College and Research Libraries 412 I College & Research Libraries • September 1982 site for a reading area (with attention to heating and lighting requirements); desk- and table-space needs and room arrange- ments; and selecting and maintaining micro- form equipment, including a detailed discus- sion of microform cameras and film processing for in-house work, as well as the usual readers, printers, and microfiche du- plicating machines. Successive chapters deal with storage equipment and training and orientation of staff. The chapter on storage equipment pro- vides a thorough discussion of all the differ- ent types of cabinets, boxes, panels, and stands that can be used to accommodate mi- croform, with emphasis on the desirability of each in open- and closed-stack collections. In terms of new material, the most significant chapter in the book is on training and orien- tation of staff and student assistants. While most librarians would recognize the need for staff training in the use of microforms, it is probable that few have devised a detailed program for accomplishing this goal. The ex- cerpts from the Princeton program along with the other suggestions for user orienta- tion are very fine. Wisely, the conclusion comments on the existence of video-disk technology, but offers the opinion that it will be some time before video disk will replace microforms in libraries. On the whole, this handbook presents sound, practical information. Much of it is not new information, but the book's useful- ness is enhanced by the many accompanying photographs. There is a complete bibliogra- phy, a glossary of microform terms, and an index, which make it a good reference point for newer microform librarians.-]ean Wal- ter Farrington, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia. Slote, Stanley J. Weeding Library Collec- tions- II. Littleton, Colo.: Libraries Un- limited, 1982. 198p. $21.50. LC 81-20724. ISBN 0-87287-283-1. This edition adds little to Slate's 1975 edi- tion. The first eight chapters are identical, with only a few new literature references added. As before, Slote advances " shelf-time period" as the objective variable which should be used to predict future use of any given volume. Shelf-time period is the length of time a book remains on the shelf between successive uses. The new material describes how to select a method for weeding and gives detailed instructions for each possible method. The method selected depends upon the li- brary's circulation method. Slote details each circulation method, giving sample forms, and how to identify a core collection satisfy- ing a given percent of user requirements. Where permanent circulation records al- ready exist (e. g., charge slip or book cards), a sample of these is analyzed to determine the shelf-time period to be used as the cutoff pe- riod for removal of titles from the shelves. Where records do not exist (primarily in transaction card or computer systems), the spine dotting method is recommended. Spine dotting can also be applied to noncirculating materials. It is interesting that Slote considers only (1) identification of titles to be weeded, and (2) their removal from the shelves as weed- ing. As to adjusting the card catalog (the only type of catalog mentioned) , the author states that he is not adverse "to leaving the cards representing weeded works in the catalog" (p.166). He does not state whether or not he is in favor of marking the cards to indicate that a title has been withdrawn (to be dis- carded or stored), and his methods do not in- clude any mention of adjusting the library's catalog or any other records. He questions the necessity of an accurate, up-to-date card catalog in a nonresearch library. Slote devotes scant attention to the diffi- culties of weeding a large academic collec- tion (one page) or special libraries (one-half page) although, in the literature discussed, he does include a review of work done in uni- versity collections that support shelf-time pe- riod as the best predictor of future use. He does state that his methods are applicable in university libraries and that the weeded titles should be removed to secondary storage. (How the user is to know that they are there is not mentioned.) He does not address the fact that special libraries, which are character- ized by in-depth collections in a narrow sub- ject field or format, can often find little to weed, and that what is weeded must most of- ten be discarded, rather than stored. Although it is nowhere stated as such, Slote seems to be addressing only the weed- ing of monographs and does not mention the Throughout the year, qualitative and comprehensive coverage of all matters affecting police science and administration is presented to the subscribers of the JOURNAL OF POLICE SCIENCE AND ADMIN- ISTRATION. The JOURNAL OF POLICE SCIENCE AND ADMINISTRATION serves the information needs of POLICE, COURTS , CORRECTIONS , ACADEMIA , GOVERNMENT, and interested STUDENTS OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE. The JOURNAL OF POLICE SCIENCE AND ADMINISTRATION keeps its subscribers abreast of new discoveries and techniques in these two vital disciplines of criminal justice. It reports the find ings of practitioners through the use