.R E P O R T RESUMESED 020 760 LI 000 749PROCEEDINGS OF THE FIRST TEXAS CONFERENCE ON LIBRARYMECHANIZATION (AUSTIN, MARCH 23-24, 1966). MONOGRAPH NO. 6.BY- CORBIN, JOHN B., ED.TEXAS LIBRARY AND HISTORICAL COMMISSION, AUSTINTEXAS LIBRARY ASSOCIATIONINTEk.IATIONAL BUSINESS MACHINES CORP.

PUB DATE 66EDRS PRICE MF-$0.25 HC-$2.04 49P.

DESCRIPTORS- *AUTOMATION, *COMPUTERS, *LIBRARIES, *LIBRARYTECHNICAL PROCESSES, *ELECTRONIC DATA PROCESSING, SERIALS,LIBRARY CIRCULATION, CATALOGING, LIBRARY ACQUISTION, LIBRARYEQUIPMENT, BOOK CATALOGS, AUSTIN (TEXAS) PUBLIC LIBRARY, RICEUNIVERSITY LIBRARY, TEXAS AOM UNIVERSITY LIBRARY,

THE PURPOSE OF THE CONFERENCE WAS TO ACQUAINT LIBRARIANSWITH EXISTING MECHANIZATION PROGRAMS IN TEXAS LIBRARIES ANDWITH EXPERIMENTATION AND PLANNING BEING CARRIED ON. SEVENPAPERS ARE INCLUDED, TWO BY AN IBM REPRESENTATIVE AND FIVE BYTEXAS LIBRARIANS. THE TWO PAPERS BY DONALD H. KRAFT, IBMREPRESENTATIVE, ARE "A 'TOTAL SYSTEMS' APPROACH TO LIBRARYMECHANIZATION" AND "THE INFLUENCE AND IMPACT OF MECHANIZATIONON LIBRARIES AND SOCIETY TODAY AND TOMORROW." THE BOOKCATALOG PROGRAM OF THE AUSTIN PUBLIC LIBRARY IS TREATED INTWO PAPERS, ONE BY MAE LEA MCCURDY, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OF THELIBRARY, AND ONE BY O.R. MCCASLIN, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OFFINANCE FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN. THE REMAINING THREE ARTICLESARE "THE CIRCULATION SYSTEM OF THE FONDREN LIBRARY, RICEUNIVERSITY" BY FREDERICK RUECKING, HEAD OF ITS DATAPROCESSING DIVISION, "THE ACQUISITIONS PROGRAM OF THECENTRALIZED PROCESSING CENTER OF THE TEXAS STATE LIBRARY," BYJOHN B. CORBIN, DIRECTOR OF ITS TECHNICAL SERVICES DIVISION,AND "THE SERIALS MECHANIZATION PROGRAM OF THE TEXAS AMUNIVERSITY LIBRARY," BY BRUCE W. STEWART, DATA PROCESSINGSUPERVISOR. (CC)

ProceedinvO

5irof 5exa3 Conierence on ctitrary Mechanization

000

Texas Library and Historical CommissionMonograph Number Six

1966

S

PROCEEDINGS OF THE

FIRST TEXAS CONFERENCE ON LIBRARY MECHANIZATION

held March 23-24, 1966Downtowner Motel

Austin, Texas

Sponsored by the Texas State Library,the Acquisitions Round Table of theTexas Library Association, and the

IBM Corporation

Edited byJOHN B. CORBIN

U.S. DEPARTMENT Of HEALTH, EDUCATION 8 WELFARE

OFFICE OF EDUCATION

THIS DOCUMENT HAS BEEN REPRODUCED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED FROM THE

PERSON OR ORGANIZATION ORIGINATING IT. POINTS OF VIEW OR OPINIONS

STATED DO NOT NECESSARILY REPRESENT OFFICIAL OFFICE OF EDUCATION

POSITION OR POLICY.

Monograph Number Six

Published by theTEXAS LIBRARY & HISTORICAL COMMISSION

Austin, Texas1966

Cover Design: Graphic representation of an automated library, by Fred Ruecking, Head, Data ProcessingDivision, Fondren, Library, Rice University.

CONTENTS

Welcome: R. W. Birch 5

Welcome: Mary-Louise Vance 5

Introduction to the Conference: John B. Corbin 6

A "Total Systems" Approach to Library Mechanization:Donald H. Kraft. 7

The Book Catalog Program of the Austin Public Library:The Librarian's Viewpoint: May Lea McCurdy 13

The Book Catalog Program of the Austin Public Library :The Programmer's Viewpoint: 0. R. McCaslin 17

The Circulation System of the Fondren Library, RiceUniversity: Frederick Ruecking 21

The Influence and Impact of Mechanization on Librariesand Society Today and Tomorrow : Donald H. Kraft 31

The Acquisitions Program of the Centralized ProcessingCenter of the Texas State Library : John B. Corbin 36

The Serials Mechanization Program of the Texas A & MUniversity Library: Bruce W. Stewart 40

Biographies of Speakers 46

The purpose of this conference was to acquaint librarians and other interested persona withexisting installations in Texas libraries, with experimentation and planning being carried on,and with basic machines on the market today. This institute was a pre-conference to theannual meeting of the Texas Library Association held in Austin March 24-26, 1966.

Welcome

R. W. BIRCH, Branch ManagerIBM CorporationAustin, Texas

I would like to take this opportunity onbehalf of IBM to welcome you to Austinto the State Library Mechanization Confer-ence. IBM is certainly pleased to co-sponsorthis important event.

I am reminded of an internal IBM class,approximately five years ago. The attendeeswere so-called "elite" IBM systems people,and one of the assignments was to designa system for the control and circulation ofclassified documents in a library. While thefact that the documents were classified per-haps made the problem a little more diffi-cult, I was struck by two facts. Numberonc: most of us considered it a trivial prob-lem until we attempted to solve it. Numbertwo: the machine solutions ranged verybroadly and included the largest computersthat IBM built at that particular time.

I do think in the ensuing years, however,we have taken a more realistic viewpoint ofyour problems. They are certainly challeng-ing problems and we are trying to learnmore about them. I believe the speakersfrom IBM who are represented at this con-ference will give you some indication of per-haps some progress that we have made inthe past years. But we are also here tolearn and understand more about yourproblems and hope that we can continue towork with you.

Again, may I say how happy we are tohave you in Austin, and if there is anythingthat my office can do to assist you whileyou are here, please feel free to call on us.Thank you.

5

MARY-LOUISE VANCE, ChairmanAcquisitions Round TableTexas Library Assocation

Fellow librarians, systems analysts, andother ladies and gentlemen: it is a pleasureto welcome each of you to this First TexasConference on Library Mechanization.

The response has been gratifying. TheAcquisitions Round Table is happy to be aco-sponsor. We are indebted to John Corbinfor arranging this conference and to theparticipants who will enlighten us on exist-ing installations in Texas libraries and onbasic machines on the market today.

We librarians have a range of problemswhich can be helped by automation.Through the years, librarians have usedmany devices to improve library manage-ment and service; to name a few: the cardcatalog, the electric typewriter and eraser,the microfilm camera, the microfiche read-er, the pasting machine, the posting ma-chine, the telephone, the Xerox machine...

So the quest for automation should beregarded as a continuation of our long tra-dition of change and improvement.

It is our hope that this conference willprove most helpful in formulating futureprograms in many Texas libraries.

Introduction to the Conference

JOHN B. CORBIN, DirectorTechnical Services DivisionTexas State Library

Our society today is in its second indus-trial revolution. This began after the Sec-ond World War with the development ofthe transitor and other devices wherein onemachine could organize, control, and per-form operations faster, better, and moreeconomical than hundreds of mere humans.

This trend to automation is not going tostop; indeed, it is going to gain impetus.It is estimated that by the year 2,000 A.D.only ten per cent of the population will beworking and the rest will be paid to be idle.And this is only thirty-four years fromnow.

As society gains more leisure time to readand to use libraries, as it becomes moreaware and more interested in libraries asinstitutions for the storage and dissemina-tion of recorded information, its demandsfor rapid and modern service is going toincrease. Libraries must begin to accept andto adopt the fruits of technology to theirown uses, or, one day soon, they will findthemselves and their services replaced by alarge memory bank located in city hall orthe finance office.

There is no reason why this should be.The machines are here for the librarian'suse today and have been for several years.

6

All we have to do is to set to work to adaptthem to our needs or demand that machinesbe invented for us. Too many librarians areguilty of thinking or saying: "I'm waitingfor a new and better model." They will bewaiting forever.

It's true that there is no feasible or eco-nomical way at this time to store and re-trieve the contents of a library on machines.But this is only one aspect, though notsmall, of a library. There are budgets tomaintain, statistics to compile, books topurchase, salaries to compute, books to cir-culate, indexes to compile, and hundreds ofother menial tasks around that easily canbe done by machines. Why not mechanizesome of these while we are waiting for thatimproved model to appear?

