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DUE TO THE IRREPLACEABILITY OF MATERIALS as well as the innumerable variations in physical condition and storage needs, special collections present many challenges to preservation and conservation professionals. In reaction to these challenges, there have been many advances and changes within the fields of preservation and conservation. The goal of this short paper is to highlight some of the skills and technological advances that have changed the way special collections are preserved in reference to two approaches: item-level conservation and collections conservation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

WITHIN THE CONFINES OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS in libraries, an established practice of preservation for film and video collections is largely nonexistent. By comparison, the scale of resources needed to achieve meaningful programmatic efforts to preserve them is far greater than the resources libraries have assembled for traditional paper-based preservation. Management of moving image collections requires specialized knowledge and expertise. Consequently, while a mature system of preservation technology and methodology exists in libraries today to achieve file systematic preservation of books and paper-based materials, preservation programs generally have excluded the same provisions to sustain the useable life of moving image materials. With this in mind, this article seeks to articulate the current landscape of film and video preservation in libraries and examine the barriers that have hindered the development of full-fledged preservation programs for them. It is unclear whether traditional library preservation constructs can effectively inform the development of techniques and methodologies appropriate to film and video preservation. Nevertheless, it is perhaps more important, at this point in time, to stimulate and encourage fruitful discussion that will lead to such development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Newspapers/periodicals librarian James Danky does collection building wherever he goes and with whomever he communicates, it seems. Thanks to his efforts, the Madison-based Wisconsin Historical Society collects materials from categories other librarians usually overlook, including zines (homemade periodicals, produced for reasons other than to make money, usually photocopied and published irregularly), something he compares to "other print forms that served the same purposes"--radical handbills of the 1880s, poetry pamphlets of the 1950s, and underground newspapers of the 1960s. Danky also collects Wisconsin-based periodicals, no matter how small their circulation, nor how esoteric their content, from Cheese Reporter to Clothed with the Sun; prison publications; and military, embassy, and consulate publications. WHS is the only institution in the United States collecting military base publications, a genre full of racy-sounding titles like Shoot 'Em Down and Danger Forward. These magazines and papers provide unique, close-up views of soldiers' lives, or at least a glimpse at the culture in which they work. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper highlights the history of libraries in Belarus, including the library network development and its current structure. The paper uses data analyses of official state statistics, normative and unpublished legal documents, and scientific research conducted by the National Library of Belarus. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article examines archival collecting, taking as case studies two women's archives. Drawing on their experiences building the collections of the Archives of Women in Science and Engineering (Iowa State University) and the Iowa Women's Archives (University of Iowa), the authors explore how such efforts challenge traditional approaches to collecting. Proactive collecting, such as oral history projects focused on Latinas or women scientists, helps fill gaps in the historical record by encouraging people who have not traditionally been donors to participate in building and using diverse archival collections. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents a historical overview of the processes and changes experienced by libraries of all types in Montenegro during the past twenty-five years, as well as their current state. Major aspects of library work are covered: the general situation, legislation, buildings and equipment, collections, services, personnel, and automation. The period from 1989 to 2014 is characterized by a stream of social and economic turbulences as well as by rapid changes due to developments in information and communications technology. Libraries in Montenegro are keeping pace with developments in the library field generally, the National Library of Montenegro (NLM) being the primary moving force in this regard. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The selection, acquisition, and management of digital data are now part and parcel of the work librarians handle on a day-to-day basis. While much thought goes into this work, little consideration may be given to the long-term preservation of the collected data. Digital data cannot be retained for the future in the same way paper-based materials have traditionally been handled. Specific issues arise when archiving digital data and especially geospatial data. This article will discuss some of those issues, including data versioning, file size, proprietary data formats, copyright, and the complexity of file formats. Collection development topics, including what to collect and why, will also be explored. The work underlying this article is being done as part of an award from the Library of Congress's National Digital Information Infrastructure and Preservation Program (NDIIPP). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

IN NOVEMBER 2001, the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) announced the formation of a Task Force on Special Collections charged with developing an action plan to address a set of issues deemed significant by the ARL Board and membership. The establishment of the task force followed several years of ARL interest and activity in the area of special collections. This paper will review the stages through which ARL's engagement with special collections evolved, describe the motivation and rationale for initiating this engagement, discuss the perspectives that ARL brings to special collections, and provide a status report on the work of the task force. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

