ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries July/August 1 9 9 6 /4 1 3 New s fr o m the Field M a ry Ellen D avis CDA ruled unconstitutional In June a federal district court panel declared the new Com­ m u nications D ece n cy Act (CDA) unconstitutional. ALA was the lead plaintiff in a suit filed by the Citizens Internet Empowerment Coalition, a coalition of organizations that also includes online provid­ ers, publishers, parents, and other groups. The suit challenged the act on the grounds that it is overly broad and so vaguely worded that it would subject librarians and other members of the public to criminal prosecution for posting materials online that are legal in other media. ALA Executive Director Elizabeth Martinez said, “This is a historic case. The judges have acted to protect public access to information in this new and important medium.” The suit, filed in Philadelphia, was consoli­ dated with a similar suit brought by the Ameri­ can Civil Liberties Union. The government is expected to file an appeal that could be heard as soon as this fall by the U.S. Supreme Court. Under the act, passed in February as part of the Telecommunications Reform Act o f 1996, any person who knowingly sends or displays materials over the Internet that could be inter­ preted as “indecent” or “patently offensive by contemporary community standards” could be imprisoned for up to two years and fined up to $250,000. Attorneys for the plaintiffs argued that the law would curtail freedom of speech by re­ stricting all communication on the Internet to a level appropriate for children and would un­ fairly subject libraries, colleges, and other edu­ cational institutions to criminal prosecution for distributing great works o f art and literature, health, science, and other materials that some might find offensive. ACRL publishes ACRL University Lib ra ry Statistics, 1994–95 . . . This biennial ACRL survey includes statistical data from 116 participating libraries. Institutions surveyed include Carnegie Classifications Re­ search I & II and Doctoral Granting I & II. Among library operations categories reported are collections, personnel, expenditures, and interli­ brary loan. Institutional cat­ egories include degrees of­ fered, enrollment size, and facu lty size. T h e report (ISBN 0-8389-7831-2), com­ piled by the Library Re­ search Center in the Gradu­ ate School o f Library and Information Science at the University o f Illinois at Ur­ bana-Champaign, is avail­ able for $79.95; ACRL mem­ b e r d isco u n te d p rice is $49.95. Send orders to Hugh Thompson, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 60611-2795 or call toll- free (800) 545-2433, press 7; fax: (312) 836- 9958. . . . an d R eferen ce Training in A ca d em ic Libraries, CLIP N ote # 2 4 The reference desk is a key element in the ser­ vice a library provides to its users, and the role o f the reference librarian is expanding rapidly. W e b p a g e s , n e t­ w orked cam puses, co m m u n ity o u t­ reach, and distance education are all fall­ ing under the pur­ view of today’s ref­ e r e n c e lib ra ria n . R e feren ce Training in A cadem ic Librar­ ies, c o m p ile d by K im b e rle y R o b le s and Neal Wyatt, sur­ veys training programs in small and medium­ sized academic libraries and provides examples o f training documentation for both new and experienced librarians. Among the areas of ref­ erence training covered are desk service, refer­ ence collection and subject specialist knowl­ edge, database training, Internet services, library instruction, outreach skills, and evaluation of both trainee and program. Reference Training in A cadem ic Libraries (ISBN 0-8389-7842-8) is available for $31.95; ACRL member discounted price is $27.95. Send orders to Hugh Thompson, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 606 l 1-2795 or call toll-free (800) 545-2433, press 7; fax: (312) 836-9958. 4 1 4 / C&RL News H u m or is o n e o f th e fo rm s digital a rt ca n take to enliven a W eb site. See m o r e o f Susan Ju r is t’s c re a tio n s an d an e x p la n a tio n o f h ow to m ak e y o u r o w n Web g ra p h ics o n page 4 1 8 . Dogs ra ise m oney for CSU lib rary Highly trained dogs jumped hurdles, balanced on teeter-totters, leapt through tires, and ran through tunnels while raising approximately $1,500 for the University Library at California State University, Northridge. The dog agility tri­ als were put on by DogSports, and were held on the front lawn o f the university’s Oviatt Li­ brary. More than 158 dogs competed in the two-day agility competition o f jumping and obstacle courses. Proceeds from the event were donated to the University Library. In addition, owners could contribute to the Honored Scholar Dog cam­ paign which raised $500. Each dog (and one rabbit) received a thank you letter. Dogs who won in their