You all are here these two days to seeand to hear of some mechanization pro-grams existing today. We are not here totell you that this or that system is the oneyou should install in your library. Eachsystem is designed for a particular institu-tion and a peculiar situation. We are here,rather, to share with you our experiences,our thoughts, and our tribulations of work-ing with our own programs of mechaniza-tion in order that you might go home andbegin thinking about systems of your own.

A "Total System3" Approach toLibrary Mechanization

Data processing equipment is being usedto assist the librarian in many clerical tasksrelating to acquisitions, technical process-ing, cataloging, circulation, control ofbooks, serials, and accounting functions.This is resulting in better service to theuser, fewer clerical tasks for the librarian,and more time for the librarian to performprofessional duties.

In many cases, the necessary data pro-cessing equipment is available in a nearbycomputing center or accounting depart-ment. Library data processing functionscan be scheduled on this equipment as aremore conventional payroll, inventory andbilling applications.

EQUIPMENT DESCRIPTION

From the wide range of available dataprocessing equipment, certain types will bebriefly described, since they are currentlybeing applied to library functions :

1. The card punching machine (key-punch) is used to record informationin IBM cards in the form of holes, asthe operator goes through the mo-tions of typing on its keyboard. Thismachine can also be used to interpretthe punches into their correspondingalphabetic and numeric characters.This interpreting is in the form ofprinting across the top of the card di-rectly above the holes. If it is desir-able to have the same informationrepeated in a number of cards, datais punched into the first card only andthen automatically duplicated into thecards following. This machine can beused to keypunch lower case charac-ters as well as upper case ones.

7

DONALD H. KRAFT, Industry RepresentativeIBM CorporationChicago, Illinois

2. The sorter can arrange cards into al-phabetic and numeric sequences atspeeds from 450 to 2,000 cards perminute. It can also select certain cardsfrom a large file, i.e., overdue cardsfrom the charge-Gut file.

3. The reproducer can duplicate the in-formation from a deck of punchedcards into a deck of blank cards. Itcan sense the presence of certaintypes of pencil marks on cards andconvert them to punches in the cards.

4. The accounting machine, or tabulator,performs a great variety of jobs. Itcan list onto paper at speeds fromfifty to 150 lines per minute the con-tents of punched cards which are fedinto it. It has the ability to add, sub-tract, multiply, and divide numberswhich it reads from cards. The ac-counting machine is used to write pur-chase orders, print book lists andcatalogs, write overdue notices, etc. Itcan print numbers, upper case letters,and certain punctuation marks andspecial characters.

5. The collator can interfile IBM cardsinto a file and also select certaincards from a file. In a sense, it is a"mechanical file clerk." The collator isparticularly useful in automated cir-culation control systems, where it in-terfiles charges and selects out dis-charges from the charge file.

6. The Document Writing System hasthe capacity for both the punchingand printing functions required in li-brary procedures. It consists of anIBM card punch connected by a cable

J

and control unit to an IBM electrictypewriter. The card punch, in addi-tion to performing the operations de-scribed above, also can be used to readcards and to print their contents onthe electric typewriter, which canprint both upper and lower case char-acters. This system is presented as analternate for those libraries whosesize does not require the greater pro-cessing speed available with a dataprocessing system consisting of thecard punch, sorter, and accountingmachine. The procedures, however,are basically the same, regardless ofwhich system is used. Special librariesfind the Document Writing Systemparticularly useful.

7. A computer combines the functions ofall of the punched card equipmentabove. A computer reads informationfrom punched cards or paper tape. Itcan perform arithmetic operations(add, subtract, multiply, divide) andlogical operations (compare charac-ters to determine if they are equal ornot) under the control of a programof instructions stored in its mainmemory. The program may modifyitself, based upon the results of priorcomputations. The main memory isusually made of magnetic cores. Aux-iliary storage is provided by magneticdiscs, drums, tape, and film. The re-sults of the computation may beprinted or punched into cards. Certainmodels have a printer capable ofprinting both lower case and uppercase characters.

COMPUTER CAPABILITIES

If a computer is available, much largervolumes of information may be processedin less time than with punched card equip-ment. Also, the librarian may plan a moresophisticated system. Some of the more im-portant attributes of this computer "so-phistication" are outlined below :

8

1. Speed.Arithmetic and logical ele-,lents in computers now operate inspeed ranges measured in nanosec-onds. A nanosecond is one billionth ofa second. In order to comprehend howsmall a sliver of time a nanosecond is,the librarian, might well ponder overthe ratio of nanoseconds to seconds :

1 nanosecond 1 minute=_-.-

1 second 2,000 years

You are familiar with the physicalconstant: speed of light = 186,000miles/second. Expressed in terms of ananosecond, light can travel only onefoot in one nanosecond.

New information may be read into acomputer at the rate of 1,000 punchedcards per minute. Reports can beprinted at speeds of up to 1,100 lines(of 132 characters each) per minute,fully seven times as fast as punchedcard accounting machines. Informa-tion can be searched in a computer'sdirect access memory containing hun-dreds of millions of pieces of data,found and displayed on a video con-sole in a second ox two.

2. Fewer manual opeiations.A com-puter operates with pre- thoughtoutprograms of instructions, which di-rect its every move. Since the com-puter has the functional capabilitiesof all the punched card equipment,plus these stored programs, there arefewer human operations and no hu-man decisions once the system is op-erational.

3. On-Line capabilities.It is possible toattach card readers, keyboards, type-writers, and video consoles to certaintypes of computers, providing the li-brarian with instantaneous communi-cation with the computer without thenecessity of first punching cards.These devices are called terminals andthe capability of transmitting infor-mation directly into a computer fromthem is called on-line.

The librarian may use a typewriter orvideo terminal to interrogate thecomputer's store of information andhave his query answered within sec-onds with the desired informationdisplayed on the terminal. Many ter-minals may be connected to a com-puter via telephone lines ; therefore,the distance between the terminalsand the computer is no physical re-striction.

This on-line capability is very usefulin a large library operation, particu-larly in the areas of acquisitions andcirculation control.

4. Storage.A computer has two basictypes of storagc

a. Main.Information is stored bymagnetizing tiny doughnut shapedmagnetic cores, approximately thesize of the typewriter character"o". Information can be stored andretrieved in a millionth of a sec-ond using magnetic cores. Sincethis form of storage is relativelyexpensive, it is used only for theprogram of instructions and theinformation being used by thecomputer's logic at a given pointin time. Data is generally storedin auxiliary units and transferredto magnetic cores only when need-ed.

b. Auxiliary.Large quantities o fbulk data, such as, "books on or-der," "shelf list," etc., might be

stored on magnetic tapes, diskfiles, or large magnetic film stripfiles. Each has different charac-teristics of capacity, access timeto information, and, of course,cost. Magnetic tapes are processedsequentially or serially in the man-ner of a tape recorder. Informa-tion is stored onto tape magneti-cally at the densities up to 1,600characters per inch, and it takesapproximately four minutes tosearch a 2,400-foot reel of mag-

77177777r,,, ,

netic tape. Direct access devices,such as rotating disks, store in-formation magnetically on theirsurfaces. Capacities of a disk stor-age unit vary from 500,000 char-acters to 200,000,000 characters.The latter figure would representone complete set of EncyclopediaBritannica. Information can be ac-cessed in approximately one-tenthof a second. Other direct accessstorage devices have larger capaci-ties but slower access times.

EVALUATING

The librarian, who is a novice in the dataprocessing field, must be cautioned that theworld of data processing has to be evaluatedin terms of "trade-offs." For example, fast-er speeds imply higher costs. On-line com-munications ability, while very desirable, isrelatively costly. The librarian must makethe final decision as to whether the advan-tages of extra sophistication outweigh thecosts. In making this decision, he must con-sider what uses will be made of the infor-mation, how current the information has tobe, and the frequency with which the in-formation is requested.

TOTAL SYSTEMS APPROACH WITHPUNCHED CARD EQUIPMENT

To illustrate how these data processingmachines can assist the librarian, let ustrace the path of some IBM cards as theyare processed. The procedures can use anIBM Document Writing System (very lowvolumes, i.e., a special library) or a cardpunch - sorter - collator - accounting machinecombination (medium to heavy volume oftransactions). Where either the DocumentWriting System or accounting machine canbe employed, the word "printer" is used.The use of the Document Writing Systemin a library is described in detail in the IBMmanual entitled The IBM 870 Library Ad-ministrative Processing System for FederalGovernment Libraries and Special Informa-tion Repositories (No. E50-0029).

When a book is about to be ordered, cardsare punched containing such information asthe author's name, title, publisher, cost, etc.These cards are then fed into the printer,which produces the purchase order. Thesame cards, when merged manually or onthe sorter with other similar cards, can beused to print an "on-order list" on the print-er. When the invoice for the book arrives,these cards are manually pulled from a fileand used with the printer to write the checkand accompanying voucher. The same cardsare used to prepare a "new acquisition list"which can be made on duplicating masterpaper by the printer.

