NCompass Live: Ditching Dewey: How we converted from Dewey to BISAC and lived to tell about it
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NCompass Live - Aug. 8, 2018 http://nlc.nebraska.gov/ncompasslive/ Parchment Community Library was encountering more and more adults who had never been taught the Dewey Decimal Classification system in school. They wanted their collection to be easily browsed, so in about 18 months, they converted from DDC to BISAC call numbers. Learn how their staff completed this challenging task – "at times we felt that we were trying to draw a map while driving full-speed down the road" – and hear how their patrons have reacted to the new system. Presenter: Teresa Stannard, Library Director, Parchment (MI) Community Library.
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NCompass Live: Ditching Dewey: How we converted from Dewey to BISAC and lived to tell about it
- 1. Ditching Dewey How we converted from Dewey to BISAC and lived to tell about it
- 2. Ditching Dewey: How We Did It • Who we are: The Parchment Community Library • Why we decided to make the change • Building the toolbox, assembling the team • Drawing the map while driving • How to maintain order during the transition • Last steps: Re-shelving and re-labeling • Our customers’ reaction to the change
- 3. Parchment Community Library Parchment, Michigan Service area 10,000 Just north of Kalamazoo “You Are Here” by Stephen Hansen Kalamazoo-Battle Creek Airport
- 4. Why we decided to make the change • A significant proportion of our patrons don’t understand Dewey • Our non-fiction circulation was decreasing • A couple of library branches in nearby cities switched to BISAC and we liked the idea
- 5. Building the Toolbox, Assembling the Team Our primary tools • BISAC “Book Industry Subject and Category Codes” • Google Doc to create shared Master List • Dymo label makers Our team – Director, two (or three) catalogers, Children’s Librarian • Keep the team small (Too many cooks…) • But don’t keep the team too small – this isn’t a one- person project. Collaboration is key
- 6. Drawing the map while driving Separate and collaborate • Assign each Dewey section to a single team member. The books in that section will be classed in more than one BISAC category and it helps for one person to consider the section as a whole. • Meet often to discuss titles that are difficult to classify • Use the Master List as a working tool, adding comments and questions as you go • Use additional Google Docs to track progress Hit a dead end? Don’t give up! • The task may seem overwhelming at first but it gets easier • This is a nice opportunity to weed & update the collection • You will probably need to make changes after re-shelving, so don’t sweat the small stuff
- 7. BISAC BISAC https://bisg.org/page/BISACEdition • We decided to use BISAC headings after making an attempt to create our own • BISAC headings are widely used in book stores, so our patrons are familiar with them
- 8. BISAC Subject Headings (2017) ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES GAMES & ACTIVITIES PHILOSOPHY ARCHITECTURE GARDENING PHOTOGRAPHY ART HEALTH & FITNESS POETRY BIBLES HISTORY POLITICAL SCIENCE BIOGRAPHY HOUSE & HOME PSYCHOLOGY BODY, MIND & SPIRIT HUMOR REFERENCE BUSINESS & ECONOMICS LANGUAGE ARTS SCIENCE COMPUTERS LAW SELF-HELP COOKING LITERARY COLLECTIONS SOCIAL SCIENCE CRAFTS & HOBBIES LITERARY CRITICISM SPORTS & RECREATION DESIGN MEDICAL STUDY AIDS DRAMA MUSIC TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING EDUCATION NATURE TRANSPORTATION FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS PERFORMING ARTS TRAVEL FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDY PETS TRUE CRIME
