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The UK Regional Library Systems date from the 1930s when they were set up to develop union catalogues and organize regional interlending. During 60 years of development their role has broadened and they have developed a variety of added‐value services. Their original purpose is still important although modified in the light of developments such as BLDSC and automation. They are centrally placed to play a key role in working out the effects of local government reorganization, in acting as agencies through which the proposed National Library and Information Commission could operate, and in protecting the interests of users during a period of change.

Resource sharing is an important element in the national planning of library and information services to meet the needs of information, education and culture of the whole community at all levels. An overview of resource sharing practices is presented, with particular reference to the British scene. It is also argued that, with the approach of the Single Market in 1992, resource sharing should now be considered on a European scale. In conclusion, some problems associated with the practice of resource sharing are considered.

This article describes the automated inventory management of rotating collections and may be applied to any such collections including reserve book rooms, book mobiles, interbranch loans and regional libraries. As a result of 10 years of planning and implementation and a half million dollar investment, all regional libraries in the Province of Quebec use mathematical models and multiLIS software to manage the collections of remote libraries. The software tracks the placement of materials based on number and exchange periods, rate of exchange, delivery routes, size of library's inventory, length of each item's stay in the collection and many other criteria. MultiLIS will produce book lists, bibliographies and catalogs.

Interlending in the Netherlands is based on a national system for the supply of scholarly literature and a regional system for supplying a wider range of material mainly between public libraries. Some 725,000 requests were made in 1979. Most requests are satisfied through union catalogues or printed union lists. In addition to the 12 provincial centres, the 13 regional support libraries have a central role in the regional supply system; they received 131,708 requests in 1980 and satisfied 27%. A single centre in each region is recommended. A survey of the national system showed that 40% of all requests at this level came from academic libraries, 40% from special libraries and 20% from public libraries. Most requests are for science and technology (60%), for English language material (55% of all requests; 70% of requests for journals), and for more recent material (65% published in the last ten years). The satisfaction rate was 76% (higher for requests sent to union catalogues): half were supplied in two weeks, two‐thirds in three weeks. Important gaps in journal coverage were identified, eg in medicine. An on‐line national union catalogue will be available in 1984 and will be used to distribute requests more evenly between libraries, but specific grants to support the interlending function in major supplying libraries will still be necessary, and charges should be made. Improved union catalogues are envisaged at the regional level also.

With reference to comment in our last number on the subject of regional library schemes, we have received interesting observations from various sources, of which we can only publish a few. The first is from a high officer of the Library Association who writes:—“It is suggested that the pooling of non‐fictional resources by the new Regional Library Bureaux would discourage publishers from undertaking scholarly works of an expensive nature. This apprehension is based on the hypothesis that a large number of the smaller libraries, instead of buying such books, will borrow copies from the stronger libraries. To this I would reply:—(a) It is common knowledge that these small libraries have always bought very few scholarly works of an expensive nature. (b) These libraries for the past ten years or so have borrowed such books habitually from the National Central Library. The difference created by the spread of regional schemes is therefore probably negligible, and it is probably true that, except in the case of a small number of established writers, authors of this type of book have for a very long time had to publish largely at their own risk.” Colonel Newcombe of the National Central Library writes:—“In very many cases the fact that a book can be borrowed from, or through, the N.C.L. leads to a copy being purchased by the library to which it is lent, because the attention of the librarian is thus called to the importance of adding the book to his own stock. In considering regional library systems it must be borne in mind that regional co‐operation is intended primarily for the inter‐loan of such items as out‐of‐print books, foreign books, and back volumes of periodicals—though in practice it is also used for the inter‐loan of books which are in print—and that one of the ‘Rules of Procedure for Borrowing Books’ reads as follows: ‘Purchase of books in frequent demand: When a library has to borrow the same book frequently, it is expected that an endeavour will be made by the borrowing library to purchase a copy for its own stock.’ The limited experience at present available tends to show that many such books are purchased. It must also be remembered that any library which attempted to take advantage of its regional system to economise in book expenditure would at once be excluded from the system by the regional committee.” Mr. Basil Anderton of Newcastle‐upon‐Tyne says:—“In 1927, when the Departmental Committee's Report on Public Libraries urged that co‐operation was vital to the progress of library service, some 76 urban library authorities had an arrangement for the inter‐loan of books. Since then, owing to the approval of that report by the Library Association and to the subsequent development of regional schemes in association with the National Central Library and with the backing of the Carnegie Trust, that number has greatly increased. The note in question indicated a fear that such schemes might limit the demand for scholarly works of an expensive nature, and it stated that publishers were becoming less prepared to issue such recondite studies. It should be remembered, however, in the first place, that the process of pooling sets free money which at once becomes available for purchasing important works which would otherwise not have been within one's reach. Treatises on subjects which previously one would have had to ignore can now be got; and they should be got, if members of regional schemes do not shirk their plain duty. Thus a more varied field is opened to libraries, and consequently to publishers also. In the second place it should be borne in mind that publishers, like other folk, are bound to feel the effects of the present world‐wide depression; and that schemes of publication which normally they might gladly undertake have to be criticised searchingly and perhaps temporarily abandoned. But the wide‐spread development of the reading habit, and the growing interest of the public in all kinds of serious reading, should give publishers heart of grace for the future.” Mr. George H. Bushnell, University Library, St. Andrews, writes:—“The most eminent professors and scholars have frequently experienced great difficulty in finding a publisher willing to produce at his own risk a large and important work of scholarship for which only a limited sale is probable. Moreover, such sale as there is for such works is always largely confined to libraries. It is almost certain that the adoption of regional schemes will still further limit the sales and thus it may well be that in a very few years time we shall have excellent arrangements for inter‐loans of books which no publisher will publish! An absurd position, of course, but not by any means unlikely to obtain. Unless it has already been done it would be well to take the views of the Publishers' Association on this point. In my opinion this is important, because (although existing resources can be and will be pooled, at least to a great extent) I am confident that nothing is farther from the aims of those interested in regional schemes than the future limitation of Britain's output of works of scholarship. As all of us know, the necessary purchase of works published abroad is a thorn in the side of library accountants to‐day. Surely we, as librarians, should do nothing which will tend in the least to drive our own scholars into a corner? It is our business to increase the usefulness of the works in our keeping by all means in our power except by the hampering of British scholarship. It is far from my intention to throw cold water upon regional schemes, but it is my intention to draw attention to the possibility, I would almost say probability, of their adverse effect upon the publication of recondite works in this country. Is not the matter of sufficient importance to justify the setting up of a joint committee of the Library Association and the Publishers' Association, before serious harm is done? Such a committee might find that the views I have expressed,—views shared by many, I believe,—are without adequate foundation. I should be glad, indeed, to hear of such a finding, for all praise is due to the promoters and adopters of schemes which already in many ways have proved their worth.”