Many functions of technical services canbe performed with the same equipment.Spine labels, book plates, book cards andpocket labels can be prepared by the print-er, using information previously punched inthe card.

A master shelf list card for each bookis prepared automatically from the originalcards by the reproducer or Document Writ-ing System. Once the book has been cata-loged and this new information punched in-to cards, a descriptive catalog card, com-plete with tracings, keywords and/or ab-stract can then be made with the printer.Duplicate catalog cards can be printed bypassing the cards through the printeragain. If the punched cards for all booksin the library are arranged by the sorterinto alphabetical order by author and thenprinted, one has a book catalog. These cardscan be arranged into sequence by subjectmatter and listed, producing a book catalogin that sequence. Similarly, a third bookcatalog can be printed in alphabetical orderof the titles.

Other cards can be made from the origi-nal by use of the Document Writing Sys-tem or reproducer. These are book cardsand are used for circulation control. Wherecirculation volume is heavy, IBM Data Col-lection equipment has been used successful-ly to record and control charging and dis-charging of books. Slipping is completelyeliminated. In addition to handling bookcharge-outs, returns, and overdue notices,the cards provide valuable circulation sta-tistics.

Card procedures can be used with serialsfor purchase orders, check writing, printingof a union list of serials, serials holdingslists, posting of periodicals, claims reports,automatic notification of binding dates,and preparation of routing slips.

Data processing machines can assist thelibrary staff by producing fund accountingreports and agency expense reports, as wellas the usual financial reports on a periodicbasis. The basic input comes from the cardsused to write the purchase orders plus add-ed cost information obtained from invoices.

The Decatur Public Library (Illinois) isan outstanding example of a public librarywhich has installed a total system withpunched card equipment.

TOTAL SYSTEMS APPROACH WITHA COMPUTER AND TERMINALS

Communicating with the central com-puter system by means of terminalsbothvisual display and typewriterlibrary per-sonnel can keep current with acquisitionsand cataloging, increase their effectivenessin technical processing, and maintain rigidcontrol in the areas of serials records andcirculation.

Prior to preparing a purchase order for anew book, a bibilographic search of mater-ials already in the library or on order mustbe made. An inquiry originated at a termi-nal in the acquisitions department causesthe system to search its on-order file andits library holdings file (shelf list) storedin the computer's auxiliary memory. If therequested book or document is not recordedin the files, the purchase order is writtenand the information is immediately storedin the on-order file.

Upon receipt of the book, informationstored at the time it was ordered is calledfrom the on-order file.

Cataloging is facilitated by the use of aterminal-oriented computer system in thata master subject heading file stored inthe system is queried to check the sub-ject headings assigned by the cataloger. Anauthor file and a title file, also stored inthe system, may be queried by the cata-loger to provide necessary cross-reference

10 ----

information. Catalog cards or book catalogentries are prepared. Spine labels, bookcards and book pocket labels are also cre-ated automatically as by-products of thestored information.

Information on serials holdings is storedas a logical file within the computer's aux-iliary memory. This file contains the masterinformation necessary in performing thedaily check-in of new serials as well as inthe filing of claims notices. Periodic reviewof the file initiates follow-up action for se-rials not received and claims notices areprepared as an automatic by-product.

Records of all books on loan are main-tained by the system. As a book is checkedout, a library terminal reads the book iden-tification from a punched card and the pa-tron identification from a badge. The recordenters automatically the file of outstandingbooks and is then available by terminal topatrons who would like to know when cer-tain books, which are out, will be returned,and to the librarian who has a need to knowwhat books are charged out to a given bor-rower (in the event he has to leave schooland "clear" the library).

When books are checked out, the systemcan use the borrower's identification num-ber to search a delinquency list (those whoowe unpaid fines). If the borrower happensto be on the list, a message can be sentback to the terminal advising the librarianof the fact.

This on-line search ability can also beused at the time a book is returned to thelibrary. The book number is checked againsta file of books on "hold" and, if the re-turned book is on the list, a message is sentto the librarian indicating that a certainborrower is waiting for the book and thatis should not be shelved.

A periodic scan of the outstanding bookfile reveals those books which are overdue,and notices are prepared by the system'shigh speed printer.

The date processing and information re-trieval capabilities of modern data proces-sors enable the research library to performnew and valuable services. In the past, keep-ing current with the latest publications andactivities of the many fields embraced by

an institution has been impractical or im-possible. Manual review of new material,whether for research or academic purposes,is both time consuming and costly. In manycases it is also incomplete.

If the library desires to make availableto certain of its patrons a selective dissemi-nation of information system, this could bereadily accomplished by computer. It wouldhave in its memory the interest profiles ofthe people on the system. These profileswould consist of LC or Dewey classificationnumbers and subject headings which repre-sent the readers' interests. The profileswould also include names of authors andperhaps keywords which might occur intitle. These profile items would be matchedby the computer against the correspondingitems in the recent acquisitions. Whenevera sufficient number of terms between thetwo lists matched, the computer wouldprint out a notification to be mailed to theborrower. Such a system of automatic noti-fication of new items of special interestshould be a tremendous service to a libraryand stimulate circulation considerably.Thus, the library assumes an active role byinformating patrons of new items ratherthan the traditional passive role of waitinguntil patrons come into the library beforeoffering service.

Today, a library can obtain machine read-able indexes to publications and activitiesin many fields, and the computer can scanthem to answer specific requests. Indexes,available on a one-time purchase basis orby subscription from various sources, pro-vide the ability to perform machinesearches by subject, journal reference, au-thor, or keyword. The search is fast, flex-ible, and complete.

Properly equipped with the necessary in-dexes and availability of a data processingsystem, the research library can insure thehighest degree of effectiveness in satisfy-ing the needs of a chemical research projectin providing the latest information for agraduate student in electrical engineering,or in supplying socio-economic data for thesurrounding community and its business-men.

11

BENEFITS

The use of data processing equipment forthe mechanization of the clerical jobs in alibrary makes possible the following advan-tages:

1. Integration of book ordering, techni-cal processing, circulation control andstatistics, serials and accounting.

2. Release of professional staff fromclerical routines to work with booksand patrons.

3. Availability of complete, up-to-the-minute financial picture at all times.

4. Availability of complete informationon books that are being read.

5. Simplification of book ordering.

6. Easy maintenance of accurate circu-lation control statistics.

7. All of the above result in a cost andpersonnel reduction over a period oftime as volumes of circulations andacquisitions increase.

8. Last, and perhaps the most importantof all, better service to the librarypatrons:

a. New books get processed sooner.b. Returned books get same-day

shelvingno slipping.c. Book selection can be made more

responsive to patrons' readinghabits.

d. Union book catalogs are availablefor all branches, bookmobiles, de-partments.

e. Full control and information isavailable on the whereabouts of allbooks.

f. More money is available for books,since operating costs are lower.

CO-OPERATIVE LIBRARY SERVICESOF THE FUTURE

It is natural to suppose that there willbe interchanges of machine readable infor-mation among libraries. Reels of magnetictapes containing entire shelf lists or serialsholdings can be sent through the mail; oreven more exotically, the information canbe transmitted from computer to computervia micro-wave or high-speed co-axial cable.This flow of information could reduce theoriginal cataloging load on individual li-braries considerably.

Perhaps regional associations of librarieswill be organized to handle efficiently theinterchange of machine-readable library in-formation. Each regional association mighthave its own computer with a union catalogof its members stored and available via ter-minals in each library. Library of Congresscataloging information could be transmitteddaily from Washington to each center forready availability to all member libraries.The regional computer might also store theon-order lists of its members. This wouldassist the librarians in making buy-or-loandecisions about expensive, seldom-readbooks.

lirww.74777-77.71 - -

The Book Catalog Program ofthe Austin Public Library:The Librarian's Viewpoint

When we began planning our book cata-log program at the Austin Public Library,no person on the library staff had any ex-perience with the tools of automation.Without the patient and whole-hearted co-operation, assistance, and direction of theCity's data processing staff, this projectnever could have been realized.

By the same token, the data processingstaff were quite unfamiliar with librarypractices and problems. We spent manyhours learning to talk to each other aboutthe problems involved. From the beginning,however, the computer people were confi-dent the computer could do the job and en-couraged us to zo forward. The fact thatnone of us knew how to do it kept us read-ing, studying, and searching for reportswhich might guide us.

The book catalogs were designed specifi-cally to index the headquarters book col-lection which services the Extension Divi-sion branches, stations, and mobile units.This is a rotating collection consisting ofapproximately 120,000 volumes, includingsome 25,000 titles. It serves five branches,three stations (one of them a mobile unit),and three bookmobiles. Each of these unitshas on its shelves or circulating in its ser-vice area a segment of the total collection.Books read-out at one location are returnedto headquarters to move on to another lo-cation. Books not currently in demand atany location are held at headquarters foroccasional calls. Books are exchangedmonthly or more often if desired. Suchmovement of books is highly impractical ifcatalog cards are involved hence, extensionagencies had no catalogs until the adventof the book catalogs. With the book cata-logs, all titles in the extension collectionare brought to the attention of readers at

MAY LEA McCURDY, Assistant DirectorAustin Public LibraryAustin, Texas

any library agency, and any title desiredmay be requested if it is not available onthe agency's shelves. Daily deliveries fromheadquarters to each agency expedite thisservice.

