ACRL News Issue (B) of College & Research Libraries 9 8 6 1 C& RL News Innovacq implementation: A reference librarian’s perspective By Mary Woodward Law Librarian University o f N ew Mexico L aw School Automating serials in an academic law library. I n th e past decade academ ic libraries have b een turn in g to autom ated serials control systems. Such systems have b een particularly ef­ fective in university law libraries d u e to th e high proportion o f serials to m onographs in th e colllec- tion. At th e University o f N ew Mexico Law Library, over 90% o f th e materials b u d g et is devoted to th e purchase o f serial titles. T he switch from a m anual to an autom ated system can be a tedious and problem -riddled task. N onetheless, both serials and referen ce d e p a rt­ m ents are discovering th a t th e result, with easily accessible, uniform records th a t show check-in inform ation and expected dates o f arrival, is well w orth th e struggle. Innovacq, created by Innovative Interfaces in Berkeley, is th e autom ated serials control system selected by th e University o f N ew Mexico School o f Law Library to convert its 4,000+ serial records. T he Law Library shares Innovacq w ith th e general academ ic library on cam pus, b u t each library m ain­ tains its serials records separately. Several previous articles in th e library literature have p o in ted o u t th e success o f Innovacq. W hile this article will review Innovacq’s strengths, it will also describe how th e Law Library m ade th e transition to Innovacq. T h e University o f N ew Mexico Law Library began using th e Innovacq Serials C ontrol System in July 1987. Approximately 40% o f th e serials check-in records as well as th e majority o f pay records w ere n o t co n v erted to Innovacq until D ecem b er 1988-August 1989. D uring this period, th e com bination o f new technology, minimal ad­ vance planning, and m any changes in staffing and organization led to some frustration for th e re fe r­ ence staff in using th e system. A term inal was located in th e R eference C e n te r from th e p ro ject’s inception, b u t th a t d id n ’t elim inate th e n eed for th e referen ce staff to contact Technical Services fre­ quently for Kardex o r O C L C inform ation on titles. D espite these first two years o f incom plete infor­ m ation, th e realization was always p resen t th at Innovacq could greatly im prove and simplify re fe r­ ence services. I was given th e opportunity by Jami H otsinpiller, read er services librarian, to divide up my reference position. P art o f my tim e was spent perform ing reference services, and th e rem ain d er was devoted to com pleting th e im plem entation o f th e Innovacq system. This proved to be an excellent introduction to legal materials. Converting manual records Initially my goal seem ed straightforward: to add every rem aining cu rre n t serial title into Innovacq, and to build th e check-in records for each title and its parts. Before long I was im m ersed in Kardex trays, O C L C notebooks containing a partial history o f o u r serials holdings, and lapsed titles by th e hundreds. To com pound th e difficulties, th e m an­ ual claiming system had fallen by th e wayside be- November 1990 / 987 cause o f fre q u e n t staff turnover. T h e p ro ject quickly branched into th re e projects: 1) inputting and building serials records on Innovacq; 2) mak­ ing sure lapsed titles w ere reviewed by subject selectors and reinstated if still needed; and 3) using Innovacq’s autom atic claiming function. Converting serials records involved download­ ing MARC records from O C LC to Innovacq and then building th e check-in record(s) th at attach to the bibliographic record. In th e course o f this project, many title problem s and idiosyncrasies w ere revealed. This n ecessitated recataloging, additional ordering, and general problem-solving. Although traditional journals and annual publi­ cations are considered serial titles in a law library, many o th er formats are referred to as serials, too. Looseleaf service binders receive weekly pages to be interfiled; rep o rter advance sheets arrive weekly or m onthly to supplem ent a bound volume; pocket parts are annual supplem ents added to th e inside back cover o f a bound volume. Because currency of these services is critical, most o f th em had been placed on Innovacq first, before this project began. To avoid titles lapsing inadvertently, we decided to build records for all titles by going though each kardex and each title in our O C LC notebooks o f holdings. C hecking th e O C L C notebooks was necessary because th e UNM Law Library had been in th e process o f switching from a kardex to an O C LC Serials Control System prior to Innovacq. W hen Innovacq was installed, we w ere in th e middle o f m aintaining two different serials holding lists. O ne o f the first problem s we en co u n tered using Innovacq was our failure to