Implementation of

MARC Format Under Consideration

Assistant Public Printer (Superintendent of Documents) W. H.

Lewis announced at the ALA midwinter convention plans to implement the MARC format in the cata- loging of publications for the

Monthly Catalog as of Jan. 1, 1976. According to the Superintendent

of Documents, the Monthly Catalog will continue to be published

in its present format. The conversion to MARC, however, wiF make

accessible to libraries the Monthly

Catalog data base in tape form.

In line with these developments,

GPO librarians are investigating

the workings of the MARC system

as well as the necessary changes

that would take place in the Public

Documents Library procedures as a result of this conversion.

One modification being considered is the possibility of the Li- brary joining FLECC (Federal Li- braries Experimental Cooperative

Cataloging). This network provides

member Federal libraries with ac- cess to the MARC data base for both monographs and serials. Also under examination is the

modification of the cataloging pro- cedures according to Anglo-American cataloging rides and the necessity of providing training for the

catalogers in these techniques.

Microforms Project

Approved

The Chairman of the Joint Committee on Printing approved the

proposed Government Printing Office Microform Pilot Project on

January 9, 1975.

The project calls for the conversion of some 63,000 pages of the

Code of Federal Regulations to a 98 frame nominal 24:1 reduction

ratio microfiche format for distri- bution to 24 participating Depository Libraries for a period of ap- proximately four months. It is ex- pected that film will be distributed

by mid-June or early July.

At the conclusion of the project

all recommendations, findings, and

an economic analysis will be for- warded to the Joint Committee on

Printing for final determination of

the advisability and practicality of

further microform involvement by

the Government Printing Office. Future issues of Public Documents Highlights will provide

added information on the progress

of the microform project.

Superintendent's

Log

John D. (Jim) Livsey has been

named Director of the Library and

Statutory Distribution Service.

He has served in the capacity of

Acting Director since December 24, 1974. Previously, he was employed

as GPO Microform Program Manager. Mr. Lh sey came to the Government Printing Office from the Planning and Development staff of the

Navy Publications and Printing

Service, Washington, D.C. He has

25 years of printing plant operations and publications distribution

experience.

Mr. Livsey addresses documents

workshops, American Library Association committee meetings and

other library groups on a variety of

subjects involving printing and

microform product distribution

and use. His mailing addre«s is: Director, Library and Statutory Distribution Service (SL), Government Printing Office, WashingIon, DC 20042. His telephone

number is (703) 557-2050.

Where Has My

Highlights Gone?

A depository librarian in Oklahoma has reported that she has

continued on page 4

SPOTLIGHT ON DEPOSITORY OPERATIONS

Depository

Distribution

An on site report by a depository librarian

A librarian working with a de- pository collection frequently ex- periences some head scratching

(and hair pulling) which are as- sociated with receiving and process- ing the depository shipments. One

often wonders why in the world is the November issue of American

Education arriving before the September and October issues? Or why

are "they" sending separate shipments which have not been listed on any shipping lists for the past

three weeks?

The Library and Statutory Distribution Service, which is responsible for the depository distribution

of the Government Printing Office,

is housed in an office building and

warehouse complex in Alexandria,

Virginia. As a result of its move to these new headquarters, the Service

gained more square footage of

working space but also inherited some unexpected headaches.

In the warehouse area, the depository distribution stock is re- ceived, identified, and prepared for mailing to depository libraries. The

sheer bulk of the distribution stock

is staggering. The documents are stored in boxes which are stacked on pallets (wooden platforms),

and each pallet comprises approximately a 4' x 4' x 4' mass. There are

at present about 1,600 pallets, and

there is not enough floor space to have each pallet placed side by

side, one pallet high, in neat rows. Since space is limited, one pallet

gets stacked on top of another pallet until there are stacks three or four pallets high. The problem is further compounded because these rows of pallets are flush against

I each other. In order to locate what

is in the center of the stacks, pallets, pallets, and more pallets must

be moved with a fork lift. Once the

backlog is diminished, the pallets

will be stored on metal pallet racks,

yet to be installed, which will keep

each pallet in a separate "compartment" and make storage and re- trieval much easier. While this backlog on the pallets

is being identified as either depository or survey documents, the new

depository documents are arriving

daily from GPO or its contract

printers. Keeping up with the cur- rent material is a full-time job and

catching up with the backlog is an overpowering task. The people who are trying to get

the warehouse functioning more

systematically are very aware that one should get the November issue

of a publication before the December copy. They think, however, that

if some documents can be sent out

to depositories immediately, it is better to do this than to wait and

search for an earlier issue, a process which might take days. Also, this particular problem will almost dis- appear when all of the subscription

titles go on automatic mailing to depository libraries. Progress is being made. An inventory of the warehouse stock has

been taken, and many of the titles (some are 1974 issues of periodicals) that could not previously be

located have been found. What ap- pears on the surface to be hopeless

is not completely so. The Service is working quite hard to reduce the

backlog and is committed to getting

the depository distribution operating properly.