categories will have their names on bookplates placed inside books purchased with the money raised. The event was the brainchild o f librarian Mary Finley and her husband Paul Kirk who are active in West Valley DogSports. Choice an d Brodart form partnership Choice magazine, ACRL’s review journal for aca­ demic libraries, has entered a partnership with the Brodart Company. Beginning with the May 1996 issue, the full text of all Choice reviews will also be available through Brodart’s Title Information Preview Service (TIPS). The TIPS subscription service provides custom lists of new titles based on user requirements. Sub­ scribers can access Choice titles alone or in combina­ tio n w ith T IP S ’ o th e r sources— Booklist, Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, P u b lish ers Weekly, and S ch oo l L ibrary J o u r n a l. Subscribers can elect to re­ ceive basic title informa­ tion with review citations or full-text reviews. TIPS lists can be pro­ vided in traditional print formats of list or slip, but they are also available electronically through disk or download. The file can be in ASCII or OCLC form for loading into database, word-processing, or elec­ tronic ordering software. Once received, files can be transmitted to appropriate departments, librarians, or faculty members for purchase consideration. International Book Fair to be held in Septem ber The International League o f Antiquarian Book­ sellers (ILAB) will hold its 16th book fair in San Francisco, September 6–8, 1996. Approximately 200 major rare book­ sellers from 20 coun­ tries are expected to bring a representative selection o f their best b o o k s , m anuscripts and related materials to the book fair. Daily entrance fees are $5 per person. Book spe­ cialties represented in­ clud e early printed b o o k s and m a n u ­ scripts dating to the 15th century and ear­ B ook o f H ou rs, illus­ lier, illustrated books trated m s. o n vellum , and maps, fine bind­ R ouen: c . 1 4 8 0 . ings and livres d’artistes, literature and science, medicine and law, children’s books, autographs, antiquarian and rare books in all fields, and modern first editions. The ILAB Book Fair was last held in the United States in 1980 and on the West Coast in 1967. For more information on the fair call (415) 695-1449. July/August 1996/415 Research m entors sought ACRL’s Research Committee seeks experienced researchers willing to share their skills in a mentoring relationship. The committee is spon­ soring a mentoring program for those librar­ ians who aspire to conduct research but need to develop their skills. The program supports goal one of ACRL’s new Strategic Plan, “to con­ tribute to the total professional development o f academ ic and research librarians.” For details on becoming or obtaining a men­ tor contact Marilyn J. Martin, Chair, ACRL Re- sèarch Committee, Rowan College Library, 201 Mullica Hill Rd., Glassboro, NJ 08028-1701; phone (609) 256-4981; e-mail: martin@library. rowan.edu. ACRL publishes c ale n d a r featuring C&RL N e w s covers ACRL has featured some of its most popular co v ers from C&RL News in a limited edi­ tion 17-month aca­ demic appointment calendar. This spiral- bound, monthly cal­ endar, which high­ lig h ts im p o rtan t ACRL d a te s and events, runs from Au­ gust 1996 through December 1997 and will be available for $7.00 at the ALA stores at the 1996 Annual Conference and 1997 Midwin­ ter Meeting. Not attending the conference? Cop­ ies o f the calendar are available by mail for $9.00, which includes shipping and handling. To receive a copy send your check, made pay­ able to ACRL, to: ACRL Calendars, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 606 l l . The paper albatross Ed. note: A lthough c la im s a r e often m a d e a b o u t th e p a p e r le s s society, in reality I f i n d th at e - m a il a n d th e e a s e o f p h o to co p y in g a n d p rin tin g things o u t f r o m m y c o m p u ter h a v e in c r e a s e d th e a m o u n t o f p a p e r I live with. I thou ght re a d e rs w o u ld f i n d this p i e c e o f interest. (R eprin ted with p er m issio n f r o m The Univer­ sity of Memphis Libraries News, sprin g 1996, vol.2. n o .1 .) When we had the card catalog and relied exclusively upon printed indexes, we pro­ vided “P” slips for people to write down call numbers and citations. Today the card cata­ log and many of the printed indexes are on­ line, and our patrons use reams of paper and print citations, call numbers, and even full texts of articles. Instead of ordering boxes of “P” slips, we order truckloads o f paper. In FY94/95 we used 94 cases (940 reams) of paper. During this fiscal year, we project that we will use 150 cases (1,500 reams). At $3.00– $5.00 a ream, we will spend from $4,500 to $7,500 just for paper. Printing also requires printer maintenance and a large supply of toner. At $90 per cartridge, we will spend about $1,800 this year for toner. We spend a lot of staff time loading paper and trouble­ shooting. Much of what is printed is used by stu­ dents and faculty for their research, but too much is w asted. Unfortunately, printing through the libraries’ system is complicated and counterintuitive. There are at least five different print functions to learn, each pecu­ liar to a specific database or system. Because one printer services several computers, print commands go into a printer queue. Users who don’t understand this print sequence inadvert­ ently print multiple copies. Library staff have found 21 copies of a single printout, none of which were picked up. Other users print one citation (two lines) per page. Because of the networked situation, each printout has a sepa­ rate cover page, which is also wasted paper. In order to cut waste, we use both sides of the paper. That means that we have to gather and sort the paper. When both sides are used, we dump it in the recycle bin. O f course, all of this paper shuffling wastes staff time, too. Printing costs may be justified when print­ ing is used in support o f the academic cur­ riculum and research. Not everything needs to be printed, however. Sometimes a “P” slip will still do to jot down a call number or a citation. The library staff asks that users care­ fully evaluate resources before printing, and help us conserve paper, money, and trees.— Betsy Park, head. Reference Department, Uni­ versity o f Memphis Libraries 41 6 /C&RL News ACRL Instruction Section se e k s nominees ACRL’s Instruction Section (IS) Nominating Committee is seek­ ing nominations for the posi­ tions of vice-chair/chair-elect, secretary, and member-at-large. Details are available on the IS Web site: http://www2.colgate. edu/instruction. Send nomina­ tions or questions to committee chair: Barbara MacAdam, head, Educational and Information Services, University of Michigan, 1102 Shapiro Library, Ann Ar­ bor, MI 48109; (313) 763-5084; fax: (3 1 3 ) 76 4 -6 8 4 9 ; e-m ail: bmacadam@umich.edu. Plan y o u r Banned Books W e e k celebration n o w ALA, the American Booksellers Association, the Association of American Publishers, the National Association of College Stores, the American Society of Journalists and Authors, and the American Booksellers Foundation for Free E x p re s s io n are sp o n so rin g Banned Books Week, September 28–October 5, 1996. A press kit of materials fea­ tures three posters, 100 book­ marks, and a resource guide containing camera-ready art for ads and bookm arks, display ideas, sample news releases, an annotated “List of Books Some People Consider Dangerous,” Notable First Amendment court c a s e s , q u o te s o n th e First Amendment, and tips for deal­ ing with concerns about library resources. T he 1996 B an n ed B o o k s W eek kit sells for $28 and is available from Banned Books W eek, O ffice for Intellectual Freedom, ALA, 50 E. Huron St., Chicago, IL 60611; (800) 545- 2433 ext 4223. Individual post­ ers and bookmark packages are also available. Check out the Web site at http://www.ala.org/ bbooks. University of Illinois auction a success The public/mailbid auction of duplicate books held by the University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign ( C&RL News, March 1996) brought in nearly $30,000. Of the 373 lots available for sale, 314 lots were sold with almost two-thirds of the sales to those bidding by mail. “I’ve got to say that, except for a couple of mi­ nor hitches, this went well for a first-time event,” said Vincent Golden, the organizer o f the auction. “Expenses were only $2,400 and the net revenue gen­ erated will be used to purchase special materials for the library.” The highest priced sale was for Transactions o f the Royal Soci­ ety o f Edinburgh, volumes 1–4, 178 8 – 1798; it w as sold for $1,900 to an individual who col­ lects science material. Golden said, “Given a chance, we will definitely have another auction in the future.” Utah consortium selects Ameritech The Utah Academic Library Con­ sortium (UALC) and Ameritech Library Services announced a partnership to install Ameri­ tech’s Horizon automated library system at each of the 11 aca­ d em ic in stitu tio n s in Utah. Implementation of the system will expand student and faculty access to electronic information held by the state’s universities and available across the Inter­ net. Joan Hubbard, university librarian at Weber State College and chair of UALC, said, “The partnership between UALC and Ameritech . . . continues the long and unique tradition of co­ operation among libraries in Utah. It represents the techno­ logical move that each library must make to support the fu­ tu re a c a d e m ic in fo rm a tio n needs of the state.” ■ http://www2.colgate mailto:bmacadam@umich.edu http://www.ala.org/ July/August 1 9 9 6 /4 1 7