College and Research Libraries 520 College & Research Libraries ranging from Latin texts of the eighth cen- tury to vernacular texts of the seventeenth century, is not without its problems . In her introduction, she divides her notices into five parts: heading, content, physical description, provenance, and bibliogra- phy. In practice it is not always clear that the same kinds of details are pertinent to books confected under diverse circum- stances. While it seems appropriate to give a complete collation for manuscripts of the eleventh or twelfth century, for the information such data may ultimately yield for identifying the output of a partic- ular scriptorium, the potential use of such data taken from a Lutheran sacramentarium of the seventeenth century is far less clear . Similarly incipits are useful for confirming the identification of classical and medieval texts and Shailor usually has provided them, but incipits of documents and frag- ments really tell us very little. For exam- ple, to give the incipit of MS 193, a frage- ment of a Bible, said to be from Luxeuil, tells us information which is of no appar- ent use. On the question of second folios, Shailor herself seems to have silently ad- justed her format to the different kinds of materials that she has treated, and they are not given for the postmedieval items. Presumably, the second folio incipits are useful for identifying entries in medieval library catalogs citing books now at Yale, but out of hundreds of second folio inci- pits, including those of defective codices, what percentage will be of use to subse- quent scholars? Experience indicates that it will be very low . Indeed of four or five codices for which she has identified a spe- cific medieval provenance, for none did a correspondence in the second folio play a role in confirming the identification. If there are other good reasons for providing second folios, Shailor has not provided them. In examining the data provided by the Shailor catalog, we have not only the right to question the potential use of the data re- corded, but we may also ask whether data of equal or greater import has been ig- nored or suppressed. Thus while record- ing capitalization, the ulv distinction and the long j form in the incipits may be of some value to students of philology or the September 1986 history of reading (even where these dis- tinctions reflect rigid conventions, imper- fectly reflected in modern print) we may ponder the total absence of the cedilla for the ae and oe diphthongs, especially in hu- manistic texts, and the lack of consider- ation to accenting, essential for tracing the distinction between the accented i and the dotted i and the revival of tonic accents in the fifteenth century. These features are not recorded, and yet they, along with punctuation, may be of great significance. For the books of hours, the rubrics, which - are an important source for the documen- tation of reading habits, are frequently not transcribed. In summation the Shailor cat- alog reflects the interests that are fashion- able in the world of codicology, while rela- tively little attention is given to the evidence that medieval manuscripts con- tain for the study of philology and the manner in which medieval books were read. A third level on which a catalog may be read is that of accuracy. Although this reader did not have the opportunity to read the catalog against the manuscripts, the author's zeal is in itself an assurance that a very high degree of accuracy has been achieved. The catalog is enriched by very useful and economically prepared ta- bles and plates.-Paul Saenger, Newberry Library, Chicago, Illinois. Roberts, Stephen A. Cost Management for Library and Information Services. London: Butterworth, 1985. 181p. $49.95. LC 84- 26339. ISBN 0-408-01376-1. Stephen A. Roberts notes that the prac- tice of costing library and information op- erations is a weak area in the repertoire of library management. Also lacking in many cases is economic management of li- braries and information services based on the application of accepted accounting and costing techniques. Why do libraries differ from conventional business enter- prises in these respects? The reasons given are familiar to most library man- agers: there is usually no requirement for public accountability; large portions of the actual accounting work are carried on out- side the library; there is no need to justify specific