locate existing records because o f inexact title information. Innovacq al­ lows unlim ited alternate titles to be added to a bibliographic record. As we built records and checked in materials we m ade a concerted effort to add any altern ate title th a t we found helpful. M em bers o f th e reference staff w ere able to send suggested alternate titles by way o f a “change re ­ quest form ” to th e serials staff, who added th e title inform ation to th e bibliographic record. A nother o f our growing problem s was due to our sharing the Innovacq system with th e general li­ brary on campus. W hen we searched for a title like th e N ew York Times, we w ere g reeted w ith a p re ­ liminary screen o f seven choices for th a t title. It was tim e-consum ing to select each o f these records to determ ine which was th e Law Library’s. T he au­ th o r field was displayed on this screen along with th e title field and, since for many serials th e author field is blank, we used th at line to add th e location. W e can now see from th e prelim inary screen which record we w ant to view. In th e cases w here an author did exist in a record we added “LAW” after th e au th o r’s nam e. W e identified our records only if both libraries owned th e same title. Lapsed titles As we continued to download and build Inno­ vacq check-in records, each title was examined. Records w ere set aside th a t appeared to have lapsed unintentionally. O nce th e re w ere a suffi­ cient n u m b er o f lapsed titles to be reviewed, we p rin ted out lists o f these titles with w hatever p u b ­ lishing and subscription inform ation we had. Each list contained about 200 titles th a t w ere coded for th e appropriate subject selector. D uring th e sum ­ m er o f 1989 m ore than te n lists o f lapsed titles or 2,000 titles w ere reviewed by selectors. W hen a title received a “renew ” decision, it was sent to th e Acquisitions D ep artm en t to be ordered. T hat d ep artm en t also distributed a cum ulative list o f lapsed title decisions from tim e to time. D eci­ sions and dates w ere added to the Innovacq check­ in screen so th a t th e serials check-in staff m em ber could determ ine w hen to send a title to a selector for another review. Records for a few lapsed titles that received renew decisions w ere already on Innovacq. C heck­ in records for those items w ere revised and notes added. F o r most lapsed titles though, records had to be dow nloaded and built. I f item s received a “cancel” or “let lapse” decision, a note was added to th e few records already on Innovacq. M any titles had lapsed over th e years at th e Law Library because no consistent claiming procedure had b een in place. Essentially, individual titles w ere claim ed w hen som eone noticed they w ere missing. By using Innovacq’s autom atic claiming function, we have solved most o f our problem s with claiming and lapsed titles. The claiming function was easy to set up and use, although processing the actual claims is time-consuming. D uring this final im plem entation o f Innovacq we decided to switch from a jo b b e r for serials who didn’t specialize in legal publications to one who did. W e also had many direct subscriptions to journals th at should have b een handled by one jobber. C onsolidating orders eventually greatly simplified claiming. Automatic claiming W hen check-in records are built on Innovacq, th e option is provided for setting th e dates o f a title’s projected arrival. F o r example, a law review may be sent on a quarterly basis, usually arriving in January, April, July, and O ctober. W e p rep ared to use Innovacq’s claiming function by setting these dates on Innovacq, and also by adding a n u m b er o f days (30 for most law reviews) w hen a late notice should flash in th e journal issue’s check-in box. W e th en had to separate all o f th e Law Library records from th e records o f th e o th er cam pus library with which we share space on Innovacq. Finally, all our F&S INDEX plus TEXT on COMPACT DISC Developed for Public and Academic Libraries Indexes, abstracts and full te x t. . . ■ for all manufacturing and service industries ■ from more than 1,000 key business and trade publications ■ covering North America, Europe, Latin America and the Pacific Rim ■ available with SilverPlatter Information Retrieval Software Plus, you own the annual archival disc, and there's no extra charge for LANs! For more information and a free brochure, call Predicasts today! ® c---- Predicasls pThe fir - s - t - s - o - u - rc -- e - fo - r - in -- fo - r - m - a - t - io - n - - on -- b - u - s - in - e - s - s - and --- te -- c - h - n - o - lo - g - y □̂ I- "– ...............-... ........... 