collection development for the electronic library: a conceptual and organizational model

10
COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT FOR THE ELECTRONIC LIBRARY: A CONCEPTUAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL MODEL Samuel Demas The elements of a conceptual and organizational model for conducting systematic selection of electronic publications are presented. Refined at Mann Library over the past decade, the model is designed to develop staff expertise in selection of information resources across formats, and to ensure that the full impact of selections on every part of the library organization is anticipated at the time of selection. Described are the concept of information genres, the role of genre special- ists, and a selection review board, the Electronic Resources Council, which is made up of representatives from throughout the library organization. The model is presented as a method of mainstreaming, or operationally and conceptually integrating, electronic publications into the library's resources and services. Electronic publishing has profound implications for collection development, which is defined as the intentional and systematic building of the set of infor- mation resources to which the library provides access. While the principles of collection development, which were developed in the world of print publications, do not change radically with new publishing technologies, methods of decision making and specific selection guidelines must be adjusted significantly to incorporate new publishing formats. This article outlines the conceptual framework and organizational model developed at Mann Library to guide us in systematic selection of electronic publications. Our basic premise is that it is the mission of a research library to include all pertinent information, regardless of format and mechanisms of access, in the mix of resources which constitute our "collections." Given this premise, it seems logical that decisions concerning investments in all forms of information resources should fall under the purview of one compre- hensive collection development policy. This is how we ensure intellectually coherent and cost-effective devel- opment of our base of information resources, common- ly called "the collection." By extension, all formats, including electronic publications, must be subject to the same sort of systematic policy determination, selection criteria, and evaluation that we have used in developing print collections. The challenge to collection development is to integrate electronic formats into our concept of "collections" and to adapt the principles and practices of collection development to the selection of electronic publications. The terms "electronic formats" and "electronic publications" are used here to mean the full range of optical, magnetic, and digital technologies as used in the dissemination of published information. While these technologies have many desirable features and are rapidly finding their way into libraries around the world, they all have characteristics that stretch the limits of traditional library practices. At Mann we use the term "mainstreaming" to describe the process of carefully integrating the various new forms of informa- tion transfer, as they emerge, into the existing collec- tions, services, policies, and operations of the library. Over the years librarians have carefully worked out policies and procedures for print materials. New books and journals can be selected for the collection with relative ease and confidence. The library can — COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT ISSUE 47 12:3 (1994) 71 Demas is head, collection development and preserva- tion, Albert R. Mann Library.

Upload: samuel

Post on 09-Dec-2016

214 views

Category:

Documents


2 download

TRANSCRIPT

COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT FOR THE ELECTRONIC LIBRARY: A CONCEPTUAL

AND ORGANIZATIONAL MODEL

Samuel Demas

The elements of a conceptual and organizational model for conducting systematic selection of

electronic publications are presented. Refined at Mann Library over the past decade, the model is designed to develop staff expertise in selection of

information resources across formats, and to ensure that the full impact of selections on every part of the library organization is anticipated at the time of selection. Described are the concept of information genres, the role of genre special­

ists, and a selection review board, the Electronic Resources Council, which is made up of

representatives from throughout the library organization. The model is presented as a

method of mainstreaming, or operationally and conceptually integrating, electronic publications

into the library's resources and services.

Electronic publishing has profound implications for collection development, which is defined as the intentional and systematic building of the set of infor­mation resources to which the library provides access. While the principles of collection development, which were developed in the world of print publications, do not change radically with new publishing technologies, methods of decision making and specific selection guidelines must be adjusted significantly to incorporate new publishing formats. This article outlines the conceptual framework and organizational model developed at Mann Library to guide us in systematic selection of electronic publications.

