Unit 5 discusses the selection and acquisition of documents in libraries, emphasizing the importance of understanding user needs, document selection principles, and various acquisition methods. It highlights the evolving landscape of library resources from print to electronic formats and the role of cooperative acquisition models. The unit outlines selection tools and criteria necessary for effective library collection management.

1. UNIT 5 DOCUMENT SELECTION AND
ACQUISITION
Structure
5.0 LearningOutcomes
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Ascertaining Users Needs
5.3 SelectionofDocuments
5.4 SelectionPrinciples
5.5 SelectionCriteria
5.6 SelectionAids/Tools
5.6.1 Selection Tools for Addition of New Publications
5.6.2 Selection Tools for Addition of Old Publications
5.7 Methods ofAcquisition
5.7.1 Acquisition through Purchase Order
5.7.2 Acquisition through Membership
5.7.3 Acquisition under ExchangeArrangement
5.7.4 Acquisition through Gifts
5.7.5 Acquisition under Deposit System
5.7.6 Order and Receipt Process
5.8 AccessionWork
5.8.1 Accession Policy
5.8.2 Accession Work Procedure
5.9 AcquisitionofSerials
5.9.1 Serials Basics
5.9.2 Selection of Suppliers
5.9.3 Consortia as Method of Acquisition
5.9.4 Order System
5.9.5 Registration or Check -in Record
5.10 Summary
5.11 Answers to SelfCheck Exercises
5.12 Keywords
5.13 References and Further Reading
5.0 LEARNING OUTCOMES
After studyingthis Unit, you willbe able to:
 describe acquisitionroutinesand the changing acquisitionscenario in the present
century;
 highlight methodsofascertaining users needsfor librarymaterials;
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 identify policy, principles and problems in document acquisition and tools for
selectionofdocuments;
 understand methods ofdocument acquisition;and
 identifyproblems inthe order and receipt processes ofacquisitions.
5.1 INTRODUCTION
Libraries exist for readers and servethemwithinformationandknowledgesourcesthat
theyneed. Not onlylibraries serveinformationneeds ofthepresentgenerationbut even
of the future generations as well. To meet and fulfil their mandate, libraries build up
collection througha welldefined process ofselection and acquisitionof information
materials.Acquisition isdefined as employment ofa range ofmethodsto provide users
resources for accessto the information.
Libraries arecategorised aspublic, academicand speciallibrary, dependinguponwhich
type ofuserconstituencyconstitutesthe majorityuser group inalibrary. These different
types oflibraries differ in their information needs and the literature needed to satisfy
their needs. Therefore, the first step to start the acquisition process in a library is to
ascertain the needs of its user community. The next step is to select documents that
have potential to satisfy their needs. Document selection is done from out of the
publications that publishersand other commercialfirms, institutions, organisations and
government bodies publish everyyear bothin print and inelectronic format.
Selection is done taking into account the funds available for acquisition and space
available to accommodate additionalresources. Each librarytherefore has to have a
book selection policy and has to apply it strictly to build its collections on ongoing
basis.Althoughlibrariesacquire resourcesthroughvarious methods, studiesrevealthat
purchase order method for new documents to publishers or their agents is the most
popular mode. The other methods includeacquisitionas gifts or under arrangement of
deposit from individuals or fromresearch organisations and government bodies. In
addition, academicandspeciallibrariesacquiredocumentsunder exchangearrangement
withsisterinstitutionsand professionalorganisations.
Acquisitionofpricedpublicationsalso requiresselectionofappropriatesupplier/suppliers
under agreed terms and conditions of supply. Selection of suppliers has to be made
verycarefullyas incertaincasespayment to suppliers ismade inadvance. Thereare set
routinesforprocessingofacquisitionordersandreceipt ofconsignments.Alltheacquired
materials arenormallyentered in theaccessionrecord before these are processed and
made accessible to readers. Acquisition process is complete once the document has
been entered inthe accession record.
Acquisition Routines and the ChangingAcquisition Scenario
Untilthe closing years of the 19th
Centurylibrarycollection consisted mainlyofonly
books – printed and manuscript. However, the 20th
Century witnessed non-book
materials also becoming part ofthe library collection. These included audio- visuals
such as slides, gramophone record and microfilms. Microfiche, micro card and other
microforms started becoming part of the solution to ease space problem in libraries
created bysteep growth in their serials collection. The multi-media developments in
libraries as stated above, however did not impact much the acquisition routines of
libraries. But the e-resources becoming part of the library collection coupled with
developments in ICT did influence the acquisitioncharacter and its routines in a big
way.The e-resources, unlikeprint materials and othermulti-medianon-book materials,
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quite often do not become part ofthe libraryproperty. Libraries onlyget access rights
to e-resources and not their ownership and that too, undernegotiated licensing terms
andconditions. Therefore,theteamthat isto beconstitutedfortheselectionofresources
must include not only information technology experts but even persons with legal
expertise. Furthermore, steep rise in the subscriptionsto e-serials has ledto libraries to
forge closer cooperation in acquisition. Cooperative acquisition took the form of
consortium.
5.2 ASCERTAINING USERS NEEDS
The aimofa libraryis to meet the informationneeds oftheir users. Therefore, the first
steptostart intheacquisitionprocessinalibraryisto ascertainusersneedsforresources.
Libraries have developed various methods for the purpose althoughsomeofthemare
specific onlyto specialor public libraries.
a) Studyofobjectivesand missionofthe parent organisation/sponsoring body,
b) Studysuggestions received fromusers, ondailybasis or, inconsolidatedform, at
regularintervals,
c) Studyinformationreceived throughsurvey/questionnaires fromusercommunity,
d) Studyofsyllabiof courses ofstudyofthe academic body,
e) Studythe research projects and programmes ofthe parent body,
f) Studyscholars‘profiles maintained for SDI service and
g) Studythe nature, historyand culture ofthe user community.
5.3 SELECTION OF DOCUMENTS
In document selection, the major issues before libraries are resource constraints in
respect of financial resources and physical space and the ever increasing user
requirementsfordocuments. Thegapbetweenthedemandandactuallibraryacquisitions
has beenwidening. Inthis context, theneed for judicious selectionoftitles for building
librarycollections assumes greater importance. The librarytherefore must decide to
form its book selection policyand evolve certain acquisition principles which it may
applyas guidelines in the document selectionprocess. Book selectionpolicymaybe
developed keeping inview: i) the qualityand quantityofexistinglibrarycollection, ii)
the present and anticipated readers needs and iii) the current budget position of the
libraryand its staffing. The actualpolicyframework willhowever varyfromlibraryto
library.
Public Libraries: The users of public libraries are an assortment of people. They
range in age group, educational level and in social and cultural background. Their
information needs are both educational as well as recreational. The book selection
policywillhaveto takeinto accountthesediversitiesinmeetingtheirneeds forliterature.
Though suggestions fromreaders do playa good role in book selectionprocess, it is
theselectioncommitteeandthe librarianwho willplayfarmore activerole indocument
selection.
Academic Libraries: This group consists of school libraries, college libraries and
universitylibraries. School libraries have a homogeneous group of users. To a great
extent theirneedsfor resources are welldefined. Inselectionofmaterialsforthe library,
teachers willplaya dominant role. But one must not overlook the needs ofstudents for
broadening theirknowledge andvisionandhencethe need to provide reading materials
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ofgeneralnature as wellinthe schoollibrarycollection.
The collections in college and university libraries are both homogeneous as well as
heterogeneous. Itishomogeneousintermsofteaching programmes atthe graduate and
post graduatecourses. It isheterogeneousfromthe point ofview ofnumberofsubject
disciplines coveredin academic libraries. Besides, the selectionis amixofpublications
fromlocal, nationaland overseas publishers.Asizeable part oftheir collectionis also in
foreignlanguages. Themost important characteristicofacademic libraryisthedominant
role that the facultymembers playinthe selectionofresources for acquisition.
