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The professional librarian's reader in library automation and technology
Book reviews
73
non-American readers, as their main concerns are with problems posed by local regulations. That said, it would be a pity for British readers to miss David Kunzle’s paper on ‘Hogarth piracies and the origin of visual copyright’, or for anyone not to read ‘Donald Duck v. Chilean socialism: a fair use exchange’ or ‘Unwriting the story of Rock’. As fair use (or fair dealing) does not extend beyond written formats, the plight of the searcher after truth contained on disk or in visual form who wishes to reproduce material is sad indeed. These problems are international, as scholarship is international, and worthy of attention. ‘The most comprehensive study of copyright law and constitutional principles ever written . . . ’ says the dust-jacket blurb. Well, perhaps, but I take leave to doubt it. Heading V ‘Copyright and fair use traditions in international perspectives’ is certainly inaccurate, as the five papers under that head describe the position in Britain, Canada, France, West Germany and Japan but do not take an international view. This is a book for copyright buffs, and if any readers of ISIS so define themselves, I recommend it to them. G. Bull London Business School
Susan K. Martin. The professional librarian’s reader in library automation and technology. Knowledge Industry Publications, Inc, * 1980. 201 pp. ISBN 0 914236 57 1.214.50. *UK address: 47-49 Caledonian Road, London Nl 9BU. With the exception of a brief introductory section by Susan Martin this volume is composed entirely of chapters taken from eight other volumes in Knowledge Industry’s Profe.rsional librarian series, namely Automated library circulation systems, 1979-1980, M’ urof arms: the librarians’ view, 1978-1979 and Book theft and library security systems, 1978-1979 by Alice Harrison Bahr, Library networks, 1978-1979 by Susan K. Martin, Minicomputers in libraries, 1979-1980 by Audrey N. Grosch, Librarians and online services by Pauline Atherton and Roger Christian, The electronic Library: bibliographic data bases, 1978-1979 by Roger Christian and Thefuture of the catalog: the library’s choices by S. Michael Malinconico and Paul J. Fasana. Of the thirteen chapters included, two deal with networks or networking and libraries, three deal with bibliographic database producers and distributors and the planning for and provision of online services in libraries, and one each with the uses of minicomputers, computer-supported catalogues, automated circulation systems, criteria for systems acquisition, the arguments for and against integrated or individual approaches to automation and book theft and library security systems; traditional and innovative uses of microforms are also considered in two further chapters. With such names as Grosch, Bahr and Malinconico present, one can confidently expect authoritative and informative contributions and such is the case; the chapters by Susan Martin herself on networks are admirably succinct, and Roger Christian’s chapters on bibliographic database producers and distributors provide some interesting statistical information as well as historical background to the development of these services. As a professional librarian’s reader in library automation and technology, however, it lacks a uniformity of
74
Book reviews
approach and a consistency of standard and level; this may be attributable in part to its method of compilation, which allowed little if any editorial authority to be exercised once the initial selection had been made. Many of the individual chapters themselves range too freely from generalization and overview to quite specific detail and spend too much time and space on descriptions of systems, services or packages more adequately described and analysed elsewhere in the easily accessible literature. As a reader in library automation this volume has obvious shortcomings, not the least of which are its (understandable) American emphasis and uncertainty about the level of professional librarian at whom it is aimed; nevertheless practically every chapter in it has something worth reading and remembering, though it would probably be best read in the context of the separate volume in which it first of illustrations ranging from a appeared. The volume has a number photograph of a Plessey lightpen and the Tattle-Tape book check unit to a schematic outline of the University of Minnesota’s Minicomputer Library an appropriately graphic confirmation of the book’s general System (MILS), contents and approach to the subject. A substantial five-page bibliography of relevant material completes the volume. F. B. Loughridge
Department of Information Studies University of Sheffield
Joseph
R. Matthews.
Choosing an automated library system. A planning guide. Chicago: Association,
1980.
