http://hdl.handle.net/2142/950 15th Clinic on Library Applications of Data Processing (1978). Edited by F.W. Lancaster. http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1094 What hath technology wrought? Veaner, Allen B. I believe it was Adlai Stevenson who said: "Man does not live by words alone, but he sometimes has to eat them." No one wants to be reminded of anything but his successes! So, I sense that in putting together their papers for these proceedings, my colleagues have squirmed at least as uncomfortably as I. Librarians know that the inventory of failures in library automation is long and dismal. However, this is not intended to be a series of obituaries; rather, my purpose is to review the period of transition from completely manual to nearly fully automated systems, to try to see what can be learned from analyzing the failures, and to extract some general observations in answer to the question: what hath technology wrought? Libraries --Automation Library science --Data processing http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1093 So you want to build a network Kunkel, Douglas F. WARNING: Building a network may be hazardous to your health. Depending on network philosophy and guidelines, networking may demand unparalleled cooperation and communication among libraries. If cooperation within a region is "unnatural," dissension and frustration are likely to discourage any efforts to develop a network promoting such ideas as resource-sharing and coordinated purchasing. Success depends on selecting objectives acceptable to the expected participants. When designing a network it must be clearly understood from the beginning which capabilities will eventually be provided, so that the basic design is compatible with the long-term evolution of the system. Many problems stem from differing interpretations of network direction and philosophy. Network participants may be shocked or unhappy to discover either that their desires run counter to those of the network, or that the architecture of the computer system precludes certain capabilities. A common understanding from the very beginning will alleviate many subsequent confrontations. This paper reviews some of the problems associated with selecting system characteristics, establishing a governance structure and managing the project, financing, and computer technology. Each section is headed by questions indicating the type of issues which must be solved. Examples are based on experiences with the Washington Library Network (WLN). Libraries --Automation Library science --Data processing Networks http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1092 Problems of government bureaucracy when contracting for turnkey computer systems Kountz, John C. There is no single or best approach to portray the idiosyncrasies, real and imaginary, involved in contracting in most organizations. However, all this is simplified when the scope of discussion is narrowed to state bureaucracies, and becomes "duck soup" when the state is identified which in this case is California. Furthermore, in the state of California if those goods and services relate to data processing, massive amounts of unnecessary research are replaced by massive amounts of wasted time interspersed with concentrated effort. This will not be a brief statement of experience, bracketed by remarks and followed by three questions from the floor and a smiling retreat. Instead, the following is a somewhat fictionalized account of real events, of things done by real people to each other. These people are still plying their trades, and many of these real events have yet to become history. Libraries --Automation Library science --Data processing Government bureaucracy California state government http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1091 Problems of teaching library automation Divilbiss, J.L. I will not pretend that the sentiments expressed here are anything other than personal views arising from my teaching certain courses in the Graduate School of Library Science at the University of Illinois. It would be presumptuous to declaim on the problems of higher education in general, and boring to delineate problems specific to this particular school. Between those extremes, however, there are problems likely to be shared by other instructors at other schools, problems of some consequence to the library field in general. To deal with these problems candidly, I have not limited myself to "safe" topics such as the need for more money. If some of the "unsafe" topics give offense they should be understood in terms of bringing important issues to light. Libraries --Automation Library science --Data processing Library and information science education http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1090 Problems of library automation in India Dasgupta, Kalpana The major activites of the different categories of Indian libraries are mainly routine work, such as acquisition, circulation, management, processing, reference and bibliographic service, periodical holdings, information retrieval, inventory, and so on. The services and techniques utilized in the different libraries, however, tend to make these activities very cumbersome and slow. The acquisitions of most libraries are done independently, and involve unnecessary duplication of work and lengthy procedures. Cataloging and classification methods differ from one library to another and are generally time-consuming and labor-oriented. This is very confusing for the users as they must thus switch from one classification and cataloging system to another when using more than one library. There is also a lack of bibliographic control at the national level. The Indian National Bibliography suffers from a large time lag. Almost all library activities involve long hours of manual work, tending to make library service very unpopular. Therefore, users still cannot envisage a librarian as a giver of information but consider him or her a custodian of books. In order to improve the services of libraries, application of newer methods, such as information, computer and communication technologies, will be needed. I am only concerned here with computer applications in libraries and believe that for efficient functioning of our library systems, we will need automated services at some point. But serious thought must first be given to which areas will be automated, while keeping in mind the national need. Libraries --Automation Library science --Data processing Libraries in India http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1089 The ups, downs, and demise of a library circulation system Corey, James F. The automated circulation system discussed in this paper was in existence in the spring of 1978 when the fifteenth annual Clinic on Library Applications of Data Processing was held. The system was not a failure in the sense that it never succeeded in becoming an operational system. It did become operational and had functioned in the Undergraduate Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign for two and one-half years (from May 1976 to December 1978). The system was stopped because it was replaced by a larger computer system that could perform known item searching by author, title and author/title, in addition to performing circulation functions. The university agreed to replace the Undergraduate Library system with the larger system as part of the negotiations for hiring a new director of the University Library. Libraries --Automation Library science --Data processing Library circulation http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1088 Reactions to failures in library automation Brodman, Estelle I know of at least three other contributing reasons which might explain the dearth of reports telling of the demise or required reconstruction of library automation systems. These are: (1) the emotion of the newly-converted, (2) the attitude of librarians and others dealing with libraries concerning funds, and (3) the difficulty many librarians seem to have in understanding exactly what is subsumed under the words "research and development." Libraries --Automation Library science --Data processing Failure http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1087 Automation of the catalog: The transition from cards to catalog Braithwaite, R.J. I wondered if my being asked to speak at this conference on "Problems and Failures in Library Automation" was perhaps a 2-sided compliment, as the University of Toronto Library Automation System (UTLAS) is one of the more successful projects in library automation in North America. However, in any automation project, no matter how successful, there are always some problems which can serve as lessons to others. Libraries --Automation Library science --Data processing Library catalog http://hdl.handle.net/2142/1086 The anatomy of failure in library applications of computer technology Axford, H. William Axford, Lavonne Brady This paper is an analysis of a community college district's attempt to introduce computer technology into the operation of its five libraries. In spite of the fact that the conversion from the Dewey Decimal Classification system to the Library of Congress Classification (LCC) system, which initiated the effort, began about nine years ago, the basic causes of failure are as relevant today as they were then because they are rooted in the minds of those responsible for them: librarians, computer specialists and institutional executives. Involved in the project were five libraries serving the district's five campuses, a centralized acquisitions and processing unit (referred to here as library technical services or LTS) responsible for ordering and cataloging materials for the district's five libraries, and the district's computer center. Libraries --Automation Library science --Data processing Failure Community college libraries http://hdl.handle.net/2142/953 Front matter including Foreword and Table of Contents to Problems and failures in library automation: Papers presented at the 1978 Clinic on Library Applications of Data Processing, April 23-26, 1978 Table of Contents