Generalities (000)

General Comments

This collection provides access to established multi-disciplinary reference works and to "umbrella" or "tool" discipline reference works (i.e., disciplines relating to or applicable to many other fields of study.) Examples include works on computer science, bibliography, library and information sciences, etc.

Development Plan

This is a small, mature collection. Additional sources can be added judiciously. The primary emphasis is on computer and electronic sources. Beyond this, the collection includes mostly standard, basic generalities sources (basic bibliographies, directories, indexes, encyclopedias, etc.)

• R 000 Generalities. A very small collection is developed and maintained, with primary emphasis on personal computer sources, such as overviews, source books, and buyers' guides.
• R 010 Bibliography. This is a mature collection. General periodical indexes are developed and maintained. Those that are subject-specific are not collected. Standard bibliographies and indexes useful for collection development and management (e.g. Ulrich's, Cumulative Book Index, Books in Print) are developed and maintained. Subject bibliographies are developed and maintained.
• R 020 Library and information science. This mature collection consists of standard sources concerning organization of library materials. Some standard library field sources are maintained, though most library administration, operations, and issues sources are housed separately in the individual professional collections. (See Section III-8-The Selection Process, Professional Collection.)
• R 030 General encyclopedic works. This section consists of multiple sets of encyclopedias, serving differing reading levels. If a decision is made to select a different title or titles, existing title(s) are discontinued if advisable.
• R 040 (number not assigned)
• R 050 General serial publications. A small, mature collection (represented primarily by Readers' Guide) is maintained.
• R 060 General organization and museology. A small, mature collection of basic sources (which include Encyclopedia of Associations, Robert's Rules of Order) and a small number of museum guides are developed and maintained.
• R 070 Journalism, publishing, newspapers. A small, mature collection of mainly directories of the press and publishers as well as newspaper style manuals is maintained.
• R 080 General collections. A collection focusing on quotations sources is developed and maintained, though many are placed in 808.88. Foreign languages general collections are not purchased.
• R 090 Manuscripts and rare books. This section is minimally developed. No manuscript-related sources are purchased. A small collection of price guides for older, used (not necessarily rare) books is developed and maintained.

Influencing Factors

Purchases and buying patterns are determined in large part by:

• electronic/Internet sources availability.
• new works.
• budget constraints.
• present and potential relevance to the community.
• shelf space.

Retention/Weeding

• Computer guides are weeded after three years or as no longer requested.
• The Library receives many generality titles on standing order. For titles that cumulate, old editions are weeded when updates are received. After weeding, selected titles are sent to the branch library and the remainder are discarded or placed in the circulating collection. For titles issued in annual format, older years (whose primary usefulness may have passed) are weeded to storage.
• Encyclopedias are updated every three to five years. When new encyclopedia editions are received, the edition being replaced is either routed to a branch, placed in circulation, or discarded. Availability of electronic sources may impact future retention and weeding.
• Bound volumes of Readers' Guide to Periodical Literature are retained and moved to storage as shelving space dictates.