ACQNET v1n132 (December 9, 1991) URL = http://www.infomotions.com/serials/acqnet/acq-v1n132 ISSN: 1057-5308 *************** ACQNET, Vol. 1, No. 132, December 9, 1991 ========================================= (1) FROM: Christian SUBJECT: Who's new on ACQNET today (32 lines) (2) FROM: Dina Giambi SUBJECT: USBE (30 lines) (3) FROM: Elaine Walker SUBJECT: Aux Amateurs de Livres (8 lines) (4) FROM: Peter Stevens SUBJECT: French language approval plans vendors (16 lines) (5) FROM: Marsha Hamilton SUBJECT: French language approval plans vendors (14 lines) (6) FROM: Heather Miller SUBJECT: French language approval plans vendors (16 lines) (7) FROM: Judy Johnson SUBJECT: French language approval plans vendors (14 lines) (8) FROM: Nancy Gibbs SUBJECT: American Biography Service (19 lines) (1) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: December 9, 1991 From: Christian Subject: Who's new on ACQNET today Bill Maina Head, Collection Development & Acquisitions U. of Texas Southwestern Medical Center Library E-mail: MAINA@UTSW.BITNET Janice Snyder Anderson Associate Director for Technical Services Georgetown University Law Library E-mail: JSANDERSON@GUVAX.BITNET Bonnie Hill Assist. Dir. for Collections and Technical Service Tufts University E-mail: BHILL@TULIPS.LIB.TUFTS.EDU Nancy S. Chiang Head, Technical Service Hartwick College Library E-mail: CHIANGN@HARTWICK.EDU Harold M. Moren Acquisitions Librarian Harvard Law School Library E-mail: ACQUISTN@HULAW1.BITNET Donna Signori Head, Collection Management Services University of Victoria Libraries E-mail: LDIVCOL2@UVVM.UVIC.CA (2) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 03 Dec 91 14:21:38 EST From: Dina Giambi Subject: USBE Site Visit At Kent State the responsibility for acquiring replacement issues rests with the Bindery Unit. Members of the Unit repeatedly expressed concern that the fulfillment rate appeared to be lower with the new USBE as compared to the old Zubal. Since Cleveland is within an hour's drive, we arranged a visit with John Zubal. Marilyn Zubal, the Director of USBE, was unable to meet with us due to a previous appointment. John Zubal gave us the grand tour even though he is now concentrating on the book side of their operations. The building was originally a book depository so it is well-suited for its current occupants who have been there since the 70's. They have very high stacks, but, if memory serves me right, the stacks in the old USBE building in D.C. were even higher. One major change is that publications are no longer arranged by country of publication, but by title. Also, the most recent issues are stacked on top rather than on the bottom which was another old USBE prac- tice. There are now over 600 members which explains, in part, our perceived lower fulfillment rate. As an old Zubal customer, we are now faced with competition from a larger new USBE client base. The member libraries are keeping USBE's fax machine quite busy. Since most libraries need to fill in relatively current issues, more than one order for a particular issue may have to be submitted. Although USBE uses an inventory control system, only bound volumes are recorded. Shipments from member libraries are received daily so the inventory is in a constant state of flux. (3) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 04 Dec 91 08:47:44 EST From: Elaine Walker Subject: Aux Amateurs de Livres The Serials Dept. at Cornell has used Aux Amateurs de Livres for most French subscriptions and standing orders for the past five years. We have been satisfied with the service and continue to place new orders with them. They have been above average in their response to requests for back issues and out-of-print volumes. (4) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 4 Dec 1991 08:50:34 -0800 (PST) From: Peter Stevens Subject: French language approval programs We, at the University of Washington Libraries, have experienced a slowdown in the supply of our French approval program receipts this fiscal year. For the July through November period, we have received just 106 titles, down 29% from the same period last year. Our Spanish approval program receipts are down 35% while our British plan is down 34%. Our German plan is down just 6%. By comparison, our two biggest US plans are down just 4% and 9%. For our French approval program, we rely on B. H. Blackwell, who also handle our British and Spanish plans. We've been happy with the service that they provide. While we have not tried Aux Amateurs de Livres for approval services, they are our primary French firm order vendor and very fast (with an average speed of supply to us in 76 days). (5) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 04 Dec 91 14:33 EST From: "Marsha Hamilton" Subject: French language approval plan vendors At Ohio State we used Jean Touzot from the period of the Farmington plans until about 3 years ago. At that time we switched to Aux Amateurs de Livres and have been very pleased with results. Touzot was unable to keep invoices separate for approval vs. standing order accounts which created problems for us. Aux Amateurs, although conservative in the number of titles sent, supplies more titles and a wider selection than we received from Jean Touzot. They also make profile adjustments very quickly (Touzot did not), provide notification slips in a format we prefer, and answers correspondence quicker. We still use Touzot for continuations, firm orders and out-of-print searching and are satisfied with those services. (6) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 6 Dec 1991 15:53 EST From: Heather Miller Subject: French language approval plan vendors SUNY Albany has had its French plan with Aux Amateurs de Livres for quite a few years because the bibliographer is determined to keep it there. From my point of view in Acquisitions, they don't do a great job. Their invoices are messy, they insist on invoicing various types of materials mixed on one invoice even though we ask them not to, they convert the total from not the price for each item so we have to convert each manually to make the total come out right, etc.) They are slow to respond to anything. Once we overpaid them accidental- ly and they refused to issue a refund (eventually they did, but it was a battle). We have had other problems in the past getting them to send the right types of books. I would not recommend them, but who is good at supplying French materials??? (7) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 6 Dec 91 15:45:44 -0600 From: Judy Johnson Subject: Jean Touzout Librarie The University of Nebraska-Lincoln has used Touzot as our French approval plan vendor for the last several years at the request of our French language/ literature bibliographer. Prior to that we had used Aux Amateurs de Livres. At first our bibliographer was satisfied with the items selected and shipped; however, during the last two years, we found the shipments decreasing in size. Shipments have also been sent sporadically, with several months between them. This year we cancelled our approval plan, not because of dissatisfaction, but because of decreased budget. (8) ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: 4 Dec 91 13:25:44 U From: "Nancy Gibbs" Subject: American Biography Service Our Serials Acquisitions staff has asked me about the publisher American Biography Service, Inc. located in Newport Beach, CA., and their publication _Contemporary Biography - Women_. We have vol 1 of said publication which was published in '83. The publisher then advertised vol 2 in '86 but never published that vol. Now we have another publisher's blurb for vol. 2 (to be published Sept. '91) and vol. 3 (to be published in Feb.'92). However I cannot find anything on OCLC or through other sources that vol. 2 is actually out in print format. Based on previous performance I am reluctant to deal with these people (they don't even have a telephone #!). Do you have any information on this publisher or this publication? I need some guidance, please. Thank you for your help. [American Biography Service of Newport Beach, CA, appears on the list of Gille imprints. C.] ******* END OF FILE ****** ACQNET, Vol. 1, No. 132 ****** END OF FILE *******