SpecialLibraries: Speciallibraries are identified bya) smallcollection, b)withnarrow
subject areas andc) bycollectionofpublications ofrecent origin. Librarians inspecial
libraries are quite oftensubject specialists, have direct contact withindividualreaders
and playgoodrole indocument selection. Inspeciallibraries bulkoflibrarycollections
is inthe formofserials, researchreports and pre-prints ofarticles.
Self Check Exercise
Note: i) Write your answers in the spacegiven below.
ii) Check your answers with the answers given at the endofthis Unit.
1) Explainthe changingscenario ofacquisition.
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2) Describe themethods ofascertaining demand for documents.
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3) Describe the differenceincollection ofschoollibraryand speciallibrary.
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5.4 SELECTION PRINCIPLES
Selection principles have beenevolved whichserve as guides forselecting documents
for library. The followings are somewellknownprinciples:
Drury’s Principles: Drury described his principles in his book, Book Selection,
published byALAin 1930. It is a list of21 points. The gist ofhis principles is that the
aim ofselection should be “to provide the right book to the right reader at the right
time”.
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Dewey’s Principles: MelvilDeweysuggested that in selecting document the librarian
should see that the document is “the best reading for the largest number at the least
cost”.
Ranganathan’sPrinciples:AccordingtoDr. S.R. Ranganathan, documentsfallunder
three categories: documents which are of basic or of primary interest to the users;
documents which may be required, at one time or other, to supplement the basic
documents and documentswhichare ofno relevance to the primaryareaofwork. The
first categoryis called umbral documents, the second is called penumbraldocuments
andthethirdiscalledaliendocuments.Thelibraryshouldmakecomprehensivecollection
ofumbraldocuments, selective acquisition of penumbral documents and depend on
other libraries forsatisfying needs for documentsofaliennature.
5.5 SELECTION CRITERIA
Selection of Format
With print resources now becoming available in electronic form also, an important
consideration in library acquisition is to determine the format in which a document
should be acquired. The following are the broad guidelines to decide the document
format inthe selection:
 Reference sources such as directories, yearbooks and encyclopaedias get
out dated fast, hence these should be acquired in electronic format.
 Classicsandtext books typepublicationsandscholarlybooksinvariousdisciplines
are better acquired in print format.
 More and more serials are moving towards electronic format, some exclusively
andsomealongwiththeirprint version.Hence, serialsmaybeacquiredinelectronic
format.
General Criteria for Selection
The following criteria are considered helpfulinthe selectionofdocumentsin print and
electronicformat:
 Authorityofthecreatorofdocument i.e. thestandingofthe author inthe world of
scholarship,
 Scope ofthe subject in the book, i.e. broad or limited,
 Leveloftreatment of the material in the book, i.e. is it meant for young people,
generalreaders or for specialists,
 Arrangement of the matter provided in the book, i.e. whether it is systematic,
logicaland compact or not.
Additional Criteria in the Selection of Electronic Documents
Thefollowingfactorsmayalso betakeninto accountwhileselectingelectronicresources:
 Content:Content shouldbecomplete withexamples, illustrationsand appendices,
news items, etc.
 Access:Access facilityin terms oftime, place and categoryofpersons should be
clear.
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 Support: Hardware and software support for the database should be made very
clear.
 Cost: Databases are available in various cost models; hence the librarymust be
clear about access cost for a document.
Self Check Exercise
Note: i) Write your answers in the spacegiven below.
ii) Check your answers with the answers given at the endofthis Unit.
4) Describe general criteria for selection of document along with additional
considerationfore- documents.
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5) Describe various methodsofacquisitionofdocuments.
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5.6 SELECTION AIDS/ TOOLS
Tools whicharecommonlyused for selectionofdocument fallundertwo categories: a)
tools which help identifynew materials, b) tools which help select older documents,
needed to fill gaps in library collection. Apart from these there are tools which are
helpfulto complete bibliographicaldetails missing inselected documents.
5.6.1 Selection Tools for Addition of New Publications
a) Nationalbibliographiesincluding trade catalogues,
b) Reviewing journals,
c) Directoryofserials and
d) Advertising materials brought out bypublishers fromtime to time.
National Bibliographies
Most ofthecountries now publish nationalbibliographiesrecording new publications
brought out bypublishers ofthecountry.Theseareavailablebothinprint and electronic
form. Thesearelisted indetailinGuide toReference Books, Chicago,AmericanLibrary
Association as well as in Walford‘s Guide to Reference Materials. London, The
LibraryAssociation, 2000.
British NationalBibliographyLondon, TheBritishLibrary. Publishedregularlyfrom
1950, bytheBritishLibrary– itis the most reliablebibliographicalsourceforidentifying
new publicationsinEnglishand someother Europeanlanguages publishedinEngland.
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Indian National Bibliography Kolkata, Central Reference Library, 1958. The
Bibliographybeganasa quarterlypublicationwithannualcumulation. Thispublication
remained irregular formanyyears; from2000 it is published as amonthlywith annual
cumulation at theend ofthe year.
Trade Catalogues
Publishers Weekly New York, R.R. Bowker, 1872-. In addition to providing list of
recentAmericanpublicationsit also provides information aboutAmerican book trade.
American Book Publishing Records NewYork, R.R. Bowker is monthlycumulation
of the Publishers Weekly.
British Book News London, Whittaker
No Indiantradecatalogue is inregular publicationtilldate.
Reviewing Journals
Reviewing journals are a helpful source for book selection. The Times Literary
Supplement and the New York Review of Books are the two well known reviewing
journals inEnglishandother Europeanlanguage publications. But thesesources restrict
their coverage to onlybookspublished inWestern countries. TheBook Review, New
Delhi and the Hindu Literary Review, Chennai, are the examples of some Indian
reviewing journals. TheWednesdayissue ofthe Hindu newspaper carries alist ofnew
publications and two or three long reviews.
Inadditiontotheabove, most ofthescholarlysubject serialsinvarioussubject disciplines
carryreviews ofrecent publications intheir subject fields.
Book ReviewM. 1976- , New Delhi, Book Review LiteraryTrust
Biblio: Review of Books, BM. 1996- , New Delhi, Biblio Charitable Trust
Times Literary Supplement W. London, The Times LiterarySupplement Ltd.
New York Review of Books. New York.
Directory of Serials
Ulrich‘s International Periodical Directory including Irregular Serials and Annuals
published byR.R.Bowkeris the wellknowndirectoryfor serials publishedallover the
world. The Press in India brought out by the Government ofIndia may be used as a
source for selectionofnewspapers and other serials published fromIndia.
Advertising Materials
Publishers, inorder to promotesaleoftheirpublications, bringout advertising materials
suchas follows:
 Publishers Blurbs in the form ofsheets, containing details of a title along with
opinions ofscholarsabout the titles.
 Advance notices for titles about to be published.
 Publishers Catalogues released annually contain briefdescription of each title
and serve as complete record oftheir publications. Such publicitymaterials are
also released during book fairs.
 Publishers‘ websitesare also a source for knowing completerange ofpublication
ofanindividualfirm.
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But allthe above tools are at best a publicitymaterialand should be used as selection
toolwithcaution.
5.6.2 Selection Tools for Addition of Old Publications
a) Printed catalogues ofolder libraries,
b) Standard subject bibliographies,
c) Catalogues ofbook sellers selling second hand books.