The book catalogs are in six volumes:three for children's books, three for adultbooks. Each set of three consists of an au-thor catalog, a title catalog, and a subjectcatalog.

The equipment required at the Libraryand used by library personnel included acard punch machine and a verifier. Theequipment in the City's data processing cen-ter will be described by Mr. McCaslin, direc-tor of the center and Assistant Director ofFinance. Other equipment required wasthat of the City print shop, where themultilith mats prepared by the computerwere printed and the books bound.

Library staff members were trained tooperate the card punch and the verifier, and100,000 cards were punched and verified atthe Library.

Before we could go to the machines, how-ever, much preparation had to be made.The following is a list of the preliminaryoperations involved in our program:

13 --

1. Review subject heading list to im-prove consistency and to develop thecross references.

2. Scan shelf list cards of the extensioncollection to select titles to be includ-ed in the book catalog. Generally, weeliminated titles no copy of which hadbeen purchased since 1956.

3. Determine the exact format of thebook catalogs.

4. Plan the use of punched cards to pro-duce this format.

5. Develop field definitions for the IBMcards and set up the card code.

6. Adapt the information on each shelfcard to make it fit the desired formatand stamp a serial number on thecard.

Shelf cards were used as the source docu-ments for the keypunching.

After the cards were punched and the in-formation was transferred to magnetictape, a proof copy was printed out by thecomputer. This was the first real evidenceto the library staff that this bizarre opera-tion really could produce a book catalog!.Many hours were spent proofreading andpreparing corrections and changes. Becauseof our lack of experience, the changes weremanyso many, in fact, that some of themwere postponed until the second edition ispublished.

It is much easier in retrospect to describethe process of producing the catalogs thanit was to initiate it. When we plunged intothe program, we did not know exactly whatwould be required, and we had to learn aswe went along. We know now at least partof what we needed to know when we began.

The library staff who have gone throughthe fire have urged me not to understatethe job of preparing the materials, proof-reading at every step, and learning the newskills of punching and verifying. Revisingthe subject heading list and selecting thetitles to be included took months of slow,thoughtful, detailed work, consuming farmore time than did the actual machinework. Proof reading also required muchtime and care.

The first week we ventured into punchingand verifying was almost a total loss. Ourtypists had been given about two weeks oftraining at the data processing center, butwe had to adapt this training to a very dif-ferent type of material. Also we had to es-tablish that indescribable rapport betweenman and machine which all of us have ex-perienced in handling typewriters, adding

machines, and automobiles. It was a mostdiscouraging week, but after that the workwent unexpectedly well.

The time element in the procedure maybe of some interest. We began our investi-gation of the possibilities of a book catalogin the spring of 1964, immediately begin-ning the work of revising the subject listand selecting titles for inclusion. In mid-summer we had our first conference withMr. McCaslin. Thereafter we went from con-ference to further investigation to confer-ence until we could clarify and sharpen ourthinking to the point of making decisions.During all this time, the preparation of ma-terials was continuing.

We began keypunching the first of Marchand completed the children's titles in twomonths. The process of programming andproofreading required about three monthsmore. It should be pointed out that neitherdata processing personnel nor Library staffwere doing this work only. It all had to befitted into schedules already full.

Keypunching for the catalogs for adultbooks began the first part of August andrequired two months. October was spent infinal proofreading, printing the multilithmats, and the final printing and binding.Approximately a year and a half elapsed be-tween first plans and finished product.

The major problems we encountered fallinto three groups : first, format of the cata-logs; second, card coding; and third, sort-ing or filing.

We found many approaches to format.Some catalogs were closely related in formto the printed catalog card, others resem-bled indexes ; in some the computer-produced page, printed in a double column,was photographed, reduced in size to fit an8Y2 by 11 page ; others printed straightacross the page.

For a number of reasons, we determinedto seek the simplest possible approach. Thefact that we were inexperienced led us tobelieve we would have all the problems wecould manage in producing as simple a cata-log as we could design. Since upper-caseletters only were available to us and a verylimited number of punctuation marks, wefelt brief entries would be easier to com-

--14

prehend, and would produce a more com-pact book. The catalogs are designed foruse in neighborhood branch libraries wherethe approach is general rather than special-ized, and the complete bibliographical infor-mation desirable in research or special li-braries is not required. For all thesereasons, our decision was to prepare a find-ing list.

In typical library cataloging, the authorcard is the unit or main card. We made thetitle our major entry. One IBM card wasmade for each title. On this card were in-cluded the call number, the title itself, anda by-line for the author consisting of sur-name and initials. The information on thiscard prints out on one line in all three cata-logs. In the title catalog, this single linefor each title is the only entry.

In the author catalog, each author's nameappears once with the titles of his worksalphabetized under his name. In this cata-log, the by-line is dropped and replaced withthe publisher and date, which appear in thiscatalog only.

In the subject catalog, each subject islisted once with the titles of works dealingwith the subject alphabetized under it.

To produce the format described, a setof cards waa prepared for each title, eachset being identified by its own unique serialnumber. A set includes the following cards:

I. An author card with the author'sname in the same fullness used in ourpresent card catalogs, except that thisname must fit on one IBM card with70 columns allowed for it

2. A title card with 14 columns in thecall number field, 54 columns in thefield for title together with the by-line

3. A publisher card giving publicationdate and publisher's name in briefform, the length being tailored to fiton a single line with the title whenthe by-line is dropped

4. One to four subject cards, 70 columnsbeing allowed for each subject. Nomore than four subjects are used withany one title.

The set of cards for a title having no sub-ject entries would require three punchedcards ; the set for a title having four sub-ject entries would require seven.

The card coding which is basic to theprogramming will be covered in detail byMr. McCaslin. This coding is perhaps themost important item in the book catalogproduction operation.

It cannot be emphasized too strongly thatthese initial plans about format and cardcoding are vitally important. Once made andthe cards punched, there can be littlechange. We found also that we were deal-ing with an accuracy and consistency re-quirement far beyond that we were accus-tomed to. If a comma is out of place, theentry involved will not file in its properplace. If there are two spaces following U.S.in a corporate entry on one occasion andonly one space on another occasion, thecomputer refuses to file the two entries to-gether.

Sorting (the name the computer peoplegive to what librarians call filing) present-ed many problems, perhaps more than anyother factor. We decided that we would tryto follow the computer's sorting pattern asclosely as possible. Our "Mac" and "Mc"names do not file together, nor do "Saint"and "St.", "Mister" and "Mr."

The computer sorts, not word by wordor letter by letter, but column by columnwithin a given field. An empty or unpunch-ed column files firstthe old library ruleof nothing before something. Then the fil-ing order is period, dash, comma, the let-ters of the alphabet from A to Z, and nu-merals. This giving of filing value to punc-tuation marks was difficult for us to workwith since our filing has been alphabeticwithout reference to punctuation.

Subject subdivisions posed our mrp,i, dif-ficult problem. As you know, subject head-ings come in several forms: a single word,"Medicine ;" subdivision following a dash,"Medicine Dictionaries ;" inverted head-ing, "Medicine, Popular ;" a phrase, "Medi-cine as a profession." Each type of headingsorted by computer forms its own group,the types do not interfile in alphabeticorder.

We tried to achieve alphabetic order with-out reference to punctuation by standard-izing the headings, using a dash after theentry work, "Medicine," in all types of sub-ject headings. Even the phrase heading hadthe dash inserted, "Medicineas a profes-sion."

In this matter there still remain manyinconsistencies in our present book catalogswhich we hope to improve in the secondedition.

Before going into the book catalog pro-gram, we analyzed the potential cost ofcard catalogs for the larger extension agen-cies with the idea of giving each of thema card catalog for the entire extension col-lection. Six catalogs would have been re-quired, approximately 100,000 cards to eachcatalog. The production alone of 600,000cards are estimated to cost over $25,000.Our costs for keypunching, verifying, andproofreading plus the programming andcomputer time costs and the printing andbinding costs were less than $7,500.

The advantages of the book catalog to ushave already been pointed out. It is possiblefor each branch to have access to titles inthe entire extension collection. Movementof books among the branches remains un-complicated. Bookmobiles and small stationswith no room for card catalog cases now

have a catalog. Cards for multiple card cata-logs do not have to be produced, files,sorted, withdrawn. Space formerly requiredfor catalog cases is available for other uses.

There are disadvantages. One often-men-tioned is the fact that the book catalog be-gins to be out of date by the time it ispublished. By the time our supplement ispublished, the original catalogs will be sixmonths out of date. Some libraries publishsupplements more frequently. We plan todo so next year. Others point to their esti-mate that at any given time their card cata-logs are thirty per cent in error.

