From: sean@cobra.dra.com
Newsgroups: comp.org.eff.talk
Subject: Finding The Hacker Crackdown
Date: 12 Oct 92 12:00:57 CDT
Organization: Data Ressearch Associates, Inc.

Finding _The Hacker Crackdown_.

The bookstores certainly seem confused about where to put this one.  I
checked the Library of Congress's records and got the ISBN, correct spelling
of the author's name and the title of the book.  Normally that's enough
to find any current book.

NOT!

Stop number one, the local library:  My mother is a librarian, and I work
a company that makes computer software for libraries so this was the easy
part.  I dialed into the local library and found they had ordered the book,
but it hadn't come in yet.  With a waiting list, it would be a few months.
Being a member of the "gotta have it now" generation I decided to look for
the book elsewhere.

Stop number two, B.Dalton: What can I say, it was on my way to lunch.
Actually I was surprised by the clerk, he had heard of the book. It
arrived just that week.  He took me over to the "True Crime" section,
but it wasn't there.  Over to the computer, oops, looks like we're sold
out.  I could order it for you, it'll be a week or two.  Thanks, but
I'll keep looking.

Stop number three, CityBooks:  A nice, local bookshop who will be glad 
to order anything, as long as Ingram (a book wholesaler) stocks it.  They
didn't have it for a reason that I'll discuss at the next bookstore.

Stop number four, Library Ltd: The monster, local book warehouse store
stocks most of the major publishers (about 300,000 books).  While the staff
isn't as good as the staff at Paul's Books (which is much smaller), unusual
requests don't seem to upset them.  Once again I asked the clerk if they had
The Hacker Crackdown, a quick check on the computer confirmed they did.  The
clerk then went off to fetch me a copy from the "Science" section.  Oops, she
came back without anything and checked the computer again.  Yep, they had
it.  So off she goes again, this time to "Computers."  Nope, no luck there.
How about "New Releases", no luck there either.

Ok, maybe they had already sold out, so she went over to the Books In Print
CD-ROM computer to see how long it would take to get another copy.  Huh?  It
isn't listed.  No such book is in Books In Print!  Wait a second, I've got
the ISBN, actually I showed her the entire Library of Congress record I
printed out earlier.  Oh! Things become much clearer, the "Books In Print"
CD was actually the "INGRAM Books in Print" and only had those books that
Ingram stocked.  This also explains why CityBooks didn't carry it.

So she checked the Baker&Taylor listings on microfiche, and found it
under "Politics."  Off she goes again to check the Politics section, once
again no luck finding it.  By this time she is really apologetic, and offers
to take my name and number and will call me by the end of the day to let
me know if they find it or if they were going to order more.  I left my
number and told her I was going to keep looking at other bookstores and
didn't want to get blackballed if I bought it elsewhere.  No problem, she
says, she'll call before putting in the order.

By the time I got back to the office after lunch the clerk from Library Ltd
had called.  She had finally found the book in the "Social Studies" section
and would be holding it for me.

Sheesh!
-- 
Sean Donelan, Data Research Associates, Inc, St. Louis, MO
Domain: sean@sdg.dra.com, Voice: (Work) +1 314-432-1100
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