Our basic premise is that it is the mission of a research library to include all pertinent information, regardless of format and mechanisms of access, in the mix of resources which constitute our "collections." Given this premise, it seems logical that decisions concerning investments in all forms of information resources should fall under the purview of one compre­hensive collection development policy. This is how we ensure intellectually coherent and cost-effective devel­opment of our base of information resources, common­ly called "the collection." By extension, all formats, including electronic publications, must be subject to the same sort of systematic policy determination, selection criteria, and evaluation that we have used in developing print collections. The challenge to collection development is to integrate electronic formats into our concept of "collections" and to adapt the principles and practices of collection development to the selection of electronic publications.

The terms "electronic formats" and "electronic publications" are used here to mean the full range of optical, magnetic, and digital technologies as used in the dissemination of published information. While these technologies have many desirable features and are rapidly finding their way into libraries around the world, they all have characteristics that stretch the limits of traditional library practices. At Mann we use the term "mainstreaming" to describe the process of carefully integrating the various new forms of informa­tion transfer, as they emerge, into the existing collec­tions, services, policies, and operations of the library.

Over the years librarians have carefully worked out policies and procedures for print materials. New books and journals can be selected for the collection with relative ease and confidence. The library can

— COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT — ISSUE 47 — 12:3 (1994) 71

Demas is head, collection development and preserva­tion, Albert R. Mann Library.

catalog and service the materials selected, the necessary lights and bookstacks needed to house and read them are available, and most of our patrons will not need lessons in how to read the new books and journals.

This level of capability to handle a format does not yet exist for most electronic media. It will be some time before libraries are able to approach the selection of electronic publications with the same ease and confidence as we can with printed materials. To achieve the "mainstreaming" or integration of electronic formats, we must develop the staff skills in selecting, cataloging, and providing service with these publica­tions. For example, we must buy the equipment and build the necessary computing and telecommunications infrastructure to handle a variety of electronic publica­tions; and we must learn to educate our patrons in their -use. The challenge to this generation of librarians is to seamlessly knit together a multiplicity of formats and access mechanisms into one intellectually cohesive, user-friendly set of information resources and services. In short, we must adjust most of our professional practices and daily operations to handle electronic publications with a facility equal to or greater than that which we have evolved for printed publications.

Thus, the selection of electronic publications profoundly affects every functional unit in the library. The idiosyncrasies of the new media and the far reaching organizational implications of deciding to acquire or provide access to publications in new formats require the development of a new organizational model for selection and a conceptual framework for making the transition to the electronic library.

ELEMENTS OF A SELECTION MODEL: ADDRESSING ORGANIZATIONAL IMPERATIVES

Librarians have predicted that the challenge of handling electronic publications will require radical changes in the way libraries are organized and man­aged. Thus far we have seen relatively little change in the formal structural organization of libraries. Howev­er, libraries are implementing subtle organizational changes, which do not show up at the level of an organization chart. What we are seeing is experimenta­tion with methods of cutting across formal organization­al lines. The key to assimilating new information formats is management strategies that 1) promote flexibility in the organization; 2) facilitate coordination and collaboration across organizational divisions; 3) promote the ability of the staff to adapt to constant change; and 4) eliminate territoriality in the organiza­tion and develop a set of shared goals and values that will promote cooperation among administrative units.

The basic elements of Mann Library's approach to collection development for the electronic library were

developed by the administrative council of Mann Library over a period of 10 years. The approach is designed to address several fundamental organizational imperatives, outlined below. These are dictated by the challenge of effecting a conceptual and practical integration of electronic and print publications into one cohesive set of library resources and services.

Break the Challenge into Logical and Manageable Units

The challenges to professional practice will take a generation or more to address and can be overwhelm­ing if not approached with a long-range vision, an organization adapted to handling continual change, and a simple conceptual framework for evaluating different types of information resources. To help focus our thinking and organize our efforts in selecting and delivering electronic resources, we developed the concept of information genres as a way of categorizing all types of electronic publications and facilitating selection among different access mechanisms. The concept of tiers of access is used to describe the level of access we wish to provide for specific information resources.