119 pp. ISBN
0 8389
American
Library
0310 X. 58.25.
The voluminous and ever-growing periodical literature of library automation has, for the most part, been distinguished by its emphasis on the minutiae of a preoccupation with individual solutions of specific operational systems, particular housekeeping problems and with the adaptation of available hardware and software or packages to local needs; on the other hand, much of the monograph literature, and especially that pitched at an introductory level for library school students or for librarians wishing to update their knowledge, has settled for an uneasy and, generally, unsatisfactory combination of detailed description of the preliminary planning procedures supplemented by brief descriptions of selected or representative software packages and illustrative examples of operational systems, which by definition are more than likely to have been updated or to have become obsolescent by the time the book in question is published. As Matthews points out, little or no evaluative or analytical work has been published in this area nor, until recently, has much that is, to the human element and to the attention been paid to the ‘liveware’, likely impact of library automation projects on such factors as staff structure, decision-making levels, career patterns, training and education programmes or the relationship between librarian and library user. By concentrating on the various planning aspects of library automation to the exclusion of case studies and systems descriptions, Matthews has attempted for the consideration, selection and a methodology to formulate implementation of an automated system in a small or medium-sized library (by American standards) by examining in detail such matters as cost/benefit
73
non-American readers, as their main concerns are with problems posed by local regulations. That said, it would be a pity for British readers to miss David Kunzle’s paper on ‘Hogarth piracies and the origin of visual copyright’, or for anyone not to read ‘Donald Duck v. Chilean socialism: a fair use exchange’ or ‘Unwriting the story of Rock’. As fair use (or fair dealing) does not extend beyond written formats, the plight of the searcher after truth contained on disk or in visual form who wishes to reproduce material is sad indeed. These problems are international, as scholarship is international, and worthy of attention. ‘The most comprehensive study of copyright law and constitutional principles ever written . . . ’ says the dust-jacket blurb. Well, perhaps, but I take leave to doubt it. Heading V ‘Copyright and fair use traditions in international perspectives’ is certainly inaccurate, as the five papers under that head describe the position in Britain, Canada, France, West Germany and Japan but do not take an international view. This is a book for copyright buffs, and if any readers of ISIS so define themselves, I recommend it to them. G. Bull London Business School
Susan K. Martin. The professional librarian’s reader in library automation and technology. Knowledge Industry Publications, Inc, * 1980. 201 pp. ISBN 0 914236 57 1.214.50. *UK address: 47-49 Caledonian Road, London Nl 9BU. With the exception of a brief introductory section by Susan Martin this volume is composed entirely of chapters taken from eight other volumes in Knowledge Industry’s Profe.rsional librarian series, namely Automated library circulation systems, 1979-1980, M’ urof arms: the librarians’ view, 1978-1979 and Book theft and library security systems, 1978-1979 by Alice Harrison Bahr, Library networks, 1978-1979 by Susan K. Martin, Minicomputers in libraries, 1979-1980 by Audrey N. Grosch, Librarians and online services by Pauline Atherton and Roger Christian, The electronic Library: bibliographic data bases, 1978-1979 by Roger Christian and Thefuture of the catalog: the library’s choices by S. Michael Malinconico and Paul J. Fasana. Of the thirteen chapters included, two deal with networks or networking and libraries, three deal with bibliographic database producers and distributors and the planning for and provision of online services in libraries, and one each with the uses of minicomputers, computer-supported catalogues, automated circulation systems, criteria for systems acquisition, the arguments for and against integrated or individual approaches to automation and book theft and library security systems; traditional and innovative uses of microforms are also considered in two further chapters. With such names as Grosch, Bahr and Malinconico present, one can confidently expect authoritative and informative contributions and such is the case; the chapters by Susan Martin herself on networks are admirably succinct, and Roger Christian’s chapters on bibliographic database producers and distributors provide some interesting statistical information as well as historical background to the development of these services. As a professional librarian’s reader in library automation and technology, however, it lacks a uniformity of
74
Book reviews
approach and a consistency of standard and level; this may be attributable in part to its method of compilation, which allowed little if any editorial authority to be exercised once the initial selection had been made. Many of the individual chapters themselves range too freely from generalization and overview to quite specific detail and spend too much time and space on descriptions of systems, services or packages more adequately described and analysed elsewhere in the easily accessible literature. As a reader in library automation this volume has obvious shortcomings, not the least of which are its (understandable) American emphasis and uncertainty about the level of professional librarian at whom it is aimed; nevertheless practically every chapter in it has something worth reading and remembering, though it would probably be best read in the context of the separate volume in which it first of illustrations ranging from a appeared. The volume has a number photograph of a Plessey lightpen and the Tattle-Tape book check unit to a schematic outline of the University of Minnesota’s Minicomputer Library an appropriately graphic confirmation of the book’s general System (MILS), contents and approach to the subject. A substantial five-page bibliography of relevant material completes the volume. F. B. Loughridge
Department of Information Studies University of Sheffield
Joseph
R. Matthews.
Choosing an automated library system. A planning guide. Chicago: Association,
1980.
119 pp. ISBN
0 8389
American
Library
0310 X. 58.25.
The voluminous and ever-growing periodical literature of library automation has, for the most part, been distinguished by its emphasis on the minutiae of a preoccupation with individual solutions of specific operational systems, particular housekeeping problems and with the adaptation of available hardware and software or packages to local needs; on the other hand, much of the monograph literature, and especially that pitched at an introductory level for library school students or for librarians wishing to update their knowledge, has settled for an uneasy and, generally, unsatisfactory combination of detailed description of the preliminary planning procedures supplemented by brief descriptions of selected or representative software packages and illustrative examples of operational systems, which by definition are more than likely to have been updated or to have become obsolescent by the time the book in question is published. As Matthews points out, little or no evaluative or analytical work has been published in this area nor, until recently, has much that is, to the human element and to the attention been paid to the ‘liveware’, likely impact of library automation projects on such factors as staff structure, decision-making levels, career patterns, training and education programmes or the relationship between librarian and library user. By concentrating on the various planning aspects of library automation to the exclusion of case studies and systems descriptions, Matthews has attempted for the consideration, selection and a methodology to formulate implementation of an automated system in a small or medium-sized library (by American standards) by examining in detail such matters as cost/benefit