College and Research Libraries By WERNER B. ELLINGER An Inexpensive Microprint Reader Dr. Ellinger is on the staff of the Subject Cataloging Division~ Library of Congress. A MICROCOPYING process and a micro-copy reader which appear interesting in view of the recent discussions of micro- photographic methods of documentation1 are described in a small book2 which, al- though published in I940, was only recently received at the Library of Congress. The author succeeded in building a camera which allows varying the format of the exp·osures and controlling their sequence. Thus, one may proceed from photographing a newspaper to photographing a pocket-size book me,rely by changing the format, while the rate of reduction remains constant. With automatic shutter release and film transport, one hundred pages can be photo- graphed in about fifteen minutes. As standard size for the film or plate the author recommends the adoption of a format of 9 X I 2 em. ( 3 5/ 8" X 4 3/ 4") and a reduction rate of I : 20. This allows the reproduction of more than I I square feet, corresponding to about I 5 newspaper- pages or I 50 pages of a reference book of customary size, plus extra space for the title, on one piece of cut film. In the construcdon of a suitable reading machine, principal consideration was given to achieving a legible image at normal read- ing distance, and at the same time to saving 1 Cf. in particular: Rider, Fremont. The S clto la r and the Future of the Research Library. New York, Hadham Press, 1944, and the ensuing work of the Microcard Committee which was established to explore the potentialities of the . proposals in this work. 2 Goebel, Jo seph, Schrift, Letter, Mikrokopie. Mainz, Druck der Mainzer Presse, 1940. JANUARY~ 1949 space and material. The result is the ap- paratus shown in the illustration. When not in use , the machine forms a box 4" X 6" X 12" in size, small enough to be carried in a briefcase. To operate the device, the front is removed and assembled to form a stand. The cover, which has a mirror on the inside, is mounted on it. The film or plate is held by a frame against a translucent screen and can be moved in any direction without losing its proper alignment. A light behind the screen pro- jects the image on the mirror from which it is reflected either on a projection screen or on a piece of white cardboard on the table in front of the reader. Varying de- grees of magnific~tion can be achieved simply by moving the mirror. The image can be magnified even beyond the size of the original, a possibility particularly de- sirable in the case of small print. If it is desired to limit the image to one page or two opposite pages, the undesired parts may be cut off by a mask and the illusion created that the book lies opened on the table. (See i-llustration.) Besides being a reading device the ap- paratus can be put to a number of other uses. If the image is projected o.n sensitized paper, drawings or copies can be made from it. Brought into proper position, the ma- chine can serve as a music stand. A com- position can thus be played from a single sheet of film rather than from voluminous scores. The device can further be used as a projector for any transparencies re- quiring a magnification from 20 to 50 times. It is able to hold 200 stereoscopic pictures. 37 The following are some of the advantages claimed by the inventor as compared with earlier methods of microfilm documenta- tion: (a) the saving of storage space occu- pied by cut film as compared with that required for cinefilm, and the possibility of filing cut film in card drawers and using it in a vertical file; (b) the possibility of binding or framing cut film and of mailing it in letter envelopes; (c) the greater ease of referring to individual pages than is pos- sible on 35mm. cinefilm, and the resulting saving of wear and tear; (d) the great resistance of glass to heat and deteriora- tion, when glass plates, in particular the unbreakable kind, are used in lieu of film; (e) the protection which can be given to color film by keeping it between glass; (f) the simple operation, compactness, and low cost of the reading machine, which ma,ke it suitable for home use. A comparison of the method of micro- reproduction described here with the widely discussed and somewhat similar reproduc- tion on ·Microcards must, in view of the lack of adequate information on details of operation and cost of manufacture, 3 be rather hypothetical. Nevertheless, the fol- lowing differences may be noted. The Goebel method, in contrast to the production of Microcards, does not require the destruction of the original publication and therefore is suitable for the microrepro- duction of rare or unique materials; the production of Microcards, since it requires the dissection of two copies of the publica- tion to be processed, at least with the method employed at the present time, is necessarily limited to pamphlets and other expendable materials. With the Goebel method, the process of laying out the pages for photographing is not required. Film s Reportedly, Philips' Gloeilampenfabrieken in Eind- hoven, Holland, m anufacture a r eadi ng- machine built on the frinciples of the one described here, at a sales price o about $40- or glass plates permit greater reduction, and they present, at any rate of reduction, a clearer image than sensitized paper. They also lend themselves readily to color re- productions. The reading device described here appears considerably less expensive MIKROKOPIE LESEGEAAT oo .