College and Research Libraries Letters Evaluation of an Approval Plan To the Editor: A 1976 study at the University of Iowa Health Sciences Library was reported in C&RL (Nov. 1978, p.385-91), and I was coauthor of the article. That study's results were considered satisfactory. However, upon arrival at the State University of New York, Upstate Medical Center (UMC) Li- brary, in Syracuse in 1978, I decided to du- plicate the study. I wanted to see if the methodology originally employed could be replicated; to compare two approval ven- dors; and to determine the quality of the plan serving SUNY UMC. The same vendor has served the UMC li- brary for seven years. The profile was up- dated immediately preceding the study and included all medical, basic science, and certain associated subjects intended for upper-level students and clinicians. Prior to and during the study, book reviews in ten health sciences journals, publishers' flyers, and Weekly Record were read, searched against the public catalog, typed, and or- dered. The results of the study were more than satisfactory and answered all of my ques- tions. The original study could easily be modified and replicated; comparison be- tween two vendors could be made; and the specific quality of this vendor could be quantified. During the course of the study, book re- views generated requests for forty-five books. All of the books were either in the library (thirty-eight, 84 percent) or were re- ceived from the vendor (seven, 16 percent) during the two-month hold that the vendor recommended we maintain. Publishers' flyers, previously shown to be a timely method of ordering, generated 116 re- quests. More than half of the books (sixty- seven) were already in the library, and forty-nine (42 percent) were received during COLLEGE & RESEARCH LIBRARIES the two-month hold. Seven orders (5.5 per- cent) were ultimately typed and placed with the vendor. Of the 327 requests that came from Weekly Record, 197 (60 percent) were already in the library. During the two- month hold or shortly after ordering, 121 (37 percent) were received. Nine (3 percent) had to be ordered. Due to the outstanding results, book re- views are no longer read; only uncovered publishers' flyers are examined; and Weekly Record is skimmed for the unusual pub- lisher or the essential new editions. The time savings is ample and can be applied to in-hand evaluation of the approval books, etc. SUNY UMC Library depends heavily on the approval plan for collection develop- ment. Ninety-two percent of current mono- graph acquisitions are received through the approval plan. We are pleased with the ser- vice and personal concern shown by the vendor. Because the results from the original study could be taken by some as good and by others as mediocre, and, therefore, not conclusively in favor of approval plans, I felt the need to affirm that a good vendor can support a growing collection and that de- pendency on that vendor is not an abroga- tion of the collection development responsi- bility of a library.-Linda A. Hulbert, Col- lection Development Librarian , Upstate Medical Center Library , Syracuse, New York . Use of Newspapers on Microfilm To the Editor: I do not believe that the data presented in "Undergraduate Use Patterns of Newspa- pers on Microfilm," by W. J. Maher and B. F. Shearer (C&RL, May 1979, p.254- 60), support their conclusion that "a user I 461 462 I College & Research Libraries • September 1979 satisfaction level of almost 85 percent can be attained with a twenty-year backfile of twenty titles." This conclusion is true only if the patrons who request the twenty titles also limit their requests to the most recent twenty years. Given the newspaper titles cited in the article, it would appear likely that some of the twenty title requests would be for newspapers older than twenty years and that some of the requests for the most recent twenty years would be for titles that are not in the top twenty. Thus overall user satisfaction should be computed as 84.6 per- cent of 84.5 percent, or 71.5 percent-a substantial reduction from 85 percent. Table 1 illustrates the desirability of iden- tifying four distinct patron groups when working with two variables.