THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, August 18, 1995 TAG: 9508170136
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 04 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY JO-ANN CLEGG
STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Medium: 63 lines
When the Bayside Library honored its volunteers last week the color scheme was black and white with a not so faint tinge of green.
The black and white was in honor of the bar coding project the volunteers had just completed. The green represented the amount of money their donated labor saved the city.
``They worked for most of the year to put bar codes on more than 71,000 volumes,'' Laura Scott, Bayside Library supervisor, said. ``We figured it would have cost at least $10,237.50 in staff time to do the job.''
Laid end to end, all of those bar coded books would cover the distance from the Bayside library to the Municipal Center. As it is, they line every nook and cranny at the crowded branch and cause massive traffic jams at the check out lines.
Bar coding is the first of several steps which will lead to much shorter check out lines.
``We did it so people at the circulation desk could work faster,'' Jeanette Friedman, head of cataloging services for the Department of Libraries, explained. ``Down the line, the time and staff savings will be even greater. We hope eventually to have people coming through the doors checking out their own books,'' Friedman said.
Coming through the doors looking like books was what those attending the ice cream social, which the staff gave to celebrate the end of the project, were doing.
``If possible, please wear all black or all white to join in the fun of our black and white bar code color scheme,'' the invitation read.
Most volunteers and staff carried the theme a step or two farther, adding real bar codes to their outfits.
``It's my library card number plus the code for Pat Conroy's latest book and the one for this branch,'' library staffer Nellie Pafford said as she explained the series of black bars on her white outfit.
Among those honoring the volunteers was Marcy Sims, director of the Department of Libraries.
``This project was critical to the future of our libraries,'' Sims said. ``It will position us to move into self service check out. It's quicker, more efficient, less expensive and more available than our existing system.''
Bar coding projects using volunteer labor are under way or planned at all of the city's libraries. Most will be accomplished with the help of volunteer labor.
According to Bayside volunteer Sally Lawrence, the year-long project was a real challenge. ``First you think how are we ever going to get this done and then, suddenly, it's all over. It was just something you have to do so you do it.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo by L. TODD SPENCER
Director of the Department of Libraries Marcy Sims, left, talks with
volunteer Jane Lane. Nellie Pafford, at left in the background,
talks with Jeanette Friedman, who oversaw the project to put bar
codes on 71,000 books.
by CNB