Develop Expertise in Selection across Formats

The goal of staff development for the electronic library is to involve staff throughout the library in building the electronic library, rather than developing specialized, segregated units to handle electronic publications. However, it is also essential to cultivate highly specialized expertise in the selection and han­dling of particular types of information resources. The role of genre specialist evolved as a way of developing within the organization deep knowledge about particular genres of electronic publications. Genre specialists develop the capability to conduct rigorous evaluation of resources and sophisticated collection decision making, including the ability to choose among multiple options for providing access to a specific resource.

Anticipate Impacts throughout the Organization

To prevent organizational frustration and discord, and to bring staff in all functional units along evenly in terms of understanding and acceptance, an Electronic Resources Council was established. This selection review board acts as a cross-functional forum for reviewing and approving selection of electronic resourc­es that have not yet been fully mainstreamed. This group assesses the organizational impact of selection decisions and sets priorities for implementation of these decisions.

72 LIBRARY HI TECH — SAMUEL DEMAS —

Define the Role of Collection Development

Until specific formats and genres are thoroughly "mainstreamed," selection of electronic resources must involve consultation with staff from throughout the organization. By chairing the Electronic Resources Council, the role of collection development is expanded to include coordinating and systematizing a complex decision-making process. The goal of this process is to ensure that all the right questions are asked and all the right staff are involved to anticipate organizational impacts before a final selection decision is made.

INFORMATION GENRES

As we develop the electronic library, incorporating both print and electronic formats in a seamless web of resources and services, we need a model for collection development that gets us beyond the segregation of resources by publishing format. We need a practical organizational scheme that helps us to select among similar publications that are available in a variety of formats. For this purpose we have adopted a framework for thinking about electronic information, which we call "information genres."

This scheme is a method for organizing the process of selecting electronic formats into logical units of work and expertise. The concept of information genres is essentially a broad taxonomy of electronic publications. Every electronic resource is categorized as falling into one of the five genres identified in the model.

Genres of information are based on the characteris­tics of the information resources and how these resourc­es are used. Genres take into account the fact that certain categories of electronic information resources have similar requirements in terms of systems of access. These include the nature of the search and retrieval software, operating systems software, and hardware requirements. Following are the information genres we currently support and some of their charac­teristics.

Applications Software

This genre is made up of productivity tools that are used to accomplish a set of tasks or to manipulate information. It includes tools such as word processors, spreadsheet programs, and database management programs; and more subject-specific programs such as diet analysis packages for nutritionists and plant selection programs for landscape architects. Many of these are available primarily on floppy disks and run directly on the user's microcomputer, but most are accessed from a file server.

Bibliographic Files

This genre includes abstracting and indexing tools, dictionary and online catalogs, and bibliographies. These are all used to identify publications on a particu­lar subject and provide citations, and possibly abstracts, but do not include the full text of the publication cited. Bibliographic files are widely available in print, on CD-ROM, and on magnetic media. Bibliographic files in electronic form require a particular type of search and retrieval software, designed to retrieve by field and/or free text, and to conduct author, title, subject, and other defined searches.

Full Text

Ranging from pamphlets to encyclopedias and from annual reports to daily newspapers, this is the largest genre collected by libraries. It includes the text of publications meant to be read or consulted for their content, and often includes graphics in the form of charts, tables, photographs, drawings, and so on. Full text is available in various formats, ranging from CD-ROM and other optical media to various magnetic media. Access may be provided through stand-alone workstations, local area networks, wide area networks, or via Internet connections. Currently, much of the available full text does not include accompanying graphics. Specialized search and retrieval software are needed, display requirements are greater than for other genre, and large amounts of computer storage space are required.

