Requesting Purchases
* Who orders the library materials?
The Periodicals Librarian is Martha Coleman, who handles items purchased by subscription, including journals and databases. All other materials are purchased through the Technical Services Librarian, Dennis G. Van Arsdale.
All purchases must be approved first by the departmental approval process (please consult your Dean for the
person handling approvals for your department, or just use the Request Form), and then by the Library Director, Wilma Cunningham.
The Library Director makes every effort to insure a fair distribution of purchases, based on available funding and the current needs of the collection, to cover all the subject areas in the Library collection.
* Who is the faculty contact for Library purchases?
The first person usually contacted should be the liaison librarian for the subject area. Liaison librarians are assigned to give special attention to subject areas, in order to improve the collection.
| SUBJECT | LIAISON LIBRARIAN | PHONE |
| Business, BII | Wilma Cunningham | 7205 |
| Social Sciences, Education | Carolyn Filippelli | 7204 |
| Humanities, Arts | Martha Coleman | 7208 |
| Applied Science, Health, WATC | Janet Sanders | 7207 |
| Science, Computing, Technology | Dennis G. Van Arsdale | 7206 |
University College faculty should consider the subject area their course would be in, and work with that librarian, if possible, but all the librarians are available to work with anyone at your convenience.
For quick answers or other subjects or questions on Library purchases, faculty may always go directly to the Technical Services Librarian. All librarians may be contacted in person, by phone, by e-mail, or by campus mail.
* Does the Library purchase current course textbooks or materials?
Textbooks currently assigned for purchase at the bookstore are not normally purchased by the Library. Textbooks are intended for purchase by individual students, and publishers may object to students substituting library copies for purchases. Also, textbooks tend to be checked out or otherwise removed by one student, and not returned until the end of the semester (if then), rather than purchased, which is unfair to other students in the course.
Faculty may provide textbooks and assigned materials for the Reserve Room, or request that they be purchased if approved. Please refer to the Reserves instruction page for instructions on this.
Expendable answer books, student guides, etc., which are intended for fill-in answers and notes will not be purchased. Such materials, even in the Reserve Room, tend to have a high rate of damage (pages removed instead of photocopied). An alternative to this would be for the faculty member to obtain permission from the publisher to have the relevant pages scanned into our Electronic Reserves system, so students could print them as needed.
Materials such as the publisher's accompanying CDROMs, videos, etc., may be placed in the Reserves. Please refer to the Reserves instruction page for instructions on this.
* What if someone wants to buy something with division or personal funds, or a grant?
The
Technical Services Librarian can help to get the necessary information for
ordering. In some cases, if the material is to be placed in the Library, the material might be purchased through the Library's services using grant or other non-library funds.
* What can faculty request for Library purchase?
The Library concentrates on buying material to support courses being taught.
Materials may include books, journal subscriptions, database services, videorecordings (in VHS or DVD formats), audio compact discs, and occasionally other formats as specially requested. Pamphlets and looseleaf materials should be discussed with the Technical Services Librarian, as they may need to be bound in order to be used in the Library.
Materials bought with library funds, according to state inventory requirements, must be processed into the Library collection and accounted for on a regular basis. Materials to be kept in faculty or non-library offices or anywhere else must be purchased with non-library funds.
Computer, audio-visual, and other non-book materials requested should be discussed with Library staff, to be sure that equipment to use the materials will be available in the Library. Materials which cannot be handled by equipment in the library are not normally purchased by the library.
Computer software which must be installed on the computers should be handled through the Learning Resources Center, according to campus policy.
Software may NOT be installed on Library computers but may be viewed if no special software is required.
Please check all software to be sure this is possible before sending students to use it at the Library.
Please note that the Library can assist divisions, departments and individuals with information in making a purchase with non-library funds, and is always happy to do so.
If library materials are to be used in a class during a semester, such materials should be placed on reserve in the Library and checked out by faculty only long enough for classroom use, and then returned.
This allows other faculty and students who missed the class to use the materials, even when the instructor is out of the office. It also allows the Library to accurately count the uses made by other faculty, students, etc., to help justify purchases in that subject. This greatly simplifies the inventory process, as well, which is required of the Library as well as the entire University.
The Library staff can arrange to have materials brought to instructors, providing adequate notice is given (so that a student library worker is available to act as a courier). It may also be picked up by the instructor at the circulation desk.
Please consult the Instructions for Reserve materials.
* What about best-sellers, popular fiction and other topics?