Printed Catalogues of Major Libraries
The LibraryofCongress (US). National Union Catalogue.The catalogue was begun
in 1901 in card form.Todayit one ofthe most complete record ofWestern language
publications availableinthe LibraryofCongressincluding collectionofmorethan1500
otherAmericanlibraries who feed informationto the NUC.
The British Library. The British Library General Catalogue of Printed Books.
London, Bingley, 1980-87. 360 volumes.
Both the cataloguesare available online as wellas in CD.
India, NationalLibrary. Author Catalogueof Printed Books inEuropean Languages.
Calcutta,The National Library, 1953. 10 v.
Major Subject Bibliographies
Bibliography of Indian Literature 1901-1953. New Delhi, SahityaAcademy, 1962.
4 v.
Catalogue of Early Printed Books on South Asia, from1586-1864 held inthe Library
ofthe SchoolofOrientalandAfrican Studies. UniversityofLondon. New Delhi,1988.
Bibliographies brought outannuallyunderUnesco Series“InternationalBibliographyof
SocialScience”.
Guide to Reference Sources
Walford,Albert John. Guide to Reference Material.London, LibraryAssociation.3 v.
V.1. Science and Technology, V.2. Social and Historical Sciences, Philosophy
and Religion, V.3. Generalia, Language and Literature, the Arts.
Electronic Databases
Gale Directory of Databases. FarmingtonHills MI: Gale Group.
Very often suggestions for materials received from user community lack complete
bibliographicaldetails. The absence ofthese details hampers the jobofchecking their
availabilityinthelibraryandalso indeciding about vendorforplacingorder. Completion
ofbibliographicaldetailsis therefore animportant and essentialjobwhichis done with
the help ofappropriate sources for the purpose. Tools for completing bibliographical
details are: a) books in print, b) printed catalogues of major libraries c) subject
bibliographies.
Books in Print
Books in Print. R.R .Bowker Co. Begun in 1880, the annual is now available in 9
printed volumes aswellasinCDand online.The informationincludedis author, editor,
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price, publisher, year of publication, number of volumes, Library of Congress card
number and InternationalStandard Book Number.
Whitaker‘s Cumulative Book List. London: Whitaker,1924 -
We have alreadyseen above examples ofmajor librarycatalogues and bibliographies.
5.7 METHODS OFACQUISITION
Libraries acquirematerials througha mixofmethods available forthe purpose:
a) Acquisitionthroughpurchaseorder,
b) Acquisitionthroughmembership,
c) AcquisitionunderExchangeArrangement,
d) AcquisitionthroughGifts, and
e) Acquisitionunder Deposit System.
5.7.1 Acquisition through Purchase Order
Amajor part ofthe acquisitioninlibraries is done through purchasefrompublishers or
their agents. The librarymayselect books brought to the librarybylocalbook sellers.
It mayplace order for selected titles with a localor foreignpublishers/ suppliers. The
library may place standing order to send books to the library, on a specified subject
area, asand whenbooks becomeavailable.Acquisitionbythismethod presents certain
problems to libraries. Some ofthe problemsare common to alllibrariesbut some other
are specificto Indian libraries.
Common Problems
a) Management ofFinancialResources,
b) PersonnelforSelection ofResources,
c) Acquisition Methodfor Purchasing Resources,
d) NegotiationforTerms and Conditions ofSupplyand
e) Problems Specificto IndianLibraries.
a) Management of Financial Resources
Libraries receive a fixed amount each yearfromthe budgetaryallocationofthe parent
body. This amount is mostlybased onprevious year’s expenditure with some increase
to provideforlikelyrise inprices.Animportant functionoflibrarianis to keepaneye on
the overall expenditure, as well as, subject wise or department wise expenditure to
keep it wellwithinthe allocated amount. Inthis functionthe librarian has to face quite
oftentoughsituation with individualdepartmentsor facultymembers. Onewayto get
over such situations is to prepare a proposal for book budget after consulting the
departments about their information needs for the next year and put thembefore the
parent body, beforetheyfinalise book budget for the next year. But the most important
wayisto followa propersystemofaccounting. Itsmainpurposeis to telltheauthorities
as well as the individual faculty member or member of the governing body that the
expenditureisincurredasperapprovedamount.Thelibrariesgenerallykeepthefollowing
records:
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 GeneralInvoice Register,
 Accounts Register (for each subject/department) and
 MonthlyStatement ofExpenditure
b) Personnel for Selection of Resources
Selection of resources in a given discipline is a highly skilled job which requires
responsible persons having exposure indifferent areassuch as follows:
 An exhaustive knowledge ofneeds ofthe user community,
 Anunderstanding ofthe world ofscholarship,
 Acquaintance and knowledge about scholars invarious disciplines,
 Capabilitytotakedecisionaboutformat(online, CD,microfilm)inwhichaparticular
document should be acquired,
 Nature ofthepublishing market and specialisations ofpublishers and
 Familiarity with strength and weaknesses of different selection tools such as
reviewing journals, nationalbibliographies and tradejournals, etc.
Inview ofthe aboveit hasbeenfoundthat the librarianplaysa veryproactiverole inthe
selectionofdocuments.
c) Acquisition Method for Purchasing Resources
Libraries need to decide about one or more of the various systems available for
purchasing resources. The following are somenormallyavailable systems:
i) Open purchase,
ii) Direct orderto publishers,
iii) Books on approval,
iv) Order to a stockist/ jobber,
v) Standing order to anagent/publisher,
vi) Quotation Method/Standing Vender Method
vii) Consortiummethod and
viii) Online Book seller/ Buying Books onWeb.
i) Open Purchase: In case of open purchase library staff, members of the book
selectioncommittee, facultymembers, visit booksellers andmakeselectiononthe
spot. Selected items are transferred to the libraryfor checkingand completing the
process forinvoice settlement. Themethodis simple, time savingand satisfying to
the user community. But it can be adopted fruitfullyonlyin metropolitan cities
where a number of stockists are available. It can also be used during book fairs
when a sizeable publishers and stockists put up their stock on display.
ii) Direct Orderto Publishers: The librarymaychoose placing order for selected
tittles directly to the publishers. The method is credited with many advantages
suchas:
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Advantages of the Method
 Saving onservicecharges (whichare sometimesclaimed iforder isplaced withan
agent/vendor),
 Speed with whichsupplyis executed,
 Prompt replacement ofdefective or missingitems inconsignments,
 Negotiationforlicensingterms,incaseofelectronicsources,protectslibraryinterest,
 Advance payment, ifmade, remains insafer hands,
 Some publishers are reluctant to supplybooks throughanagent and prefer direct
dealing withlibraries,
 E-service interruptioncanbe resolved quickly,
 Back issues of the same e-serial can be accessed on the same server as are the
current issues, and
 Thepublisher canprovide user statistics forindividuale- serials, whichis helpfulin
selectionofserials.
Disadvantages of the Method
But dealingwithpublishers directlyisnot without its disadvantages. The following are
some disadvantages inthe method identified byscholars:
 The librarywillhave to maintainasmanyfilesas thepublishersrequiring morestaff
time infile work,
 Each e-resources firmhaving its ownsearch engine willmake librarystaff learn
their functioning aswellas their vocabulary,
 Publishers deal with bulk order for individualtitles, order for one or two copies
maynot beexecuted withusualdiscount available throughagents,
 Publishers areoftennot prompt incommunicating reasons for delayin supply,
 Individuallibraries havebeenfound to beweak innegotiating termsfor license for
access to e-resource.
iii) Books onApproval
The method ofreceiving books on approvalfor selection and purchase has been the
most preferred waywith most ofthe libraries. Libraries fixa dayin a week or month,
when localstockistsare allowed to bringnew books to library. Booksare selected and
retained for, checking for duplicates and for approval ofselection committee. Once
these steps are over, the total cost of selected books is checked against the budget
allocation for the subject. Iffunds are available order for selected items is confirmed.