Numeric Files

This genre is comprised of publications presenting numerical or statistical data, such as census materials, financial data, crop production reports, and meteorolog­ical data. Numeric files often involve long time series and require frequent updating. Researchers often wish to study the relationship among a number of variables, requiring sophisticated statistical software for extracting subsets of a file and manipulating the data. Numeric files are available in print, on floppy disk, on CD-ROM, on magnetic tape, and through remote searching. Also included in this genre are genetic sequence databases and spatial data, including geographic information systems.

Multimedia

Multimedia is a combination of sound, graphics, animation, and video. Other genres are based to a large degree on the type of information they convey, regard­less of the form of presentation or access mechanism.

— COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT — ISSUE 47 - 12:3 (1994) 73

Multimedia is different in that it is based entirely on form of presentation, rather than type of information. For example, spatial data on meteorological phenomena may be presented on a CD-ROM in a graphical, modeling mode, along with relevant full text and bibliographic files. Multimedia is treated as a separate genre while the library builds its understanding of and capability in the many technical issues involved in making multimedia available through the library. Over time, and as we sort through the many interesting collection policy questions raised by multimedia, its distinction as a separate genre may be eliminated.

Other genres that we have not begun to main­stream include sound and image data, which can, of course, be components of multimedia publications.

Each genre has its own peculiarities and technolog­ical quirks and requires the development of specialized selection criteria and guidelines. Library staff must develop indepth knowledge of what is available, how it is used, and how it can be stored and delivered in order to select, acquire, organize, and provide service to materials in any given genre.

GENRE SPECIALISTS

Just as libraries employ specialists in areas such as audiovisual services, music, government documents, and various subject and area studies, we believe libraries must develop specialists in various genres of electronic information, which includes selecting similar materials across formats. To this end we have devel­oped the concept of a "genre specialist," whose role is to become an expert on the publications in all formats in a given genre. This person serves as a selector, resource person, and advocate for integrating publica­tions in that genre into the library's resources and services. The genre specialist identifies and evaluates new information resources, selects those that fall within the collection subject scope and meet quality standards, determines the most appropriate mechanism of access, and recommends selection to the Electronic Resources Council.

A genre specialist may be either a full-time bibliographer in the collection development division or a part-time selector in public services or technical services. Whatever the primary administrative appoint­ment, the genre specialist works, through the Electronic Resources Council, with colleagues in other depart­ments to coordinate efforts to adjust the library's policies and procedures to accommodate new formats. Genre specialists must be analytical, imaginative, dogged in their pursuit of format integration, comfort­able with technology, and a real "librarian's librarian." The successful genre specialist must be able to 1) analyze a new publishing medium against the backdrop

of traditional and evolving professional practice for the genre, 2) discover the extent of conformance and assess the anomalies it presents, 3) make the resource fit existing operations where it can, and 4) work with colleagues throughout the library to adapt policies and procedures as necessary to the idiosyncrasies of the resource.

In our organizational model, the genre specialists present their selections to the head of collection development after evaluating the resources and identify­ing the major issues attendant to its selection. The next step in the selection process is to schedule a review of the selection with the library's central forum for coordinating the mainstreaming of electronic resources across functional units, the Electronic Resources Council.

ELECTRONIC RESOURCES COUNCIL

Acquiring electronic information has an effect on every part of the library, from the point of budgeting and selection, through acquisitions and cataloging, to reference and instruction. To gauge the impact on the library, an organizational audit or impact study should be conducted to ensure that adequate resources are available to handle a new format. Conducting such an analysis must involve staff from throughout the library to ensure that the costs and workload implications are fully understood, and that any adverse effects are anticipated and addressed at the point of selection.

It is the role of the collection development officer to coordinate the systematic building of the library's base of information resources, regardless of format. Since no one person in the library has the full scope of expertise necessary to answer all the questions inherent in selecting new electronic resources, the role of collection development is therefore expanded to include leading a selection process which ensures that all the right questions are asked and all the right people are involved in the decision to acquire electronic publications. In this way the library anticipates in advance what will be required to make these resources available and will minimize the mistakes and frustra­tions that can result from poorly considered selection decisions.