Another disadvantage is lack of punctua-tion marksno apostrophes, colons, semi-colons, quotation marks, etc. The use ofupper case letters throughout is consideredmonotonous.

For us, advantages far outweigh disad-vantages. The book catalogs have beenwarmly welcomed in the extension brancheswhere no catalogs had been available. Inthe Central Library, the staff of the YoungPeople's Department have come to prefer itto their own card catalog, and we are mov-ing in the direction of a book catalog forthe children's books of the entire librarysystem. We believe we have a bargain, bothfrom the point of view of cost and of satis-factory results in use.

The Book Catalog Program ofThe Austin Public Library:

The Programmer's Viewpoint

The City of Austin's Data Processing Di-vision feels extremely grateful for Mrs.McCurdy's most kind words. However, heradjectives describing the library staffs' rolein the book catalog, I feel, did not expresstotally their tremendous task in learning tocommunicate and create the desired inputdata. This was a project extremely welldone by people heretofore totally void of theidioms of data processing and its workings.So to them I wish to give 99% credit forthe project's success.

You here today deserve a special applaudfrom the field of data processing. Through-out the past few years all electronic dataprocessing management has fought a battleto break the gregarious attitude of people.You show the knowledgeable desire to breakaway and be one of the first to be a partof this tremendous tool, which as time pro-gresses, will be a necessity, not an aide.

I wish to make clear that library auto-mation is and will not be a process of push-ing a button but a long and hard coordi-nated effort by the electronic data process-ing and library personnel. Primarily librarypersonnel will be the key to success, astheirs will be the greater task. The simula-tion of data will always continue to be themajor portion of any project.

We in electronic data processing do notand can not, in most cases, go out and de-termine each and everyone's needs andproblems. They must come to us. TheAustin Library did just this ; they came tous. To communicate a totally foreign prob-lem between two groups was, and alwayswill be, the initial problem. Through manysessions we toiled trying to define the prob-lem and the desired end result. When thisproblem had been breached, the remainingsteps for electronic data processing person-nel were minor, as qualified systems andprogramming personnel were available.

0. R. McCASLIN, Assistant Director of FinanceCity of AustinAustin, Texas

A simple approach to a problem does notalways reiterate the acceptance of outputthat will do, but could be better. Usuallythe end result is more than adequate. Increating the systems and programming forthe book catalog, simplicity was the keyword.

Mrs. McCurdy has very adequately de-scribed the card formats and primary func-tions. The card formats were firmed as todata requirements, but logic controls werestill necessary for programming.

A set of cards for one book had to berecognized as a single unit. Therefore, a se-rial number was assigned to each book, re-quiring that each card relevant to a bookcontain the serial number in order to createa single unit. Also we had to define by someprocess the type of card we were reading atthe time the definition was necessary. Thisrequired a card definition as follows:

01 - The author card.21 - The title card.41 - The publisher and date card.61, 71, 81, and/or 91 - subject card

or cards.In order to print the author and each re-

lated book title, the author's name had tobe exactly the same on each and everypunched card, as these were compared char-acter by character. This was another te-dious task for library personnel.

The title card was not as difficult, exceptstandard sorting and filing procedures hadto be followed.

The subj ect was the most difficult to pro-gram. It can easily be understood by eachof you that one book record can be filedin but one place or sequence ; therefore onebook record was required for each subject.

The subject and author cross referenceswere extremely difficult to handle logicallyin programming. Through many confer-ences, systems analyzation dictated the use

17

of the demanded sorting technique which ineffect placed these references in the collat-ing or desired location sequence. This ap-proach was a success and as accurate asthe human element.

The completed system called for four pro-grams and three tape sort routines :

1. Program 1 was to build the masterbook file from cards which werepunched by the Austin Library per-sonnel. At this point the card codeswere used to determine where on thetape record the data in the punchedcard was to be placed. For each bookor subject record the following datacreated the master catalog record :

Serial number from card 01Author name from card 01Title from card 21By author from card 21Call number from card 21Publisher and date from card 41Subject from card or cards 61, 71,

81, and/or 91.

2. Program 2 was to print on multilithmats, the adult and children's bookcatalog by title, by author, and bysubject. Like an old-fashioned elixir,you will please note that this programdoes everything. This combining ofmany tasks in one program is moreefficient and expeditious.

3. Program 3 was to add records (orbooks), delete books, and/or changeany part of an existing book record.

4. Program 4 was to print serial num-bers or title control list or lists forreference and maintenance purposes.The sorts involved were by author, bytitle, and by subject.

The programming required two man-months to complete the four programs andsort procedures. This related time includesextensive program testing and program cor-rections, which normally require the ma-jority of a programmer's time. It is indeednecessary to understand that all automatedequipment can not create or destroy datawithout detailed programmed instructions.The correcting, (or de-bugging as we callit), testing, recorrecting, retesting of the

programs, was rather tedious and in somecases time-consuming.

To lighten the hard copy and invoke aboredom conditioner at this point in timeI should like to quote the following shortpoem printed in the January, 1966, issue ofthe Journal of Data Management which Ifeel is revelant to the present problem andpoint:

THE LAST BUG"But you're out of your mind,"They said with a shrug,The customer's happyWhat's one little bug?

But he was determined.The others went how..He spread out the program,Deserted, alone.

The cleaning men came, theWhole room was clutteredWith memory-dumps, punch cards,"I'm close," he muttered.

The mumbling got louder,`Simple deduction,I've got it, it's right, justChange one instruction!"

It still wasn't perfectAs year followed yearAnd strangers would comment,"Is that guy still here?"

He died at the consoleOf hunger and thirst.Next day he was buried,Face down, nine-edge first.

And the last bug in sight,An ant passing by,Saluted his tombstoneAnd whispered, "Nice try!"

We have been fortunate not to have hadsuch happen to us, but during some pro-gram problems we shared a slight doubt.In any event the story relates that not only"bugs" occur which were never considered,but through combinations of input data themonster of programming will rear its uglyhead. This requires program maintenance tocorrect the instruction logic. To date wehave not found this dormant bug, but restassured it is only in hibernation and willgreet us some day in the future.

As our highway to a book catalog is ver-bally built, please keep in mind that we donot consider this the ultimate approach.When time permits, the entire project willagain be closely scanned, this time with re-trospect, to search out the sick trees whichwe could not see for the forest. We have

18

1

found on our second return to a project,such as the book catalog, that situationslike the old farmer (sometimes called alum-ni of a certain agricultural and mechanicalcollege whose name I will not repeat) want-ed to be able to distinguish between his twohorses.

After much thought he decided the an-swer would be to cut off the mane fromone so he could tell them apart. But themane grew back, and the old farmer againthought and thought and finally decided totry cutting off the tail of one. "This wouldmake the difference," he said. But the tailgrew back. So the old farmer started againto think and think (using the term loosely).All of a sudden he came up with a brilliantidea! He decided to measure them, hopingthat they were not the same height. Sureenough, the black one was one hand shorterthan the white one.

Even though horse distinguishing is notan exact science apparently, programmingof computers is an exact science, which ismoving at a rate greater than medicine andequal, due to demand, to space technology.

The book catalog was indeed a new anddifferent challenge and was a gratifying ex-perience for all involved.

Such a task could be compared to build-ing a house. First, the blueprints or sys-tems must be designed. If you do not knowdrafting or how to read blueprints, youmust learn this before you supervise thebuilding. This compares to the ability tocommunicate readily. The; programmersthen take the blueprints and build the struc-ture, or, in this case, instructions in orderto build a desired result.

The title catalog was primarily the easiestto program. All requirements were met witha sort on title and one line of print pertitle. Since there were many records for thesame book (due to many subject references)it was necessary to delete many records bycomparing on title before printing. Thiseliminated any possible duplication in print-ing.

The author catalog was slightly morecomplicated than the title catalog, in thatagain we had the duplicated records due tomulti-subjects. In addition, the sort wasmore extensive. Here it was necessary to

sort the titles in alphabetical order undereach author and print the author's nameonly once, except on overflow to a new page,and all titles following in order under thename. The author references, as stated pre-viously, were input so they would sort ineach location desired.

The subject catalog, being the most used,was carefully studied and programmed. Thecatalog could be compared to the authorcatalog pertaining to sorting but requiredmany more references and much moreprinting. The programming logic was muchmore difficult than the other catalogs.

The computer sort time required for eachcatalog was approximately one hour each.Print time was approximately one and one-half hour for author and title and two hoursfor the subject catalog.

The outdating of the book catalog due todeletions and/or additions is dictated byreason, expediency, and costs. We couldwithout effort due to a now created masterfile, print new catalogs monthly or supple-ments as needed. This could mean catalogsonly days out of date. The major disadvan-tage thus disappears into a maze of "can"or "cannot do" cost wiz.

The equipment use by Austin ElectronicData Processing in completing this projectwas an IBM 1401 computer. The configura-tion involved was a central processing unitcontaining 16,000 positions of core memory,five tape drives, printer, and a card read-punch unit. This type of computer is veryefficient in a project such as this.

