ACRL College & Research Libraries News

College & Research Libraries News

Fast Facts

Ann ViIes

→ Public Web sites decreasing

OCLC’s Web Characterization Project (WCP) estimates the number of public Web sites has decreased by one percent from 3,119,000 in 2001 to 3,080,000 in June 2002.

“OCLC Researchers Track Five-Year Growth of Public Web,” OCLC Online Computer Library Center, Dec. 18, 2002. http://www.oclc.org/research/news/wcp2002.shtm. April 4,2003

→ University press book prices

The Association of American University Presses has published the first results from a study of university press book pricing practices over a 12-year period from 1989-2000. The data, based on the average prices of books purchased from Yankee Book Peddler Library Services, show that “overall, university presses posted a 13.6 percent increase in average suggested retail prices between 1989 and 2000,” while commercial scholarly presses posted a 23.15 percent increase, and the Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased by 38.9 percent.

Albert N. Greco, et al. The Price of University Press Books 1989-2000, Association of American University Presses, 2003. http://aaupnet.org/resources/mellon/bookpricing.pdf. April 3,2003

→ Dramatic increase in e-book sales

The monthly sales report of the Association of American Publishers (AAP) shows a 1,447.4 percent increase in e-book net sales from $211,000 in January 2002 to $3.3 million in January 2003.

”E-book Sales Lead Off 2003,” Association of American Publishers, March 18,2003. http://www.publishers.org/press/ releases.cfm?PressReleaseArticlelD=138. April 3,2003

→ Student use of Internet Public Library

According to a recent notice in Library Journal, the Internet Public Library “gets 12 million hits a month, one quarter from outside the United States and one-half of them from students working on reports.”

(”Internet Public Library Facing Money Crunch,” Library Journal, March 24, 2003. http:// libraryjournal.reviewsnews.comindex.asp?layout=article&articleid=CA286355&display=breakingNews&publication =libraryjournal. April 3,2003)

→ State support for Arkansas public libraries drops

According to a report in the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, state aid to public libraries in Arkansas dropped from $4.9 million in 2001 to $2 million in 2002 and $500,000 in 2003, a decrease of almost 90 percent.

Ellis Widner, ”Juggling the Books,” Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, March 25,2003. http://www.nwarktimes.com/adg/ story_Style.php?storyid=25352. April 3,2003

→ College textbooks

A recent report by the National Association of College Stores estimates store sales for college textbooks and course materials during 2000-2001 totaled $7.1 billion (new texts, $5.2 billion; used texts, $1.8 billion; and course packs, $0.1 billion).

”Higher Education Retail Market Facts & Figures 2002-03,” National Association of College Stores, 2003. http:// www.nacs.org/public/research/higher_ed_retail.asp. April 4,2003

→ Internet providing war information

A recent survey of online Americans finds 77 percent “have used the Internet in connection with the war in Iraq.” Seventeen percent “say their principal source of information about the war is the Internet.”

Lee Rainie, Susannah Fox, and Deborah Fallows, ”The Internet and the Iraq War: How Online Americans Have Used the Internet to Learn War News, Understand Events, and Promote their Views,” PEW Internet & American Life Project, April 1,2003. http://www.pewinternet.org/reports/toc.asp?Report=87

Ann Viles is coordinator of reference and instruction at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, e-mail:vilesea@conrad.appstate.edu