I agree that most of the negative comments on EBSCO's free subscriptions
have come from academic libraries, but I don't know if it is such a great
boon for public libraries.  If you have YM on your shelves for a year, you
may create an expectation that it will be there next year.  What do you do
when your readers are looking for it next year and can't find it?  Also, it
seems a waste of time, money and effort to catalog and create checkin
records for a title that will be canceled in a year.  Of course, many users
may think that a year is better than nothing, and I know what it is like to
struggle with meeting users' needs on a limited budget!

Buddy Pennington
Acquisitions/Serials Librarian
Rockhurst University Greenlease Library
buddy.pennington@rockhurst.edu
#816-501-4143
<buddy.pennington@ROCKHURST.EDU>

-----Original Message-----
From: Elizabeth Horn [mailto:horn_elizabeth@HOTMAIL.COM]
Sent: Thursday, January 06, 2000 9:27 AM
To: SERIALST@LIST.UVM.EDU
Subject: Re: EBSCO free magazines

As a public library, we greatly appreciate the gift titles that we have
seen so far (we have received ESPN, have added it to our catalog, but have
not seen any duplicates yet). Most likely the frustration that most
librarians on this listserv have expressed is because they are speaking as
Academic or larger libraries that support major research. Our periodicals
are read and re-read again by a public who enjoys general interest and
sports-oriented magazines- and we as a library struggle with the budget to
meet our public's needs. I might not read the magazines we get (I haven't
read YM since I was 12) but our patrons definately benefit from the free
subscriptions (even if it is an advertising ploy).

IMHO,

Beth

Elizabeth Horn
Reference and Serials Librarian
Roanoke City Public Library
Roanoke, VA
<horn_elizabeth@HOTMAIL.COM>