Just a brief note of backround re: the scanned catalog at Princeton.

As I understand it, the chief impetus for scanning the card catalog
here was the need for a cost-efficient method of card preservation.
The catalog is a complicated, composite object made up of paper stocks
dating back into the late 19th century. Moreover,
because the card catalog was a public object, simple wear-and-tear
on the cards (6.5 million) was well advanced and out of our control.
Ca. 1990, it was estimated that nearly 1 million cards needed complete
replacement immediately, otherwise they would be physically unusable
in ten years.
Consequently, a cost / benefit analysis of different means of
preservation was undertaken and the idea that emerged as most effective
for our need was scanning.

The result has been most satisfactory. An added outcome, of course,
was that the scanned catalog was distributable by network, whereas
the orginal card catalog had to be consulted in one and only one place.
At present, 40 work stations distributed around campus now give
access to information that was once available only at the main library.


Stephen Ferguson
Special Collections
Princeton University Library
One Washington Road
Princeton, NJ 08544
Tel: 609-258-3165  Fax: 609-258-4105
E-mail: [log in to unmask]
WWW - URL:  http://www.princeton.edu/~ferguson/