Surveys, Special

Offers and Backlogs

There are approximately 150 new survey item numbers being

processed for movement to the de- pository libraries. The first survey

(75-1) was conducted in early

January and involved 48:1 reduction ratio microfiche supply cata2

logs. The second survey (75-2) in- volves 6ix publications which are now in the hands of the depository

librarians on shipping list 7590.

At least one survey will be undertaken each week until all such material has been shipped. The proce- dure for moving the survey material calls for one copy of each item

to be shipped to regional depository

libraries and the balance to be dis- tributed randomly to selective depositories. Claims for sample copies

of survey material will not be honored.

Material that has been retained

for long periods of time because of

insufficient copies to completely

satisfy distribution requirements

will be handled as special offers. A

copy will be sent to each regional

depository and offered on a shipping list to those libraries desiring

a copv. A deadline date will be in- dicated on the shipping list for re- ceipt of copy requests. When the

supply of material has been ex- hausted the copy request will be re- turned to the particular library.

This procedure will be used only

in those cases where all efforts to secure additional copies have been

exhausted. A paragraph repeating

this procedure will be included in appropriate shipping lists. Claims

Making a claim for a missing

item on a depository shipping list has always been considered a rather

simple procedure. With a backlog

of claims waiting to be filled, a few

remarks about this accumulation

are offered, as well as some re- minders about the claims procedure.

The move of the Library and

Statutory Distribution Service to Alexandria,.Yirginia and the loss of

personnel resulting from that move

helped contribute to the back-up of

claims.

Until now, there has never been

a "claims unit" with a staff who

dealt only with claims. Filling

claims has primarily been the re- sponsibility of the Library which

utilized people from the Depository

Unit or Distribution Unit to fulfill this obligation. Other employees in

the Library have frequently been

pressed into helping with claims

(as they are now) when the number of claims increased drastically.

At the present time, job descriptions and related documents have

been prepared for establishing a Claims Unit and are awaiting

approval.

When processing claims it be- comes evident very quickly that some refinements in the claims pro- cedure need to be implemented in

order to expedite these requests.

Claims can be filled more quickly if only one item per claim form

is listed. Occasionally, there is not enough claim stock to satisfy all the

claims for a particular item, and the

Library has to check with other

sections of the GPO for the publication. If the item is not available at the GPO, the documents are re- quested from the originating agen- cy which may or may not have

available copies. If one item on the

form can be filled and the other

item must wait for copies to be pro- vided, this obviously causes a delay.

Since claims have been filled slowly, some libraries are making

second and third claims for the same item (or items). When working with claims from older shipments, the forms are not kept in

shipping list order but are grouped

by specific documents. As a result,

the second and third forms are not put immediately with their predecessors. In fact, since there are 60 many claims and various people

work with them from day to day,

the duplicate claims may never be

matched up. Besides adding to the

tremendous number of claims,

many libraries will receive dupli- cate shipments of their claims. This

of course, adds to the GPO's ex- pense in obtaining these publications.

It also helps the Library to ex- pedite a claim for an entire shipment if a copy of the shipping list

is enclosed with the items circled

that have been selected. A Regional

depository would not have to do

this since they receive everything.

It i9 very time consuming for the

Library to determine which items a particular depository should re- ceive in an individual shipment.

More careful attention should be

given to filling out the forms. When

making a claim, it should refer to a specific shipping list and date. Many claims arrive with no return address provided, which means

someone has to identify the depository library from its number and

type an address label. Every time

the Library has to provide some

missing data on the claim form, it slows down the whole process. Every exception must be given

special attention, and when these

exceptions are multiplied by hundreds, it becomes a huge problem.

Claim forms are also being used

to request a replacement for a defective copy. These requests can be

handled more quickly if claim

forms are not used. A regular busi- ness letter is appropriate for re- questing replacements for defective

copies.

Claim forms are frequently used

for inquiries such as "Why hasn't our library received the July and

August issues of Monthly Labor

Review? Please send." Unless an

item has appeared on a shipping

list, it should not be claimed. These

types of inquiries on claim forms

only tend to bog down the system

and cause delays in getting answers

to the depository libraries. A letter requesting this information can be

handled more quickly by the Li- brary.

Requests are being made to vari- ous agencies for their publications

that are needed to fill claims. There

are people from the Library who

are working in various sections of

the GPO trying to fill as many

claims as possible from these

sources. It will take time, but as many claims will be filled as there

are publications available.

Questions and

Answers

Q. I have not received a Monthly

Catalog in several months.

When can I expect another one?

A. The status of the December

1974, January, February and

March 1975 Monthly Catalogs

is as follows: December—the

index is in the process of beinc

prepared for the printer. This

index, the 1974 annual cumulation, presented problems since

it merged both automated and

manually prepared indexes.