Mann Library has institutionalized this process by establishing a standing committee called the Elec­tronic Resources Council (ERC). The ERC reviews electronic publications recommended by genre special­ists for purchase or lease. Its dual role is 1) to assess the impact of new electronic resources on the total organization before they are selected and make a determination that the library can handle a particular resource, and 2) to serve as a forum for coordinating

74 LIBRARY HI TECH — SAMUEL DEMAS —

as necessary activities among the functional units of the library in acquiring, organizing, and providing services for new electronic formats.

The goal of the ERC is to mainstream the selection and handling of new publishing formats, eventually making ERC review of such selections unnecessary. The ERC identifies what issues must be addressed, tasks performed, and policies and procedures adapted to enable the organization to operationalize the handling of new formats. The ERC is an administrative forum for consciously building the capability of the library to handle new publishing formats. Each individual selection is carefully treated as a case study in building the capability to select, acquire, organize, and service new formats as they emerge.

Once the library has developed its capability to handle a new publishing format for resources in a particular genre, that format is considered fully main-streamed for that genre. When this goal is achieved, it is no longer necessary to pass such selections through the screen of the ERC.

The council is made up of representatives from each functional unit of the library. Members include the acquisitions librarian, the head of technical services, the head of public services, the Gateway coordinator, the head of the Information Technology Section (ITS), and the head of collection development. Each member brings to the discussions a particular expertise and organizational perspective. For example, the acquisi­tions librarian is responsible for reviewing and negotiat­ing all license and contractual agreements for electronic resources; and the head of ITS assesses the adequacy of the library's hardware, software, and telecommunica­tions infrastructure to handle recommended resources. This has proven to be a useful mechanism for fostering the kind of collaboration necessary to make sound selection decisions on new formats. The group focuses on the challenge of how to make sure the library will be able to handle new electronic publications, building a set of shared values concerning information access and setting aside territorial considerations in the interest of making resources available to the user.

The Electronic Resources Council is chaired by the head of collection development and meets every two weeks. Genre specialists attend the ERC when they are prepared to recommend specific electronic resources for addition to the collection. Genre Specialists com­plete an Electronic Resources Order Form (see appen­dix 1) containing information about the title selected. They then present to the group their recommendations and an analysis of the attendant issues they have identified. The council then considers, each member from his or her functional point of view, a wide range of factors to ensure that purchase or provision of access

to resources under consideration will not present any undue problems for the library.

When an electronic publication is available in more than one format, the genre specialist recommends the format preferred. Based on its review of the recommen­dations, the Electronic Resources Council ultimately decides which method of access is most appropriate for the library. For example, the BIOSIS database is available in print, on CD-ROM, on magnetic tape, and for searching remotely through vendors like BRS and DIALOG. The Electronic Resources Council deter­mined the most effective way of providing access to this file: retain the print subscription for archival purposes, lease the magnetic tape version, and deliver over the campus network using the BRS search soft­ware.

Policy changes and equipment purchases that are needed to build the library's capability to handle a new format are referred to the administrative council for discussion and implementation. The ERC assigns each selected resource a relative priority for implementa­tion, based on the importance of the specific informa­tion resource and what needs to be done to implement the selection decision. A summary of the ERC's findings is included on the Electronic Resources Order Form. The order form then goes to the acquisitions librarian, who begins the process of implementing the selection by acquiring access to the resource. Through the division heads, the ERC monitors the progress of the library in acquiring, organizing, and making accessible the selected title. Problems encountered in implementing access to resources are handled by the staff in the various divisions, with coordination and policy formulation as necessary by the ERC.

In addition to its operational function, the ERC plays an important educational and team-building role within the library. In our discussions we learn a great deal from each other, including a sense of the policies, procedures, and concerns of each other's departments. With experience we begin to recognize patterns and to develop policy procedures in response.

