From: "Jim O'Donnell" <[log in to unmask]> Date: Mon, 12 Mar 2018 07:04:48 -0700 Libraries struggle with donations: retired faculty, alumni friends, people of a certain age looking to downsize would love to give us their books, carefully selected and cared for over decades. Several problems arise: the books themselves are often very largely duplicates of material we already have; or deal with areas where we don't have an interest in collecting; and every volume accepted comes with a cost in staff time for handling and cataloging and in housing costs over time. So libraries are often now more resistant and have to be very sensitive to the disappointment we create. I have an idea that I have seen somewhere efforts at providing guidance for those who would donate academic books usefully -- at broad, at home, bookdealers, etc. Can any of our learned readers provide pointers to such guidance? I ask because I wonder if we couldn't provide particularly academics useful practical guidance through such information disseminated by e.g. a professional society to its members. This can't be a unique or unheard-of problem. With thanks for all pointers, Jim O'Donnell Arizona State University