- 9. Our edited BISAC List for adult non-fiction ANIMALS FOREIGN LANGUAGE STUDY PETS ANTIQUES & COLLECTIBLES GAMES & ACTIVITIES PHILOSOPHY ARCHITECTURE GARDENING PHOTOGRAPHY ART HEALTH & FITNESS POETRY BIBLES HISTORY POLITICAL SCIENCE POLITICS BIOGRAPHY HOLIDAYS PSYCHOLOGY BODY, MIND & SPIRIT HOUSE & HOME REFERENCE BUSINESS & ECONOMICS HUMOR RELIGION COMPUTERS LANGUAGE ARTS SCIENCE COOKING LAW SELF-HELP CRAFTS & HOBBIES LITERATURE SOCIAL SCIENCE CURIOSITIES LITERARY COLLECTIONS SPORTS & RECREATION DESIGN LITERARY CRITICISM STUDY AIDS DRAMA MEDICAL TECHNOLOGY & ENGINEERING EDUCATION MUSIC TRANSPORTATION FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS NATURE TRAVEL FITNESS PERFORMING ARTS TRUE CRIME
- 10. Our edited BISAC List for juvenile non-fiction ANIMALS HEALTH PLACES ARCHITECTURE HISTORY POETRY ART & DRAWING HOLIDAYS REFERENCE BIOGRAPHIES HUMOR RELIGION CAREERS LIFE SCIENCE COOKING LITERATURE & DRAMA SPORTS CRAFTS MILITARY TALES CURIOSITIES MUSIC TECHNOLOGY FARM & GARDEN PEOPLE TRANSPORTATION FUN & GAMES PETS
- 11. Google Docs – Our shared lists Allowing all team members access to, and the ability to edit, shared documents was our most powerful strategy Here’s the link to our master BISAC list for adult non-fiction https://docs.google.com/document/d/16VKJ3CeFYjFrGptro59rMK7ya3h69wJmLc5BDH 13duY/edit?usp=sharing Here’s the link to our Google Doc to track progress https://docs.google.com/document/d/1xt_qsTIg4Ubcf- 6AJhLzSprWFUX58gZxjGAk1ByU1V0/edit?usp=sharing
- 12. How to maintain order during the transition • Begin each new spine label with a simplified (3-digit) Dewey number 641 COOKING Baking Cookies Smith • Each title must be reclassified both in the ILS and on the spine label. • Agree on a spine label template. Make minor adjustments for specific titles. • Keep the subcategories to a minimum.
- 13. Maintain order during the transition • Don’t change the Dewey to match the new BISAC. You want titles to remain very close to their Dewey positions on the shelves and keep shelf-shifting during the project to a minimum. • Each Dewey section may have several different BISAC categories. That’s ok – the books are still findable via the OPAC. • Make sure ALL staff understand the new system. Spot-check the shelvers. They may need guidance even though they say they understand BISAC. • Let your patrons know what you’re doing and why, through posters, brochures, shelf markers, social media, etc.
- 14. Maintain order during the transition Shelving Option 1 – Dewey/BISAC shelved first (The one we used) 320 320 320 320 320.1 POLITICS POLITICS SOCIAL Roberts Clark Adams Baker Doe Shelving Option 2 – Interfile Dewey/BISAC and standard Dewey 320 320 320 320 320.1 POLITICS POLITICS Roberts SOCIAL Clark Adams Baker Doe
- 15. Last steps: Re-shelving and re-labeling • We closed the library Saturday and Sunday to re- shelve the non-fiction in BISAC order • After re-shelving, the Dewey number at the top of each spine label was covered with a small white label
- 16. Steps to re-shelve the collection • Calculate the amount of shelf space you have available • Run a report on your ILS to determine how many titles you own in each subject category • Calculate the # of shelves for each category, allowing 1.5” per title. Make a map to follow. • Prior to the arrival of the work crew, label the starting shelf for each category. Set up and label plenty of work tables to organize the books for re-shelving. Post copies of the map on the endcaps. • We used two re-shelving teams – one started at 000/Animals, the other at 999/True Crime, and worked toward each other. • You’ll need to remove the Dewey number from the beginning of each call number in the ILS. Hopefully you can do this as a batch process. We couldn’t and it took us about a week to complete manually.
