[CALIBK12] Circulation counts

[Jeanne Nelson]

Hello, Tom,
 
Re: your question about circ stats, we keep monthly stats here, because they
give us one indicator of usage.  At the secondary level, we also keep track
of the number of classes that use the library, and multiply that by average
class size to get a more accurate picture of library usage.  We also get
reports from our online databases and Gale ebooks.  These are data that
could be very useful to justify staffing or budget.   Periodically I share
overall district circulation numbers with the Superintendent, cabinet, and
the school board.  It helps keep them reminded that there is a lot happening
in the library.
 
Jeanne Nelson
Library/Media Services Coordinator
Murrieta Valley Unified School District
 
-----Original Message-----
From: calibk12-bounces at lists.sjsu.edu
[mailto:calibk12-bounces at lists.sjsu.edu] On Behalf Of Thomas Kaun
Sent: Monday, April 21, 2008 9:55 PM
To: Hedstrom, Pat
Cc: calibk12 at lists.sjsu.edu; Colleen Vigil
Subject: Re: [CALIBK12] e-books for high school libraries



I'd second Pat's response.
We haven't gotten to the point yet where e-books are portable enough for
recreational reading except using a personal reader like Kindle or Sony's
E-Book Reader which are single-user devices. I have links to many e-books
and e-journals in my catalog from Ebsco, ProQuest, Gale Virtual Reference
Library, Oxford Reference Online, Questia, Google Books, Gutenberg, etc., I
wouldn't consider them to be readable for pleasure.
A couple years ago I tried using an e-book from the public library. I
checked out a travel guide. The circ period was about two weeks and I could
printout ten pages of the book per day. It was very frustrating. In the end
I thought it was easier to go to the Lonely Planet website to get
information about the place!
I'm sure some study has been done of the circulation of e-books from public
libraries. I'd be interested in seeing just how popular they are.
There's tons of stuff available in the deep(er) or (more) hidden Web but we
haven't got the portable, shareable reader yet which makes them easy to
circulate as library resources.
Speaking of circulation: Are circ statistics becoming obsolete? With so much
in my collection which can't circulate I have no way of knowing which
"objects" are being used except in very indirect ways. Just wondering?
BTW, digital audiobooks are a somewhat similar matter with their own issues.
Tom Kaun


On Mon, Apr 21, 2008 at 6:23 PM, Hedstrom, Pat <HedstromP at esuhsd.org> wrote:


Ebooks are OK for research using reference books, and titles that will be
ussearch.  Gale offers unlimited numbers of users at the same time, and they
are getting used.   I would not have it any other way. Doesn't Follett
"check them out?"  One person at a time?  That defeats the advantage of
ebooks.
I can't see ebooks for recreational reading. This type of book needs to be
highly portable.  Can you use some book fine money to get extra paperbacks?
Pat Hedstrom

Piedmont Hills HS Library
San Jose

-----Original Message-----
From: calibk12-bounces at lists.sjsu.edu
[mailto:calibk12-bounces at lists.sjsu.edu]On Behalf Of Colleen Vigil
Sent: Monday, April 21, 2008 2:20 PM
To: calibk12 at lists.sjsu.edu
Subject: [CALIBK12] e-books for high school libraries



The recent craze of the Stephenie Meyers novels is encouraging me to address
the waiting list issue.  One easy solution would be to purchase the e-book
version of these titles.  Have any of you purchased any e-books for your
library?  If so, how are you dealing with all the issues such as security,
storage, and copyright infringement?  What distributor are you purchasing
your e-books from?  We are currently using Follett.  Is it possible to allow
students access to e-books via our on-line library?  Any additional
information or experiences regarding e-books would be greatly appreciated.
Please feel to reply to me off list.

 

Colleen R. Vigil

Library Clerk

Wheatland Union High School

(530)633-3100 Ext. 159

cvigil at wheatlandhigh.org

 


_______________________________________________
CALIBK12 site list
CALIBK12 at lists.sjsu.edu
http://lists.sjsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/calibk12

For information about the Calibk12 listserve, please
visit  http://www.calibk12.net.






-- 
Thomas T. Kaun
Teacher Librarian
Bessie Chin Library @ Redwood High School
395 Doherty Drive, Larkspur, CA 94939
tomkaun at gmail.com | Library Web site: http://rhsweb.org/library |
Professional development blog: http://tomlmt2.blogspot.com/ | Library news
blog: http://libraryleaves.blogspot.com 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.sjsu.edu/pipermail/calibk12/attachments/20080422/4d4eb246/attachment.html