College and Research Libraries beginners. There is something here for both groups, to be sure, but ultimately The State and the Academic Library is prob- ably most valuable for the student. The case studies-most notably Janet Freed- man's report on the Massachusetts expe- rience-and other examples scattered through the text provide a vivid sense of what actually happens in real-life situ- ations. First-hand experience is no doubt the best teacher in these matters, but getting an eyewitness account of others' experiences may be the best substi- tute.-Edward Shreeves, University of Iowa, Iowa City. Franklin, Janice R. Database Ownership and Copyright Issues among Automated Library Networks: An Analysis and Case Study. Norwood, N.J.: Ablex, 1993. 181p. (ISBN 0-89391-752-4). The purpose of this book is to demon- strate how conflicts involving database ownership between a national bibliog- raphic utility (OCLC) and the regional utilities it has spawned (in this case study SOLINET) can be understood in light of social network theory and how such conflicts can be avoided if the ten- ets of this theory are recogniZed by all the players involved. The universal principles of social net- work theory are said to apply to all social networks, whether they are groups of libraries, politicians, or colleagues. The application of these principles to a con- flict situation, such as that involving centralized versus regional networks, is supposed to result in a formulation of cooperative, rather than competing, re- lationships. · Janice Franklin meticulously traces the events surrounding the decision by OCLC in 1982 to copyright the union catalog amid resistance from regional networks, such as SOLINET. Starting in the late 1970s the subject of ownership of databases became controversial as the regional networks emerged from pas- sive roles as OCLC brokers to more in- dependent, active competitors of OCLC. Eventually these regional networks joined together in various efforts to pre- serve the right to use, as they wanted, Book Reviews 375 the data generated by their members. For instance, they sought to produce lo- cal services in the form of COM catalogs, local area networks, and other com- puter-generated services provided to and shared by third-party libraries not directly linked to OCLC. OCLC, seeing its role as compiler of the union catalog database, took issue with the idea of pro- viding services to third parties who had not contributed to the national database as contractual members. OCLC argued that, if not protected, the national data- base would lose its integrity and quality, and thus secured copyright on its union catalog in 1982. This book provides a sound under- standing of the issues that led to OCLC's copyrighting of its database and the fric- tions between it and the various regional networks that have surfaced in the wake of that action. Franklin surveys the lit- erature on the history of library net- works in America, tracing their history back to the earliest years of interlibrary cooperation. She outlines numerous subjects relevant to the problems be- tween regional and centralized bibliog- raphic utilities: the impact of federal legislation and financial support to cen- tral utilities on the retention of local re- gional control, the primary goals of copyright law with regard to national databases, and library network develop- ment. All of these topics are viewed with respect to social, economic, and political forces, and in particular to social net- work theory. The applications of this theory to OCLC as well as to SOLINET are at times unclear and confusing. What emerges from the analysis, however, are a few basic and understandable conclu- sions: (1) that a centralized structure such as OCLC can be most effective in dealing with subordinate organizations, such as regional networks, if it attains a decentralized structure of authority; (2) that competitive forces should be openly acknowledged and reduced to levels that will not destroy networking goals; (3) that good communications are of ut- most importance; and (4) that policy for- mulations and role definitions should be clearly expressed and communicated. 376 College & Research Libraries From the outset Franklin stresses the fact that she is analyzing library net- works as social phenomena, rather than approaching them from the usual tech- nical standpoints found throughout li- brary literature. The reader may remain unconvinced by her assertions regard- ing the effectiveness of applying social network theory to all aspects of library networking, but they nonetheless are thought-provoking and no doubt pos- sess certain usefulness. For instance, the act of sharing contributed bibliographic data is obviously better advanced if a spirit of cooperation rather than compe- tition prevails as a driving force between a central nationwide utility and its sub- ordinate regional networks. This book is well-documented,· and provides excellent insight into the entire database ownership/copyright contro- versy. It is this latter contribution that is perhaps its greatest merit. Much re- search has been published on this issue, but this particular work offers a useful and refreshing historical assessment- Thomas D. Kilton, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Lancaster, F. W. If You Want to Evaluate Your Library ... 2d ed. Urbana, ill.: Uni- versity of illinois, Graduate School of library and Information Science, 1993. 352p. $39.50 (D-87845-091-2). When F. W. Lancaster published the first edition of If You Want to Evaluate Your Library ... in 1988, the book received praise from numerous reviewers who recognized its value for practicing li- brarians as well as library school stu- dents. The second edition follows the organizational pattern of the first, but the author has nearly doubled the length of the book. Vrrtually all the chapters are longer and significantly revised. As in the first edition, Lancaster focuses only on the evaluation of public services. New chapters, however, are devoted to the evaluation of bibliographic instruc- tion and continuous quality control. In the introduction Lancaster dis- cusses the need for evaluation in the context of Ranganathan's Five Laws of Library Scienc~. He concludes that only July1994 by evaluating their activities can librar- ies adapt to changing conditions. In the first section, entitled "Document Deliv- ery Services," the author offers chapters on the evaluation of library collections, using expert judgment and bibliog- raphies as well as circulation data and in-house use. Other chapters discuss peri- odical use, obsolescence and weeding, use of space, catalog use, and shelf availability. In the second section, ''Reference Serv- ices," chapters address question answer- ing, database searching, and bibliographic instruction. A concluding miscellaneous grouping of chapters covers resource shar- ing, cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit studies, and continuous quality control. The chapters are well organized and move smoothly from discussions of re- search issues to evaluation methodolo- gies. Evidence is clearly recorded and displayed in the many "exhibits." In addi;. tion, the book is very well written. Far too often reading about evaluation and re- search methodologies in library science proves painfully dull. This is not the case with Lancaster's book. Although he spe- cifically intended the first edition to serve primarily as a library school text- book-thus the creative study questions which conclude each chapter in both editions-the expanded second edition offers much to the practicing librarian who needs to assess a particular library service. It will inspire and inform both experienced and new librarians as well as library school students. Lancaster notes in his introduction that evaluation can be either subjective or objective, but he takes the position that it is most valuable when it is analyti- cal and diagnostic. In other words, evaluation is most usefully employed when it seeks to discover how a service might be improved. Evaluation, he pos- its, is an essential management tool that will permit identification of the best ways to improve performance. In this way Lancaster always links evaluation with what can perhaps best be labeled vision. He clearly believes that only through evaluation can librarians gain the insight to design and improve services that ad- dress the needs of their clientele.