- 17. Shelving map
- 18. Now that the re-shelving is done • The new spine labels look great! • Our non-fiction collection is much easier to browse (even for staff) • Non-fiction circulation is increasing • Most patrons like the BISAC headings, though a few of the older patrons miss the Dewey system • We have brochures and end-cap posters to help patrons understand the new system
- 19. Our “Easy Find” non-fiction brochure
- 20. Contact info & Resources Teresa Stannard, Director Parchment Community Library 401 S Riverview Dr., Parchment, MI 49004 269 343-7747 x203 www.parchmentlibrary.org tstannard@parchmentlibrary.org BISAC Subject Headings https://bisg.org/page/BISACEdition PCL MASTER LIST OF BISAC HEADINGS https://docs.google.com/document/d/16VKJ3CeFYjFrGptro59rMK7 ya3h69wJmLc5BDH13duY/edit?usp=sharing
Editor's Notes
- I’m Teresa Stannard, and I’ve been the director of the Parchment Community Library in Parchment, Michigan, since 2001. This is the story of how we converted our non-fiction collection from the Dewey Decimal to the BISAC classification system, and lived to tell about it.
- Here’s the table of contents for today’s session. This is the first presentation I’ve done as a webinar rather than in-person and I miss being able to see your faces! Though we can’t see each other I’m so glad you’re here. Feel free to ask questions throughout. There will be time at the end of the presentation for questions as well.
- Parchment is a small town just north of Kalamazoo, in southwest lower Michigan. If you ask a stranger where they’re from and they instantly raise their hand to use as a map, they’re from Michigan! (right hand vertical for the lower peninsula and the left hand horizontal for the upper peninsula) The fellow on the right is pointing to Kalamazoo, so now you know exactly where I am! A 20-second history of the city of Parchment - in 1909 a paper mill that specialized in – you guessed it – parchment paper opened next to the Kalamazoo river here. Workers from Kalamazoo had difficulty navigating the very bad roads so the mill owner built houses for them and so the city began. The mill owner, Jacob Kindleberger, wanted to build both a state-of-the-art mill and a model city, with amenities like a 60-acre park and a community house that had a theater, exercise room, dining hall, and wood shop. As a result, Parchment has always been an exceptionally good place to live. The paper mill closed in 2000 and took with it much of our tax revenue but the city continues to survive and the library enjoys strong support from the community. We serve a population of just under 10,000 in our district, of which 1800 reside in the city limits. Our print collection is just over 35,000, of which 8200 are non-fiction. We have a staff of 14, most of whom are part-time.
- It’s one thing to have a good idea, but as you know it can be quite a challenge to figure out how to achieve that idea. We had a couple of false starts (using the cooking section), testing a couple of systems. We decided in the end to use BISAC as our primary framework, with just enough edits to make it fit our collection and clientele.
- Dymo label makers – allowed each team member to make labels. We tried to handle each book just once and return it to the shelf the same day. Collaboration: Dewey classifications don’t always translate neatly into BISAC. (I’ll show you some examples a bit later on) Having three or four persons on the team allows for productive discussion when classifying tricky titles.
- Schedule regular weekly meet times The Master List will replace your annotated copy of the DDC Weeding: We started with 12,574 non-fiction adult titles in May 2015. We weeded 25%. The collection hadn’t been weeded in it’s entirety for 5 years and we found many, many titles that hadn’t circulated in 5-10 years. We moved parenting books into a new section in the Children’s area and eliminated most of our oversize collection. Stuck on a title or a section? Make your best guess, keep detailed notes, and move on.
- BISAC: Book Industry Subject and Classification Codes These are free to view online. bisg.org – Book Industry Study Group
- Keep in mind that these are subject headings and we’re attempting to convert them into call numbers. Some editing is inevitable. Be sure to read the introductory paragraph for each BISAC heading. (See HEALTH or MEDICAL) Book stores don’t need to worry about spine labels, but libraries do! You may need to truncate headings, use abbreviations, even eliminate unnecessary intermediate subheadings (see COOKING Course & Dishes) to save space.
- This is our edited BISAC list. The titles in red are those that we added to the standard BISAC list. Many headings were truncated to better fit on a spine label (something bookstores don’t need to worry about). ANIMALS was a subcategory of NATURE. We made it a primary category. We decided to split HEALTH & FITNESS into two separate headings. At the same time, we merged MEDICAL into HEALTH. We changed BODY, MIND & SPIRIT to MIND & SPIRIT and classed several of the subcategories under CURIOSITIES. All of this is a result of many hours of discussion. If we had been handed this list at the beginning we could have finished the project in 6 months!
