Hi Buddy:

Here at Montclair State University Library we have two locations for our
periodicals.  The first location is on the main floor next to our
Periodicals Office.  We keep current issues and bound in this area.  The
older bound volumes are kept in Remote Storage in the lower level of the
Library.  Our Periodicals are all arranged alphabetically.

Ed Gil
Periodicals Librarian
Harry A Sprague Library
Montclair State University

Pennington, Buddy D. wrote:
> Hi all,
>
>
>
> Our periodicals are currently on open shelves and are arranged by title.
> We are in the process of building an automated storage and retrieval
> system (ASRS) that will house all of our bound periodicals. We were
> planning on classifying the currently received print periodicals to
> create a periodicals reading area that would be browsable by subject. We
> were not planning on classifying the bound volumes.
>
>
>
> However, one of our public services librarians is now proposing that all
> of the periodicals be classified for the library catalog (we wouldn't
> print labels because the ASRS will not physically house the materials by
> call number). Her argument for doing this project is that if most of the
> materials are in closed stacks, users will browse virtually by call
> number in the catalog.  If the noncurrent periodicals are not classified
> they will not be included in this virtual browsing.  I have some doubts
> as to the real benefits of this project.  My experience with browsing
> has been that users either want to know what's current (browsing current
> periodical issues) or are browsing for something they can pull off the
> shelf and check out (books, DVDs, etc.).  I am not sure that users are
> interested in browsing bound periodical volumes.  They typically have a
> citation in hand when they need to get their hands on a bound
> periodical.
>
>
>
> I would like to know if any libraries out there have either done this or
> considered doing this (classifying periodicals prior to moving to closed
> stacks or remote storage) within the last five years.  If you did so, do
> you feel like the benefits were worth the cost of the project?  Thanks.
>
>
>
> Buddy Pennington
>
> Serial Acquisitions Librarian
>
> University of Missouri - Kansas City
>
> 800 East 51st Street
>
> Kansas City, MO  64110
>
> Phone: 816-235-1548
>
> Fax: 816-333-5584
>
> Email: penningtonb@umkc.edu
>
>
>
> UMKC University Libraries: Discovery. Knowledge. Empowerment.
>
>
>