Abstract |
Electronic resources are very popular nowadays and many materials can be obtained via Internet. Facing the challenge of budget shrinkage, there are many discussion among librarians on the issue that whether access should replace ownership in developing library collections. Some librarians argue that electronic resources will substitute the print materials, and many materials will be published on demand. Therefore, the concept of ownership should be abandoned and it is the library's responsibility to help users to access to the materials when they need. University libraries in Taiwan are taking all efforts to promote the use of electronic resources. There are few appropriate collection development policies for electronic resources and the acquisition are not based on the investigations and the comparisions of the viewpoints of university professors and university librarians as to the uses of electronic resources as well as the concept of access and ownership. The result indicates that both professors and librarians agree that electronic resources are important for teaching and research. The type of material is an important factor when to decide whether electronic format or printed format should be acquired. There are significant differences between professors and librarians about the concept of ownership and quantity of library holdings. Their thoughts concerning the strength and weakness of access and ownership are very similar. However, they do not share the same viewpoints about the fee-based service of electronic resources.
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