- This is the list our Children’s Librarian, Barb, created for juvenile non-fiction. Headings in purple are those that she added to the standard BISAC list. Barb opted to migrate the 2500 children’s non-fiction titles by herself. She is, as so many children’s librarians are, a force of nature and completed the work in record time.
- We could not have accomplished this project without using Google Docs. While you don’t need to use Google Docs specifically, do create a shared list that all team members can use. After the project is complete, future catalogers will refer to and continue to edit the BISAC list. The FIND feature (Ctrl+F) is very useful in finding a specific term, both for re-classifying and for future cataloging. The progress list is completed now. When we were using it, each team member would update her section noting the specific DDC spine label where she stopped and the date. People get sick or are otherwise absent from time to time and these notes allowed us to keep the project rolling along.
- In order to keep the non-fiction titles in findable order while we were in the midst of the migration, each title was given a truncated 3-digit Dewey number, followed by the new BISAC classification. Each title must be reclassified both in the ILS and on the spine label. Agree on a spine label template. There will need to be minor adjustments for specific titles. Keep the subcategories to a minimum. You’re not using Dewey numbers anymore and too many subheadings make labels hard to read. ‘Cooking’ can be easily translated en masse to a single BISAC heading. Other collections, like social sciences, politics, and self-help will be divided among several BISAC headings.
- However strongly you may be tempted to do so, don’t change the Dewey to match the new BISAC. You want titles to remain very close to their Dewey positions on the shelves to keep shelf-shifting during the project to a minimum. Whatever Dewey the book in your hand has on the spine label, truncate it to the first three digits but otherwise leave the Dewey alone. Each Dewey section may have several different BISAC categories. (i.e. 133, MIND & SPIRIT and CURIO) That’s ok – the books are still findable via the OPAC. Make sure ALL staff understand the new system. Spot-check the shelvers. They may need guidance even though they say they understand BISAC. We decided to shelve the 3-digit Dewey/BISAC books at the front of each section, followed by the standard Dewey titles. Let your patrons know what you’re doing and why, through posters, brochures, shelf markers, social media, etc.
- We decided to file our re-classified titles in front of any non-updated titles with the same Dewey number. This was easier for our shelvers and helped the cataloging team catch all the books that still needed to be addressed. Shelvers were instructed to hold incoming titles that still had standard Dewey numbers which belonged in sections that had been re-cataloged. We had a special book cart near the Circulation Desk to hold these titles for team members to re-catalog.
- Once the titles were re-shelved in BISAC order, we covered the Dewey number with small white stickers. This was done the same day we re-shelved the collection. We were worried the white labels wouldn’t adhere long-term if we didn’t cover them with a clear cover, but they’ve held very well. BTW, looking at the photo of the labels, one of these things is not like the others. Yes, even with all the shared lists small mistakes will be made. Fix them as you find them, smile and move on.
- Make a map! I used Excel, but graph paper is works just as well. Calculate everything twice and have someone else check your results. (Measure twice, cut once) Re-cataloging: We had a long debate about PETS. Should it be a stand-alone section (standard BISAC) or should it be a sub-category of ANIMALS? We kept it as a stand-alone section and once we had the titles on the shelf in BISAC order we realized that it should be under ANIMALS after all. While it meant more work re-cataloging and re-shelving, it didn’t take long at all and we are pleased with the result. Find it, fix it, smile and move on.
- Make a map! I used Excel, but graph paper is works just as well. Calculate everything twice and have someone else check your results. (Measure twice, cut once)
- While this change hasn’t pleased all our patrons, we feel that it has certainly been a net gain. Patrons seem to have a much easier time finding a non-fiction book with BISAC. BISAC isn’t a perfect replacement for DDC. DDC provides much finer sub-classifications which might be necessary for a larger collection than ours. We are looking for ways to improve labeling of sections and replacing our existing endcap signage with holders that accommodate BISAC better.
- We borrowed the design of this brochure from the Kent District Library system, which had a couple of branches migrate to BISAC. Sections that are very simple to navigate, like SPORTS, don’t have sub-headings in the brochure, to save space.
- I hope you find this information helpful as you plan your own migration project. Feel free to contact me anytime. Questions?