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Library and Information Science Encyclopedia

Library and Information Science Encyclopedia



Library and Information Science Encyclopedia is an Online Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences. It provides articles on librarianship studies, library science, information science, information technology, information and knowledge organization, and management. The encyclopaedia includes articles on everything from traditional library terms to a vocabulary of modern avenues in information science and technology. Encyclopedia articles will include anything and everything required for an advanced study and reference on the Library and Information Science (LIS) topics, including biographies of famous librarians.

Library and Information Science Encyclopedia, which is currently under development, is envisioned to become an authoritative source for consultation and reference for any library or information profession related issue and a treasure hub of knowledge on Library and Information Science, which is open and free for all the library professionals worldwide. Library and Information Science Encyclopedia is expected to become an essential part of every library’s and librarian’s reference collection and will also be helpful to librarians, LIS i-School Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) & Ph.D. students, researchers, and IT professionals.





"Your Study and Research in the Library and Information Science Starts Here with the Library and Information Science Encyclopedia."






BACKGROUND

We wished to give the readers of the Librarianship Studies & Information Technology blog our best and most informative articles. This led to the creation of the Library and Information Science Encyclopedia which is chiefly a collection of selected articles of our Glossary of Library & Information Science which are written in an encyclopedic manner providing in-depth details about the subject. It also includes some articles which are not there in the Glossary of Library & Information Science. The articles of the Library and Information Science Encyclopedia represent the best and most popular contents of the Librarianship Studies & Information Technology blog.


AIMS & PURPOSE

Library & Information Science Encyclopedia aims to support the purpose of the Librarianship Studies & Information Technology blog, which is: To provide leadership for the development, promotion, and improvement of library and information services and the profession of librarianship in order to enhance learning and ensure access to information for all.


HOW TO USE THIS ENCYCLOPEDIA 

Individual entries of the Library and Information Science Encyclopaedia appear in the form of an article in the blog. These are compiled here with a link to the original article and an abstract. In many cases, the abstract itself will satisfy your information needs about the subject. For an advanced study, you must see the most revised and updated version of the original article by clicking on the provided hyperlink.


The word-by-word method of filing is used; acronyms and abbreviations, whether pronounceable or not, are treated as words and filed in the alphabetical sequence in their appropriate place. Words separated by a hyphen are treated as a single word. Where there is a choice between a full term and an acronym, the entry appears under whichever is likely to be more commonly found in the literature, with a reference from alternative expression.


QUALITY CONTROL AND UPDATES

Encyclopedia articles are revised from time to time, as required, to present the most up-to-date information on the subject. At the same time, new articles are continuously being added to the encyclopedia.


THE FUTURE

We have opened the Library and Information Science Encyclopaedia to the LIS experts worldwide to contribute new and update individual articles. To contribute please see Write for Librarianship Studies - Guidelines for Authors.






LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SCIENCE ENCYCLOPEDIA




Access Point - Access Point refers to a name, term, code, heading, word, phrase etc., a unit of information representing a specific entity that can serve as a search key in information retrieval, under which a library catalog or bibliographic database may be searched and library materials may be identified and retrieved. In a catalog, index, or other organized systems some examples of access points are, author, title, name (person, family, corporate body, etc.), subjects (topical, geographical, etc.), classification or call number, and codes such as ISBN, etc. which are chosen by the cataloger or indexer, when creating a bibliographic, authority, or metadata record (a surrogate), to enable the retrieval of the record. In modern cataloging using advanced Integrated Library Systems (ILS), the machine-readable cataloging, almost any portion of the catalog record can serve as an access point. The advanced search of the Online Public Access Catalogs provides many options as access points. 




Acquisitions - Acquisitions or Library Acquisitions is the process of selecting and acquiring selected materials for library and information centers in all formats including digital items and maintaining the necessary records related to acquisitions. First, the selections of materials are done according to the collection development policy of the library. It involves pre-order bibliographic searching of the library catalog to avoid duplication of materials. Then the selected materials are acquired by ordering them for purchase, exchange, or gift. This is followed by receiving the materials, checking their quality, processing invoices, making payment to vendors or individuals, and maintaining the necessary records related to acquisitions. Acquisitions is the first function of Library Technical Services (other two functions being cataloging and collections management). Acquisitions is also used to refer to the functional department (Acquisitions Department) responsible for all aspects of obtaining materials for libraries. Historically the acquisitions decisions were done by the chief librarian and the actual ordering done by the clerical staff and this is still true for small libraries. Now for large libraries with big collections as well as sufficient budgets, acquisitions functions are performed by a separate unit known as Acquisitions Unit or Acquisitions Department.





