. Tests: A Comprehensive Reference for Assessments in Psychology, Education, and Business (4th ed, 1997, 996 holdings) - 6th ed, 2008 is available for $69 - I recommend that we update one of these and discard the other, probably Tests because it is less academic and more accessible to our customers.

Secret Language of Birthdays: Personology Profiles for Each Day of the Year (1994, 1243 holdings) - no update--just a fun book you probably forgot about or didn't even know that we had.

Animal Rites: American Culture, the Discourse of Species, and Posthumanist Theory (2003) - an extremely academic book that would be better off in circ.

Recommend discard:

Biographical Encyclopedia of Philosophy (1965)

Animals in Research: A Resource Guide (1995)

Let me know what you think. These are just my recommendations; I'm open to anything you have to say.

Editor & Publisher Market Guide

This yearly publication contains a lot of useful information, yet the last three editions, which were still on the shelf when the 2009 edition came in, look untouched. It costs about $170 per year, which, granted, is not a whole lot compared to some of the titles we have reviewed. But think of it as eight $20 bills and a $10--are we throwing this amount away every year?

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The strength of this volume is the large section of market data for US cities that have daily newspapers. This includes, in addition to population and number of households, principal industries, number of banks and amount of deposits, railroads, shopping centers and retail outlets, colleges and universities, names of newspapers and other data. Although much of this information is available on the internet, the convenience here is the collection of these various pieces of information for each city. The sections on Population, Ages and Ethnicity, Housing, Income and Retail sales are more easily found online.

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It also includes Metropolital Statistical Area (MSA) rankings for such things as population, income, cost of living, high school graduation rates. quality of life, retail sales.

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Is this useful enough, and do we get enough requests for this type of information, to justify the price?

Fulltext Sources Online

Fulltext Sources Online is a two volume publication that is updated twice per year (We keep it behind the reference desk). It costs $285 per year.

We just received the new edition, and the July edition, which it replaces, looks untouched by human hands. Whenever I see this, of course, I question whether we should be getting it.

It lists 41,234 publications whose full text can be found in 25 aggregators (like Ebsco, Factiva, JSTOR, Newsbank, etc). It is arranged alphabetically by title of publication, with subject, geographic and language indexes.

Significantly, 36,417 of the entries include URLs, and of these 13,035 contain free archives. This is noted by a special symbol within the entry. Blogs, radio programs, TV transcripts and newsletters are also included and noted as such in the entry as a document type.

Definitely this is a useful resource. But do we get asked for this kind of information enough to justify the price, or do most patrons want to know what we have access to here in the library (which can quickly be answered by our E-Journal magazine list which can be found here http://nc9gr8gh9t.search.serialssolutions.com/ ).

United States Code Annotated (USCA)

I need your opinions quickly on this. The USCA subscription costs us nearly $2500 per year to keep it up to date. It is all online here http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/ and here http://www.gpoaccess.gov/uscode/index.html (although I do find the online hard to use). Do we use the paper edition enough to justify the expense?

I have no plans of getting rid of the NJ Statutes or the NJ Administrative Code. I think we should keep these despite being also online.

The WestLaw pricing for this stuff is very complicated. We pay approximately $300 per month for the WestLaw database, which no one ever uses (and probably never will). However, since we subscribe to that, we get all our print subscriptions at half price, which actually nets us some savings. However, if we cut the print USCA, the database will actually start costing us money, which we cannot justify. So, clear as mud? (Told you it was complicated).

Let me know what you think as soon as possible, since we have to make a decision on this by Friday 1/30.

Marquis Who's Who on the Web

This week we are looking at a database. Marquis Who's Who on the Web costs $1195 per year. We also still get the paper copy which costs $354 per year. This database is only available within the library. There is no remote access.

As usual, the question is, do we use this enough to make it worth the price? And when we do use it, does it retrieve informtion that answers questions? Is there enough unique information here that is not available in the paper copy? Can we give up the paper copy?

Usage stats are as follows: Jan 4; Feb 8; Mar 11; April 5; May 25; June 15; July 1; Aug 3; Sept 15; Oct 3; Nov 26 (when KF was researching it for her biographical databytes). Unfortunately the way the stats only record searches; they do not record if information was retrieved in the search.

In this year of cutbacks, is this a critical and necessary database? For your information, I have just renewed the Gale Biographical Resource database at the whopping cost of $ 3098 per year (however this does have remote access). At KF's biographical databytes it was generally agreed that this is a critical and necessary database.