~.~~· than the reading machines developed thus far for use with Microcards. Because of its adaptability to various uses as mentioned above, the machine may be useful in the library, the lecture room, the home, per- haps even the concert hall. A file of cut film is more durable and suffers less from rough handling than cards. Against these advantages must be held the greater ease with which Mjcrocards can be filed and located, and the lower cost of Microcard stock compared with that of film. How- ever, since all other costs are considerably less in the case of the Goebel method than in that of Microcards, the difference m (Continued on page 45) 38 COLLEGE AND RESEARCH LIBRARIES chusetts and Connecticut. It appears that the smaller the library the smaller the re- sources which can be expected for university development, as well as other governmental services. Ill. Summary The following points emerge regarding interstate cooperation in higher education with special reference to the state university libraries which might be involved: I. The idea of regional cooperation in ad- vanced levels of higher education, while strongly motivated by the desire to continue the practice of racial segregation, has gone beyond that objective. Its application to the general problem of providing university fa- cilities which are not available in large areas of the country has been advocated and is permissible under the compact of February 8, 1948, between fifteen Southern states. 2. Figures for 1944, with estimates to 1948, show that about one-half the state uni- versity libraries of the country have less than 300,000 volumes. A considerable part of this group, on the basis of a sampling of eleven institutions, offers work up to the Ph.D. degree, and supports one or more graduate professional schools. It is obvious that for existing programs and for expansion these institutions are seriously handicapped with regard to library resources. 3· Enrolments are expected to remain at levels substantially higher than those of pre- war years. On a short-term basis a larger proportion of upperclassmen and graduate students can be expected; on a long-term basis the predictions are more doubtful, though the higher general enrolment levels will mean increased demands for all reading materials. This pressure will be felt with special force in those collecting areas which are, and usually have been , given less atten- tion in smaller universities. Such areas in- clude the high-level research literature in a number of subject fields. 4· The twenty-three below-median li- braries can be grouped into coherent regional divisions. The Southern states subscribing to the compact of February 8 fall into several groups rather than one. The remaining states, with the addition of a few possessing libraries just above the median size, can be similarly aligned. The institutions which support the libraries are likely to be those which also re- quire extensive additions to their research fa- cilities, and therefore have most to gain from c~operation with others in the same situation. Microprint Reader (Conti~ued from page 38) cost between film and paper is insignificant except in the case of mass reproduction. Whether in the end film or Microcards will prove more suitable for library use will depend not only on their relative degree of satisfactory performance and the rela- tive cost of production, maintenance, and use, but also upon the manner of distribu- tion of microreproductions and reading ma- chines, and, last but not least, upon their acceptance by the library user as substitutes for the printed page. Oregon Statutes (Continued from page 40) are of such character that release is not prac- ticable, in which case the same amount of time may be allowed at another date. Student re- cesses in addition to the days above named do not constitute institutional holidays. Professional Activities Administrative Code, K- 1 9· No full-time JANUARY, 1949 employee in the Oregon State System of Higher Education or of any of the institutions thereof shall engage in any outside activity which substantially interferes with his regular duties. Prior to acceptance of any employ- ment involving time or . honorarium, the indi- vidual concerned shall secure the approval of the executive head of the · institution. 45