Weeding Tips: Shelf by Shelf: 000, 100, 200.

Vnuk, Rebecca (author).

FEATURE. First published April 20, 2012 (Booklist Online).

In this installment of Weeding Tips, lets start at the beginning of the collection (with apologies to
LC collections!). I find that the 000s tend to be difficult to weed, mainly due to the wildly
varying nature of the books. On the one hand, this section contains computer books, which
should turn over fairly rapidly. But it also contains encyclopediasif you still have them, that is
and general trivia-type books. Weeding the 100s should be a fairly easy task, since the material
holds up well, and there isnt a great deal of new or superseded information constantly being
published on philosophy. Religion is also not a difficult section, as long as you know what your
community needs and keep a good mix of titles.
004 (Computers)
In most cases, out-of-date titles should not be retained, even if nothing else is available on that
subject in the collection. Heres where it gets tricky for most librarians. You want to keep all of
those Word 2003 books on the shelf, dont you? You just know that you still have patrons who
use that program, even though its 10 years out of date and has been superseded by two updates.
(Hey, Im not one to judgeOffice 2003 remains my choice on my home computers and I will
continue to keep it until Ive used up the licenses I own!) But how likely is it that your patrons
will need books on the program? After all, if they still have the program, they have likely had it
for many years, and, its certainly not difficult to locate user guides and tips online. Its
reasonable to keep books on software programs one release back but no further. If you must keep
books on outdated computer programs, winnow it down to one copy and one title per program.
Trust me.
010 (Bibliography)
Bibliographies and readers-advisory tools are fine to keep if they are in good condition and were
published within the last 10 years.
020 (Library Science)
Unless you are near a university with a library science program, theres really no sense in
keeping most of your library-related books on the public shelves. Find a space in the staff area
for them, and discard all material that is obsolete or outdated.
030 (Encyclopedias)
Im almost afraid to talk about print encyclopedias here, for I dont want to incur the wrath of
print-loving librarians everywhere. But I think its time to face up to the fact that general print
encyclopedias are no longer the way to go. If you have a set that is more than three years old, its
time to send it packingunless you are in a school library and can honestly say you seewith
your own eyesstudents using them. Older sets can circulate, but Id be wary of information
over eight years old. Naturally, specialized encyclopedias that are updated irregularly should be
retained until a new edition is available, but those are likely shelved in their respective Dewey
sections.

Other 000s
Go ahead and keep most trivia books and quotation books as long as you have the room and they
are being used. In the case of The Guinness Book of World Records, Farmers Almanac, and
similar titles, keep the current edition and one previous edition.
100 (Philosophy)
Although its true that most philosophy books will not become outdated, if the books arent
circulating, its time to weed them out. Do keep a selection of titles that cover Western and Asian
philosophies.
130 (Occult, Paranormal, Dream books)
This shelf is likely fairly self-weeding, with a high rate of use and an equally high rate of theft,
loss, and damage. Books on witchcraft, dream interpretation, and astrology are easy (and
relatively inexpensive) to replace, so weed based on usage and appearance.
150 (Psychology)
While the classics of psychology can remain on the shelves based on popularity and use, your
pop psychology and self-help books need a frequent weed. Keep an eye on titles that are no
longer popular, and dont bother holding on to celebrity books for more than a few years. In
general, you should consider weeding self-help books that have a copyright older than five years.
160 (Logic) & 170 (Ethics and Morality)
Discard worn-out classics in the field and replace with new editions where possible. Examine the
books in the 170s for outdated outlooks or moral values, particularly on hot-button topics such as
euthanasia or sexuality.
200 (Religion and Mythology)
It can feel difficult to weed books on religion, because you might not want to offend anyone or
be accused of favoritism. But if you have something current on each of the major international
religionsBuddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, Judaism, and Taoismyoure well
covered. Add Scientology and sects such as Amish, Mennonite, and others as space and interest
allow. Although the ideas in religious writings do not tend to go out of date, they do reflect the
period in which they were written, and the language becomes dated, so its useful to weed on a
10-year cycle. Keep classics by famous theologians as long as they are popular and in good
condition. Mythology is usually of great interest to students, so keep several copies on hand of
the popular works.
Get ready to weed the 300sa tricky section!in the next issue of Corner Shelf.