College and Research Libraries 148 I College & Research Libraries • March 1980 cited with lean analysis and synthesis of the data where appropriate. Advances, on the other hand, apparently gives more latitude to its reviewers. The very concept of what a review should be varies from chapter to chapter. While it is true that most of the Advances reviews !\tick to descriptions of trends found in a hundred or so references, George W. Whitbeck and his associates went to the other extreme in the section "Funding Sup- port for Research in Librarianship." De- spairing of getting much help from pub- lished literature, the reviewers designed their own questionnaire study, on which they based their conclusions. They cite only six references. Perhaps the best use of the freedom en- joyed by contributors to Advances is seen in Abraham Bookstein and Karl Kocher's expli- cation of operations research (OR) as applied to libraries. It not only describes pertinent literature but also weaves the analysis into the clearest primer on OR to come down the pike so far. Similarly, Carmel Maguire has produced the same effect by a different route, that of historical and documentary description of the background and current state of Austra- lian librarianship. The present reviewer, who has spent some time in Australia, found this summary comprehensive, well con- densed, lucid, and enlightening. Although not exactly scintillating throughout, Advances provides many cases of challenging reading in the arid land of what Cassata has described as "pretentious and heavy handed" STOA prose. A good example of this is found in Charles W. Evans' review of "The Evolution of Parapro- fessional Library Employees." The reaction of one paraprofessional staff member of the University of Oregon Library, Rebecca S. Bragg, administrative assistant, interlibrary loan service, confirms the lively character of the chapter whether or not one agrees with her generalization-Bragg found that the review "clearly defines and explains the his- tory of the paranoia that most professional librarians have regarding paraprofessionals: that upgrading paraprofessionals would downgrade professionals." In contrast to the systematic master plan of ARIST, the apparently eclectic policy of Advances has produced a more timely and lively volume, perhaps at the expense of comprehensive coverage of the field over a period of years. In the matter of indexing, Advances does not come off well. Not only has the author index been dropped this year but the sub- ject index also consists of a virtually useless four pages which add little to the table of contents. The current ARIST, in contrast, devotes forty-seven pages to a true author and subject index plus a nine-page KWOC index to the whole set. Whereas Advances has never published a detailed cumulated index, ARIST did so in 1976. Following is an abbreviated contents list of this excellent aid to updating one's awareness of the state of affairs in the im- portant areas reviewed: "Intellectual Free- dom in Librarianship" (David K. Berning- hausen); "User Fees" (Thomas J. Waldhart and Trudi Bel}ardo); "Paraprofessional Li- brary Employees" (Charles W. Evans); "Measuring Library Effectiveness" (Rose- mary Ruhig Du Mont and Paul F. Du Mont); "Operations Research in Libraries" (Abraham Bookstein and Karl Kocher); "Funding for Research in Librarianship" (George W. Whitbeck, Jean Major, and Herbert S. White); "Medical Librarianship" (Donald D. Hendricks); and "Australian Li- brary Service" (Carmel Maguire).-Perry D. Morrison, University of Oregon, Eugene. Stoffie, Carla, and Karter, Simon. Materials & Methods for History Research. Library Edition. Bibliographical Instruction Se- ries. New York: Libraryworks, >1979. 75, 101p. $14.95 (plus $1 postage and han- dling). LC 79-306. ISBN 0-918212-07-3. Available from: Neal-Schuman Publishers, 64 University Pl., New York, NY 10003. (Workbook available for $4.95 each, minimum order five copies.) Materials & Methods for History Re- search is the first publication in the Mate- rials and Methods bibliographic instruction series. It is "designed to familiarize history students with the basic types of information sources available in the discipline, to intro- duce important examples of each type and to prepare students to use those information sources efficiently and effectively." The au- thors attempt to accomplish these goals by How to develo~ a successful collection development program? Two books from Oryx Press help you find the answer. Shaping Library Collec- tions for the 1980's is the proceedings of the Fourth In- ternational Conference on Approval Plans and Collection Development. Librarians, publishers and booksellers will find helpful information on blanket orders, library eco- nomics, management per- spective, and an historical overview of approval plans. Edited by Peter Spyers-Duran and Thomas Mann, Jr. ISBN 0-912700-58-0. 1980. $16.50(t). Practical Approval Plan Management is a func- tional approach to establish- ing and operating an approval plan with an emphasis on practical management and problem-solving. The authors present a "how-to" approach to collection development, profiling, bids and contracts, vendors, public relations, and fiscal management. By Jennifer S. Cargill and Brian Alley. ISBN 0-912700-52-1. 1980. $12.95. ORYXPRESS 2214 North Central at Encanto Phoenix, Arizona 85004 • (602) 254-6156 150 I College & Research Libraries • March 1980 utilizing a laboratory-manual format. They examine a comprehensive variety of tools including guides to the literature, hand- books, yearbooks, atlases, subject dic- tionaries, indexes and abstracts, bibliog- raphies, scholarly journals, newspapers, government documents, book reviews, and a chapter on research paper mechanics and methodology. Each ca,tegory is presented in a uniform arrangement. Stoffle and Karter list the ob- jectives they seek to impart, provide an overview of up to two pages on the defini- tion, purpose, and variety of each type of tool, and list annotated sources as examples. Several related titles are also noted with full bibliographical citations in the appendix. The sources used were chosen on the basis of three criteria: they are all in English; they are usually available in medium-size college libraries; and they are significant examples of titles with which history stu- dents should become familiar . The purposes and uses of each type of tool are reinforced in assignment sections that were designed to ensure