ALCTS Outstanding Publication Award - Honors the author or authors of the year's outstanding monograph, article, or original paper in the field of technical services, including acquisitions, cataloging, collection management, preservation, continuing resources and related areas in the library field. Papers published in Library Resources & Technical Services (LRTS), the ALCTS journal, are ineligible. Publications from the calendar year prior to the Annual Conference in which the award is presented are eligible. Reprints of earlier publications will not be accepted ... ... ...



Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules (AACR, AACR2, AACR2R) - Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules (AACR) is the essential international cataloguing code used for descriptive cataloging of various types of information resources by libraries in the United States, Great Britain, Canada, and Australia as well as in many other countries. It was first developed in 1967 and updated regularly until 2005. The revisions and updates of the standard are referred to as AACR2. The second edition of Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules (AACR2) is the most widely used cataloging code, designed for use in the construction of catalogs and other lists in general libraries of all sizes. AACR2 comprise a detailed set of rules and guidelines for producing metadata in a surrogate record to represent a library resource. The rules cover the standard description of areas like, the title, publisher, edition, series, etc., as well as the provision of choice and form of access points (headings) for all materials which a library may hold or to which it may have access, including books, serials, cartographic materials, electronic resources, etc. AACR also provides rules for the formulation of standard forms of names and titles to provide access to and grouping of those descriptions. AACR2 standardized cataloging and ensured consistency within the catalog and between the catalogs of libraries using the same code in describing the physical attributes of library materials identically. AACR marked a shift from the previous cataloging rules, which were criticized for being too detailed, complex, and mere compilations of rules to handle specific bibliographic cases. Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules are considered as the most important advances in English-language codes for descriptive cataloging during the twentieth century.



Are You a Bookworm? - Like one’s body needs exercise to stay fit, our thinking faculty, the brain, needs reading. Hence, reading is an exercise to the brain as well as a good habit that makes people more intelligent and broad minded. Therefore, the benefits one can obtain by reading books are manifold and immeasurable. However, due to the advancement of information and communication technology, we can see that people opt to spend their free time on social media such as Youtube, Facebook and etc. rather than reading books. According to Pew Research centre (2019), approximately 27%of U.S adults haven’t read a book in whole or in part in the past year, whether in print, electronic or audio form. In support of that Global Social Media Stats (2021) highlights, a typical user spends an average of close to 2½ hours using social media each day. This tantamounts to a sharp decline in the reading habits of people throughout the world.



Arlene G. Taylor (Ph.D. ’81) - Arlene G. Taylor is Professor Emerita from the School of Information Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, where she taught for 12 years prior to retiring, and holds an honorary appointment as a Distinguished Adjunct Professor at University of North Carolina School of Information and Library Science. Her career as a library school educator lasted more than 30 years, and included teaching at Columbia University and the University of Chicago. She is lead author or co-author of widely-used texts, including Introduction to Cataloging and Classification (6th to 11th editions) and The Organization of Information (four editions). She has an extensive publication record of refereed articles, books and book chapters, and research reports, and she has given more than 90 guest presentations for national, state, and regional library associations, as well as library schools. Taylor's international activities include serving as a workshop leader, teacher, and/or consultant in Brazil, England, Thailand, and Israel. For her work in the latter two countries, she received Fulbright Senior Specialist Program Grants. She has held leadership positions on many professional association committees, including the ALA/ALCTS Catalog Form and Function Committee (Chair, 1995–1998) and the ALA/ALCTS/CCS Subject Analysis Committee (Chair, 1992–1994). Her professional contributions have been recognized with the ALA/ALCTS Margaret Mann Citation, the ALA/Highsmith Library Literature Award for The Organization of Information, and the Distinguished Alumnus Award from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Graduate School of Library and Information Science Alumni Association. Prior to earning her Ph.D. at UNC, she had worked in libraries as a cataloger at the Library of Congress, Christopher Newport College (now University), and Iowa State University. Taylor longed to return to North Carolina from the time she left in 1981. After she retired from teaching, she and her husband moved to Chapel Hill in 2007. She continues to write, working with former students on research articles and on new editions of her textbooks.  She also enjoys “cataloging” her many pictures of parents, grandparents, great-grandparents, great-great grandparents, and even one set of great-great-great grandparents, and their families.



