Eliminating DDC?! RE: [Publib] Dewey Decimal Classification

[Nann Blaine Hilyard]

Karen, thanks for the link.  It would be nice if Sen. Storms' source would educate her as to the correct name (it's DDC, not DDS, which makes me think of dentists and wondering what they have to do with libraries ("put some teeth into it" not withstanding)).   We do need to understand that stressed legislators who need to find money to fund all manner of services (libraries, prisons, schools, etc., etc.) may come up with off-the-wall ideas.

But:   changing from one classification system to another is not a decision to take lightly - whether from DDC to BISAC or DDC to LC or anything else.    You have to consider the organization of the ENTIRE collection, not just the new items.    One year's acquisitions are, hmmm, 5%-8%? of the total collection.   So if those are in the new classification, what about the other 95%?   Even with electronic cataloging/classification, it takes a LOT of staff time to pull books off the shelf, reenter them, and affix new spine labels.

My predecessor at the Auburn Public Library had hornswoggled the board into approving a reclassification project (DDC to LC).   He approached it in a very hit-or-miss fashion.   I was there 11 years and when I left the project STILL wasn't complete-despite initiating a huge weeding project and introducing automated cataloging.

(Sue, I agree that LC is more precise.  And the APL cataloging did need to be updated, due to having had closed stacks from 1904-1972.  But the way he went about it was inefficient and costly.)

Nann
@the library in Zion, Illinois




From: publib-bounces at webjunction.org [mailto:publib-bounces at webjunction.org] On Behalf Of Karen Schneider
Sent: Saturday, January 03, 2009 1:38 PM
To: BStorck at aol.com
Cc: publib at webjunction.org
Subject: Re: [Publib] Dewey Decimal Classification

Before we get too far away with this thread, let's put this in context:

http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/jan/03/030112/co-library-savings-small-part-of-sen-storms-agenda/

One legislator has said she has advocated for doing away with DDC. What makes me curious is who put this bug in her ear that this would be an important source of savings for libraries.

Karen / PUBLIB


On Sat, Jan 3, 2009 at 8:43 AM, <BStorck at aol.com<mailto:BStorck at aol.com>> wrote:
Hello Folks - As you know Florida has had its share of great elected officials who think they know more than the library people about the running of libraries. Now we have one who says many libraries are doing away with the DDC and she thinks it is a waste of money for us to continue using that system. Question - how many of you have done away with the DDC and what are you doing instead?  Thanks-Bernadette Storck
BStorck @aol.com<http://aol.com>.


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