Editorial

Citation

Cassell, K. (2012), "Editorial", Collection Building, Vol. 31 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/cb.2012.17131caa.001

Editorial

Article Type: Editorial From: Collection Building, Volume 31, Issue 3

Collection development has so many dimensions as seen by the variety of articles in this issue. The days of our print only collections are far behind us. That is not to say that libraries will not continue to have print resources. I really don’t think that is the case because many books are not yet digitized and a part of the user population is still clinging to print. Yet we cannot deny that much has changed and is changing. Reference collections are moving to electronic only versions at a very fast rate and even the venerable Encyclopedia Britannica will no longer be in print format. Reference materials are very convenient in electronic format with 24/7 access and easy updating. Indexes are all available in electronic format and many users don’t even remember print indexes. But electronic resources have brought with them challenging issues including access, licensing and preservation. Librarians have quickly adjusted to electronic resources, but as the Mangrum and Pozzebon article points out that the lack of up-to-date collection development policies has meant that libraries lack policies for electronic resources to guide staff and inform users. Even when they have collection development policies and include electronic resources, many important issues such as licensing and assessment fail to be addressed. Krynicka’s article provides a good case study in the use of open source software for a national bibliography making it accessible to all.

Although much is now electronic, the Bellmore, Bénaud and Bordeianu article reminds us that preserving the heritage of the past is still an important mission of the library. In fact our unique collections of the future are going to be these archives. The article on J.B. Jackson, cultural geographer, provides the reader and future user with a sense of how preserving the past – both print materials and images – can enrich our knowledge of the areas studied by Jackson and enhance the library’s collection.

Dalia Leonardo illustrates the other side of the coin when she demonstrates the hidden value of Google Books. Google has created many partnerships with European libraries and has been able to digitize many books from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries making available a wealth of primary source material previously only available by traveling to these libraries.

Libraries continue to struggle to gain space for information commons, for study areas for students and other needs. This requires serious decision making where libraries must decide to either deselect parts of their collection or relocate them. The Thomas and Shouse article provides a case study in deselecting and relocating journals to gain space needed by their university. These case studies help others to find useful models for similar projects.

As we move forward often into the unknown, we must look forward and backward at the same time. We must continually evaluate each step we take trying to develop best practices. All of these case studies help us to understand what is working and that we must continue to work towards good solutions.

Kay CassellEditor, Collection Building