Approval Acquisitions and the Integrated Online System

Abstract

Approval vendors have developed products and services that simplify the management of approval acquisitions in libraries with manual systems. As libraries install integrated online systems new products and services from the dealers and enhancements from the systems vendors are needed to match the old manual efficiencies and to take full advantage of the automated system. The library community needs to define and articulate its needs, create a demand for the products it requires, and promote inter-vendor cooperation to facilitate their development. As this process unfolds, a certain amount of improvisation and experimentation is necessary. Some of the issues faced in implementing approval acquisitions at Kent State University with the NOTIS system are described to illustrate typical problems.