SPECIAL COLLECTIONS MATERIALS are not Only to be found in academic libraries; they can be found in museum, public and national and independent research libraries as well. The focus of this paper is on independent research libraries, especially those who are members of the Independent Research Library Association (IRLA). IRLA members are eighteen private, nonprofit research and education institutions, Their focused collections are developed to ,support research rather than an academic curriculum. They serve scholars and researchers internationally with their eminent collections, They provide access on, site and increasingly online. They will be challenged in the future by the need for increased)financial support, changes in scholarship and scholarly communications, and the need for increased Visibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

LIBRARIES ARE AN ESSENTIAL COMPONENT of a nation's information infrastructure, yet often they are invisible to their users and other stakeholders. In the context of this special issue, the paper presents four challenges faced by libraries and proposes research designs to address each of them. The four challenges involve: 1. invisible infrastructure, 2. content and collections, 3. preservation and access, and 4. institutional boundaries. I propose a mixture of research methods that includes surveys, case studies, documentary analyses, and policy analyses. Only with a better understanding of these challenges can libraries find their best fit in the information infrastructure of our networked world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

WE DISCUSS THE ISSUES OF RESOLVING the information-retrieval problem in large digital collections through the identification and use of document genres. Explicit identification of genre seems particularly important for such collections because any search usually retrieves documents with a diversity of genres that are undifferentiated by obvious clues as to their identity. Also, because most genres are characterized by both form and purpose, identifying the genre of a document provides information as to the document's purpose and its fit to the user's situation, which can be otherwise difficult to assess. We begin by outlining the possible role of genre identification in the information-retrieval process. Our assumption is that genre identification would enhance searching, first because we know that topic alone is not enough to define an information problem and, second, because search results containing genre information would be more easily understandable. Next, we discuss how information professionals have traditionally tackled the issues of representing genre in settings where topical representation is the norm. Finally, we address the issues of studying the efficacy of identifying genre in large digital collections. Because genre is often an implicit notion, studying it in a systematic way presents many problems. We outline a research protocol that would provide guidance for identifying Web document genres, for observing how genre is used in searching and evaluating search results, and finally for representing and visualizing genres. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

THE AMERICAN ANTIQUARIAN SOCIETY (AAS), founded in 1812, is the nation's oldest historical organization. Its library of books, serials, manuscripts, and graphic arts extends from the colonial period through the late nineteenth century. Generations of scholars, graduate students, bibliographers, and independent researchers have studied at the library, "under its generous dome." This article explores elements of the institution's history, the evolution of its collections, and the relationship between its staff and readers that make it a leading humanities research center. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the collections, carefully and aggressively acquired for two centuries, are extraordinarily supportive for new trends in research. Comments offered by several recent scholars working in a variety of fresh historical, literary, and interdisciplinary projects illustrate how the depth and breath of AAS collections proved indispensable for their research, Sometimes referred to as "the stuff of everyday life." AAS resources not only support new trends in research, but the expansive range of primary documents has enabled the institution to foster a new area of study--the history of the book. An overview of its Program in the History of the Book in American Culture provides examples of the AAS leadership role in this academic discipline. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines some of the ways in which electronic resources have impacted collection development, subject selectors, and library consortia. Roles of librarians; Growth of electronic resources; Perspectives on the changing role of traditional bibliographers; Effect of virtual materials on the role of the selector.