It has been stated that the total bookcatalog costs were under $7,500. Of this,slightly over $2,300 was electronic data pro-cessing cost, 90% of which was one-timecosts for system, programming, and com-puter testing. The electronic data process-ing cost estimate for the next completeprinting of a new updated catalog shouldbe approximately $250.

Even though we feel that we have notreached the ultimate, we realize that a se-rial tape system has its restrictions. Yet,we feel that the library has a tool, in thecatalogs, which could have only been ac-complished on the computer.

There are, and you will see, other hard-ware which will print upper and lower case

19--

and all desired punctuation. These are wellfor a huge volume operation where totalutilization is possible and speed is not ad-herent in the output. Upper case letters areread by you every day and, in the majority,without your actual knowledge. This hasbeen proven in many other applications tobe adequate and even more legible than theold combination case structure.

The horizons of the present and, for us,the future holds unlimited prospects for li-brary automation. With unrestricted realtimeon-line computers such as the newIBM system 360 seriesnothing will bewanted or impossible. The systems analystand programmer is sitting with pencil anddesire, poised to enter into the 360 orbit.

All library files, except the required pa-tron hard copy reference catalog, will beimmediately reduced to computer accessfiles. All manual housekeeping you mustnow maintain will be accomplished by a sim-ple typewriter keyboardtechnically knownas a teleprocessing station. This of course

is easy to state but will require complaisantlabor to place dreams into reality.

Detail has been impossible for me to at-tempt to set forth here today, as here againthe idioms of the trade and technical kmw-how of automation make this impossible.However, do not be afraid of automation,it will not bite you. Mrs. McCurdy and herstaff are graphic illustrations of learningthe basic knowledge in order to communi-cate as well as to gain enough technicalknow-how to aid adequately in creating thesystems for this project.

If you should like a more graphic or de-tailed understanding of any phase of theelectronic data processing book catalog con-cept, we at Austin Electronic Data Process-ing will be more than happy to assist you.We should like to invite you to visit ourinstallation or write us requesting any per-tinent information.

Thank you for your interest and atten-tion.

The Circulation System of the Fondren Library,Rice University

Use of the IBM 357 Data Collection Sys-tem as a library charging system seems tohave captured the imagination of librariansall over the United States. In 1963, justthree year ago, there were only one or twosuch installations. Today, according to DonKraft's latest tally, there are forty, withmore on the way. The utilization of ma-chine processing for routine, manual tasksis not only commendable and encouragingbut also essential if libraries are to keeppace with our technology-oriented society.

At the same time, however, there aresome indications that a few of these appli-cations are not properly suited to the localconditions. You simply cannot take a sys-tem designed for Rice, or Texas A & M, orSouthern Illinois, and expect it to providethe kind of control you need. Each installa-tion is unique, no matter how closely it mayresemble another.

One of the questions I am frequently call-ed upon to answer is "why did you do itthis way?" A complete and comprehensiveanswer would require more time than wehave this afternoon, 13r- t there are some im-portant factors we can examine factorswhich directed us to the system we install-ed at Rice. The most important part of theanswer came from an analysis of the cir-culation system. Another important elementwas the expectation of the departmentalstaff. The long-range plans of the FondrenLibrary were also considered.

THE CONCEPT OF A SYSTEM

One word will be used more and morefrequently, today, tomorrow, and in theyears to come. It is important that librar-ians understand what that word means.The word is "system." This is a commonlibrary term, but it is not properly defined.

FREDERICK RUECKING, HeadData Processing DivisionFondren LibraryRice University

Library literature, for example, indicatesthat the phrases "charging-system," "cir-culation-control system," and "circulationsystem" are interchangeable. The systemconcept does not permit this loose interpre-tation. The word must be used specificallyand appropriately.

What is a system? I am not a systemsspecialistI am a librarian. Consequently,my definition will reflect a librarian's view-point. To me, a system is that specific com-plex of procedures, data, and/or equipmentwhich is required and used to accomplish aspecific task. The generality of this defini-tion makes it possible to erect a systemstructure based on the ideas that any sys-tem may have two or more lesser systems,and that two or more systems may shareone or more lesser systems.

Use of a system concept and a structuralframework produces a significant alterationin viewpoint, particularly when it is appliedto a library system. You learn very quicklythat there are at least five ways of lookingat a library system. These are as follows :

1. What you thin it does.2. What I think it does.3. What it is supposed to do.4. What it actually does.5. What it should do.

I would like to point out that use of thesefive viewpoints do not, by any means, nec-essarily produce the same information.

A university may be classified as a totaleducational system. Within that system area whole host of lesser systems, includingthe library system. Within the library aresix readily-identifiable systems: acquisi-tions, cataloging, reference, serials, specialmaterials, and circulation. The totality ofthis set of interlocking systems suggeststhat we may diagram the library system asa circle. Within that circle we may add

21

smaller circles to represent each of the sys-tems we have identified. The overlappingareas of these smaller circles indicate theinteraction between these systems. This dia-gram, which I think represents more tra-ditional attitudes, is erroneous. One impor-tant element has been omittedpublic con-tact. Therefore, the diagram must bealtered to allow each of these systems toextend beyond the limits of the internalsystem.

Before anyone gets up and says "Sowhat ?" let me point to one item which sur-prised me. The lack of a central, unifyingelement or unifying system clearly suggeststhat one or more of these systems couldbe excluded from the total library system,and the diagram would still indicate theexistence of a functioning library. For ex-ample, it is possible to have a functioninglibrary without a circulation system. Itwould be possible to have a library whichhad no serials. It would be a little difficultto imagine a library which did not add toits holdings, but it is a possibility. A refer-ence system is not required, but it is anasset. Cataloging, important as it is, is stillnot absolutely essential. Think about it. Re-member I am not saying that any of thesesystems should be eliminatedI am merelypointing out that libraries could exist with-our them, although I'm not too sure howeffective such libraries would be.

The interconnections between these sys-tems make it difficult to study each oneindependently. This difficulty is one of thereasons why many people believe that li-braries are not susceptible to machine-methods and systematic analysis. The sys-tems illustration does suggest considerabledifficulty in adding machine methods, par-ticularly if that structure were to be super-imposed on a machine application.

However, the application of machinemethods, especially the application of com-puters, inevitably necessitates a change inthat structure, adding a new library systemthe machine system. The location of thecomputer or machine system as the heartof a library system is justified, because ofthe peculiar potential of machine control.I think a few examples of that potentialcan provide enough justification for any-

one. Under a full-blown machine system, thegeneration of an order could automaticallymake that information available to the pub-lic and the cataloging department. Comple-tion of the cataloging process could auto-matically generate the card required for thecharging system. The preparation of ma-terials for binding could not only updatethe outstanding serials record, but could al-so generate a loan charge to show the lateststatus of those items. Loss of a book whilein circulation could produce an acquisitionsquery concerning the need to replace thelost copy.

In other wr _ds, the machine system be-comes the unifying element of the library,passing information back and forth betweensystems as the need arises. I think it is rec-ognized that the library is a part of thesocial system. One facet which has escapednotice is that the existing library patternlacks the one feature which characterizesestablished patterns of social systems aunifying element. I think the machine sys-tem is destined to become this unifying ele-ment.

Now that we have a frame of referencewithin which we can operate, we can exam-ine the task of analyzing a library system.

ANALYZING A SYSTEM

The initial problem is to locate a startingpoint. This is always a difficult decision andis highly dependent upon local conditions.That one phrase "dependent upon local con-ditions" is the basic reason why Rice startedin circulation, A & M in serials, the Univer-sity of Houston in acquisitions, and theLibrary of Congress in cataloging. Onepoint must be stressed over and over andover again. Because one library has foundit necessary to begin mechanization at onepoint is no reason why another library muststart at that same point. It is, of course,possible that two libraries may have simi-lar problems and seek to solve them in likemanner, but each library should know whyits analysis is starting at that point. Eachlibrary must determine, for itself, its ownproblems, its own needs, its own goals, andits own developmental program. After thisanalysis is done, it will be worthwhile to

- 22

examine what other libraries are doing andhave done.

Once the decision has been made as towhere to begin, the problem of "how" entersthe picture. There are some alternativeshere also, but we must bear in mind thosefive viewpoints I mentioned earlier. If theperson doing the analysis is familiar withthe procedures of the chosen start point,some preliminary observations on the man-ner in which the system operates can beset down, and they are very useful. How-ever, let us assume that we know nothingabout the system to be investigated.

In this case, we must become involvedwith the systemeven to the point of work-ing within it to become familiar with thosefeatures which characterize its operation.The initial goal is the development of flowcharts which indicate operational patterns,describing the transfer of information toand from various parts of the system. Thedegree of detail specified in these flowcharts depends upon the complexity of thesystem, the training of the investigator,and the attitude he has, which is purelypersonal.