Themethodfunctionswellwithlibrariesinmetropolitancities whereconcentrationofa
numberofbooksellersallowschoicefromlargenumberoftitles.Thesedays, booksellers
frommajor cities, takelarge collectionofbooks for selectionevento libraries insmaller
cities.
One major problemin the systemis that selection canbe done fromonlythose books
which booksellers select to bring to a library. Obviouslystockists/booksellers import
only titles for which they consider there would be wider market. Theydo not bring
manyimportant books for whichtheythink there would be onlyfew buyers.
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iv) OrderthroughanAgent/Vendor
Librariesacquirepublicationsbrought out byfairlylargenumberofpublishers. Although
in certainspecific cases it maybe better to order through a publisher. But most ofthe
librariesdealwithagentsfortheirrequirements. Dealingwithagentshasmanyadvantages.
Advantages of the Method
 The foremost advantage is saving on correspondence, saving in stafftime and
saving infile work,
 Withbetter market knowledge theyare efficient inexecuting rushorder,
 In case ofserialsubscriptionagents arepreferred for their upto date information
on likelychanges insubscriptionrates,
 Manyagents have beenfound to offer discount for earlypayment,
 Agentsarenowparticipatinginlibrarians’conferencestohavebetterunderstandings
oflibraryneeds,
 Agents oftensendstaffto the libraryto sort out anytechnicalproblems that might
crop up inaccess to e-resources,
 Incase ofserials inforeignlanguages, language specialists at theagent’s office can
handle foreigntitlesand communicatewithpublisherlibrary’sproblemintheir own
language.
Disadvantages of the Method
 Acquisitionthroughagents is apreferredmethod for serials andthedisadvantages
are also mostlyin connectionwithserials receipt.
 In case of serial subscription, agents follow annual billing system at the old
subscriptionrate.Theyraisesupplementarybillsifthesubscriptionratesarerevised
this createsbudget adjustment problems.
 In case of change of subscription agents, the library must communicate order
number referenceto publishers and informthat it is onlychange ofagent andnot a
new order, to ensure supply.Anydelayincommunication mayresult into break in
supplyofserials. The clarification isalso necessaryotherwise publishers mayask
forrenegotiationforlicensing terms.
 Inchanging theagent, libraryalso loosesusage statistics forthepreviousperiod as
the same was on the server ofthe old agent.
 Since serials are subscribed withadvance payment, failure ofanagents’ firmmay
result into huge financialloss to thelibrary. To get over theproblemlibraries now
enter into a writtenagreement withagents before making advance payment.
 Agents oftenfailto supplypublicationsoriginating innon Englishspeaking areas
such as the Arab countries. In case of learned societies’serials agent demand
handling charges.
 Anydelayby agent in forwarding subscription amount to publisher, the library
mayloose a few issues before supplybegins.
v) Standing OrderMethod
Research institution libraries and academic libraries often need complete or sizeable
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collectiononaspecific area or ina branchofa discipline. Inorder not to miss anything
in their special area libraries place standing order with a firm /firms to supply all
publicationsinthesubject oftheirinterestas andwhenthese arepublished. Suchorders
are opentilltheyare cancelled. Similarpolicyis adopted in case ofpublications under
a series or books which are published in parts over a period of time. But standing
order, for books in a series orbooks published in parts, are limited to the period tillall
its parts have been published. Obviously open standing orders require complete
description of the needs of the library and the type of publications required so that
unwanted materials are not supplied.
vi) Quotation Method/ Standing vendorMethod
Underthemethodlibrariesinvitequotationsfromlocalsuppliersfortermsandconditions
ofsupply and rate ofcommission /discount on printed price ofbooks. Generally, the
quotation of the firm offering highest discount is approved and the firm is asked to
supplyrequired books. Ifthis arrangement isfor the whole financialyearthe method is
called Standing Vendor Method. Alternativelylibrary may go for quotation, each
time it has prepared a list ofits requirements and after inviting quotation may place
order to thefirmoffering the most favourableterms for supply.
Outwardlythemethods seemto beinthe interest ofthe library. But inrealsense these
are not helpfulindeveloping collectionfitfor meetingthe needs ofthe user community.
Clever bookseller byoffering a higher discount gets the firmapprovedfor supply. But
suchfirmsfailto supplytitlesofshort discount orno discount. Theyalso failto supply
titles publishedoutside the Englishspeakingworld or titles inregionallanguages.
vii) Consortium Method ofAcquisition
Acquisitionofresourcesthroughaconsortium,aformofresourcesharingamonglibraries,
emerged inthe late90s
ofthe last century, whensubscribing to electronicserials became
veryexpensive. Under consortiumsystemlibraries, subscribing to the sametittles and
tittlesinthesamefield, formaloose groupcalledconsortium. Thisarrangement helpsin
negotiating favourableterms insubscription rateand services fromtheelectronic serial
supplyingfirms.Theparticipatinglibrariesachievesavinginsubscriptionrate.Theyalso
get facilityofaccessing evento thosejournals not subscribed bythem. IndianNational
DigitalLibraryofEngineering Sciences andTechnology(INDEST) is aconsortiumset
up bytheMinistryofHumanResourceDevelopment in India.
viii) On Line Booksellers/ Buying Books on Web
Digitisation ofalreadypublished book on commerciallevelhas led to emergence ofa
new type ofbook dealers specialising in providing old publications.Amazon.Com is
one of the most well known firms in this category. Other firms include Barnes and
Noble and Borders.
d) Negotiation forTerms and Conditions of Supply
Inacquisitionworknegotiationfor terms andconditions ofsupplyis animportant job.
The firmmust agree to supplymaterials ontime, ingood conditionand asper order for
number ofcopies. It must also be bound to replacedefective copyofatitle. Terms and
conditions ofsupply among other things include: i) trade discount on printed price,
ii) payment method, iii) price models for access to e-resources.
i) Trade discount: Suppliers usuallyprovide a certaindiscount onprinted price of
books. The rateofdiscount is oftensubject ofnegotiation. Someyears back there
was aGoodOffices Committee composed oflibrarians, suppliers’representatives
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and UGC andMinistryofFinance nominees, whichrecommended discount rate
as well as conversion rate for foreign currency priced books. Now days each
libraryhasfreedomto settle these bymutualnegotiation.
ii) Payment Methods: Payment methods are also a point for negotiation.
Subscriptions to serials are generally paid in advance. Some suppliers insist on
advance payment for supplying even books. Advance payment involves risk of
loosing the money if the firm goes out of business or takes undue long time in
executing orders. The librarymust to ensure the credit worthinessofthe supplier
before making advance payment. Some libraries therefore enter into a written
agreement to ensure that the firmdoes not default.
iii) Price Models forE-Resources:Negotiationon price/license fee, for providing
access to e-resources is another important point for negotiation. Since access to
e-resources requires understanding offunctioning of accompanying hardware/
software andtechnicalsupport and eresources often have morethan one pricing
models, it is better ifpeople withtechnicalknowledge and, somewith legalback
ground are also associated innegotiating theterms and conditions ofaccess to e-
resources.
e) Problems Specific to Indian Libraries
The above discussed problems are of general nature faced by libraries all over the
world. But there are certain problems specific to Indian libraries. These include:
i) locationofbook market, ii)Foreign(Non-English) language publications, iii) Indian
languages publications, iv) Serials subscriptionandv) Government publications.
i) Location ofBook Market: In Indiapublishing industryis concentrated in a few
metropolitan cities. Libraries in outlying areas have to depend on localjobbers
who often failto bring needed materials. Orders placed with major booksellers
are not attended promptly. Information about new publication reach late and by
the time orders are placed titles get sold out.
ii) Foreign (Non-English)Language Publications:Indianbook dealershave very
limited facilityforimporting books fromnon-Englishlanguagespublishingworld.