programs to funding agencies; American Songwriters Current Biography ~~?;;: Ew~Bpp. ISBN o-8242-0744-o Yearbook 1986 t50 ten_!. U.S. and C.nada, ~0 tent. other ~ountrles. ~':::: 704 pp. approx. Cov~nng ?OO years. thiS book prov1~e~ S42 u.s. a~ Canada $52 other countries. detailed ~1ograph1es of 144 of An:tenca s An invaluable adaition to the reference outstanding composers and lync1~ts, collection for researchers, teachers, stu- from ~tephen Fost~r to Bruce Spn~gsteen , dents, and librarians, the 1986 Yearbook covenng all the major styles-ragtime. . cumulates , in one hardbound volume, all m~nstrel, nn Pan Alley, Broadway, rock, jazz, the articles and obituaries included in the blues, folk , country & western, and soul. 11 monthly issues of Current Biography, American Storvtelling SeriesTM and offers an index to all articles that have A Storytel Enterprises '" Prodlictlon appeared since 1980. ='~T::.~;8e~::.dy now. Index to the Wilson ~=!~r~~s.f~·.F!·n=~~:!::~'~o~~g:er countries. 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Focusing on topics of significant current concern, the titles in The Reference Shelf provide students, librarians, and researchers with timely compilations of important articles, speeches, excerpts, and govern- ment documents . The titles in the 1986 vol- ume included Mexico ; Popular Music Since 1954; The Star Wars Debate; Terrorism ; Vietnam , Ten Years After; and Representa- tive American Speeches, 1985-1986. A Guide to the Ancient World A ~~~~~r:.~n:,~f9~ta=~~~rJ:~~2~~w::: n! U.S. and Canada, $75 other countries. This invaluable source of information about important geographical locations in the an- cient Greek, Etruscan and Roman worlds covers approximately 900 historically sig- nificant sites, and spans a period from the first millenium B.C. until the fifth century A.D .. Sixteen pages of maps locate every entry in the book. •:1421; ;t•J~~•': ,,, :t:41: too: '•'% m ••rB': ttJi a;{'~ re *' Book Review Digest Children's Catalog, Readers' Author/Title Index 15th Edition Guide Abstracts 1975-1984 ~:~~e~~~4~!~43-~ ,300pp. approx. :::~ana~~;~~U:~~~~::~t~~~ U.S. ~:~~e~~~~~~:;2~:~00pp . approx. S7~ u.~ . and Canada , .S82 _ather countries. Readers' Guide Abstracts Price to be announced. ThiS flye-year service IS an an no- offers easy-to-read typeset A single-alphabet author/title in- tated list of so~e 5: ?Oq o_f the microfiche that combmes reliable dex to the reviews of more than best cu~renUy-m-pn_nt f1ct1on a~d Readers' Guide indexing with 60 ,000 fiction and non-fiction non-fictiOn titles wntten for chll- high quality abstracts : Updated books covered in Book Review d_ren from pre~school through and cumulated eight times a year, Digest from 1975 through 1984, stxt~ grade .. Th1s new 1 ~th R_eaders' Gt.'i1e Abstracts p~o- this new Index makes the annual ed1t1on provides a practical tool Vld~s 1~de~mg and abstracting volumes of Book Review Digest for .collectiOn dev~lopment , cata- begmmng m September 1984 even more valuable in your library. logmg , and classificatiOn . cumulated w1th recent matenal in every issue of Volume I. e:I4'ZI@;uJ~~Iu:I!I:I:Ji4a'~lij*t Sears List of Subject Headings, 13th Edition rt~J ~~::4~~~,~0-0 LC 86-7734 $30 U.S. and Canada, $35 other countries. The best-known subject head- ings list for small to mid-sized libraries, the new thirteenth edition of Sears has been fully revised , updated and expanded . ·An outstanding and useful , up- to-date tool. · -American Reference Books Annual (on the 12th edition) . New Databases on WILSONLINE® Online Searching An Introduction to WILSONLINE WILSONDISC TM CD-ROM Retrieval System Call the toll-free number below lor a rate schedule and order form. Three new databases have been added to the WILSONLINE information retrieval system , for a total of 22 databases in all : • GPO Monthly Catalog • Index to U.S. Government Periodicals • LC Foreign MARC Database ~r:r~~~~I-Ft~8wT~n~~r·s Guide $89 U.S. and Canada, $99 other countries. For librarians and information specialists who want to improve their online searching skills , this new video combines a step-by- step introduction to searching with an up- close look at the features and benefits of the award-winning WILSONLINE system. Wtl~aN~is~a~ur~~o~d~n:"nih: ~~~ep~b~r~6 · ties needed to access WILSONLINE data- bases in two ways : • CD-ROM access to bibliographic data on an optical disc searchable through a micro- computer, and • Online access through the WILSONLINE retrieval system and WILSEARCH® software to the most current information . 