As new formats become fully integrated, or mainstreamed, it is no longer necessary to have these selection decisions reviewed by the group. Over the five years it has been in operation, the ERC has reviewed about 350 electronic resources. Through this process, we have succeeded in mainstreaming all selections in diskette and CD-ROM formats; selections in these formats are no longer reviewed by the ERC. Files to be stored locally on magnetic or optical media for network delivery and Internet-accessible resources are still reviewed by the ERC.

— COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT — ISSUE 47 - 12:3 (1994) 75

Video Tape

Film

Microfilm

Floppy Disk

CD-Rom

Magnetic Tape

Remote Access including Internet resources

NA = Not Applicable 0 = Not Supported

Applications Software

NA

NA

NA

4

4

NA

NA

1 = Research and Development Phase

Bibliographic Files NA

NA

0

4

4

3

3

Full Text NA

NA

4

3

3

2

2

Numeric Files NA

NA

4

4

4

3

2

Multimedia 0

0

NA

NA

1

NA

1

2 = Infrastructure Under Development 3 = Infrastructure Developed Nearly Mainstreamed 4 = Fully Mainstreamed

Table 1: Formal/Genre Extent of Mainstreaming

TIERS OF ACCESS

In discussing options on how to make electronic publications accessible, the ERC realized it needed a hierarchy of access mechanisms to use in classifying resources. One key consideration in selecting electronic resources is determining what level of access to provide to a given resource. Should it be made interactively accessible over campus network, only in the library on a local area network, or at a stand-alone workstation in the library? This will depend on the level of demand expected, how the resource will be used, contractual restrictions, and costs. A simple system of five tiers of access was developed to designate the desired access mechanism.

• TIER 1—delivered over the campus network via the Mann Library Gateway. Anticipated high demand and need for quick response and manipu­lation time dictate the use of media and software that will provide "instantaneous" response. For example, Tier 1 resources include files we control, such as BIOSIS, ERIC, Periodical Abstracts, and ABI/INFORM mounted locally on magnetic storage, or files we connect to, such as DIALOG

Business Connection or other Internet/high speed telecommunications accessible files.

• TIER 2—delivered over the campus network via the Mann Library Gateway. Resources must be interactively available, but a relatively low number of simultaneous uses is expected and slower retrieval time is acceptable. Therefore a slower storage medium, such as optical platter, may be acceptable. Examples include full text of certain journals and relatively lower use bibliographic, and numeric, files which run on a networked CD-ROM configuration within the library.

• TIER 3—resources that can be delivered online via the Gateway on demand, but need not be continuously available online. Tier 3 resources may be mounted on request for Gateway access or may be used in the library at any time. Exam­ples include numeric files that receive occasional use but that require specialized software and/or manipulation.

(text continued on page 80)

76 LIBRARY HI TECH — SAMUEL DEMAS —

APPENDIX 1

ELECTRONIC FORMATS ORDER FORM

Product Name/Title:

Publishing Date: Dates covered: Monograph Serial/ Update Frequency Do not catalog Rush catalog

Number of copies: Location: Acquire as: Preview Trial Subscription Demo Gift/Free Cooperative Agreement Documentation to order:

Date: Selector: Fund: Class code: 3100 (CD ROM) 3200 (disk)

3400 (access) 3500 (tape) L3 Code:

Vendor/Publisher Name, Address, Telephone number:

Vendor Contact/history

Searching: NOTIS RLIN Other (attach printouts when available)

FORMAT SPECIFICS SOFTWARE CD ROM TAPES version software supply blank tape? size of disk: hardware: hardware computer:

IBM-PC (LAN version) EBCDIC ASCII Macintosh Tape density: enclosures yes no Return superceded disk? Software label:

Price Per Copy $ notes on special rates or negotiations:

Shipping/Handling charge: $ Other charges $ TOTAL charge $

— COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT — ISSUE 47 - 12:3 (1994) 77

APPENDIX 1 (continued)

SELECTOR NOTES

Please note any additional information which might be useful in understanding the nature of this resource, how it fits into

the collection, how it can be acquired, and what will be necessary to make it accessible to the public. For example, is

there a print equivalent source, and do we own it?; what is the range of format options for this resource?; are there any

license/contract restrictions on the product which give you concern?

