COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT AND PRESERVATION OF LIBRARY RESOURCES IN DIGITAL ENVIRONMENT Presented by : Mrs. Pushpinder Kaur M.Sc. (Chem.) M.Lib & Inf. Sc., Librarian. GHGH College of Education, Sidhwan Khurd, Ludhiana.

INTRODUCTION It has been quite a long since we traversed from library management to information technology management. The efficiency of the library services is governed largely by the quantity and quality i.e. the no. of books and utility of its collection. With the impact of IT and use of e-resources, it has become imperative for information professionals to redefine the process of Collection Development. Collection Development Policy is standard library practice for publicly declaring a library’s intent of the material and preservation of the reading material.

CONCEPT Activities included Assessing the users need Evaluating the present collection Determining selection policy Co-ordinating selection of items Re-evaluating Preserving Planning for resource sharing. Collection development is the process of acquiring books/documents and non-print media needed to satisfy request for the information needs and to attain systems objectives.

Functions of collection development Library staff Academic staff User’s Analysis Selection Policies Acquisition Policies Resource Sharing Weeding Collection Evaluation

Importance of Collection Development Effective selection for tailoring acquisitions to available funds and to render collection more cost effective. Inf. Explosion – meant to enrich library collection. Can be attained through purchase, gifts and even exchange from other libraries or through donations. It will boost the staff, for better performance and for a continuous, consistent and balanced growth of a library. Collection Development and e-resources Larger and more complex set of resources because of the emerging technologies. These include analogue versions of books, journals, encyclopaedias, e-journals, e-books and on-line databases.

Collection Development Policy Design of policy statement Communicating tool, who is responsible for what? Serves as a budgeting tool. Main elements included : Library’s mission statement, statement of general policies concerning collection development and detailed analysis of what will be collected. Written statement of principles guiding the library’s selection of materials including the criteria used in making selection and deselection, decisions and policies concerning gifts and exchange. Technology related factors have to be incorporated in the policy.

Functions Provides guidelines to develop collection according to set goals, information about nature, scope and thrust area of collection development. Set standards. Reduces influences and bias. Acts as a guide for new staff. Helps in budgeting, assessing, overall performance, accountability and a tool for communication.

Who should select ? Members of faculty are usually charged with the responsibility for selecting materials in support of courses and programmes, whereas the librarian and library staff are held responsible for selecting general reference to books, periodicals and other material intended for general recreational reading.

Process of Collection Development It is a continuous cycle as long as library or information create centre exists. Basic focus on meeting the information needs of the community. Collection Development Process (Krishan Gopal, 2003) Community Profile Community Analysis Evaluation Deslection Library Staff Acquisition Selection policies Selection

a) Community Profile and Analysis Provides general characteristics about the community to which the library serves. After community profile there need assessment is done. Enhances the understanding (done either through research or survey). b) Collection goals Represents objectives and priorities of the library for various aspects of collection.

c) Selection Certain statements could be laid down e.g. About fictions d) Acquisition Description for acquiring the documents and statements covering the handling of gifted items e)Evaluation Includes strengths and weaknesses in different areas f)Preservation Action taken to preserve digital objects whether created from analog collection or born digital objects. Conservation of original analog objects. Earlier it was done through Lamination, Encapsulation, Microfilming but now the trend is towards digital preservation. g)Digital Preservation Storage, maintenance and accessibility of a digital object over the long term usually as a consequences of applying one or more digital preservation strategies. These strategies may include technology preservation, technology emulation or data migration.

Purpose : Ensures protection of information of enduring value for access by present and future generation. Objectives To maintain historical value of information To make it easy to use and handle. To make information survive longer. To provide world wide accessibility. Preservation approach Software hardware migration. Concern regarding physical deterioration of digital media. Metadata should be accessible as data Question of users need and preferences.

Storage of media Magnetic media Optical media (more durable) Can also be second or more full set in an off-site location to guard against the risk of theft, fire and similar disaster. Advantages Space saving, easy access, easy to handle, easy to transmit, time saving, low cost, less manpower involved.

Disadvantages Installation process complex and costly Lack of infrastructure Insufficient budget Shortage of expertise Durability only upto certain years h) Weeding Worn out and unused material should be discarded

Role of libraries Librarian will have to initiate the transition to an access-based model of service based upon electronic networks that will provide bibliographic, numeric and full text information to scholars and researchers. Willingness amongst librarians to adopt multimedia technology is a must for collection and preservation of important and regularly used documents beside handling conventional resources

Conclusion Collection development deals with reinterpretation of traditional library mission and practices for the digital library environment. Information professionals have to actively develop, maintain and manage wide range of resources. If libraries do not adopt this change, they will become museum of old information. With the advent of IT the task remains the same, only tools have changed and IT has become a handy told to do all jobs in the libraries so that it can help different users effectively and efficiently.

THANKS