January—should be off the

press by April 4. February—the

text is being corrected in the

computer and the appendix is in the final stages of preparation. March—entries are cur- rently being keyed into the

computer.

Q. Do you have a master list of

Public Health Service publications arranged by PHS number

and indicating the proper Su- perintendent of Documents

Classification number for each

one?

A. No such list has been published

but the shelf list in the Public

Documents Library does contain "key cards" which list in

numerical sequence the publication numbers and corresponding class numbers. Publication

numbers with the PHS prefix were used until 1969 at which

time numbers with the DHEW

prefix were substituted. Li- brarians may visit the Library

and use the key cards to check

both the PHS and DHEW numbers. Q. Hoiv long must a depository li- brary retain its copies of the

shipping list? A. Shipping lists should be re- tained to make claims for items

previously selected by a library

that appeared on a particular

list but were omitted from the

actual shipment. Claims for continued on page 4

LIBRARIAN'S EXCHANGE

The Government Publications

Section of the State University of

New York at Albany prepares a card containing the publishing his- tory of each series received. The his- tory includes changes in the Su

Docs classification number, title changes, changes in the name of the

issuing agency and related series. The history card is attached to the

series record card which is arranged

in the Kardex file according to class number. A separate card is prepared for each class number in a series since the record cards re- main on file after a class change has

been made. The history cards en- sure that an individual can know at a glance what the status of a series

is without much searching and can

ascertain this information from any

point within the life of the series.

C 56.109: (v/no) Economic Analysis Bureau/Survey of current business (Monthly) ITEM No. 228

Sudoc varies: C3.33: July 1921-Dec. 1930 (v. 1-10)

C 18.35: 1931-Dec. 1953 (v. 11-33)

C48.8: Jan. 1954-Dec. 1971 (v. 34-51)

C 56.109: .. Jan. 1972- (v. 52. no. 1- ) S.L. 6295 2/8/72

Related subject:

C 56.109 Survey of current business (Monthly)

C 56.109/2: Business Statistics (Weekly supplement

Survey ) (Special supplement to Survey of ) C 56.109/3: Business statistics (Biennial supplement

Survey )

to

to Where Has My

Highlights Gone?

continued from page 1 never received a copy of Public

Documents Highlights and that in

her contacts with other depository

librarians in the State, they have

also reported non-receipt of their

copies.

The address labels used to mail

issues of the bulletin have been

checked and it was verified that

copies were mailed to all depository libraries at the appropriate

time. The label, however, did not

contain the phrase "Attention Depository Librarian."

In an attempt to improve the dis- tribution of Highlights, a single

copy will be inserted in the carton of a normal depository shipment

with a notation added to the appropriate shipping list that the publication has been included. If you

do not receive your copy submit a claim for the issue.

Questions and

Answers

continued from page 3

non-receipt of depository publications must be postmarked

within 15 days from the date of

receipt of the Daily Depository

Shipping List on which the

publications were listed. No

claims will be honored for material which is over 45 days old. Thus, it is a good idea to keep

the shipping list during the pe- riod when it is permissible to make claims, but it is not neces- sary to retain them past this point if you maintain other adequate records of what has been

mailed.

Q. What should a depository ii- brary do when it receives a duplicate depository shipment?

A. First, notify the Public Documents Library. If a library re- ceives a duplicate shipment it may mean that another library

has received no shipment. We

would like to check our mailing

facilities to see if there are any

discrepancies. A library may

then dispose of the shipments

through various means, as for example, offering the publications to other educational in- stitutions in the vicinity. We

would like, however, to have

the bound volumes, e.g., serial

set volumes returned to us as these are costly and can be used

to fill missing shipments.

Q. What is the easiest and most ef- ficient method for unpacking

cartons that contain multiple

shipments?

A. The multiple shipments within

a carton are separated from

each other by the shipping list which is placed on top ot the

corresponding shipment. It is best to remove each shipping

list and the publications be- neath it separately rather than

emptying the carton at one time.

This method will ensure that

publications will not be sepa- rated from their proper shipping list. Q. Can a library select depository

items in fiche and hard copy?

A. When depository items are of- fered in fiche form on a wide

scale basis, a library will be able

to select the items it receives in

either fiche or hard copy form.

Only one form may be selected

for each particular item but it

is permissible to switch to the

other form at any time.

Public Documents Highlights is circulated bi-monthly by the Superintendent of Documents, Washington, D.C. 20402, and is mailed at

first class postage rates. Public

Documents Highlights is intended

primarily for librarians of the Federal Depository Library Program.

Material proposed for circulation

mav be submitted to the Editor,

Public Documents Highlights, Li- brary and Statutory Distribution

Service, Government Printing

Office, Washington, D.C. 20102.

The Superintendent of Documents,

however, retains the right to accept

such material, to edit it, and to as- sign priorities of circulation.

G PO S86-S