immediate feedback. The questions are simple and precise and require the students to get the books in hand. As the authors have noted, there are no trick questions to hinder learn- ing. Twenty separate sets of questions and answers are provided that permit indi- vidualized instruction and discourage stu- dent cooperation. Other features of the instructor's manual edition include a "Checklist of Titles Used in Assignments" to facilitate checking the holdings of the teacher's library against the titles used in the assignment, an instructor's checklist, a schedule of due dates for the as- signments, and many other helpful sugges- tions on how the book has been ~sed at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater library. This workbook can be used in a variety of ways other than in the three-credit history methods course for which it was originally designed. The authors have suggested non- credit study or continuing education pro- PUBLICATIONS FROM THE UNITED NATIONS EVERYONE'S UNITED NATIONS- 9th Edition A compact reference book on the United Nations and its family of organizations describing the structure and activities of the United Nations and the 17 intergovernmental agencies related to it, concentrating on their work during the 12 years up to 1977/1978. It forms a companion volume to the eighth edition of EVERYMAN'S UNITED NATIONS, published in March 1968, which gives a more detailed account of the activities and evolution of the United Nations during its first 20 years, 1945-1965. Together, the two volumes constitute a basic history of the Organization. Sales No. E.79.1.5 Paper $ 7.95 UNITED NATIONS JURIDICAL YEARBOOK 1977 Sales No. E.79.V.1 WORLD ENERGY SUPPLIES 1973-1978 Cloth $12.50 Cloth $17.00 Sales No. E.79.XVII.13 $20.00 FIRST UNITED NATIONS REGIONAL CARTOGRAPHIC CONFERENCE FOR THE AMERICAS (Panama, 8-19 March 1976) Volume I Sales No. E/F/S.77.1.13 $ 2.00 Volume II Sales No. E/F/S. 79.1.14 $24.00 • . 0 ~ UNITED NATIONS PUBLICATIONS RoomA-3315 New York, N.Y. 10017 UNITED NATIONS PUBLICATIONS Palais des Nations 1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland grams, history courses with a research focus, one- or two-credit historical biblio- graphical courses, graduate library courses, and independent or general study courses as appropriate settings. Materials & Methods for History Re- search is a solid contribution to the litera- ture of library instruction. It is comprehen- sive in scope, excellent in design and execu- tion, and easy to use. Furthermore, it ex- poses students to a large number of sources and clearly relates the materials to the method. The authors are to be commended for their work.-Daniel F. Ring, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan. SPINDEX Users Conference. Proceedings of a Meeting Held at Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, March 31 and April 1, 1978. Edited by H. Thomas Hickerson. Ithaca, N.Y.: Dept. of Manuscripts and University Archives, Cornell University Libraries, 1979. 125p. $5. LC 79-53690. (Available from: Office of Budget and Ac- counting, 234 Olin Library, Cornell Uni- versity Libraries, Ithaca, NY 14853.) Among the reasons for libraries to partici- pate actively in OCLC, RLIN, and other automated data bases is the desire of reduc- ing cataloging costs while simultaneously making new acquisitions more quickly ac- cessible. Compared to libraries, however, archives have seemed to respond much more slowly to the challenge of providing improved access through automation. Due more to a lack of resources than to a lack of initiative, as well as the problem that costs cannot be shared given the uniqueness of archival and manuscript material, some re- positories have nevertheless tried to de- velop alternatives to a ~anual system. Of the systems developed to date, SPIN- DEX (Selective Permutation Indexing) is the best known. Designed originally in the mid-1960s at the National Archives and Records Service (NARS) to facilitate intel- lectual control over archival holdings, it was to serve also as a possible foundation for a national data base of information. As with earlier systems, the latest version, SPIN- DEX III, is available from NARS. In addi- tion to producing finding aids, SPINDEX III has the capacity for being hierarchical in Recent Publications I 151 nature with up to eight distinct levels for input. Thus a repository may choose to identify a collection only by using the first level, or if a collection warrants more detail, it can provide item description at the last level. In the spring of 1978, a SPINDEX Users Conference convened at Cornell University to exchange information about the system. So that the information could be dissemi- nated more broadly, an edited version of the proceedings was prepared for publica- tion. In addition to appendixes, this volume contains the presentations of representatives from seven different organizations. The pa- pers are arranged in the order in which they were given at the six major sessions of the meeting. The topics range in scope from current applications and the future to tech- nical aspects of SPINDEX use and design- ing tag structures. The volume will prove of particular inter- est to individuals who are considering the possible adoption of SPINDEX at their in- stitutions. According to the comments made at the Cornell conference, this system ap- pears to have a high degree of flexibility. It has been applied not only to certain collec- tions in the Cornell University Archives and the South Carolina Department of Archives and History but also in private organizations such as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and, on a limited scale, in businesses. Further the form of material placed in the system so far includes archival records, photographs, maps, and select pub- lications. SPINDEX also allows for subject access through the use of locally prepared thesauri that institutions can develop to meet their respective needs and programs. Despite the informational nature of the volume, it suffers from unevenness in cer- tain areas. Instead of the comparatively large amount of space given to the history of Public Utility Districts in the Pacific Northwest that appeared in one of the pa- pers, a brief history of SPINDEX, in an in- troduction to the volume, would be more beneficial to potential users and other in- terested parties. Admittedly, these proceedings resulted from a gathering of users who were familiar with the intricacies of SPINDEX. In pub-