The nature of e-resources suggests additional criteria for consideration. These include
- licensing and contractual terms, limitations, and obligations
- special pricing considerations, including discounts for retaining or canceling paper subscriptions, restrictions on cancellations, and discounts for consortial purchase
- completeness (if the e-version of a print resource, is the same content provided?)
- currency (the speed with which e-content is added or updated)
- ability to select and deselect individual titles or other content subsets, if offering is a package deal offered by an aggregator or publisher
- local service implications
- compatibility with link resolvers, bibliographic and citation management software, and course management software
- quality of end-user interface
- support for information transfer (output options)
- availability of data to measure use and effectiveness.
- response time
- vendor support and responsiveness
- availability of back files for genres such as e-journals
- publisher preservation arrangements
- • permission to access purchased content if a subscription is canceled
"Fundamentals of Collection Development and Management" by Peggy Johnson
Collection development came into wide use in the late 1960s to replace selection as a more encompassing term reflecting the thoughtful process of developing a library collection in response to institutional priorities and community or user needs and interests. Collection development was understood to cover several activities related to the development of library collections, including selection, the determination and coordination of selection policy, assessment of the needs of users and potential users, collection use studies, collection analysis, budget management, identification of collection needs, community and user outreach and liaison, and planning for resource sharing. In the 1980s, the term collection management was proposed as an umbrella term under which collection development was to be subsumed. In this construct, collection management includes collection development and an expanded suite of decisions about weeding, canceling serials, storage, and preservation. Also of concern in collection management are the organization and assignment of responsibilities for its practice.
Collection management and collection development now often are used synonymously or in tandem, a practice followed in this book
The nature of e-resources suggests additional criteria for consideration.
These include
• licensing and contractual terms, limitations, and obligations
• special pricing considerations, including discounts for retaining or canceling paper subscriptions, restrictions on cancellations, and discounts for consortial purchase
• completeness (if the e-version of a print resource, is the same content provided?)
• currency (the speed with which e-content is added or updated)
• ability to select and deselect individual titles or other content subsets, if offering is a package deal offered by an aggregator or publisher
• local service implications
• compatibility with link resolvers, bibliographic and citation management software, and course management software
• quality of end-user interface
• support for information transfer (output options)
• availability of data to measure use and effectiveness.
• response time
• vendor support and responsiveness
• availability of back files for genres such as e-journals
• publisher preservation arrangements
• permission to access purchased content if a subscription is canceled
For electronic resources involving physical media (e.g., CD-ROMs), these additional criteria should be considered:
• physical and logistical requirements within the library, including space, furniture, hardware, wiring, and telecommunication and data ports
• effective use of technology
Comparing the same e-content delivered several ways can be a challenge. A product may be available in print, CD-ROM, online from several suppliers, and with different pricing packages.
The process of selecting serials and other continuing resources (regardless of format) parallels that for other types of publications. The differences are the need to consider the continuing financial commitment implicit in initiating a subscription or licensing access and the possible need to negotiate a contract for electronic resources. A serial is “a publication in any medium issued in successive parts bearing numerical or chronological designations and intended to be continued indefinitely.” Many librarians interchange the terms serial and periodical.
Collection Development
vs.
Collection Management