De-deweying How one library moved away from decimals to natural language and lived to tell the tale

Our original team Michele Garneau Vicki Lukas

And they miss the project so much

Why we did it Decimals are scary, like fractions User friendly and intuitive – not something you have to learn Great for browsing, easy for research Brings like topics together better than Dewey Immigration and history Computers, digital devices, software languages Space exploration and astronomy Travel books and learning a foreign language Fresh, modern feel and look Did we mention decimals are scary? Because we thought it would just be so cool, and it is

Unexpected bonuses Seamless adoption by our customers Well, except for that one guy who is into numbers and loves Dewey . . . Opportunity to get to know our collection, and what our community really is reading Great statistical analysis potential

Innovations in browsing

Transforming traditional collections

HOW WE DID IT All wrong – no planning, no outline, no creation of an order of things We jumped in and things just came together Started with the ‘easy’ categories – and found there are no easy categories Put our trust in our skills and experience as librarians, our understanding of our community, and our frustration with Dewey and rules When BISAC categories didn’t meet our user friendly requirement, we went our own way and created NATLAC (natural language classification) Relaxed and enjoyed the process

Our recommendations Just do it – it is a great experience Have a team 3 was a perfect size for us Everyone needs to be outspoken, but willing to listen Big picture people are a must – and customer POV If you can’t come to a consensus, let it simmer a bit There will be fights, but the results always helps the customer A thesaurus is your best friend Don’t worry about how long it takes – it will get there Remember, call numbers are just to tell you where to find the book. You won’t get into trouble being innovative for YOUR community