Academic libraries withfacilities for areastudies failto provideenoughmaterials
for supporting teachingand researchprogrammes for lackofrequired resources.
iii) Serials Subscription: Indian libraries face problem in selecting serials for their
libraries as no up to date directorywith complete details like those provided by
the Ulrichs’directory.
iv) Indian Languages Publications:Publishers ofbooks in Indianlanguages have
not beenable to publish enoughbooks to support higher levelstudies. Selection
toolsforIndianlanguages publicationsonthepatternofEnglishlanguage have not
developed inthe country.
v) Government Publications:
5.7.2 Acquisition through Membership
Libraries receive publicationsbyvirtue oftheir membership ofresearch organisations,
academic bodies and professionalassociations. The membership to these bodies may
be free or it may require payment of an annual fee. As part of their mandate, these
organisations bringout publicationsanddistributethemto their members.Animportant
characteristic ofsuchpublications is that theseare oftennot available in openmarket.
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5.7.3 Acquisition under Exchange Arrangement
Librariesget publicationsunder exchangearrangement withresearchorganisationsand
universities in lieu of publications of its own parent body. Mostly such exchange
arrangements are for exchanging serial publications. Acquisition under exchange
agreement betweennationallibraries oftwo countries is also a verycommon feature.
Exchange arrangement canbe ofopennature where the two agreeing bodies exchange
publications irrespective ofvalue ofpublications. Inother cases an attempt is made to
see that the value of publications exchanged is equalto the value of the publications
received.
5.7.4 Acquisition through Gifts
Acquisition of publications through gift is a well known source for libraries of all
categories. Gift maybe received without anyrequest for it, orit maybe inresponse to
arequestbythelibrary. Inmost ofthecountries,librariesreceiveasgiftcertaincategories
ofcentralandstate government publications asa matter ofroutine. Politicalparties and
pressure groups also gift their publications to propagate their views and ideologies.
Internationalorganisationssuch as the Unesco, the World Bank, United Nationand its
subordinate agencies send their publications as gift on regular basis to academic and
researchlibraries.
Families of eminent personalities gift their collection on their death to one or other
library. Even eminent scholars, on retirement fromactive life, gift their collection to a
library. Suchcollections are prominentlydisplayed in libraries as aseparate collection
with the name of the donor. You will see such collections in the NationalLibrary of
India, the library of the Asiatic Society of India, Kolkata and many academic and
speciallibraries.Resourcesreceivedasgift,often, containvaluablematerialsnot available
in the libraryand also not available in openmarket.
Materials receivedas gift also createproblems for libraries. Sometimesgifts come with
certain conditionswhichlibraries find difficult to fulfil. Some gifted collections contain
materialsnot relevantorout ofscopeofthelibrary. Suchmaterialscreate spaceproblem.
It has been suggested that the libraryshould have a clear policyabout acceptance of
materials offeredas gift.
5.7.5 Acquisition under Deposit System
Universitylibraries, researchinstitutionlibrariesandstate leveland nationallevelpublic
libraries are often selected as depository libraries government publications. Some
international organisations such as the Unesco, the World Bank, the ILO, etc. also
makesomelibraries as theirdepositorylibrary. The JawaharlalNehruUniversityLibrary
is adepositorylibraryfor UnitedNations publications. Gokhale InstituteofEconomics
and Politics is depositorylibraryfor theWorld Bank publications.
Oftensuch materialsare not relevant to the libraryneeds and createspace problemand
service problems. Their management is time consuming. The library must keep on
assessing theirusevalue and wherepossible, weed out unwantedpublicationsat regular
intervals.
Another type ofdeposit is collection ofprivate books and documents ofwell known
persons kept in a library and opento scholars for research purpose only. The Sapru
House (ICWA) Library has private papers of Jaya Prakash Narayan. The Nehru
Memorial Museumand Library is famous for deposits of private papers of eminent
politicians and socialworkers.
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Self Check Exercise
Note: i) Write your answers in the spacegiven below.
ii) Check your answers with the answers given at the endofthis Unit.
6) Describe systems normallyavailable for purchasing documents.
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7) Describe problems specific to India inpurchasing documents.
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5.7.6 Order and Receipt Process
Order process is composed ofthree routines:
i) Pre-orderroutines,
ii) Order placingroutines and
iii) Receipt of supply routines.
Pre-order Routines
 Checking of book selection slips:Allthe slips readyfor indent arechecked, for
accuracyand completeness ofbibliographic details;forduplicationwith existing
collection; for duplication with record ofbooks alreadyon order and record of
those alreadyreceived but awaiting processing. Slips whichare found duplicate
are checked with in charge ofthe section ifduplicate copy/copies are required.
 Confirmation of funds availability: The totalcost ofthe indent is checked up
with the financialprovision under eachsubject and the unspent balance available
inthe budget.
Order Placing Routines
Before forwardingorders to selected firms, the terms and conditionofsupplyshould
be checked to avoid supplier making extra charge for postage and packaging in the
invoice;clarificationmadeinorder lettermodeofdespatchfor items onorder;need for
anyspecificrequirement ininvoice, etc. shouldbe clarified;the estimatedamount ofthe
order should recoded in budget allocationregister. The book selectioncards ofbooks
ordered should be filed in order tray.
Receipt of Supply Routines
 The first jobin receipt ofsupplyis checking the package for correct address and
its physicalcondition.
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 Thenext job,afteropening, istoseeforanycommunicationinthe packet regarding
supplypositionoftitles not supplied.
 Compare the supplied titles with the order copyand verifyfor number ofcopies
and priceofthe titles.
 Thisisfollowedbyscrutinyofeachtitleforits physicalconditionand completeness
ofthe text. Defective and incomplete titles must be returned promptly.
 Transfer corresponding bookselection cards fromorder trayto receipt tray.
 The books along with the invoice maybe now sent for accession record. After
accession the invoice with accession numberrecorded, shallbe enteredinthe bill
register for transferto the payment office.
5.8 ACCESSION WORK
The acquired materials are property of the library and the library should have their
inventory in some form or other. Accession work is the routine of preparing and
maintainingtheinventoryofcollection.Automatedlibrarieshaveamoduleforaccession.
Intheabsence ofautomation, theinventoryis maintained inthe card formorinregister
form. Maintaining accessionrecord inregister formhas beeninpractice fora longtime.
Since the record has to bepreserved the register used must be ofstrong qualitypaper
and havegood qualitybinding. Dr. Ranganathanhas suggested that the book selection
cardwhichhascompletebibliographicaldetailsmayhavecolumnforrecordingaccession
number. Onreceipt ofabookthecorrespondingbook selectioncardshouldbe removed
fromorder tray, the serialnumber assigned to the book maybe entered inthe column
and the same card may be preserved as accession record. Following this method, all
book selection cards, on receipt of books, shallturn into accessioncards arranged in
trays in serialorder. But the trays containing cards must be kept insafetycupboard.
5.8.1 Accession Policy
Accession work is recording acquired material in a register. All the material that has
been acquired and accessioned must be preserved. Libraries collect bothbooks and
non-book materials. Theyalso acquire electronic materials, both online and offline.
Though majorityof the documents are purchased, a substantial number acquired, is
received as gift, under membership or exchange arrangement. Among those not
purchased, often a large number of materials are of temporary value and not worth
preservation. Similarlyserials become a completevolume after receipt ofallthe issues.
Books, published in parts, but withrunning page number, become complete when all
the parts havebeen received. Thephysicaldetails ofnon-bookmaterials are different
fromthose ofbooksorserialsandcannot berecordedinaccessionregisterwithcolumns
developed for books or book like materials.
