haring information in the library profession is largely dependent on the library periodical literature. The advantages of the journal include its currency, its capability of addressing many and varied topics, and its ability to disseminate widely the findings of investigations of major problems or specific aspects of them.1 It is also an important means of helping to close the gap between researchers and practitioners.2 The proliferation of library literature is evidence of the growing maturity of librarianship. Norman D. Stevens points out that library publishing evolved slowly in quantity and quality from an emphasis on bibliographies and other "tools of the trade" to materials of a more scholarly nature ''designed for use by librarians and information scientists in the performance of their professional duties and in their professional education and development. '' 3 The profuse, rich, and diverse body of literature that now exists can be attributed to several factors. One, of course, is the requirement of library and information science faculty to publish in order to receive tenure and career advancement. Some writers suggest that the increased trend toward faculty status for academic librarians is partly responsible; others argue that some libraries provide a work environment that encourages experi- Lois Buttlar is an Assistant Professor at the

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Catalogers in academic libraries who belong to ALA’s Technical Services Division were surveyed to determine if and how their job functions have changed over the past ten years. The 271 respondents indicated a change from print to electronic formats, involvement of nonprofessionals in higher levels of cataloging, a trend toward outsourcing (particularly, copy cataloging and foreign-language materials), and more cataloging of specialized items, audiovisual materials, and digital documents by professional librarians. The latter now use their expertise to edit problematic records, engage in managerial tasks, catalog and attempt authority control of Internet resources, do Internet training or Web page design, and use HTML. More and more catalogers are involved in activities formerly in the domain of systems librarians (selecting and implementing catalog products, database maintenance, etc.).

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