Date: Thu, 21 Aug 2003 08:15:21 +1000
From: Jean Dartnall <Jean.Dartnall@jcu.edu.au>
Subject: Re: Print vs. online serials -- Jessica Orzechowski

Hi Jessica

Does anyone in your library spend time checking access to online
serials?  Even if you have an automatic link checker, this doesn't check
if the title has changed, if the title is behind in publication, if
access has been lost or has changed from the holdings you've recorded or
any of the other things that get checked more or less automatically when
you handle an issue of a print serial. Start doing all this for
ejournals and you have a lifetime's work ahead of you (unless publishers
and aggregators of journals change dramatically soon).

Jean

SERIALST Moderator wrote:

>Date: Wed, 20 Aug 2003 11:07:12 -0400
>From: "Jessica Orzechowski" <jess_ann4@hotmail.com>
>Subject: print vs. online
>
>Hi,
>
>I work for a small academic library as the periodicals supervisor.  We
>subscribe to about 175 print periodicals as well as several on line
>databases.  Every time a renewal for the print version comes up, I have to
>check if it's in one of the databases and if it is, my boss will frequently
>cancel the subscription.  Which leaves me wondering if I'll have a job in a
>few years.  If there's nothing to process they don't need me, right.  So I
>was wondering if anyone else is in the same position.  What are others doing
>in light of the increasing availability of online serials?  I think we
>should keep at least some of our subscriptions in print, but what arguments
>can I use to convince my boss?  Are there other facets of online access that
>I should know so I can implement myself more?  Any suggestions are
>appreciated.
>
>Thanks.
>
>Jessica Orzechowski

--
Jean Dartnall
Serials Librarian

Jean.Dartnall@jcu.edu.au

(07) 4781 4492 (tel)
(07) 4781 5886 (fax)

James Cook University
Townsville
Queensland 4811