1. Need of requestor

a. Note who filled out the “Lost Book Transaction Card.” If it is faculty, they probably need the book for a class or their research, replace if possible.
b. If a student filled out the request, again, there is probably a good reason, I’d seriously consider, it the title is available. In a student’s case, depending on the discipline, a later edition might be a good solution.

2. Need of the Alkek collection

a. If a title is classic or standard in a disciple or subject and you deem the information it represents to be consistent with the discipline or indicative/representative of information from a particular place and time that would have a valid research interest, you should consider a replacement, especially if it is the only copy in the collection.

b. If the title is about a subject or topic that there may not be much on (Masons, chupacabras, local history or interest, etc.), you should consider replacing if available. If you chose not to replace that exact title, consider whether the collection would benefit from similar or same topic titles. In that case however, it is not a replacement but a “gap” and should be requested using the 72 fund code, and must go through the normal 72 request procedure. That is, Head Acquisitions Librarian must approve and the request should be given to Collection Development once it is approved.

c. Primary, unique or original sources. These sources can and do serve a variety of research needs (written by a participant from a current or historical perspective, or by an observer during the time of the event or from a perspective indicative of a particular or unique place and time), we should consider having them in the collection, especially since we did, for some reason have them in the collection to begin with. Even in this case however, a reprinted edition may be the only edition available for a reasonable price.

d. In the case of material purchase after 2002, the title record should have a 691 line. This is the provenance, i.e. what department ordered, when and whether it was originally purchased by faculty or a colleague. With this information you may want to consider contacting the department or the colleague to see why the title was originally ordered.

3. Circulation record

Even if the title does not seem obviously necessary according to other criteria, if the circulation record indicates high circulation (double digits) over a period of time (look at the inventory date on the circulation record form, vs. the last transaction date), consider replacing. It may be a classic you are not aware of, or an assigned text or popular for some reason. Consider replacing this, even if there is another copy in the collection, if both copies circulated a lot.

4. Other versions of same title (not other editions of the same version)

As in the case of critical editions of a classic work of literature, a critical edition has a review, critique or interpretation of the work as well as the work itself. Often these interpretations vary and though some may be considered better than others, in research, it may be important to know what a particular author/scholar (of the critical edition) thought or what every unique critical edition said about the work. It is often helpful for those studying a well know work of literature to have all the critical editions to compare or contrast or document. So even if we already have other versions of a classic work, consider replacing differing critical editions we may have had before. This is applicable to different translations and to critical editions in other languages. If, in the course of your research, you run across a critical edition that we never owned, you should consider whether it would benefit the collection. If you decide to purchase such an edition, as in # 2c., it would be considered a “gap” and you need to go through the 72 request process.

Once you have decided that you want to replace a title, look for availability. B&T, Ingram and the original publisher are always good places to start, particularly if you have decided to replace a title with a later edition.

If you know for a fact that the title is OP, there are a variety of places to try and locate the exact or other editions.

http://www.bookfinder.com – excellent clearing house of various OP titles. Can show you a wide variety of titles, vendors, conditions and price. They will include ABE, Alibris, Amazon, as well as OP vendors world wide. Be wary of Alibris, they admit that though they use the professional used book condition identifiers (Good, VG, Fine, VF), they do not actually check to see that the books are in fact in that condition. OP book dealers on the other hand do have to comply with those condition criteria.

http://www.addall.com – excellent source for OP textbooks and more pedestrian types of titles.

http://www.biblio.com – excellent source for more esoteric titles, literary first editions, incunabula.

In the case of a replacement, you are responsible for locating an available copy. If you have any questions, please feel free to consult with the Collection Development Librarian.