2000 Contributed Papers

With the increasing costs of scientific journal subscriptions and the proliferation of electronic journals, Librarians have had to be innovative in their approach to serials management. We asked our submitters to describe successful ways that they have handled the increasing complexity of serials. We wanted to know about changes in collection development practices resulting from demands for print and online products, concerns that Librarians have about the archiving of electronic journals, issues related to online license agreements for electronic journals, how Libraries are working with consortia, and Librarians’ projections for the future.

The two accepted papers present very different aspects of journal management. The Starbuck-Thompson-Bressert paper describes how a Library adapted to the changing environment of journal management and the demands that online journals made on the Library’s policies on access, collection development, and budget. Their paper provides a very thoughtful and thorough analysis of how they resolved many of the issues that came with the incorporation of online journals within a consortium and at the local level. The Goodman paper is a projection into the future. The paper describes how a Library evaluated its present journal use and presented a recommendation for a radical shift in journal or article publishing. Both papers present valuable analyses of how libraries manage and utilize journals, and provide information that can be incorporated in most Library settings.

Practical Approaches to Ongoing Changes in Scientific Journal Publishing
Edith Starbuck, Jane Thompson and Sharon Bressert, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Academic Information Technology and Libraries, Health Sciences Library

What Journals, If Any, Should Still Be Published?
David Goodman, Princeton University Biology Library

Acknowledgements

Comments should be directed to Anne Marie Malley.

Rev. July 2007