Safari books online: currency, usage and book release policies of an e‐book database

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to determine the overall currency of electronic books in the Safari database; to determine currency and release policies of the individual publishers who contribute books to the Safari database; to compare the usage patterns of Safari books to their print counterparts at Texas A&M University; and to discuss the impact of the Safari e‐book collection and chosen purchase model upon collection management at the university.Design/methodology/approachTo determine currency of titles in Safari, the availability of the most recent edition of a title in the Safari database was checked against the availability of the print edition on the publisher's website. To determine the publishers' release policies, a questionnaire was developed and e‐mailed to them.FindingsOf the titles in the Safari database 98.4 percent were the most current edition available. Release policies of the major Safari publishers (O'Reilly and Pearson) indicate that the electronic version of a title is released when the print version is sent to press. No Starch Press, a minor Safari publisher releases its books in Safari 90 days after the print goes on sale. Thomson would not make this information public and the remainder did not respond to the questionnaire.Practical implicationsSubscription to the Safari database (current file) makes available to multiple users the most current computer science and information technology books released by popular publishers. It eliminates the need to expend funds for multiple and replacement copies of this highly requested material.Originality/valueThe current file purchase model assumes that the most recent editions of these popular books are available in Safari. The study indicates that librarians and patrons can be assured that they are accessing the most current editions available.