Organization of Materials                                                      1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

  • Priority should be given to the acquisition of digital resources whose costs are offset by added value when compared to print in such ways as

    1. More timely availability
    2. More extensive content
    3. Greater functionality such as the ability to invoke linkages to local and/or related resources
    4. Greater access because they can be delivered rapidly, remotely, at any time
    5. Improved resource sharing due to the predominance of digital resources
    6. Ease of archiving, replacing, preserving
    7. Ease of measuring and evaluating usage and functionality.

  • Department heads, faculty members and library coordinators should retain authority for selecting and deselecting materials (content and format) and sound selection decisions should not be compromised by publisher-defined bundles of print and digital products.

  • A digital collection must contain sufficient information to evaluate its utility and to justify its selection.

  • Initial collection should focus on disciplines in which a substantial quantity of electronic content is available and on user groups that are willing and able to accept such content.

  • Both collections that support undergraduate instruction and those that support faculty research should be included.

  • Electronic materials should increase access to the installed base of UST Library collection and build on the investments already made by the University in digital resources.

CD-ROM
(the following questions need to be considered when selecting CD-ROM products)