In conjunction with the people who nor-mally make the system go, the flow chartsare analyzed for errors, omissions, revi-sions, and duplications of effort. The prod-uct of this stage of the study will be apicture of what constitutes common infor-mation, where the information is used, andhow it is manipulated by the system. Thepoints which show contact between systemsand contact between subsystems will beclearly identified. The analyst will be ableto detect the formation of system patternswhich are frequently not recognized by thepeople operating the system.

One of the features of this approach, andone which bothers many librarians, is thechallenging of all procedures with "why?"This is one of the really important obliga-tions of the analystto ask "why" at everystep of the way. When the question isasked, the last answer the analyst wants,and the one too frequently heard is, "we'vealways done it this way."

After this flow chart stage, the analystshould be able to construct a model dia-gram of the system and to indicate, at least

to himself, the various patterns which exist,the information used, where that informa-tion comes from, where it goes, what isdone with it, etc. He must also bear in mindthe possibility of multiple utilization of thedata, the addition or deletion of procedureswhich can produce information not current-ly available, etc. Finally, he must determinewhat form the data is in, or should be in,to activate the system and the form inwhich the system should produce the nec-essary information. Once these decisionshave been made, some conclusions can bedrawn which will control the approach tobe used with a machine applicationif theanalysis indicates a gain in efficiency or abetter utilization of staff time.

I would like to turn now to the circulationsystem at the Fondren Library and de-scribe in some detail the structure of thatsystem and its supporting systems.

THE CIRCULATION SYSTEMWhat is a circulation system? In the con-

text of our definition of a system, we cansay that it is the process of controlling theitems being extracted from or returned tothe book collection. Since the Fondren Li-brary is an open-shelf library, borrowershave direct access to the book collection.Consequently, the circulation system pro-vides control for that part of the collectionallowed to leave the building.

Generally, circulation systems are well -defLied, probably best defined of all librarysystems. The information utilized, the gen-eral procedural framework, and the depart-mental organization are similar from li-brary to library. This similarity makesanalysis much simpler. The circulation sys-tem of the Fondren Library provided spe-cific lesser systems to be brought into playwhen the main system is activated. Thus,one borrower may utilize system A, for ex-ample, but cannot gain excess to system B.

At this point, we can anticipate the ex-istence of a structure, and the initial prob-lem will be to determine the arrangementof this structure and to determine the re-lationships between the systems whichcomprise it. If we eliminate the stack orshelving system from consideration, we cancharacterize this structure as having fivesystems. These are the loan system, carrel

23--

system, reserve system, interlibrary-loansystem, and borrower-control system.

We might examine this a little to gainan idea of the application of a structureconcept to the system. When someonecomes to the desk, the circulation systemcan be activated and it will interpose a sys-tem to clarify the relationship of that per-son with the library and the contact pointsavailable to him. This is the borrower con-trol system. One output of that system isthe designation of access paths through thecirculation system which are to be used.For example, a non-campus organizationmay send one of its staff members to thelibrary. In such cases, control is automat-ically shifted to the interlibrary-loan sys-tem. Direct contact with the loan systemis generated by the interlibrary-loan sys-tem. An undergraduate student at Rice maygain contact with two systemsthe reserveand loan systems. His contact with the re-serve system can produce an indirect con-tact with the loan system to which he alsohas direct contact. Faculty members andgraduate students have three points of con-tact in the system: the carrel, the reserve,and the loan systems. An indirect contactis created through contact with either thecarrel or reserve system. Alumni and non-campus borrowers are permitted restrictedcontact with the loan system only. Theother component systems cannot be con-tacted by borrowers in the latter two cate-gories.

This provision for access paths and con-tact points is the manner in which the cir-culation system is structured not the wayit operates. I would like to analyze each ofthese component systems, and examine thesupporting lesser systems, with the idea ofdeveloping the design criteria of the circu-lation system at the Fondren Library.

The borrower control system.As I men-tioned above, a technique exists by whichwe can recognize the various categories ofborrowers served by the library. The loan-ing of material to other libraries is gov-erned by interlibrary loan agreements. Per-sons not directly associated with the Ricecommunity can obtain borrowing privilegesby submitting an application for, and ob-taining approval of, such privileges.

Students acquire borrowing privileges as adirect product of registration. Facultymembers are automatically accorded bor-rowing privileges but are asked to supplythe library with an application card for rec-ord keeping purposes. We can establish bor-rowing privileges from (1) agreements, (2)applications, and (3) registration. For con-venience, we can call this an authorizationsystem.

It is necessary to know who these bor-rowers are and where they live. Consequent-ly, we must have a name and address file.If we have such a file we must also havea means of maintaining it. Ergo, the bor-rower control system is supported by afile-control system.

If we organize such a file and maintainit, we must provide a retrieval system. Thissystem provides the rules governing access,when one piece of information is knownbut not another. At Rice, a direct outputof the authorization system is the genera-tion of an identification card which the ap-proved borrower uses with the loan system.In some cases, it is necessary to obtain in-formation from the borrower files duringthe activation of the loan system , there-fore, a cross-connection is made to the loansystem.

The loan system. The internal sup-porting elements of the loan system aresimilar to those of the borrower-controlsystem. The loan system has three compo-nents. The first of these is the chargingsystem which is based on the IBM 357 DataCollection System. The basic purpose of thecharging system is to obtain or to generateraw data concerning the materials borrow-ed from the library. Generally speaking, allcharging systems gather the same kinds ofinformationbook identification, borroweridentification, and the loan date or due date.

The mere collection of this data does notfulfill the needs of the library. The datamust be organized into a recognizable form.This is the function of a file control sys-tem. At the Fondren Library the data isorganized by call number.

As mentioned above, the organization ofdata permits the utilization of a retrievalsystem. The loan system has such a sys-tem, but its functions extend beyond the

24 --

limits of retrieving pieces of information.It is this system which permits the selectionof overdue loans. This system also is usedfor the processing of "holds" and "recalls."

The carrel system. The number ofavailable carrels is considerably less thanthe number of persons seeking carrel space,as is usually the case in libraries. TheFondren Library superimposes a control oncarrel use through the utilization of. a sys-tem which specifies which individuals ob-tain space and which carrels are to be used.We may call this an assignment system.

Since carrels are used as research andstudy areas, carrel occupants have permis-sion to hold library materials in these areasas long as necessary. Naturally, controlsare essential, and a carrel charging systemis utilized to collect the basic information.As we will see a little later, the carrelcharging system is directly connected withthe loan system.

The specific requirements at Rice makeit necessary to maintain, for the presentat least, two file control systems. One ofthese is identical with that of the loan sys-tem. The other produces a file of librarymaterials arranged by carrel number. Byutilizing the retrieval system of the carreland loan systems, it is possible to determine(1) if a given item is in a carrel, (2) whichitems are in a specific carrel, and (3) whichperson has a specific carrel.

The reserve system. The reserve sys-tem is somewhat more complicated. The li-brary does not determine the combinationof materials placed on reserve. This is aproduct of faculty request and librarysearching. The process of bringing librarymaterials together for reserve purposesmay be called a selection system.

Before the selected materials can be uti-lized for reserve purposes, several pro-cedures are required to prepare the materialfor that use. Reserve materials must bemarked to provide rapid identification. Ap-propriate cards must be prepared for thereserve charging system. A location recordmust be produced for the convenience ofthe staff at the main desk. Finally, a listof current reserve holdings must be pre-pared and made available to the public. Thisprecedural complex can be called the

etetatesecrotyre,.. =^7.-emmemogrzawm-ir

preparation system.The restrictive periods of reserve loans

Preclude the use of the loan system forcharging, file control, and retrieval, at pres-ent. Consequently, a separate reserve charg-ing system, a simplified file control system,and a rudimentary retrieval system are pro-vided.

The interlibrary loan system. A newset of supporting systems is encounteredwhen we look at the interlibrary loan sys-tem. The first of these supporting systemsinvolves searching and decision making. Thelast procedure of this determinant systemis the decisioncan it be loaned or mustit be copied. Depending upon the decisionmade, it is possible for the interlibrary loansystem to transfer control to the loan sys-tem, feeding the appropriate informationinto the charging syteni, and to allow ma-nipulation by the loan system's file controland retrieval systems.

When the material is to be copied, controlis passed to the second of the new lessersystems, the photoduplication system. Theinitial procedure produces a special orderform required for accounting control by thePhotoduplication Department. This processtransfers control to that department. TheProduct of the photoduplication system(Xerox copy) is given to the requestor, andthe accompanying statement from Photo-duplication activates the accounting controlsystem of interlibrary lending. Copyingcharges and bills are generated by this sys-tem which also produces monthly statisticalreports and statistical records for the an-nual report of the Interlibrary LendingSection.

Summary. We now have a fairly de-tailed picture of the operating frameworkof the circulation system. We can assemblethe lesser supporting systems and set forththe relationships of those systems.

