Collection Development - Media Collections

 
13. Media Collections:

Music: Compact Discs
This collection consists of compact discs covering a broad range of musical styles. The library has a commitment to collect at greater depth in this collection than most comparably sized libraries. The collection includes, but is not limited to, classical, country, rock, jazz, popular, opera and soundtracks. The library strives to provide a broad and balanced music selection to meet the variety of likes and tastes of our customers. The library currently selects only in the compact disc format, which appears to be the standard at present, but will continue to monitor demand for new formats such as MP3 and audio downloads.

In addition to the general tools for selection, the following tools are also referred to when making selection decisions for this collection:

  • Country Living (formerly Country Music)
  • Entertainment Weekly
  • Fanfare
  • Rolling Stone
  • Sound & Vision (formerly Stereo Review)
  • Spin

VHS and DVD
The VHS and DVD collection strives to complement, rather than compete with, local video rental stores. Entertainment, documentary, instructional, educational, informational and regional and local interest videos are included in this collection. DVD is the predominantly collected format at this time.

In addition to the general tools for selection, the following tools are also referred to when making selection decisions for this collection:

  • Video Librarian
  • Entertainment Weekly
  • Library Journal
  • Publishers Weekly
  • Premiere

Audiobooks and Spoken Word Recordings
The Audiobooks and Spoken Word Recording collection consists of both fiction and nonfiction materials. The fiction area includes contemporary and classic fiction with an emphasis on contemporary works. Works of best selling authors are represented primarily in unabridged versions. The nonfiction collection covers a range of subject areas including best sellers, instructional and self-improvement recordings on topics such as business skills or motivation, and ESL and TOEFL preparation guides. Language instruction is a very popular area of this collection. The library currently purchases material in the compact disc format, but will continue to monitor demand for new formats such as MP3 and audio downloads.

Selection is based, in part, on the reviews of the original work. Customer requests will also be given serious consideration. The library will purchase unabridged audiobooks, and only consider abridged versions if there is customer demand for a title that is not available in the unabridged format. Preference is given to titles published by vendors with disc replacement plans.

Since the audiobook collection is heavily used, weeding decisions will be primarily based on physical condition and the currency of the item, rather than lack of use.

In addition to the general criteria for selection, the following criteria must be taken into account when selecting audiobooks:

  • Authority and competency of producer
  • Artistic merit and reputation of the reader
  • Quality of interpretation and ease of understanding by library user
  • Technical quality and/or sound quality
  • Packaging
  • Availability of replacement discs

Computer Software
Software purchased by the library is selected to appeal to the educational, informational and entertainment needs of the Fargo community.

Software will be provided on CD-ROMs or DVD-ROMs that can be installed and used on a home computer. Any software that is too demanding of a customers hardware or configuration essentially removes itself from the range of the majority of the citizens of Fargo. Therefore, an effort will be made to ensure that the software is both Windows and Macintosh compatible (software will be purchased as long as it has reasonable system requirements).

The Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB) has devised a system of labeling software into recommended age categories based on content. The Fargo Public Library will provide software that extends to Rated: T (Teen, 13 and Older), but will refrain from purchases that are Rated: M (Mature, 17 and Older) or Rated: AO (Adults Only, 18 and Older).