Joy,
You might want to contact a library organization such as NOCALL or the
California Library Association and ask for recommendations on temporary
library staffing services in your area, as well as a few software
titles that may be appropriate. Once you have this information in hand,
you can contact the staffing services for estimates on cost/availability
of a technical services librarian to do the actual cataloging. After you
speak to a few of the software vendors (re: pricing,product demos,etc -
they'll be happy to give you as much info as you can handle), you can
then present all the information to the City Attorney, stressing the
fact that this is a huge project and that everyone would be better
served if it were outsourced, so that you can continue to fulfill your
current duties and still have the project completed on a timely basis.
That way A.) you are not overwhelmed with a project that is outside your
scope of experience B.) you don't fall behind in your regular duties C.)
the City Attorney gains a little more perspective on what is actually
involved in this request D.) a Librarian with cataloging experience can
ensure that the job is done right the first time, saving time and money
down the road, E.) you make some contacts within the library community
that you might not have otherwise, which can only serve to your
advantage as your career progresses F.) you've helped out a librarian
who is working temp for whatever reason and G.) you look good for having
done such a fine job of researching and presenting the solution to this
situation.
Good luck and don't get discouraged! One thing that proves to be true in
this profession time and again is that there is an answer for everything
if you know the right questions to ask and the proper authorities to
address them to. Don't give up until you get the info you need. We're
here to support each other and it never hurts to ask for a little help
now and then.
Cheers!
~Cris
Cris Eckl
Wildman Harrold
Chicago
____________________Reply Separator____________________
Subject: advice for a small law library
Author: Joy Murphy <joymurphy@sbcglobal.net>
Date: 4/24/03 2:12 PM
I am a Library Assistant trying to manage a small Law Library (about
1000 books)
for the City of Berkeley. Previously, I had only been updating the
State and
Federal law books with monthly supplements and other updates and also
updating
local and/or specialized law materials. This library is
uncatalogued-it's my
own primitive system. Now, the City Attorney has asked that the books
be
catalogued and the collection accessible from a computer (only for the
purpose
of knowing what we have, the cost of each material and where everything
is
located). I am desperate for any advice on how to go about pricing
software for
this new system and other specifics I would need to know. Any advice
would be
greatly appreciated.Thank youJoy Murphy
<DIV>I am a Library Assistant trying to manage a small Law Library
(about 1000
books) for the City of Berkeley. Previously, I had only been
updating the
State and Federal law books with monthly supplements and other updates
and also
updating local and/or specialized law materials. This library is
uncatalogued-it's my own primitive system. Now, the City Attorney
has
asked that the books be catalogued and the collection accessible from a
computer
(only for the purpose of knowing what we have, the cost of each material
and
where everything is located). I am desperate for any advice on how
to go
about pricing software for this new system and other specifics
I would
need to know. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.</DIV>
<DIV>Thank you</DIV>
<DIV>Joy Murphy</DIV>
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