FindIt! Vs. DeweyThe Rumble in San Mateo

County

•Why

•Translation Key

•Implementation

•Next steps

•Q&A

Round 1:

Why?

Photo Credit: TechnoLibrary

Why?

• Increase Access!

• Increase Circulation!

•Popular Materials Collection

•Working with Shrinking

Resources

•Enable Self-Service and

Browsing

•Less Frustration, More

Satisfaction!

How many of your friends know Dewey

by heart?

Photo Credit: Nicole Pasini

Core Library Values

•Access to information

•“Save the time of the reader”

•“The library is a growing

organism”

2009 Library Journal Survey

•66% “felt intimidated”

•63% “want to go straight to

the right shelf”

Reality

•Fiction gets checked out more

than nonfiction

•Fiction does have a Dewey

call number – Literature, 800s

2013 v. 1876•More seats in libraries!

•Friendly environments!

•Non-print materials!

•Noise!

• “We want it now!”

2012-2013 Strategic Initiative“Promote self-sufficiency,

discovery and overall satisfaction by arranging

and presenting easily accessible library

collections”

Destination Libraries:

“Create welcoming spaces that promote a sense of

community pride and facilitate customer centered services”

Round 2:

Building a Translation Key

Initial reactions of a cataloger

•What??!!! •How do people find a needle in a haystack?•How about granularities?

Focus: a BROWSING collection

DDC vs. LC vs. FindIt!

Not much difference in the appropriate context

•The good•The bad•The ugly

DDC vs. LC vs. FindIt!No system is perfect.The key is to apply it

consistently.

Learning Curve?

FindIt! <60 pages

Vs.

DDC FindIt!

914.2 TRAVEL / EUROPE / ENGLAND

914.3 TRAVEL / EUROPE / GERMANY

914.4 TRAVEL / EUROPE / FRANCE

914.5 TRAVEL / EUROPE / ITALY

914.6 TRAVEL / EUROPE / SPAIN

914.9024 TRAVEL / EUROPE / NETHERLANDS

Time-saver for Catalogers and Patrons

The Project

•To develop two translation keys: Juvenile & Adult / YA

•To convert English non-fiction print only

Other Word-based Systems•Visited Anythink in 2011•“WordThink” system is based on BISAC (Book Industry Standards

and Communications) subjects

Other Word-based Systems

Tried BISAC on 28,000+ titles

•OCC022000 BODY, MIND & SPIRIT / Afterlife & Reincarnation

•OCC038000 BODY, MIND & SPIRIT / I Ching•OCC023000B BODY, MIND & SPIRIT / Supernatural•OCC025000 BODY, MIND & SPIRIT / UFOs &

Extraterrestrials

Not a good fit…

Other Word-based Systems

•Consulted Maricopa Public Library’s translation keys

•Used as a model

Developing FindIt!

Team Work•Developed the keys on top of day-to-day work and projects•Looked at every title and sorted it•Massaging the (sub)categories and scope notes = lots of time•Took 2 years in fits and starts

Something to Remember

Deadlines: You need to be able to say, “This is good enough,” and “It’s a living document.”

Challenges—Test of knowledge

Wonderful Worms by Linda Glazer•JUVENILE NONFICTION / Animals / Insects, Spiders, etc. (BISAC)•J INSECTS / WORMS / SLUGS •J INSECTS•J ANIMALS / INSECTS / WORMS•J ANIMALS [> J ANIMAL]

Developing FindIt!

Developing FindIt!

Challenges: Sub-categorization•No more than approx. 150 titles in a subcategory for browseability•At least 20 titles in order to make a subcategory

Challenges: Sub-categorization

e.g., Titles on making baby food or cooking with

children•COOKING / CHILDREN [Oh, NO!!!]

•LIFE / PARENT / COOKING

Developing FindIt!

Photo Credit: Willem Velthoven

Photo Credit: Katherine Donaldson

Photo Credit: Dermot O'Halloran

Developing FindIt!Worked with vendors

(outsourcing)•RFQ•Character and line limits on spine labels, spelling & “Cuttering,” •SELFHELP• PERS FIN •CHRSTIAN

Round 3:

Implementation

Photo Credit: srietzke

Photo Credit: PSParrot

Committee’s Role

Pacific Library PartnershipInnovation & Technology Grant

Committee’s Role

Committee’s Role

•PR/Marketing

•Preparing SMCL Staff

•Signage

•Participate in Conversion

•Evaluation

At Portola Valley Library

•Weed, weed, weed!•Update on committee’s work•Prepare Staff

Don’t make us feel stupid or

look bad!

Steps to a Successful Conversion

•Calculate the Shelving

Needs

•Conversion in OPAC

•Divide and Conquer

•Have fun!

Photo Credit: The Ernst Mayr Library

Photo Credit: DonkeyHotey

Photo Credit: ladybugbkt

Photo Credit: TechnoLibrary

View Staff Reaction Video on YouTube

Shelving•Popular Materials

•Logical Flow

•New Books

•Evaluate

Photo Credit: w3i_yu

Systemwide Staff

• SDD Presentation (Pull Pictures)• FAQ I & FAQ II

I like the idea of language learning next to travel. Of course!

Little bit of an adjustment, but it looks good and seems to work well.

Attractive collection display.

What if you don’t expect “popular” items at the front? And what constitutes a “popular” item?

We did use the catalog

One could write a dissertation on Dewey vs. FindIt!

Why does it say “Compute” & not “Computer”

Shelf dividers are inadequate—aren’t obvious when looking down the isle

There i s still a significant degree of subjective assignment of neighborhoods, general classification, and shelf location.

Juvie NF - Adult NF - New Adult NF -

TOTAL NF: 0

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FindIt! Vs. Dewey

May & June 2013May & June 2012

TKO!

REMATCH!

Syetemwide Implementation

Next Steps

Lessons Learned

• Communicate!• Look to other Libraries• Communicate!• Be flexible• Communicate!• Timeline & timing

Pilot Staff – Thank You!Charlotte Bradshaw Ida DaRoza Fred Pohlmann

Mary Castle Rosemary Jorde Katie Sanderson

Maria Chiochios Michael Lambert Amanda Schukle

Stephanie Conrad Michelle Loomis Nancy Vander Lans

Sabrina Davies Angela Luis Janice Wakimoto

Anne-Marie Despain Natalie Mallett Sandy Wee

Radha Rangswamy Ana Marcelo Kat Wiszowaty

Robert Esparza Sherry Markow Lily Yao

Marie Fong Rosa Martinez Kat Wiszowaty

Tom Fortin Rachel McDonnell Lily Yao

Millie Harris Tessa Noriega Nicole Pasini

Dan Bettencourt

Thank YouWen-Ling Lu, Cataloger @San Mateo County Library

lu@smcl.org

Nicole Pasini, Portola Valley/Woodside Branch Manager @ San Mateo County Librarypasini@smcl.org

Sandy Wee, Library Services Manager, Access Services @ San Mateo County Librarywee@smcl.org

Unless otherwise noted, all photos are property of San Mateo County Library