256 Book Reviews

some administrative advice on selecting these computer components. This section also introduces the reader to the technical terminology in the field, and, in case this gets confusing, the reader can refer to a Glossary which lists and defines most of the important terms used.

Part three (tive chapters) discusses various microcomputer applications. The first chapter in this section simply lists a number of applications in the consumer, industrial, educational and library fields, plus some possible future trends. These lists, without discussion and explanation, are not very informative. The other four chapters describe microcomputer applications in ac- ademic, public, school and special libraries, respectively. These chapters do not go into any technical details, nor do they explain how the computers are being used; they simply state what is being done and where it is being done. Interested readers can follow up on these leads.

Part four (two chapters) deals with the impact of this new technology on staff development and the concerns of library managers, and part five (one chapter) stresses the importance of planning and needs assessment prior to the acquisition of any automation hardware. A short concluding chapter points out that library resources will continue to develop, that software evaluation and staff training will continue to be areas of concern for library managers and that patrons will continue to demand more- and more immediate-information services. As a result, “it is the duty of every librarian to learn as much as possible about controlling the technologies that threaten the library’s existence” [p. 1851. This reviewer regrets that in the final chapter the new microcomputer technology is viewed as a threat rather than as an opportunity to be wel- comed in order to enhance the role and status of the library in the community. Nevertheless, the authors concur that librarians (and everyone else) need to become computer literate. This book, which presents microcomputer technology at a very elementary level, is a step in that direction.

Graduate School of Library and Information Science University of California Los Angeles

HAROLDBORKO

The Electronic Library. H. F. CLINE and L. T. SINNOI-~. Lexington Books, D. C. Heath and Company, Lexington, Mass. (1983). xiii + 186 pp., price not available, ISBN O-669-05113-6.

The authors of this book are social scientists employed by the Educational Testing Service. Their book, unlike the works of many social scientists, is written in standard English, understandable by anyone who might find it of interest.

The book is the result of a study of the effects of automation in university libraries. The study took place in 1979-80. The libraries chosen for study were those of the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, Stanford University, and the University of Washington. These libraries were chosen because of the differing ways in which automation was introduced and implemented in them. The methodology employed was the case study, with information obtained primarily from interviews. Two hundred sixteen academic librarians and administrators were interviewed. Interview information was supplemented with various statistical summaries and reports supplied by the libraries. The theoretical framework within which the information is analyzed is that of the social-scientific study of complex organizations. The authors hope, first, to make a basic contribution to that field of study by demonstrating that the study of university libraries can add to an understanding of complex organizations. Second, they hope to show university librarians that they can learn from studying libraries as complex organizations, something of which university librarians, as well as faculties of library/information science schools, are already aware. Third, the authors hope the book will be useful in library/information science and social science courses. The book is likely to be more useful in social science courses than in library/information science schools because the major portion of the book consists of description of how university libraries function- their various work activities and attendant organization. Students in library/information science schools would be introduced to this material more directly and fully in courses dealing specifically with each activity. Finally, the authors intend the book for administrators-library administrators, university administrators and ad- ministrators of funding agencies. The usefulness of the book for such an implied policymaking purpose seems doubtful. Its analysis of the effect of automation on university libraries is too slight and too speculative to be used for policy formation. However, it may serve to alert ad- ministrators to problems and consequences that may arise from automation. That the analysis is slight and speculative can be attributed to the situation rather than to lack of effort or skill on the part of the authors. It is simply too early to tell what effect automation will have on university libraries as complex organizations. The authors acknowledge the speculative nature

Book Reviews 257

of their conclusions and note that, “Automation is changing the library community at such a rate that trends are difftcult to unravel”[p. 1701.

The more salient findings and speculations can be summarized as follows: The first chapter serves as a description of the library as a complex organization. It describes the activities that occur, such as cataloguing. The second chapter describes the differing circumstances of each library as it undertook automation. The chapter also describes differing ways in which automation tasks were assigned within the library’s organizational structure and the extent to which the library employed outside expertise as opposed to in-house expertise.

The next four chapters contain further description, some of it repetitive. These chapters also contain analyses of the libraries according to four factors commonly employed in the study of complex organizations. The first factor is structure-division of labor, table of organization and supervisory structure. A major finding is that the lines separating library departments are blurring. With the increasing availability of bibliographic and other data online, collection-de- velopment personnel can perform acquisition tasks, doing pre-searching and placing orders. In turn, acquisitions personnel can search and retrieve cataloguing copy, though revision of copy remains with cataloguers. The blurring of departmental lines can be expected to continue, for technology has brought about a pattern of continuous change in university libraries. In view of such changes, a new organizational structure is suggested. Librarians could be grouped according to the disciplinary field they serve. Each group would have overall responsibility for collection management and use in its area, including selection, ordering and cataloguing.

Not only is the organizational structure of libraries in a state of change but so, too, is the distribution of authority, and this has an effect on structure. Specialized knowledge not shared by all, such as knowledge of automated systems, gives authority to those who have the knowl- edge. Such knowledge can result in decentralization or in centralization of authority. Either way, changes in authority are forerunners of changes in structure.

The second organizational factor analyzed is communication patterns. Automation has brought unstable communication patterns, as well as increased communication within the library and with bodies outside the library, such as networks. The instability of communication patterns within the library may be the most profound change because it will require a fluid organizational structure able to reflect changed relationships between the library’s units. The suggestion given to cope with this need for fluidity is matrix management. It would help resolve the inherent conflict between democratic participatory management and the library’s need for competence and specialized knowledge, attributes that are never distributed democratically in any staff. In matrix management each librarian would have two locations: one in a department and another as a member of a project team or committee.

Funding for automation is the third organizational factor considered. There will be increasing pressure from university administrators for accountability. What is needed to meet this pressure is time-series data in order to show change over time. Estimating costs for implementing au- tomated systems is very difficult, but when compared to measuring the benefits of automation it is easy, for it is nearly impossible to place a dollar value on benefits. Therefore, time-series and other quantitative data must be supplemented with qualitative assessments.

The fourth organizational factor considered is personnel. The major recommendation was matrix management (already noted above). The book concludes with an observation that in the future, directors of university libraries may be professional managers rather than librarians. This notion rests on the restructuring of library personnel along disciplinary lines, as noted. Under this arrangement it is thought that librarians would be subject specialists and would not acquire appropriate experience for administration. The authors’ suggestion for professional management reflects a belief that is widely shared in our technique-dominated society: it is the naive belief that using a bundle of techniques, one can transform the world into a rational place. Managers of nonprofit organizations, such as libraries and museums, however, need more than techniques. These nonprofit organizations have a social mission which must be understood and fully ap- preciated by their managers. Such understanding and appreciation are not to be found in man- agement techniques.

Graduate School of Library and Information Science University of Tennessee

PAULINE WILSON

The Local Network Handbook. G. R. DAVIS (Ed.). McGraw-Hill (Data Communications Book Series), New York (1982). iv + 256 pp., $26.95 (PB). ISBN O-07-606831-5.

Our reliance on information entered into terminals and microcomputers in homes, businesses, and schools is growing at a high rate. A local network is an electrical connection between such