The public library systems handle popular works not related to the curriculum. Boreham Library cards may also be used during semesters at the Fort Smith Public Library and Scott-Sebastian Regional Library (current semester labels may be obtained at Registration or at the Library circulation desk) by current faculty, staff and students. While the Boreham Library often accepts donations of popular works not related directly to the curriculum, such materials are not regular purchases and may not necessarily be added to the collection.
Materials may also be obtained through InterLibrary Loan. This is faster than purchasing materials, and is usually done at no charge for faculty and staff. Students are charged a minimum fee for each loan.
* Can students or the public request the Library purchase materials, and how?
Student and general public suggestions may be made in the Library's online suggestion system. In the case of materials being requested to support a course, students should ask the instructor to make requests directly to the librarians, as faculty have a higher priority. The online suggestions are tallied at semester intervals, however, so anyone needing a quicker response should discuss it directly with Library staff. Please note that the priorities stated earlier still apply.
* How much money is available to buy materials for a specific course / program / subject area?
To provide maximum flexibility in purchasing, the Library does not assign specific
amounts to courses, programs, or subject areas.
This allows funds to be alloted according to need, availability of specific materials, accreditation requirements, faculty requests, and conditions related to certain funds. It also avoids small remaining amounts in multiple accounts which could be more useful in one sum.
Titles which might have a low priority or are needed quickly should be requested by Interlibrary Loan instead.
Titles to be used for short term use, personal research projects, personal degree programs, and so forth, should be requested by Interlibrary Loan.
The Library Director makes decisions on expending available funds. Requests may be held over for the next fiscal year, if funds have been expended for the current fiscal year. Therefore, a request is not lost if not immediately funded or purchased, as long as it is approved.
Faculty are encouraged to notify the Library concerning materials urgently needed for specific courses, especially new or changed courses. Faculty are required to notify the library when developing or changing classes, so that the impact on library resources may be determined (as part of the Curriculum Committee process).
Book funds are expended early in the fiscal year which begins July 1, so requests should be made as soon as possible.
* Should faculty ask for materials when funds might or might not be available?
Of course! If not requested, materials may not be ordered. If requested and available, they probably will be. If urgently required for coursework and available, they almost always are. Faculty can assign reasonable priorities. If new funds suddenly become available, requests will already be on hand and can be filled much more quickly.
* If the title is actually in stock, how long will it take to get it?
If the title is approved for purchase, it MAY only require a few weeks, or less (depending on prebinding for paperback editions). However, other factors may require much more time.
Faculty should always state clearly when materials are needed by a deadline.
Faculty should make requests, but not expect all materials requested immediately. Not everything may be approved for ordering, funding varies during the year, and titles may be out of stock (no matter what the publisher said or what the web site displayed). Requests are entered into a computer file, and those not filled immediately are kept available for when funds are on hand.
The Library cannot always order immediately. Availability of funding may vary through the year due to shifts in the budget. Orders might have to be delayed until it is decided whether or not certain funds may be used for materials, or must be shifted to cover unexpected expenses.
Materials which need to be placed on reserve for students usually have priority; these and other urgent requests should be brought to the special attention of the library staff rather than simply submitted normally.
* Will the item arrive in time for students to use it in this course?
If
- it is really available in stock
- it is approved for purchase
- it is ordered in enough time before the students need it.
The more advance time allowed, the better. Because some publishers may not give an accurate account of stock, the Library can count on only the few wholesalers that currently provide regular information on stock available in their own warehouse. If funds are released, and if the title is available from that wholesaler, and if that wholesaler has the title in stock, an estimate can be given.
* Can the Library give faculty some kind of average time to get something?
The Library regrets that no simple answer can be given, but such answers create unreasonable expectations that the Library often cannot meet.
It all depends on the specific item requested.
Faculty may contact the
Technical Services Librarian to see if a specific title is known to be available at a wholesaler warehouse, or other source.
Please remember: Materials that appear on a web site such as Amazon often actually admit they will take several weeks to obtain, which means they are NOT in stock at Amazon (and may or may not be in stock at the publisher). Read the information carefully.
Generally speaking, faculty should figure that materials may take up to 90 days to arrive before being processed for use, with a generous margin for error of about 60 days on either side of that. All too often, however, the time can extend beyond that estimate for reasons beyond the control of the Library.
In the case of rare emergencies, special arrangements can sometimes be made, but this should not be depended upon as a regular or frequent method.
* If a title comes in, how long to get it ready to use?
This depends on how many items are being processed at the same time. Allow up to a month, if the material comes in with a lot of other items at the end of the fiscal year, but normally, much less, provided that the Technical Services Librarian knows that the item must be rushed through.
Any items which must be available as quickly as possible should be brought to the
attention of the
Technical Services Librarian when ordering; the library cannot control anything until/if the material arrives, but can push a few titles through processing ahead of everything else when absolutely necessary, as long as the privilege is not abused. However, the Technical Services Librarian must know about the urgency beforehand.
Bear in mind that the end of the fiscal year and the beginning of the fiscal year are very busy times, when funds are used up and new funds become available. Materials may take a little longer to be processed. If a faculty member has their name attached to the item, a notice is sent when it is ready for use.
That is part of modern publishing. If enough orders are not coming in, publishers may send stock out to remainder dealers. Value of the publication is irrelevant. Fortunately, the Library has a number of sources for tracking down out-of-print materials.
* How do I request materials be bought by the Library?
* What information is needed to order materials?
Periodicals (magazines, newspapers, journals) and databases should be ordered directly through email for the Periodicals Librarian or phone 788-7208, or (for everything else) you may complete the Library Materials Request Form, or email the Technical Services Librarian, or phone 788-7206. You may also send pages, photocopies, or marked catalogs through campus mail (please see information below first about information to send with it). Please obtain approval from your departmental approval person, with documentation, before sending to avoid delays.
Information Needed:
Information or screen prints from commercial booksellers such as Amazon, the World Catalog, the URL from the specific web page with the item, or the actual paper catalog or citation, are always helpful.
Please note: NOT EVERYTHING LISTED BY WEB SITES IS ALWAYS AVAILABLE from that vendor. It may be through a used book vendor (which may or may not sell to the Library) or the site is willing to order the material but it might not come (which is the case with Amazon when they say it may take some days to weeks to arrive.) Please do not assume that we can or will order from the same source you used to confirm the information, as we may need to follow other rules to obtain materials.
Audiovisual materials should have a catalog or all available information provided whenever possible, as there are no standard references or numbers for audio-visual material, unlike books.
Please Remember: Materials found on services such as Amazon should include the ASIN number, as non-book titles (such as music or sound recordings) are often difficult to search on those services.
Books may usually be ordered with minimal information, provided the information is correct. Remember that a newer edition will be purchased instead, if available. A title and/or an author's name may be enough, in most cases, but any additional information is welcome. Contact the Technical Services Librarian, especially when unsure about some information.
Please note that materials on the (OCLC First Search) World Catalog database are quite likely to be out of print; this is a listing of libraries holding materials, not current publisher information. For current titles concerning a subject, online booksellers also provide other (but not guaranteed) sources of materials likely to be available. Contact the Technical Services Librarian for information.
Search the Library catalog for Out of Print Booksellers Online for personal purchases or to find materials not on OCLC First Search.
If no specific title is known but material needs to be found for a course, please discuss this with the Liaison Librarian for your subject area, or the Technical Services Librarian, so the exact needs can be determined. A librarian can then search for a list of current materials available and provide some possibilities for selection.
This is a common practice for selecting textbooks, but it is not related to Library purchases. While it is always your decision and privilege to review materials, the Library cannot purchase materials in quite that manner.
You should make it clear that any copy requiring any payment at any point, now or in the future, will have to be returned, and then a request for it will have to be sent for approval and purchase through normal Library procedures.
The Library, like other parts of the University, must encumber funds before it can even order materials for review, in case the item is accepted for purchase.
Oddly enough, some vendors lose interest at this point. Reputable vendors are willing to send information and cite reviews, rather than depend exclusively on sending out copies. If the vendor is still willing, the decision is up to you, but any recommendations will need to go through the normal procedures later.
* When is the best time to order materials?
As early in the fiscal year (beginning in July) as possible.
Bear in mind that library purchasing is rarely done after March, and all funds may be completely
encumbered and often spent by then.
Materials requested and approved, but not purchased in time, will have records kept in on file for future consideration.
Remember: you may research but please do not try to order materials for a new course until the course is officially approved for scheduling. If the course is delayed for any reason, new editions of titles may be released, and materials purchased too early could become obsolete.
* What if a desired title is out of print?
Modern publishing makes it increasingly necessary to go hunting for out-of-print and out-of-stock titles. When the Library reports a title is considered out of print to faculty, it is not officially listed as being available in print from the publisher (or listed as "out of stock indefinitely"), or at a reasonable price from out-of-print vendors, or at all, at that time. That status could change in the future.
If no other title can be found to substitute, please contact the Technical Services Librarian to discuss the possibilities. The library has more than one source for out of print materials.
Out of Print Booksellers Online (link)
The Library has accounts to allow out-of-print purchasing for many items and will make a reasonable attempt to obtain necessary materials. In fact, this type of ordering is increasing.
Please remember that the Library is restricted to purchasing materials from vendors and cannot legally reimburse faculty or staff for purchases given to the Library. The Library must go through the usual purchase order process, and not all out-of-print vendors are open to dealing with that or the additional cost and time involved for them. The Library may not always be allowed to use some of the sources available to individuals, so may need to find other sources.
* How do I request audiovisual materials (videos, CDs, etc.)?
Non-book items should be discussed with the Technical Services Librarian, as the details may help find the vendor. While books are usually submitted to a company to receive an ISBN number, no such service is required for AV materials as there is no standard industry-wide numbering system accepted as yet (although some videorecordings also use ISBNs). There is no single source for information for non-book materials, so all the details are useful.
The most useful methods are to mark catalogs, or email web pages for the items requested. See the information on ordering on what is required.
* What format should audiovisual materials be ordered in?
At present:
- Videorecordings in standard DVD (Region 1 encoding) or VHS videocassettes (NTSC format) only are purchased. Players for other formats are not readily available in most classrooms.
Please be aware that videorecordings from sources outside North America may not be playable on campus equipment, and may not be legally converted for use even if compatible conversion equipment could be found. - HD (High Definition) materials will not be purchased unless that is the only medium available, and it is still compatible with non-HD players and systems.
At this time, research indicates that no significant difference in quality is discernable for most users until the television screen is at least 42" diagonal size. Since most applications here require putting the picture through a projection system in order to reach that size or greater, this removes much or all of the "HD" quality. In addition, there is a "format war" between competing formats (similar to Beta versus VHS in videocassettes), and the chosen format we purchased may or may not be the long-term winner. This situation will continue to be monitored, however, for changes in technology and campus equipment. - "Clean" versions (edited for profanity, nudity, etc.) which have been offered from some sources are going through court trials at this time. The findings so far tend to consider such edited versions as violations of copyright (if the copyright owners wanted them edited for content, they would have done it themselves, is the reasoning, and changes without permission are not legal). Such materials may be confiscated during or following a court decision, and therefore will not be purchased.
- Filmstrips and slides are no longer purchased.
- Sound recordings are purchased primarily in compact discs, but some kits containing audio cassette tapes are also allowed.
- Other formats are being phased out of the collection unless they have unique value.
The library is responsible for ordering materials which include educational, or classroom viewing, rights (even though the actual item received may be the exact same thing as sold in stores, the rights must be documented). Videos in local stores often state but almost always require that the video may only be shown to a private audience (meaning the renter plus immediate family, usually).
Educational rights may not be made available immediately (or at all), and the video may cost substantially more (so funds are a limitation). It might take a little longer for the Library to track down a vendor who can provide classroom viewing rights. Requests should be made, but please remember that it may take time to fill such requests when meeting educational standards to satisfy copyright requirements.
Incidentally, not all items shown on public television stations are available with educational rights. Public television producers retain all rights until they are released to a vendor, and not all are released to the same vendors. There may be a delay in releasing materials with the proper rights.
Materials taped from television cannot be placed in the library except with proper written permission from the owner of the rights.
* Why did the Library get a copy of the title requested, but in a different cover and size?
Ordering the paperback edition and having the book prebound in hard covers is often far more cost-effective, as well as providing a more durable and guaranteed binding. In many cases, it may also make the material available sooner. Some materials are no longer available in certain bindings, and alternate versions must be substituted. End-of-year rush purchases may require the Library to omit prebinding for paperbacks, but special covers will be added in processing for library use.
Incidently, the designations in publishing for binding are Hard or Cloth covers, trade paperback (usually taller than 6 inches), and mass market paperback (6 inches tall or less). Mass market paperbacks are not normally purchased unless there is no other alternative (both the size of print and the quality of the paper have been problems).
* Why does the Library only have one copy of this title?
Unless very high demand is anticipated, or develops later, the standard policy is to purchase only one copy.
If faculty expect to assign an entire class or more to use a particular title, please notify the library as soon as possible so that title may be placed on reserve. Additional copies can be purchased if necessary and possible.
Faculty are requested to remember that having many copies available does not necessarily mean that students will actually use the material. In some cases, the actual use may not justify purchase or donation of additional copies.
* May I have a special section in the library for my materials?
Faculty do have a special section for each person and class. The Reserves system allows materials and web sites to be listed with the faculty member's name and/or class in the online catalog, whether or not the item or web site is in the reserve room, or limited in circulation. Please consult the Reserves manual for instructions on how to arrange this convenient service for your students.