The history of interlending since 1945 is inseparable from changes taking place in the infrastructure of library and information services and from progressive innovation in communications technology. Three phases of development can be discerned. In the first interlending based on linking individual library services through the NCL/RB system and supplemented by co‐operative acquisition schemes is paralleled by the rise of a national centralized lending service to science and technology. Expansion of library services in the academic and public sectors in the second phase gives rise to co‐operative schemes including interlending to meet specific needs. The successful and progressive development of the NLLST influences traditional interlending modes and the period closes with a rationalization of the national library structure and of the public library system for the next phase of development. This takes place against growing economic restraints and is one of integration and extension of the centralized lending services of the British Library Lending Division and a reassessment of regional connections. The innovative force of computerization is taken up at regional level by LASER and nationally by the British Library Lending Division. Such developments are intrinsic to the considerations of the LISC report Working together. This will form the basis of an evolutionary approach to national co‐ordination and co‐operation in which interlending is fundamental to an access strategy of library and information services.

Background on library service needs that lead to the creation of regional library systems, and overview of current trends.

Historical and philosophical overview by participating regional library system director.

In Illinois, the creation of regional library systems supported the establishment of many new public libraries and service was expanded and strengthened in existing libraries. With the need for new libraries less critical, the systems have greater focus on resource sharing and library development.

As resources for libraries continue to be strained, cooperative ventures can make scarce dollars go further.

Profiles Unity, a regional catalogue containing 10 million titles. Briefly outlines the background and the users of United before looking at the catalogues available, methods of operation and technical information. Considers the future scope of the project, the merging of databases, record editing systems, updating and future developments.

The major developments in library co‐operation and inter/ending within the regional and local schemes are highlighted. Emphasis is placed on the report of the working party of the National Committee on Regional Library Co‐operation on the respective roles of the regional systems and the Lending Division, and the emergence of further co‐operative activities within regions as a result of the report. A further selection of local schemes serving industry are described, and a review of inter/ending activities between university libraries is presented. The year appeared to be one of buoyancy and development, with an increase in personal contacts through inter/ending seminars.

Three of the seven regional systems in Kansas report on the history and use of the open-source Koha integrated library system (ILS) in their regions.

Each of the systems wrote up their experiences and then they collaborated on sections that discussed how they work together to achieve success with this product.

Each of the systems will continue to use the Koha software, and there are a few stand-alone instances of Koha already in place in Kansas. Development and advocacy of the product will be continued by all three of the systems.

This is a rare instance of three separate consortia coming together to work on improving everyone’s experience with an open-source ILS. The authors feel that the experiences they have had with this software are of value to anyone considering making use of it.