In view ofthese and similar issues, the library must formulate anaccession policyto
resolve these issues. The policyshallspell:
a) criteria for deciding what, among those acquired without payment, should be
accessioned,
b) whether there should be a separate or one register,
 for books and non-book materials,
 for purchased and gifted materials,
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c) whether recordabout the price offoreignpublications,
 should be convertedin Indianrupee or writtenin foreigncurrency.
 should be the printed price or actualprice paid after deducting commission
on the price.
d) whether author’s nameshouldbe writtenininvertedformor astheyappearonthe
title page,
e) how to write price ofa gifted book with no printed price on the book.
Smaller libraries follow single sequence accessionregister for accessionwork as their
collectionconsistsmainlyofbooks.Accessionregisterfor books, withprinted columns,
are available withlibrarystationarysuppliers.
5.8.2 Accession Work Procedure
Books, received in order section, after checking for correct supplyand recorded in
order file, theseare transferred to theaccessionsectionalong withbillfor accessioning.
Actualaccessionwork is carried out as follows:
 Books are arranged in the order inwhich theyare listed inthe bill.
 Each bookis examined for anydefect in pagination, binding defect and presence
ofinserts such as map, CD, etc.
 Bibliographic informationofthe book is recorded in the appropriate columns of
theregister.
 The serialnumber ofentryin the register, called accession number, is written on
the verso of the title page and at the last page of the book. Some libraries fix a
page inthe text ofthe book as library’s secret page and record accessionnumber
onthispagealso. This practice hasbeenfound veryhelpfulinidentifying details of
a bookifits title page is missing.
 The accessionnumberofthe first bookand after a dashthat ofthe last book inthe
billis writtenonthe bill.
 The bill is transferred to the accounts section and the book is transferred to the
technicalsection.
Books receivedwithout bill(gifted, ordeposited etc.,) are first arrangedinalphabetical
order byauthor’s name before accessioningtheminthe accessionrecord.Anestimated
price is writtenin price column ifprice is not printed on the book.
Self Check Exercise
Note: i) Write youranswer inthe space given below.
ii) Check your answer with the answers givenat the endofthis Unit.
8) Describe the points to be covered inan accession policy.
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5.9 ACQUISITION OF SERIALS
5.9.1 Serials Basics
Traditionallyperiodicalacquisitionwork has beenconsideredsomewhat different from
book acquisition. As a result it is carried out by periodical department. The annual
workinserials acquisitioninvolves renewalofsubscriptionor additionand cancellation
of a few titles. However, periodicals selection is just a one time job. According to
W.G. Potter the serial management functions requiring special treatment are the
subscription control, check in, claiming and binding and these are largely clerical in
nature. These functions need special treatment due to peculiarities of periodicals
publications whichDr. Ranganathanhas givenas follows:
 Titles containgenericnames suchas Newsletter, Bulletin, Proceeding, etc.
 Titles change onrepublicationafter suspensionofpublicationfor some time.
 Titleschangedue to split ofa journalinto two independent serialsor mergerofone
serialwithsome other serial.
 Publicationschedules change, say, frommonthlyto fortnightlyor bi- monthly.
 Change in sponsoring bodyafter, say, anacademic bodyhands over the serialto
a commercialfirmand againresumed bythe academic body.
Theacquisitionofserialsinvolves:i)ascertainingdemand,ii)selectionoftitles, iii)selection
of suppliers and management of finance. Periodicals, like books are also acquired
throughorder, membership, exchange and gift.The routines under allthe above heads
are no different fromthose we have studied above inrelation to monographs. We shall
therefore restrict our descriptionto areaswhich are distinct frombook acquisition.
5.9.2 Selection of Suppliers
Periodicals, unlike books, arrive inissues spreadover a whole year. Often, though not
always, eachtitleis published byonlyone agency. Payments for subscriptionare made
inadvance forone or more years.Annualroutines insubscriptionare limitedmostlyto
renewals, additionofnewtitlesand cancellationofsome oldtitles.Acquisitionistitleby
title fromalarge number ofpublishers. These peculiarities have ledlibraries to restrict
selection ofsuppliers to subscription agents, despite associated risks such as losing
advance payment made to an agent ifthe firmgoes out ofbusiness. The following are
some pointsthat go infavourofagents:
 Faster file clearance since the libraryis not required to maintain multiple files,
 Accounting becomes easier as library is now not required to deal with multiple
invoices,
 Faster subscription renewals as agents have up to date pricing information and
canalso provide advice on signing licensecontract for e-titles,
 Manyagents are known to offer discount on earlypayments,
 Rushorderprocessing iseasiersinceagentscanprocesssubscriptiontitles quickly
and
 Agents quite oftensend their staffto client libraryto sort out anyproblems arising
in computer systeminthe periodicalsection.
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5.9.3 Consortia as Method of Acquisition
Theemergenceofdigitalserialscoupledwiththeirhighsubscriptioncostsforcedlibraries
in the 1990s to turn towards cooperation in serials acquisition. The Internet, World
Wide Web and other distributed information systems made resource sharing more
efficient. This sort of developments in computing have made acquisition through
consortiummodefeasible and provided librariesmore leverage to negotiateterms ofe-
journals supplyintheir favour. Consortiummethod ofserials acquisitionoffers added
advantage. It provides everyconsortium member library totalaccess to consortium
resources irrespective ofe-journals it has subscribed. This feature increases libraries
reachto moreandmorejournals without anyadditionalcost. Someimportant consortia
in Indiaare the INDEST and CSIR E-JournalConsortium.
5.9.4 Order System
Serials order work has been categorised as:
 First Order or order for new titles
 Renewaland Cancellation
 Order for Back Issues
First Order: First order refers to order placed with vendors for periodicals selected
foracquisitionforthe first time. Librariesdecide about the journalsandmagazines to be
acquired in the libraryin the veryfirst year oftheir inception. We may callthis as the
corelist ofperiodicalsacquired byalibrary.The list, finalisedbytheselectioncommittee,
is split into magazines and periodicals. Magazines are periodicals of popular nature,
containing generalarticles, stories and cartoons, etc. Periodicalpublications contain
articles ofscholarlynature, news and reviews ofbooks, ona discipline or branchofa
discipline. Ordersfornewspapersandmagazinesareusuallygiventosomelocalsupplier
ofnewspapers. This order is almost a standing order tillit is cancelled. Bills for such
local supplies are settled on post receipt basis at the end of the month. Such bills are
passed after checkingthe receipt positionfromthe register ofentryfor these materials.
The first orderfor core periodicals isplaced with the approved supplier/suppliers inan
order formofstandard format. It contains title, ISSN, publishers’name and address,
volume, issue number and date of the first issue to be supplied and delivery mode
(surface mailor airmail) about eachperiodical. Eachtitleis also givenanorder number.
The order is placed withclear descriptionthat it is a standing order andsubscription is
to be renewed annually till cancellation letter is issued for any or all the titles. The
periodicalsectionmaintains two files, one containing the list ofserials subscribed, in
whichtitlesarelistedalphabeticallybytheir namesandintheotherlist titlesare arranged
by order number of the titles. The office copy ofthe order letter, after the order has
beenposted, is filed afterrecordingorder reference ontheregistration/Check-inrecord
for eachtitle on order.
Renewal and Cancellation of Subscription: Renewalofsubscription is an annual
routine. The agent/vendor automatically, ona fixed date before the expiryofperiod of
subscription, sends to the library, either a check list or a set of invoices for all the
periodicalssubscribedthroughthefirm, for library’sreviewandinstruction.Theinvoices
are checkedwiththe registration recordand incase ofregular supplyoftitles, the new
invoice are transferred to the administration for payment. Major subscription agents
oftensendaone lineinvoicecoveringsubscriptionforallthejournalssubscribed through
themaroundSeptemberorOctoberbeforetheexpiryoftheearliersubscription. Libraries
make the payment after checking receipt positionof the titles covered in the invoice.