The carrel assignment system is verysimilar in concept to supporting systemsof the authorization system. It would ap-pear reasonable to merge the assignmentsystem with the authorization system andto delete the former as an independent ele-ment. The carrel charging process utilizesthe loan system's supporting systems.Therefore, we can merge part of that pro-

25

cess with the main charging system andallow the differing elements to stand apart.

The structure is identical with the oneproduced in 1963 as a result of the analysisof the old manual system and the new pro-cesses we wished to include. It should bequite clear that the charging system is theintegrative element of the total circulationsystem. We can, now, retrace our steps tothe decisions, considerations, and character-istics of our proposed system design.

SYSTEM DESIGN

I think it is obvious that the selectionof a charging system must make the in-tegrative role of that system the primaryconsideration. It is also clear that to takeadvantage of that integrative role will re-quire machine-readable information. Fur-thermore, the potential inherent in thestructure can be tapped only with computerassistance. With computerization the in-tegrative force of the charging system canbe exploited, producing a more cohesivecombination of supporting systems.

To prepare for the increasing integrationof the circulation system, we found it nec-essary to re-examine some of the conven-tional needs of a loan system. The first ofthese was the question of speed. If all sup-porting systems were to utilize the maincharging system, optimum speed at thecharging point would be a very importantcondition. We also felt that the informationobtained from the charging system mustcontribute to an increase in speed in thefile control and retrieval aspects of the loansystem. The provision for random retrievalof loan information is required for a uni-versity library. Any loan system which didnot provide for such retrieval of informa-tion could not be considereddespite anyother advantages the sysem might offer.

We finally realized that the speed factorwas not related to any single supportingsystem. The determining criterion would bethe increase in speed of the total system. Imight point out at this point that there areseveral charging systems faster that the347. There are some filing systems whichare faster than the machine-controlled ap-

plication we have. There are even some re-trieval systems which are faster than ours.However, none of these applications canproduce the system speed generated by the357 approach. I might also add paren-thetically that I am equating the 357 withthe 1030 system.

A second factor at the Fondren Librarywas the possibility of multiple-use of equip-ment and information. We felt that the in-stalled devices for the charging systemshould provide flexibility to permit their usefor purposes not limited to the loan system.The equipment required for file control andretrieval should be flexible to permit the useof those machines for other purposes.

A third factor was the relationship ofpeople and machines. Any new chargingsystem would have to be dependable, easyto operate, and easy to learn. At the sametime, we concluded, any machine systemwould be oriented toward the people whowould operate it, and not the reverse.

Finally, we had to consider growth. Weinterpreted growth as occurring in two di-rections. The first was horizontal and rep-resented growth in the number of loansprocessed each year. The second was verti-cal and indicated a growth through fourstages : a mechanized 357 system, a com-puterized 357 system, a computerized 1030system, and an automated system.

The characteristics and requirements weimposed on our selection quickly reducedour range of choice to three well-establishedcharging systems: IBM Plain Charge (suchas used at Texas), IBM Brooklyn College,and IBM Montclair. With closer analysis itwas obvious that only the Montclair ap-proach would serve our needs. Our 357charging system is derived from the Mont-clair application.

Approval in the spring of 1964 of ourrecommendation for the introduction of a357 charging system led to a summer pro-ject for conversion of the book collection.At the same time this project was beingcarried out, a procedural system wasevolved, and staff training started. Beforeturning to the operating system, I think itwould be advisable to talk about costs.

- 26

1

1

COSTS

Let me first warn you that the use ofthe figures for estimating purposes by an-other library may produce errors. The citedfigures must be used in the context of thequantities, methods, and requirements ofthe Fondren Library, and not those of an-other institution. The data is provided as aguide only.

One immediate decision was required al-most immediately. Was the conversion tooccur piece-meal or all at one time? Theabsence of a summer session, the size ofthe book collection, the availability of part-time personnel, and equipment deliveryschedules indicated that the conversionwould be a one-time job. We also deter-mined that it would be possible to completethe process in three months. In view of thisdecision, cost estimates were prepared fora complete conversion of the book collec-tion.

In establishing the estimated costs, wewere really working in the dark. ImportantI might even say crucialinformationsimply could not be located. We were ableto specify anticipated expenditures for cardstock, plastic badges, equipment, and otherneeds. The total budget request was$26,000, intended for use in three aspectsof the application. The first was for the con-version process, the second was for operat-ing expense for one year, and the thirdand last was for alterations to the build-ing. We terminated the year $1,600 over theestimate.

THE OPERATING SYSTEM

The one card or remote system is basical-ly an automated charging system being op-erated as an off-line, mechanized system.It is oriented toward a transaction concept.A loan card is created when the item ischecked out, and a return card is generatedwhen the book is returned. Technically, theprocedures for charging a book and return-ing it are the same. The basic differenceis that a borrower card is used for chargingand a return card is used when it comes in.Control is more heavily dependent on the

panel lights. Holds are a little more diffi-cult to handle, since returns and loans areintermixed in the output punch. The chiefadvantage of the one card application is theincreased speeds which can be obtained atthe charging point. Six books per minuteis normal under adverse conditions, and agood desk attendant can usually surpassthis speed regularly. With appropriatechanges in the 357 station itself, which wewill install this summer, charging speedsapproaching the capacity of the machineare possible, i.e. ten to eleven items per min-ute. Another advantage is the facility forexpending the mechanized system upwardto an on-line, automated system, withoutextensive modifications in the charging sys-tem's desk procedures.

The outstanding feature of these applica-tions is procedural simplicity. Any machinesystem needs to have a back-up systemwhich can be utilized, just in case. I wouldnow like to review rapidly the current op-erating system.

The borrower control system. Recordsof student registration and interlibrarylending agreements are forwarded to DataProcessing for the preparation of name andaddress cards and identification cards. Non-campus borrowers fill out two applicationforms, one of which is sent to Data Process-ing when approval has been given. Fromtime to time certain corrections are neces-sary for the borrower file, to correct spell-ing errors and address changes and to re-move names from the file.

These two deckssorted by the identifi-cation numberare read into the computerwith the existing tape file. In one pass, allcorrections are made and the new additionsto the tape file are added, creating a newtape file. Whenever necessary, this newlycreated tape is mounted on the computerand a numeric list of approved borrowersis printed by the computer. If an alphabeticlist is required, the new tape is sorted byname and then printed.

The loan system. The input cards forthe charging system are prepared daily.Only the call number (34 characters) andthe loan period code are punched. The re-maining punches in the input card are con-trol punches for the 357 station.

27 --

I

r

A typical loan record produced by thecharging system contains the call number,loan period code, borrower identificationnumber, and the date of the loan.

Data collected through the manual sup-port system are manually punched to cor-respond with the machine generated loanrecord. The combined daily transactions ofthe support system and the main chargingsystem represent the input information tothe file control system. These transactionsare counted and sorted by call number. Thedaily cards are then compared with the cir-culation file through the use of a collator.In one pass new loans are added to the fileand returns are extracted.

The current overdue procedure requiresthe transfer of the circulation file to mag-netic tape. The contents of that tape areexamined for overdue status, and overdueitems are written out on another tape. Thecomputer sorts that overdue tape, arrang-ing the outstanding loans by borrowernumber. The borrower file tape is mounted,and both tapes are read by the computerto produce the printed notice. The name andaddress of the notice are printed so thatthe information is visible in a window en-velope.

The tape created by the transfer of thecirculation file from cards to tape is sortedand printed, producing a list of currentloans arranged by borrower.

The carrel system. The instructionsheet provides carrel users with the basicground rules for the carrel system. Thecomments card is used for noting specificcarrel problems and for carrel materialstaken from the building on an overnightbasis.

The instruction flag is the feature of thecarrel system. This is a communication de-vice between the carrel occupant and thecarrel monitor. The position of the flag pro-vides a rapid visual means of determiningwhat procedures the carrel monitor will useto control carrel holdings.

The reserve system. As new items areadded to the reserve collection, a reservebook card is keypunched and a duplicatecopy is immediately generated. The origi-nals and duplicates are separated. The orig-inals are inserted in the book pockets of

the newly-added items and the books areshelved in the reserve area. The duplicatesare stored.

Each day there are alterations in thereserve holdings, and these corrections areprepared each day. When the Reserve Sec-tion requests a new set of lists, the storedadditions cards and the corrections cardsare taken to the computer.

The old reserve file is mounted and a newfile is created, based upon the corrections,the new additions, and the existing holdings.In rapid succession, a series of four sortsand four printing runs is made, producingthe set of lists.

I might point out, here, that the reservecharging system could be transferred tomachine control almost immediately, oncewe have on-line capability.

Interlibrary loan system. Xerox copy-ing is initiated by the preparation of thespecial order form, required by Photodupli-cation. When the copy is returned an ac-counting control card is prepared. Dailytabulations of loans to institutions are alsopunched into cards, creating a statistical re-port for institution.

A set of institutional control cards ismaintained as a separate supporting deck,but the cards comprising that deck are ob-tained as a by-product of the borrower con-trol system. Each month the three decksloan statistics, accounting control, and re-porting deckare taken to the compute