-Jo Bell Whit- latch, Access Coordinator, Library, San Jose State University, San Jose, California. TABLE 1 USE OF NEWSPAPERS Most Older Recent Than Total 20 Years 20 Years Titles Used (Percent) (Percent) (Percent) Total 100.0 84.5 15.5 Top 20 titles 84.6 71.5 13.1 Remaining titles 15.4 13.0 2.4 (21-49) Response To the Editor: Jo Bell Whitlatch has noticed an error in our logic: not all requests for the "tQp twenty" titles may be for the twenty most recent years. However, it would be just as inaccurate to assume that only 84.6 percent of the requests for the past twenty years were for the twenty most popular titles. The nature of these titles and of undergraduate use is such that the coincidence of use by title and by date is remarkably high (as can be seen in tables 3 and 4). Our original data show that 91.1 percent of the twenty ·most requested titles were requested for dates within the past twenty years. If one then multiplies the percentage of "top twenty" ti- tles (84.6) by the percentage of requests for the paSt twenty years of these "top twenty" titles (91.1), the level of satisfaction for the combination of these factors would be 77.1 percent (not the 71.5 percent derived in iso- lation from the data). Thus the 85 percent user satisfaction we quoted on page 260 is too high. However, a careful reexamination of the original data suggests that a 77.1 per- cent satisfaction level would not be unrealistic.-William J. Maher and Benja- min F. Shearer. T~RAISAL AUTHORITIES F-tiM ~·· ORDER FORM Send to: With the continued great interest in appraisal and other real estate subjects, the need for a definitive voice in the field is evident. THE APPRAISAL JOUR- NAL has for 47 years been that authority in real estate valuation, providing the theory and practice that are the basis of appraisal expertise. Published by the American Institute of Real Estate Appraisers -the oldest appraisal organization and the Ql"l!y_ one affiliated with the National Associationornealtors - each quarterly issue contains carefully researched and documented articles, book reviews and court deci- sions affecting property values. Serving as a learning text and a permanent reference library of appraisal knowledge, THE APPRAISAL JOURNAL features articles such as these which have appeared or will appear: · "Appraising the Brownstones of Manhattan" "Valuing Effects of a Variable Rate Mortgage" "How Foreign Money Buys U.S. Real Estate" "Rent Control's Impact on the Community Tax Base" "Speculation in Undeveloped Land" To supplement THE JOURNAL, AIREA also publishes THE APPRAISER, a monthly 12-page news bulletin covering real estate related happenings and trends. Regular features include "Appraisal Indicators" which lists national economic data and the "Jobmart." An introductory subscription to both THE JOURNAL and THE APPRAISER is available now for $20 - a saving of $2.50 over the regular subscription rates of $15 and $7.50. (Binders are available for both THE APPRAISAL JOURNAL and THE APPRAISER.) Send for a FREE copy of AIREA's Publications Catalog and the 12-page introduction to appraising, "What To Look For In An Appraisal." AMERICAN INSTITUTE OF REAL ESTATE APPRAISERS . 430 N. Michigan Ave., c ·hicago , IL 60611 Please enter my subscription for: 0 "The Appraisal Journal" & "The Appraiser" - $20 0 "The Appraisal Journal" only- $15 (Add $1 for foreign subscriptions) 0 "The Appraiser" only- $7 .50 Please send a free copy of: 0 1979 AIREA Publications Catalog 0 "What To Look For In An Appraisal " 0 Payment is enclosed 0 Please bill me Name-------------------------------------------------------------1 Firm ____________________________________________________________ _ Address------------------------------------------------------------1 City/State/ZiP-------------------------------------------------=C&"""'R=L-=-p-=..o..,.- 1 -J the 0 BB K B USE SINCE 1962 SERVING INSTITUTIONAL LIBRARIES WITH ANY BOOK IN PRINT College and University Acquisition Librarians ..... Now is the time to try the best source for: • any book in print • accurate invoicing • meaningful reports • rush order service • competitive discounts • plus many other services Call 517-849 -2117 Collect 208 WEST CHICAGO STREET JONESVILLE , MICHIGAN 49250 ~ swets subscription service ~ A DIVISION OF SWETS & ZEITLINGER B.V SWetS P.O. Box 830, 2160 SZ Lisse - Holland Phone 02521 -19113 I Telex41325 Swets North America lnc.-P.O. Box 517, Berwyn, Pa 19312, U.S.A.;Tel. 215/644-4944