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Their definitive invoicesare sent inMarch/Apriland the libraryoncheckingthe totalof
the new set of invoices either pays the balance due or raises credit demand on the
vendor.
Cancellation:Actionfor cancellation oftitle/titlesshould be initiated muchbefore the
expirydate ofthe current subscription to enable the vendor to informpublisher to stop
the supply. Cancellation cannot be done for a title during it current supply.
Back Issues Order: Orders for back issues are placed for one or more copies of the
following threetypes ofserials:
a) Issue orissues received but lost or defaced and requiredreplacement to complete
afile/files,
b) Specialissueofajournalnotcoveredundertheannualjournalsubscriptionpayment
and
c) Loose issues ora wholevolumeofajournalnot coveredunder librarysubscription
order.
Details about orderofback issue numbersshould be noted inthe registrationrecord so
that onreceipt it is not considered as a duplicate arrivalbymistake.
5.9.5 Registration or Check-in Record
Journals are publishedinpartsat fixedintervals and becomeacomplete entitydeserving
accessionafter theyareboundinavolume. The mechanismdevelopedto controlreceipt
of loose issues is called registration or check-in. In manual registration, register or
cards are used. In case of register system, the register may be with bound pages or
loose leaves.
Bound pages register: Registers used generally have alphabetic indexpages in the
beginning. Each page ofthe register is used for registration ofone title. The essential
details ofthe journals are writtenon the top ofthe page. The lower portion is divided
into required columns for recording receipt ofindividualissues. Once the page is full
one has to move to a page much away fromthe previous page. In loose leaf system
leaves are held together in abinder withfacilityto insert a page adjacent to the original
page. Boththe above systemssufferfromlack ofprovisionto alert about nonreceipt of
aparticularissueontime. Failureto send atimelyreminderfor nonreceipthas possibility
oflosing the issue.
Card System: Incard systemuniformsize cards are used whichare kept ina cabinet.
The sizes used are 4×6" and 5"×3". There are one card, two cards and thee cards
system.
OneCard System: Thesystemusescardof6×4size. Front sidehasspacefor recording
permanent information about the journali.e., title, publisher periodicitysubscription
details, etc. Thelower part has horizontalcolumns for recording receipt ofissues. The
verso ofthecardisusedforrecordingsubscriptionamountpaymentdetailsandrecording
reminders. Thesystemis good for smalllibraries.
Two Card System: Kardexdeveloped in India byRemington Co. is an example of
two card, bottomcard and topcard. Bottomcard isfor recoding essentialdetailsofthe
journaland recording receipt. Top card is recording payment details and reminders.
Three Card System: Developed by Dr.S.R.Ranganathan Three card consists of
registration card, check card and classified index card. Registration card has all the
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22. 108
essentialdetails on its top and lower portion is used for issue registration. The check
card alerts non receipt of an issue. Classified index card helps know holdings of the
specific journal.
5.10 SUMMARY
Libraries are developed to meet the readers need for information and knowledge.
Documents are acquired, processed and organised for easyaccess.
ThequalityandlevelofdocumentsacquiredvariesaspertypeoflibraryPublic,Academic
and Special.
The type andvarietyofdocuments acquired bylibraries has undergone change over a
period oftime. Bookscollected have undergonechangesinphysicalformover a period
oftime andnow these are available also inelectronic form.
The first functionindeveloping collectionis to ascertainreaders’needsfor documents.
Various methods are available for this function and these are used in combination or
each independently.
The selectionis guided bycertainprinciples developed bypersonslike Drury, Dewey
and Ranganathan. Criteria have beendeveloped for guidanceinselecting documents.
Selection tools in the form ofserials recording documents published by commercial
firms as well as academic bodies, organisations and individuals. Some of these are
cumulated in monthly, quarterly and annual volumes. Specially compiled subject
bibliographies, catalogueofmajor old librariesare helpfulin selectingold but relevant
documents.
Libraries inIndia are handicapped inacquiring new publications asno reliable, regular
selectiontoolforIndianpublication is availablein the country.
There are set procedure for placing order, receiving supplied documents and making
payments. Libraries maintainvarious registers to keep aneye onthe expenditure lest it
exceeds the allotted amount.
Acquired documents are entered into anaccessionregister as peraccession policyand
prepared for use in the technicalsection.
Acquisition of serials is handled by Periodical section as these are acquired against
advance payment.Academic and research libraries which depend more onserials are
nowformingconsortiumtotakeadvantageofcollectivebargainingintermsandconditions
of use and access.
5.11 ANSWERS TO SELF CHECK EXERCISES
1) The Twentieth Century saw non-book materials becoming part of the library
collection. Towards the end ofthe First World War, serials became an important
part ofresearchand universitylibraries. Microforms were developed to solve the
space problemfaceddue to additionofserials incollection. The last decade ofthe
TwentiethCenturysaw e-resources becoming part oflibrarycollection.
2) The demands are ascertained bythe:
 Studyofobjectivesand missionofthe parent organisation/sponsoring body,
 Suggestions received fromusers, on dailybasis or, in consolidated form, at
regularintervals.
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23. 109
 Informationcollected throughsurvey/questionnairesfromuser community,
 Studyofsyllabiof courses ofstudyofthe academic body,
 Studyofresearchprojects and programmes ofthe parent body,
 Studyofscholars‘profiles maintained bylibrary,
 Nature, historyand culture oftheuser community.
3) Schoollibraries havea homogeneous group ofusers. To a great extent their needs
for resources aredefined. In selectionofmaterials for libraryteachers playa very
dominant role. But one must not overlook the needs ofstudents for broadening
their knowledge andvisionthroughreading materials ofgeneralnature.
Speciallibrariesare identified by: a) smallcollection, b) onnarrow subject areas
and c) bycollectionofpublicationsofrecent origin. Librariansinspeciallibraries
are oftensubject specialists.
4) The following criteria are considered helpfulin selection ofdocuments both for
electronic as wellas printed documents:
 Theauthorityofthe creator ofdocument i.e. thestandingofthe authorinthe
world ofscholarship,
 Scope oftreatment ofthe subject inthe book, i.e. broad or limited,
 Level of treatment of the material in the book, i.e. is it meant for young
people, generalreaders or for specialist readers,
 Arrangement ofthe matterprovidedinthe book, i.e. whetherit is systematic,
logicaland compact or not.
5) Libraries acquire materialsthrougha mixofthe following methods:
1) Acquisition throughpurchase byorder to publishers or vendors,
2) Acquisitionundermembership to institution/associationor organisation,
3) Acquisition under exchange of publications arrangement with academic/
research bodies,
4) Receipt of gift of whole collection or selected materials as on request or
without request fromindividualsorinstitutions,
5) Acquisition as deposit from government/ international and national
organisations.
6) The following aresome normallyavailable systems:
1) Open purchase,
2) Direct orderto publishers,
3) Books on approval,
4) Order to a stockist/ jobber,
5) Standing order to anagent/publisher,
6) Quotation Method/ StandingVendor Method
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7) Consortiummethod,
8) Online Book seller/ Buying Books onWeb.
7) The problems specific to India inpurchasing documents are:
 Book market concentrated infew metropolitancities only.
 Localbooksellershave limited capacityforsupplying foreign publications.
 Suppliersfailto supplynonEnglishlanguagepublicationsofforeign countries.
 Non-availabilityofbooksinIndianlanguages to support educationinhigher
studies.
