More details on material source
Answers
Sources of materials
The main sources are:
☆producers and distributors
☆bibliographic sources
☆local information sources
TIP: Developing contacts
It is a good idea to develop contacts with local, national and international organisations that produce or disseminate information that may be of use to users. Book fairs and exhibitions are a good place to develop contacts. Details of organisations should be kept on file. Organisations should be contacted, asking to be put on their mailing list to receive regular information about new materials.
4.3.1 Producers and distributors
Producers and distributors include:
specialist suppliers
commercial publishers
United Nations agencies
government departments
non-governmental organisations (NGOs)
professional associations
training institutions
subscription agents.
Specialist suppliers, such as the African Books Collective, Hesperian Foundation, IT Publications, PACT, Tropical Health Technology and Teaching-aids at Low Cost (TALC), supply materials to developing countries, usually at lower prices than commercial publishers. Suppliers' catalogues are available free on request.
Commercial publishers are organisations that produce materials for profit. Commercial publishers that produce materials on health and development include Butterworth-Heinemann, Macmillan, Oxford University Press (OUP) and Zed Books. Some of the larger publishers, such as Macmillan and OUP, have offices in developing countries, which support local production and distribution of materials. Publishers’ catalogues are available free on request.
Most United Nations agencies, such as UNESCO, UNICEF, UNDP, WHO and the World Bank, and NGOs, such as AMREF, Healthlink Worldwide, INTRAC, International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Oxfam, Save the Children (SCF) and Women INK, produce materials, often free or at low cost. Most produce catalogues or publications lists that are available free on request. Government documents from ministries such as the Ministry of Health include important policy documents, guidelines and training manuals.
Professional associations of, for example, doctors, nurses or librarians, produce materials including books, guidelines and newsletters.
Training institutions may produce training materials, including distance education materials.
Subscription agents, such as Swets Blackwell, organise subscriptions to periodicals.
Details of key producers and distributors of materials are given in Section 4.9.
4.3.2 Bibliographic sources
Bibliographic sources include:
resource lists and bibliographies
bibliographic databases
acquisitions bulletins
book reviews and summaries
sources of information for articles
Blue Trunk Library lists.
Some publications are a combination of different types of material providing bibliographic source information.
Resource lists are publications that contain details of materials, usually on a specific subject such as diarrhoeal diseases, disability issues, or reproductive and sexual health. They usually include a brief description of each material, the price, and details of how to obtain the material.
Bibliographies are similar to resource lists, but do not necessarily include information on how to obtain materials. Resource lists and bibliographies are usually available in print or electronic format.
Bibliographic databases contain bibliographic information on computer about publications or aticles in periodicals, including author, title, publisher and price. They use keywords (selected words or phrases) to describe the content. Some include abstracts (summaries of contents). Others include the full text of articles. Many bibliographic databases containing details of materials on health and development include African HealthLine, African Index Medicus, CAB Health, Extramed, Source, Medline and POPLINE.
Acquisitions bulletins are regular publications that contain details of materials added to a resource centre collection during a particular period. They can be used to find out what has been acquired by other resource centres, and to help identify materials for the collection. The resource centre can either subscribe to an acquisitions bulletin or, if it produces one, it can arrange to receive others in exchange.
Book reviews and abstracts (summaries) in newsletters, magazines and journals can help to assess whether a material will be useful. They often comment on the material, as well as describing the contents. It can be useful to photocopy and file reviews to help select materials. Reviews can also be circulated to users.
Sources of information for articles in newsletters, magazines and journals are often listed at the end of the article. They can be used to identify materials for the collection.
Explanation: