As mentioned in my recent posting on Bayoudoc, I have sent you a draft copy of the Updated Disposition Instructions and am hoping you will make comments/suggestions about that draft here in this posting.
If I don't hear anything from anyone else by the end of this month, I'll just take Lori's suggestions and make some changes based on those.
Here are the comments/suggestions made by Lori Smith on May 16th:
* The
policy doesn't mention the fact that superseded items exist, and doesn't say
whether or not we still need to offer them. If we do, is it just specific
items, or is it everything?
* The
asterisk leading to the note about the "Five-year rule" is
confusing. I expected the note to be at the bottom of the page like a
footnote, but it was in the middle of the page. Maybe you could just put
the note in parentheses after the sentence that now ends with the asterisk.
* Is it
really necessary to put within the discard instructions all the nitty-gritty
details about creating and posting lists to the site? Theoretically we
should normally be reviewing and updating the instructions every five years
when we review the rest of the Plan. Those details about posting lists may
change a lot more frequently than that. Is there anything in the draft
that people couldn't find in the ASERL LibGuide? If not, it seems it
would be much easier just to refer people to the LibGuide rather than repeat
(and have to update) all the step-by-step instructions here.
*
In the timelines section, to make it clearer how the phased in access to offers
works, it might be helpful to add something like:
Primary
Regionals - Have access to offers days 1-45.
Primary
Selectives - Have access to offers days 6-45.
CoEs
- Have access to offers days 11-45.
Other
Regionals - Have access to offers days 26-45.
Other
Selectives - Have access to offers days 31-45.
* When
the policy says "Any offers which have not been selected after 45 days
will be expired from the system," it might be helpful to add "After
they have expired, offered items can be discarded. They may not be sold,
but can be offered to other libraries or to the public free of charge."
* I
suggest rewording the paragraph that starts "Within 24 hours of
posting...," as follows: Within 24 hours of posting your list, both
Regionals (LSU and Tech) have access to the list and we are the only libraries
that can request things from that list for 5 days. If we have a problem
with your withdrawing something from your collection, we will contact you to
discuss that item. After that discussion, if we have denied you
permission to withdraw that item, you would remove it from your list.
Otherwise, or if we raise no objections during that five-day period, you automatically
have permission to withdraw the listed items and they will stay on your list
until someone else requests them or forty-five days have passed--whichever
comes first.
* I
think it will just confuse people if anyone continues posting their lists on
Bayoudoc. I think we should either ask selectives to announce it on
Bayoudoc whenever they've posted a new list to ASERL, or simply encourage the
selectives who wish to fill gaps to check ASERL once a week for new items.
* The
instructions don't mention postage at all. I think it would be helpful to
say that offering libraries are generally expected to pay for postage but they
can make other arrangements with requesting libraries as necessary. (That
is the ASERL policy, right?)
* The
instructions don't say anything about the national needs and offers list.
I don't think it could hurt to say that it exists and that selectives might
want to offer large sets or rare titles there if no one in ASERL requests them.
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