 There is no up to date directoryforIndian serialpublications.
8) The policyshallspell:
a) criteriafordecidingwhichdocument, amongthoseacquiredwithout payment,
should be accessioned,
b) whether there should be a separate or one register,
c) for booksand non bookmaterials, for purchased and non purchased ,gifted
materials,
d) whether recordof price offoreignpublicationsshould beconverted inrupee
or written in foreign currency should be printed price or actual price paid
after deducting commissiononthe price,
e) whether author’sname should be writtenin inverted formor as theyappear
on thetitle page,
f) how to write price ofa gifted book with no printed price on the book.
5.12 KEYWORDS
Accession Record : It is record ofdocuments available ina library. It
is maintained ina register or oncardsin order of
their acquisition.
Acquisition : It refers to process of procurement of
bibliographic materialsbypurchase, exchangeor
gift. The jobs include pre order searching,
ordering and receiving materials, processing
invoices for payment and keeping necessary
records.
Audio-Visuals : Audio-visualsaredocumentswhichcontainvisual
as wellas sound ofthe visualobjects.
Book Selection Principles : Principles developed by scholars to serve as
guide inselection ofdocuments ina library.
BudgetAllocation Register : Register containing information about fund
allocated to each subject/department in book
budget ofthe library.
Card System : Inthecontextofperiodicalacquisition, recording
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ofreceipt ofindividualissues ofperiodicals ona
card in the Three Card Systemisknown as card
system.
Check in System : The method of recording receipt of individual
issuesofperiodicals recorded onacard/ register
page. Ithelpslibraryprompt actioninrequesting
for themissing issues.
Consortium : Organisation or grouping oflibraries formed to
acquire e-serials intheir common interest areas
generallyinthe field ofscience and technology.
Consortiumgives more power to participating
libraries in negotiating for favourable terms of
access to electronic sources.
Deposit System : The government bodies/organisations national
and international identify certain libraries, for
depositing their publications, as and whenthese
are published, for use ofreaders.
Drury’s Principle of
Book Selection : Propounded by Druryin 1930, in nut shell it is
“To provide the right book to the right reader at
theright time.”
E-source/
Electronic Source : Document in electronic form and accessible
throughcomputer orsimilar other devices.
First Order : Order for core list ofperiodicals ofa library.
Format : Form, physicalorelectronic,inwhichadocument
is available.
Generic Name : Name denoting a class such as “News Letter”,
Magazine, etc. Name describing a category or
genre.
Good Offices Committee : Committeeconsistingofrepresentatives ofILA,
UGC, Govt. ofIndia andIndianBooksellersand
Publishers, formed inthe Seventies to regulate
conversionratesofthe price offoreigncurrency
priced books, as also to decide rate ofdiscount
on printed price of books, etc. for Indian and
foreignpublications.TheCommitteewitheredout
with stability in exchange rates for the Indian
rupee and withdrawal of UGC and the
representative oftheMinistryofFinance.
Hardware : The electronic and mechanical component of
computer.
Insert Page : Page/pagesputinabookinbetweenserialpages
having a map, a photograph, etc. to support a
description inthe book.
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ISSN : InternationalStandardSerialNumber givento a
serial.
Jobbers : Book supplierswho keep in touchwithlibraries
to make prompt supply to the libraries books
needed urgently.
Licensing Terms : Refers to provisions in the license granted to a
librarybye-sourcesproviders about time, place
andnumberofpersonsallowedforaccessingthe
e-source.
Metropolitan Cities : Large cities where stockiest ofpublishers have
their offices.
Microfiche : Adocument’s originalpagesreproduced inserial
formacross a single sheet offilm. Each ofthese
images is called a frame. The termfiche itselfis
French for card and the filmsheets are indeed,
index card size 4×6 inches or their meteric
equivalents.
Microform : Reproductions of documents, generally by
photographic techniquesina formmuchsmaller
thanthe originale.g. microfilms, microfiches.
Non-book Materials : Documents available in the micro form or in
electronic formwhich are to be read through a
machine or computer. It also includes
photographs, tapes and map sheets.
Open Purchase : Acquisitionofdocumentsthroughdirect purchase
bylibrarystaff/facultymembers inbook fairs or
frombook shops as against acquisitionthrough
placing order witha firm.
Price Models : The termrefers to different prices for the same
e-document dependinguponthe access facilities
to the document.
PenumbralDocument : A document not on a given subject but kept in
closeproximityto documentsonagivensubject,
for havingclose relationship to that subject. The
term was coined by Dr. Ranganathan in the
context ofshelving ofbooks inthe stack.
Quotation Method : Selection ofvendors for supplying books for a
whole year. The firms are asked to quote their
terms and conditions of supplyand a vendor is
selection a vendor with terms more favourable
to the library.
Rush Order : Placing order for a book or for entering
subscriptionfor serialat short notice.
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27. 113
Scholar’s Profile : Description of research scholar’s topic of
research, areas related to the topic, types of
documentsrequired, decencyofdocuments, etc.
Secret Page : Apageinthebook identifiedto recordaccession
number, callnumber and stamp ofthe libraryto
help identifythe document ifitsearlier pages are
foundmissing.
Service Charge : Charge bythe vendor overandabovethe printed
price forbooks which are not available through
normalchannels.
Selection Policy : Considerations that are normally taken into
considerationintakinginselectingdocumentsfor
a library.
Selection Tools : Sources used forselectionofdocuments. These
include national bibliography, publishers
‘catalogues, commerciallypublishedlists ofnew
books, reviewingserials, etc.
Short Discount Titles : Bookprocuredbyagents/jobbersthroughspecial
effortsinvolvingmorethannormalexpenditures.
In suchcases libraries do not get usualdiscount
on printed price.
Software : Instructions for the computer to execute
instructions.
Standing Order : Order for supply of a particular category of
documents as and when these are published,
without waiting forits specific order.
StandingVendor : Vendor authorised to supply all library
requirementsduringafinancialyearat theagreed
rate ofdiscount.
Supplementary Bill : Bill raised by subscription agents to meet the
increased subscription rate for certain serials
fromthe NewYear.
Trade Catalogue : Publishers cataloguelisting newpublications.
Trade Discount : Practice of booksellers allowing discount on
published price ofbooks.
UmbralDocuments : Refers to those Documents which belongto the
main area of interest of a certain category of
scholars.
Verso Page : Back ofthe title page ofa book.
Vendor : Popular termfor book supplier.
Document Selection and
Acquisition

28. 114
5.13 REFRENCES AND FURTHER READING
Mangla, P.B., ed. Building Library Collection and National policy for Library and
Information Services. Delhi: ILA, 1985. Print.
Evans, G. Edward . Developing Library and Information Centre Collections. 4th
ed. Colorado, Greenwood: 2004. Print.
Gorman G.E. and R. H. Miller, ed. Collection Management for 21st
Century: A
Handbook for Librarians. Westport, NY: Greenwood, 1997. Print.
Bryant, B., ed. Guide for Written Collection Policy Statement. Chicago:ALA, 1989.
Print.
Gupta, S.R. Stock Verification. Delhi: Ken. Pub, 1990. Print.
Hazen, Dan C. “Collection Development Policies in the InformationAge”. College
and Research Libraries. 56(1995): 29-31. Print.
Kovacs, D.K. Building Electronic Library Collection: the essential Guide to
Selection Criteria and Core Subject Collections. NewYork: Neal Schuman, 2000.
Print.
Mittal, R. L. Library Administration: Theory and Practice. 5th
ed., New Delhi:
Metropolitan Book , 1984. Print.
Nisongar, Thomas. Management of Serials in Libraries.Englewood, Colo. :Libraries
Unlimited, 1998. Print.
Library Routines