This is a personal case study of the implementation of a Netflix subscription to augment a media collection at a community college. The implementation process is explained against the backdrop of a particular collection development crisis that gripped the college media collection that year. In these particular circumstances, Netflix turned out to be an excellent, cost-effective solution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rapid and significant changes in digital video production and delivery technologies have created both opportunities and challenges for film and video producers and distributors, as well as for their institutional clients. For distributors of commercial videos, the move toward online delivery has created an attendant need to reevaluate both the changing nature of the marketplace and the economic models employed in selling products in that market. This article outlines current and evolving models for licensing and delivering commercially produced educational and documentary video content online (streamed video on demand [VOD]), and presents both librarian and vendor perspectives on the benefits and liabilities of these various models. Broad issues considered in these discussions include the added value and changing market for video content delivered online; perspectives on term vs. in-perpetuity licensing; and the short- and long-term impact of new delivery models on collection development, collection budgets, and user services. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The work of James P. Danky, longtime librarian at the Wisconsin Historical Society, is situated within the intellectual context of collection-development practices. Danky's belief in the value of alternative periodicals--and the lengths that he went to identify and acquire them--may be interpreted as a rejection of increasingly mechanical and generic ways to develop library collections. Reliance on centralized selection procedures, approval plans, and serials vendors was not only tantamount to the "disintegration of librarians as sources of expertise," but also structurally privileged books and serials from mainstream publishers. The biennial Alternative Library Literature (1982-2001), which Danky coedited with Sanford Berman, is compared with the annual Library Lit.--The Best Of (1970-1990) to illuminate the way in which contrasting philosophical approaches to the selection of anthology articles may be interpreted as a microcosm of larger issues in collection development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

THIS ARTICLE CONSIDERS the treatment of special collections in libraries in North America and the world. It looks first at issues of providing access for an increasingly broad and diverse readership but with limited resources. Questions of the ownership of unique materials are then considered, with special reference to claims of national heritage and the difficulties confronted by libraries that hold iconic material from other cultures. Finally, tile article looks at some implications of the electronic revolution. While digitization can provide worldwide access to unique materials, it also leads to increased demands for access to the originals. The article concludes with this paradox, setting a context for dilemmas that will increasingly face special collections librarians. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

RARE BOOK, MANUSCRIPT, AND SPECIAL COLLECTIONS libraries remain both more difficult and more forbidding to use than any other parts of most libraries. A shift from an ethos that emphasized acquisition, cataloging, and preservation has brought into new prominence issues generally grouped together under the rubric of "promotion." This essay considers some of the ways in which this addition to the ethos of special collections has the potential to change for the better the ways such libraries are perceived and used. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

USING THE PLANNING, DESIGN, AND CONSTRUCTION of the Elmer L, Andersen Library as a case study, this article explores the variety of planning and design issues that must be addressed in the building process. The Andersen Library is unique for its site selection and for the successful joining of eight archives and special collection units in a single building, his exploration looks at how the internal library planning meshes with the architectural design process; how chance events can present innovative design opportunities; and how the political process can affect funding priorities and Other realities, [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

THIS ESSAY INTRODUCES the overall subject of the present issue of Library Trends and puts into a contemporary and historical context all the pieces which follow. The authors look at the current world of special collections, showing how it has evolved and how, in many ways, issues of the past are still with us. Libraries change, in all of their capacities and departments. Special collections and archives have always presented specific challenges to those in charge of them. Those concerns have changed in many ways, but they have not disappeared. And new challenges and initiatives, new technologies, and new ways of configuring the infrastructure of the institutions which house the collections bring special collections librarians and archivists the need to stay current with the world of information management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents views on trends in special collections libraries, as of 2003. Philosophy of resource-sharing in agreements for special collections programs; Role of special collections as an institutional responsibility; Revival of interest in the history of the book.

Examines the selection and decision-making aspects of the Edelman model of collection development. Implications of the changing information environment; Challenges facing library/information science education; Three-tier model of collection development.

Analyzes how electronic era will affect the role of bibliographers in the future. Roles of bibliographers in research libraries; Contexts of collecting; Contexts that shape much of the environment within which bibliographers do their jobs.

Examines the criteria devised by librarians to assess electronic resources. Purpose of academic libraries; Chief responsibility of a collection manager; Discussion of the criteria that should govern decisions about acquisition of electronic information resources.

Looks at the changes in academic collection development from 1980 to 2000. Factors influencing the changes; Response of many libraries to the serials crisis; Discussion on access and ownership; Changes in selection criteria; Implications of electronic resources.

Introduces several articles on collection development and management in the electronic environment.

States that of the three major components of resource sharing, cooperative collection development has thus far experienced less extensive transformation as a results of new technologies. Comparison between cooperative collection development and bibliographic access and interlibrary lending; What factors can lead to the success of cooperative collection building projects; Why these projects have not lived up to their potential.

Focuses on the principles of collection development, which have evolved over the past two decades. What has promoted the development of most selection activities for electronic resources; Differences in selection criteria; What criteria is needed for the selection of electronic resources, such as CD-ROMs and dial access databases.