---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Tue, 16 Feb 1999 10:48:14 -0600
From: Cheryl Conway <cconway@COMP.UARK.EDU>
Subject: Re: serial shelflists (Kathleen Thorne)

I agree.  My opinion is that serials shelflist cards or any other shelflist
cards should not be discarded until the information in the local system has
been compared to the shelflist card.  Once all information is correctly
entered into the system then it is OK to discard the shelflist cards.

At 07:01 PM 2/15/1999 -0500, you wrote:
>---------- Forwarded message ----------
>Date: Mon, 15 Feb 1999 10:27:31 -0700
>From: kathleen <kathleen@SJSUVM1.SJSU.EDU>
>Subject: serial shelflists
>
>I'm not really sure we're doing ourselves a favor by discarding serials
>shelflists -- maybe I'm overly pessimistic because of abuses I see
>happening here in my library, but I find myself wondering whether we may
>be setting ourselves up for some problems further down the years...
>
>Our serials shelflist was summarily tossed when I was relieved of my
>serials cataloging duties nearly 4 years ago -- my leaving of the
>shelflist (for the next cataloger[s]) was seen as an indication of its
>lack of value.  Since then, there have been many instances where either
>a call number is known but can't be located in the online catalog or on
>the shelves (and many of us are positive we owned the item); or the call
>number has been changed in the catalog by the new catalogers but the
>items have not been re-labeled & remain lost somewhere in the stacks
>under the old, now unknown call number; or... numerous other little gems
>of the same general kind. In a couple of instances, electronic records
>were apparently accidentally erased of necessary elements or completely
>deleted in error.
>
>Unless the staff who build and maintain the electronic records are
>meticulous, it won't be many years before our electronic catalogs and
>our collections are completely out of sync with each other. We may be
>able to do a little backtracking if there are backup tapes, but with no
>permanent records it may prove to be too big a problem.
>
>Surely I'm not the only one who finds it embarrassing when faculty or
>students can't find materials they used only a semester or two before;
>somehow the answer of "yes, you may have used it here, we may have had
>that title then but maybe we've since discarded it" is as unacceptable
>to me as it is to them.
>
>Please, my friends, assure me that I'm totally silly to worry about
>these problems, that such things can't happen -- this is certainly one
>case where I will be delighted to be proven wrong!!
>
>Kathleen Thorne
>still a serials cataloger...?...
>--
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>Kathleen Thorne
>Serials Cataloger                                       Creator of the
world, keep me sane
>San Jose State University                               Keep my sense and
my wisdom
>San Jose, CA 95192-0028                                 until you come for
me.
>ph: (408) 924-2826   fax: (408) 924-2701
>email:  kathleen@email.sjsu.edu
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>
>
Cheryl