0 THE H.W. WILSON COMPANY 950 Un1ve rs1ty Avenue Br onx NY 10452 12121 588·8 400 To Order Call Toll-Free : 1-800-367-6770 In New York State call 1 ·800-462·6060 In Canada call collect 21 2·588·8400 r-------------------- ----·- ---------------- - - 522 College & Research Libraries and there is no easily definable product to measure in an objective fashion. Although libraries are generally not re- quired to provide cost accountability or to justify the costs and benefits of providing services and materials, Roberts proposes that libraries, as closed systems, should be treated as normal corporate enterprises with respect to financial management and accounting. He recognizes the difficulty in attempting to fit the essence of profession- alism within constraints of cost account- ing, but he does provide a framework within which to evaluate operations and conduct fiscal planning. The language of this book has a definite accounting flavor, with jargon unfamiliar to most librarians; reading through will require some invest- ment of time and concentration. The glos- sary at the end is a needed and useful fea- ture, as are the copious footnotes and references for further reading. This volume naturally discusses library budgets, but it is not a book describing how libraries allocate funds. Neither is it a ''cookbook,'' offering several budget models from which library managers or budgeters may select. Rather, Roberts dis- cusses the factors upon which library cost management should be based. This logical and informed approach is not the method many libraries employ to make cost deci- sions. While detailed costs analysis would seem to be a profitable avenue to pursue, September 1986 it requires an expertise that may not be resident in most library staffs. There i1? a chasm between what this work suggests (management decisions based on formal cost studies of tasks, activities, and service levels) and what actually happens in many libraries or other public service agencies. Since most libraries do not have readily available even the grossest cost in- formation (What does it cost for an ILL transaction? What does it cost to catalog a volume?), the recommendations here for analyzing costs through rather sophisti- cated accounting techniques would be large steps indeed for a majority of li- braries. Moreover, if one considers that the es- sence of service to library clientele is not merely the hours of operation or the avail- ability of a book on the shelf, but also the degree of professional service a user re- ceives, then costing of library services be- comes even more difficult to quantify. All of this does not suggest that libraries could not profit from the type of cost manage- ment analysis and decision making sug- gested in this work. What it may suggest is that an accountant's approach to provid- ing library service may offer sound and pragmatic methods for decision making, even if that approach may not be used for all areas of library management and deci- sion making.-John Vasi, Library, Univer- sity of California, Santa Barbara. ABSTRACTS The following abstracts are based on those prepared by the ERIC Clearinghouse of Infor- mation Resources, School of Education, Syra- cuse University. Documents with an ED number here may be ordered in either microfiche (MF) or paper copy (PC) from the ERIC Document Reproduction Service, P.O. Box 190, Arlington, VA 22210. Orders should include ED number, specify for- mat desired, and include payment for docu- ment and postage. Further information on ordering documents and on current postage charges may be obtained from a recent issue of Resources in Educa- tion. Educating the Online Catalog User: A Model for Instructional Development and Evaluation. Final Report. Revised. By Brian Nielson and others. North- western University, Evanston, IL. 1985. 196p. ED 261679. MF-$0.75; PC-$14.40. This report describes efforts by three aca- demic libraries to develop a model instructional program for online catalog users that could be adopted in other academic libraries. A key com- ponent of the research included the exploration and development of a methodology for utiliz- ing online transaction logs to evaluate user per- formance . The four project objectives were to develop a model for online catalog instruction based on a set of systematic and generalizable