SELECTOR TIER RECOMMENDATION

Selector recommends that this resource be make available as:

Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 4 Tier 5

SPECIAL DIRECTIONS:

Paymen t : P.O. Okay Must Prepay

O t h e r :

Enclosures?

Date Ordered NOTIS ID number

Claim da te :

78 LIBRARY HI TECH — SAMUEL DEMAS —

APPENDIX 1 (continued) ERC S U M M A R Y RECOMMENDATION

ERC PRIORITY RECOMMENDATIONS

Priority 1 (Implement as soon as possible)

Priority 2 (Implement soon; move ahead to purchase/license)

Priority 3 (wait until conditions described below are met; selected, but do not purchase/license at this time)

ERC TIER RECOMMENDATION

Selector recommends that this resource be make available as:

Tier 1 Tier 2 Tier 3 Tier 4 Tier 5

ERC IMPLEMENTATION ANALYSIS

Notes on the ERC d iscuss ion indicat ing issues, tasks, and problems at tendant to implementat ion

of select ion decis ion. (Not intended as a def ini t ive list of implementat ion issues or to provide

solut ions to issues raised.)

Acquisitions:

Cataloging:

ITS :

Service:

Gateway:

— COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT — ISSUE 47 - 12:3 (1994) 79

• TIER 4—resources that are not delivered over the campus network but that are available for use on a LAN within the library. Examples include certain moderately used CD-ROM bibliographic files and most applications software.

• TIER 5—resources that are available for use in the library only, at a stand-alone workstation. Examples include resources that are prohibited by license agreement for network delivery and low use files of all kinds.

Genre specialists recommend a tier level on the Electronic Resources Order Form at the time of selection. This recommendation is reviewed by the ERC, which makes the final determination based on its assessment of the library's current capability to handle the resource.

PROGRESS IN MAINSTREAMING

Table 1 is a simple chart developed to track the library's progress in mainstreaming specific formats for each genre. The chart is updated by the ERC as the library's capabilities are developed. It is used by selectors and the head of collection development to determine whether a particular selection must be presented to the ERC for review. In the numerical scale used to indicate the level of the library's capability to handle a format, levels 1-3 are not fully mainstreamed, and selections must be reviewed and approved by the ERC. Selections falling in categories 1 and 2 tend to occupy the largest share of the ERC's time, while those in level 3 are generally straightforward and well on the

way to being mainstreamed. One can see from table 1 that the current focus of the ERC's efforts is on multimedia, the most recent genre to enter the fold, and Internet-accessible resources.

CONCLUSION

Organizing the development of selection expertise along the lines of information genre has proven to be a useful conceptual framework for taking a systematic approach to selection of electronic resources. Genre specialists are selected on the basis of their technical expertise, a solid foundation in the principles and practices of librarianship, and a commitment to extend­ing the frontiers of librarianship to incorporate new publishing technologies as they emerge. Using the organizational model of a cross-functional selection review group (the Electronic Resources Council), collection development staff are able to work collabora­tively with their colleagues throughout the library to integrate new formats into the library's operations as they are selected.

This model attempts to address the organizational imperatives of a period of profound challenge to the professional practices of librarianship. Based on our experience over the past decade, we are optimistic that the principles and practices of collection development can be enlarged to integrate electronic publications into our concept of "collections." Indeed, we believe that successful development of the electronic library begins with systematic analysis, rational policy determination, and thoughtful selection regarding the form and substance of the information resources that it is the library's mission to organize and make accessible.

80 LIBRARY HI TECH — SAMUEL DEMAS —