1 North America: 11001 Cedar Avenue I Cleveland OH 44106 / (216) 795-30001 (800) 321-6388 / Fax (216) 229-9944 Europe: 8-10 Denman Street I London W1V 7RF United Kingdom / (071) 494-3817 / Fax (071) 734-5935 C — El □ □ November 199 0 1 989 records were placed in a file which was saved to one of the Innovacq term inal’s storage slots. To initiate claiming now, we recall this file weekly and look at each record that contains at least one box flashing “LATE.” These records with late issues automatically appear on the screen w hen in the claiming function. W e then determ ine from what we know about that title w hether a claim should be mailed. F or major publishers we keyed th e publisher’s code and address information into Innovacq. This information prints out on the claim slip. If an item continues to be late after a claim is m ailed, a “CLA IM 1” o r “C L A IM 2” m essage flashes repeatedly in the check-in box. Second and third claims are generated as needed. A claim may be generated for individual titles even when the system is not in the claiming func­ tion, although th e automatic prom pt to do so ap­ pears only in th e check-in mode. W hen pulling up an Innovacq record a staff m em ber may notice an item has a “LATE” message flashing. At the Law Library, only the serials staff generates claims but reference may send serials the “change request form” inquiring about a late issue. Reference use of Innovacq As Innovacq was brought up-to-date with all the latest and most com plete information, the refer­ ence staff began to rely heavily on the system. At the same time, we w anted to get all the latest billing information into Innovacq so that becam e a project for the Acquisitions D epartm ent. By June 1989 all prior billing information had been added to Inno­ vacq, including renewal or lapsed title information and coding by subject funds. One o f our procedures that changed after having Innovacq in place was paym ent o f invoices or the inputting o f data about paym ent. Originally, in­ voices that arrived with an item the Library in­ ten d ed to keep were sent to Administration/Acqui- sitions with th e Innovacq pay record num ber. Administration staff then input the invoice num ­ ber, pay date and price/num ber o f copies. To elimi­ nate delays, the serials check-in staff began to en ter this data for items with invoices. T he invoice show­ ing that Innovacq now contained th e pay data was sent on to the adm inistration staff, who could then request th e check. After two years of record building on Innovacq and several changes in staff, we felt many inconsis­ tencies existed from record to record. In the at­ tem p t to make every record (both check-in and pay) as uniform as possible and also to familiarize the entire reference staff with Innovacq, our Ac­ quisitions D epartm ent printed out check-in and pay record screens for each record. F or several months, the reference staff com pared each p rin t­ out to a model printout marking changes in red. These printouts w ere subsequently used to create im proved records. Currently, we depend upon Innovacq to supply m uch information to the reference staff: call num ­ bers, alternate titles and title changes, copies and locations, publisher, lapse or renewal decisions, gift status o f a title, previous holdings, current sub­ scription problem s, late issues, expected dates for subsequent issues, num ber o f copies paid for, the cost o f a current pocket part, the selector respon­ sible for a title’s purchase. By checking an Innovacq record, reference staff can also determ ine if a missing item has been checked in and been routed to faculty or staff thus delaying its appearance on the shelf. Although Innovacq check-in records have been set up mainly for serial titles, abbreviated or “dum m y” records for recently purchased m ono­ graphic titles have been added with pay records. Now it is possible to see if a new monograph has been ordered and/or received. The card catalog (soon to be replaced by an online catalog) is still the last place to go for call num bers of older serials that have folded and older monographs, b u t Innovacq has becom e the first and most desirable place for reference to check on current materials. Innovacq can also be used to create various types o f lists or reports depending on how records are coded. O ur Acquisitions D epartm ent sends refer­ ence periodic “on order” (arranged by selector) and “new titles received” lists providing us with the latest purchasing information. W e also can print a list o f gifts from professors enabling us to send notes o f appreciation to our faculty. O ur serials staff has recently discovered that Innovacq can be used to create a list o f missing items. Over the years we had m aintained manual lists o f missing or lost serials. W ith Innovacq in place it was difficult to continue checking manual lists, and these lists w ere becom ing outdated. By inserting the word “missing” into an item ’s note field we can run a boolean search for that word and create a list. W e search the Law Library’s claiming file to avoid finding missing items from th e other campus library’s records. Also, as missing items are received and checked in it is evident from the note field why they have been sent to the Law Library. The rem aining Inno­ vacq function to im plem ent is the bindery function. Once the option is set up and running we feel reference will have little reason to call down to Technical Services, and operations will be less interrupted in general. W hen th e bindery function is in place with previous bound holdings updated, Innovacq will be complete. 