of case studies, feature articles, research projects, and technical data, reported by contributing authors with established and recognized expertise to provide the most diversified views available. A book review section and a police science technical abstracts and notes section are included for the continuing study of any given subject area. The JOURNAL OF POLICE SCIENCE AND ADMINISTRATION is published by the INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF CHIEFS OF POLICE in March, June, September, and December. Subscriptions are entered on a calendar-year basis. SUBSCRIBE TODAY One-year subscription: $30.00 IACP members: $25.00 For additional information call or write .. .. . . International Association of Chiefs of Police Thi rteen Firstfield Road Gaithersburg , Maryland 20878 (301) 948-0922 414 I College & Research Libraries • September 1982 considerable literature devoted to periodi- cals weeding. He also makes no mention of the American Library Association's recent Guidelines for Collection Development (American Library Assn. Resources and Technical Services Division, Collection De- velopment Committee. Chicago: American Library Assn., 1979), which contains a chap- ter on "Review of Library Collections." These guidelines see review (weeding) as part of the collection-management process and would be more useful than Slate's work to most academic librarians contemplating weeding. This book is recommended only for academic collections supporting a library- science program or to individuals with a strong interest in the subject of weeding.- Barbara A. Rice, State Library Cultural Center, Albany, New York. Boss, Richard W., and Marcum, Deanna B. "On-Line Acquisitions Systems for Li- braries," Library Technology Reports 17:115-94 (March-April 1981). Single is- sue, $40. Attendance at meetings devoted to discus- sions of automating acquisitions indicates that librarians need current and accurate in- formation in this area. The authors of this re- port attempt to provide information to help librarians evaluate acquisitions systems. The authors first list seven categories of automated systems: in-house, transferred software, software houses, integrated, turn- key, utility, and jobber. They then describe twenty specific automated acquisitions sys- tems, divided into these seven categories. The depth of the description varies depend- ing on the operational status of the specific system. The rest of the report is designed for librar- ians planning to choose automated acquisi- tions, with sections on questions to ask in or- der to evaluate a system, and specific steps to take in procurement. Boss and Marcum con- clude that libraries will benefit in the long run from integrated systems, and should pressure suppliers of automated systems to provide them. The appendix has some sample screen dis- plays; a list of WLN charges; general specifi- cations for DataPhase's and OCLC's acquisi- tions systems; names, addresses, and contacts for the twenty systems described; and a bibli- ography on automated acquisitions. Unlike a famous winegrower, this L TR re- port was issued before its time. The purpose of L TR is to provide librarians with "author- itative information" on products so that in- formed purchasing decisions can be made. This report fails to provide this information. Many of the automated systems described were still under development in 1981, and descriptions of these systems are not critical, but simply state what the company hopes the system will do when (and if) operational. Af- ter reading this, the librarian is no better off than if he or she had read publicity releases from the company. The items in the appen- dix provide little helpful information, and the bibliography, with citations easily found in other sources, lists only two articles pub- lished after 1978. In order to provide the crit- ical evaluations which are needed, this re- port should be redone next year, emphasizing major operational systems. In the meantime, librarians needing guidance on automated systems will find the papers presented at the LIT A Institute on Auto- mated Acquisitions (published in ]OLA, V.13, no.3 and no.4, Sept. and Dec., 1980) more useful than this L TR- William Z. Schenck, University of Oregon Library, Eugene. International Handbook of Contemporary Developments in Librarianship. Ed. by Miles M. Jackson. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood, 1981. 619p. $65. LC 80- 27306. ISBN 0-313-21372-0. This is a collection of thirty-four original articles by fifty-one authors, on libraries and librarianship in sixty-five countries. Editor Miles M. Jackson, professor of library studies at the University of Hawaii, states that the purpose of the volume is to present an "over- view of the major developments and most significant trends in librarianship since 1945." He adds that the book is concerned with international librarianship and is "not intended as a work of comparative library studies." Actually it is a kind of one-volume, long-article encyclopedia of libraries and li- brarianship by country. Typically, each article provides brief his- torical, geographic, and occasionally politi- cal background, followed by information on the national library and on university, pub-