Comments on: Out With The Old, In With The New http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2011/01/04/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new/ or, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to Fear and Loathing at a Public Library Reference Desk Sun, 26 May 2013 01:12:27 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.5.1 By: Swiss Army Librarian » Update on Eliminating Our Reference Collection :: Brian Herzog http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2011/01/04/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new/#comment-2410 Swiss Army Librarian » Update on Eliminating Our Reference Collection :: Brian Herzog Thu, 07 Apr 2011 14:55:11 +0000 http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/?p=1243#comment-2410 [...] post ever, but I’ve got a lot to talk about. My library just finished a major project I mentioned earlier this year – the three parts of this project [...]

]]> By: Links of interest: January 21, 2011 « A Modern Hypatia http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2011/01/04/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new/#comment-2001 Links of interest: January 21, 2011 « A Modern Hypatia Sat, 22 Jan 2011 03:51:21 +0000 http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/?p=1243#comment-2001 [...] Herzog talks about some major material shifting at his library, and about how it’s going to open up space in a wonderful new way, for the ways people are now wanting to use the library. Weeding materials, in particular, is a challenging topic, and I’m always glad when I see [...]

]]> By: Brian Herzog http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2011/01/04/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new/#comment-2000 Brian Herzog Thu, 06 Jan 2011 13:09:56 +0000 http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/?p=1243#comment-2000 @Sarah: Thanks – my middle name is “sensible and logical.” As for the project, I’ve been planning it in the back of my head for about three years, so when funding became available in November and I got approval, we jumped at it. There’s a lot of planning-as-we-go, which is fine with me. I try to stay one step ahead of where we are, but also not let anything get slowed down.

@Lori: I’m happy to hear a success story, and it sounds like opening up your large print area is exactly what your community wanted. Good for you too.

]]> By: Lori Fisher http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2011/01/04/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new/#comment-1999 Lori Fisher Wed, 05 Jan 2011 19:29:15 +0000 http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/?p=1243#comment-1999 Great post Brian…we undertook a similar project last year with terrific results. We now have a “ready reference” section by our circulation desk, and have integrated the rest of the reference materials we kept into the non-fiction shelving. Patrons are happy because now they don’t have to go to three separate areas to find resources for their research. We used the space created for a quiet study area (which we didn’t have before) and for our large print collection. We didn’t have any seating near our previous large print area, and found through a bookmark survey and good old observation that many large print users want/need to sit down and peruse the books (most of the users are older and want seating for physical reasons). It’s great to respond in such a positive way to changes in our community needs!

]]> By: Sarah Debraski http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2011/01/04/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new/#comment-1998 Sarah Debraski Wed, 05 Jan 2011 18:23:06 +0000 http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/?p=1243#comment-1998 Kudos to you and your library for being willing to adapt and reassess how we serve patrons. As I read your process I kept thinking how completely sensible and logical it was. Good luck with the construction! And, how long ago did you decide to do this and start the project? Sounds like it would take many months!

]]> By: Stephanie Willen Brown http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2011/01/04/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new/#comment-1997 Stephanie Willen Brown Tue, 04 Jan 2011 21:26:35 +0000 http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/?p=1243#comment-1997 Fascinating — and such a helpful use of space for patrons!

This reminds me of my new favorite website/blog: http://awfullibrarybooks.net/. One of the librarians’ comments is “hoarding is NOT collection development.” I also love to weed, as it keeps the collection fresh and useful.

Congrats — I hope you post photos when you’re done!

]]> By: Brian Herzog http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2011/01/04/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new/#comment-1996 Brian Herzog Tue, 04 Jan 2011 20:44:46 +0000 http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/?p=1243#comment-1996 @lesbrarian: Yeah, both patrons and staff. Once people hear our reasoning, they understand, but it’s still counterintuitive sometimes for a library to be getting rid of books.

@Holly: Oh, there have been too many. I did save some, but otherwise they would have slowed me down. And some weren’t so much awful as just out of date – the ones that made me laugh are the “Getting on the internet with Windows 3.0″ type books.

Also, I need to say that this certainly isn’t an original idea, and many libraries have already gone this route (including Westerville, OH and Wilmington, MA) – and I’m stealing ideas from all of them.

]]> By: Holly Hibner http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2011/01/04/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new/#comment-1995 Holly Hibner Tue, 04 Jan 2011 19:39:42 +0000 http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/?p=1243#comment-1995 I agree completely with your weeding method and philosophy. I especially love that some books are given another chance in a different collection before out-and-out weeding – and the fact that it’s made you look at THOSE collections carefully for space too. If you come across anything “Awful Library Books” worthy, send a scan our way! http://www.awfullibrarybooks.net

]]> By: lesbrarian http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2011/01/04/out-with-the-old-in-with-the-new/#comment-1994 lesbrarian Tue, 04 Jan 2011 15:33:37 +0000 http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/?p=1243#comment-1994 “Another issue has been peoples’ concern about how many books we’re getting rid of.” Do you mean patrons or staff?

That’s an excellent project you’ve taken on, and I’m actually a little bit envious, because I just love to weed. In all seriousness, it’s my favorite part of collection development. But there have been times when my energetic efforts have alarmed other colleagues.

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