Materials on reserve with special limits on circulation are kept in order by call number in the reserve room.
Otherwise, the library staff prefers to keep materials with normal circulation periods in the collection in their usual place, to reduce the confusion among students and faculty caused by having many "Special" collections to search. There is often the factor that certain titles may be on reserve by more than one instructor, or for more than one class. There is also the problem of many locations leading to materials being misshelved more often.
Why Would Publishers Not Accurately Report What Is In Stock?
The Supreme Court's 1979 ruling in Thor Power Tool Company v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue made it less advantageous to keep goods in stock in the hope of eventually selling them, by changing the depreciation rules. This resulted in changes not only in manufacturing industries, but in publishing. Before this, the tax advantages of depreciating books (and other goods) helped to pay for the cost of creating extra copies and storing them until ordered. That, plus the rising costs of publishing, tends to make publishers reluctant to print more copies than are actually on order when printing starts.
As a result, the value of a title may become much less relevant in business. Often what matters more is whether or not enough orders will be received quickly enough to justify printing and holding the additional copies.
Compounding this situation, many publishers often still use a "standard contract" with authors, which may include standard provisions about the time that the book will be kept "in print". These standards were often set in an earlier, gentler publishing environment. A book can be "temporarily out of stock" legally, but technically not "out of print" on a legal basis, if the publisher is theoretically preparing to print more copies based on sufficient demand.
Therefore, anyone who contacts a publisher might be an author or author's agent, checking up on how the publisher is upholding the contract, and making sure the book is legally in print. Since a publisher can, theoretically, legitimately run out of stock between the time of being asked, and the actual receipt of an order, a title can be reported to a caller as being "in stock" when an inquiry is received and "out of stock" when the order is received at the storage area.
In reality, unless hundreds or thousands of copies are ordered, it is not always economical to have a new print run, so the book is for all practical purposes an unadmitted "out of print" title, but in some cases, that might be a technical breach of the contract with the author. Some publishers handle this by claiming to have copies on hand when contacted but then "backorder" the title if an order is actually received, claiming they have just run out. For example, in the Library's recent experience, a title reported as having 1,000 copies "in stock" when the vendor was phoned and specifically asked about copies in stock, yet was put on backorder when ordered within days. This title was unlikely to have had 1,000 copies ordered (of that particular title) in that short a span of time. This phenomenom has been reported by a number of libraries and wholesale vendors and is of great concern in the industry.
This situation has resulted in a new and growing segment of publishing which obtains rights to reprint certain titles on demand. Sometimes materials are available through this method. This may result in some printing or binding differences between the original and the reprinted editions.
Materials which are unadmitted "out of print" items may be available when searched as "used" and sometimes may be obtained in a used condition in order to fulfill the request.
* How do I give books or materials to the Library?
Just call the Library at 788-7200. The Library accepts materials for the biennial Book Sales all year. Materials to be placed in the collection must be approved by the Library Director. Materials to be placed on reserve for classwork should go through the regular procedure.
Thank you for thinking of the Library when you donate!
* How do I donate funds to the library?
Please contact the UA Fort Smith Foundation at 788-7020 about donating funds. You can specify that funds are to be used specifically for Library purchases.
Please: before requiring a specific title for purchase, consult the Technical Services Librarian to see if it is available and suitable for the library collection, and discuss alternatives if it may not be. Once funds are committed for a specific purchase, they become unusable if that item is not available. It is usually safer to specify a subject area, or state that a specific title is "preferred." See this section for more information.
Materials donated to the Library may have, at your discretion, a special label inside stating that this was purchased with your funds, in memory or honor of the person you specify. This note is also accessible through the online catalog and is searched like a author's name, Last name then first name, either donor or honoree.
Thank you for thinking of the Library when you donate!
* Can I donate funds for a specific title or subject purchase to the Library?
Please: before requiring a specific title for purchase, consult the Technical Services Librarian to see if it is available and suitable for the library collection, and discuss alternatives if it may not be. Once funds are committed for a specific purchase, they become unusable if that item is not available. It is usually safer to specify a subject area, or state that a specific title is "preferred."
The Library will attempt to obtain specific titles or subjects, if the Library Director approves them, for the collection. Quite often titles in a certain subject area will already be under consideration for purchase, and may be provided for your selection.
Materials donated to the Library may have, at your discretion, a special label inside stating that this was purchased with your funds, in memory or honor of the person you specify. This note is also accessible through the online catalog and is searched like a author's name, Last name then first name, either donor or honoree.
Thank you for thinking of the Library when you donate!
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