The Extended and Experimenting College Library: Configurations and Functions of the Academic Library in Transition

There were four objectives in this first phase in developing the concept of the experimenting and extended college library: 1. exploration of the configurations, functions, and operations of the academic library in transition; 2. initial analysis of the elements of such a library in the context of an experimenting institution, i.e. Hampshire College; 3. design of a building for these elements; 4. analysis and prediciton of interlibrary cooperation within a multi-college community. Building design was completed to include, as'dntegral parts of the lfbrary, a book library, bookstore, display gallery, computing center, and an information transfer (INTRAN) experimental center. Studies have been initiated in library cooperation among the five insitutions of this area. The project staff is reviewing the implications of MARC records and commercial processing on the automation of the college lfbrary. The relationship of book and non-book materials will a critical problem for libraries in the future, as they move from object-oriented to communication-oriented institutions. Finally, the project is concerned with definition of experimental situations that can be undertaked when the college -is in operation in 1970.