990 / C& RL News Conclusion As a m e m b e r o f th e referen ce staff, I feel very lucky to have h ad th e o p p ortunity o f working closely w ith th e Innovacq project. I t may no t b e a viable option for m ost law libraries to allow a referen ce librarian to devote so m uch tim e to technical service projects b u t I feel it has greatly im proved n o t only my use o f Innovacq b u t m ore im portantly my knowledge o f th e law library p ro ced u res and holdings. I have a grasp o f serials and th e ir nuances th a t I w ould never have possessed h ad I no t done this project. T he Innovacq p ro ject was, in a sense, a crash course on law library publications and in terd ep artm en tal coop­ eration. T he transition from a m anual to an autom ated system o f serials control, o r in th e U N M Law Li­ brary’s case, from kardex to Innovacq, can b e tu m u l­ tuous. Initially, it can ap p ear to d red g e up m ore problem s th a n it resolves, and d ep en d in g on how m uch planning was done p rio r to installation, con­ version itself can extend over several years or m ore. D espite th e upheaval and length o f tim e re q u ire d to fully im p lem en t an autom ated sys­ tem , a new serials control system provides an o p p ortunity to solve th e m any problem s th a t may riddle th e existing system. P rior to a transition is th e p e rfe c t tim e to exam ine problem s th a t have rolled over from year to year: for example, incon­ sistencies in holding records, b o u n d runs, biblio­ graphic an d check-in inform ation, cataloging decisions o r recu rrin g subscription/vendor is­ sues. In o rd e r to b en efit from a new system you m ust m ake sure th a t th e existing records are accurate b efo re transferring th e inform ation to an au to m ated system. C leaning u p th e p re se n t system while m aking th e transition to Innovacq may not have b e e n in th e planning initially at U N M , b u t it w asn’t long before it becam e p a rt o f th e process. And now at th e p ro je c t’s com pletion, we feel we have n o t only m ade th e transition b u t have a clean system to work w ith as well. ■ ■ ★ ★ ★ News from the Field Acquisitions • L o u isia n a S tate U n iv ersity ’s Louisiana and Low er Mississippi Valley Collections, Baton Rouge, have acquired an extensive group o f m anuscripts docum enting several generations o f th e M athews and B utler families. C onsisting o f m ore th an 4,500 item s, spanning th e years 1811 to 1945, th e m an u ­ scripts detail th e accounts and affairs o f sharecrop­ p ers and ten an ts from at least six different p lan ta­ tions. Subjects d o cu m en ted vary w idely from black labor and history, ecclesiastical history, engineering and agricultural projects, to natural history and bird w atching. T he papers w ere acquired w ith th e su p ­ p o rt o f th e LSU F riends o f th e Libraries. • T h e U n iv e r sity o f R o c h e s te r S c h o o l o f M e d ic in e & D e n tistr y ’s E dw ard G. M iner Library, N ew York, has received th e papers o f John Rom ano, M .D . R om ano was th e founding chairm an o f th e D e ­ p a rtm e n t o f Psychiatry at R ochester, and an influen­ tial figure in A m erican psychiatry and in th e develop­ m e n t o f m edical and psychiatric education. T he R om ano papers span th e p erio d from 1928 to 1989. T he collection includes extensive files o f personal and professional correspondence; th e m inutes, r e ­ ports and m em oranda o f th e University com m ittees on w hich he served; records o f th e D e p a rtm e n t o f Psychiatry (1946-1971); nearly 50 years o f clini­ cal rounds; and a large collection o f personal and historical prints and photographs. Grants • T h e C e n te r fo r R e s e a r c h L ib ra ries, Chicago, has b e e n aw arded $95,080 in outright funds by th e N ational E n d o w m en t for th e H u ­ m anities to im prove bibliographic access to its m icroform holdings. T h e grant will enable th e C e n te r to dissem inate bibliographic inform ation about th e m onographic holdings o f its m aterials in th e C ooperative Africana M icroform Project and titles in com m ercially p ro d u ced m icroform sets. R ecords for m onographic titles will b e added to two international bibliographic databases. Ap­ proxim ately 13,000 records will b e converted into m achine-readable form, ad d ed to th e O C L C d a­ tabase, and eventually tapeloaded into th e R e­ search L ibraries Inform ation N etw ork database. • T h e P o n c e T e c h n o lo g ic a l U n iv e r sity