Assigned Indexing - Assigned Indexing (or Assignment Indexing or Concept Indexing) in an indexing method in which the human indexer selects one or more subject headings or descriptors from a list of controlled vocabulary (e.g. subject headings lists, thesaurus, or classification schemes) to represent the subject matter of the work. Since the Assigned Indexing uses the controlled vocabulary to give the indexing terms selected to represent the subject content of a work, so in this technique there is no need for the index terms to appear in the title or text of the document indexed. In indexing, if the terms are selected from the title or the text of a document and used without any alteration as index terms, then this is referred to as natural language indexing or derived indexing. If however, the selected terms are translated or encoded into authorized terms by the help of a prescribed list, then the indexing language becomes controlled or artificial. This process is called Assigned Indexing. Derived Indexing solely relies on information which is manifest in the document, without attempting to add to this from indexer’s own knowledge or other sources. We looked at ways in which printed indexes could be derived from information manifest in a document. We can also consider some of the ways in which files may be searched online, again using the information manifest in the document, e.g. titles, abstracts or full text. By doing so we have to face the problems of natural language. A discussion of these problems leads to the idea of assigned indexing. If we are to use a list of words to help us in our searching, we would increase the chances of achieving successful matches if we used the same list of words to encode the appropriate words to the documents ourselves rather than rely on authors’ choice. In other words, we devise an indexing language and use this for both encoding operations: input and question. Such systems are referred to as assigned indexing systems. Assigned indexing involves an intellectual process. Subject heading schemes, thesaurus and classification schemes are the popular forms of assigned indexing. Assigned indexing is also known as concept indexing because what we are trying to do is to identify the concepts involved in each document.




Authority Control - Authority Control is a process that organizes bibliographic information in library catalogs by using a single, distinct spelling of a name (heading) or a subject for each topic. Authority Record is a record which gives the authoritative form (the form selected for a heading) of a personal name, corporate name, family name, place name, uniform or preferred title, series title, subject, etc. in the library catalog or the file of bibliographic records, and are listed in an authority file containing headings of library items. To ensure consistency, an authority record is created for each authorized heading (authorized access point) for a proper name or a subject, etc. An authority record is made when a heading is established, i.e., authorized for use as the main entry (preferred title and, if appropriate, the authorized access point for the creator), an added entry, or subject entry, for the first time, while cataloging of a library item. Authority control is the process that is applied to both descriptive and subject analysis parts of cataloging. It ensures the consistency and correctness of names and subject headings entered into the bibliographic description.




Authority Record - Authority Record is a record which gives the authoritative form (the form selected for a heading) of a personal name, corporate name, family name, place name, uniform or preferred title, series title, subject, etc. in the library catalog or the file of bibliographic records, and are listed in an authority file containing headings of library items. To ensure consistency, an authority record is created for each authorized heading (authorized access point) for a proper name or a subject, etc. An authority record is made when a heading is established, i.e., authorized for use as the main entry (preferred title and, if appropriate, the authorized access point for the creator), an added entry, or subject entry, for the first time, while cataloging of a library item. Authority record may be in a printed or machine-readable form.




Authorized Access Point - Authorized Access Point (AAP) is a term used in cataloging which refers to the preferred controlled access point for an entity, established and constructed according to rules or standards. It is the standardized character string established in an authority record that is used to represent an entity (e.g., person, family, corporate body, a work, a subject) consistently in bibliographic descriptions. When we create the metadata description for any resource in a library catalog, the discovery of the resource is better if we use the Authorized Access Points for the person, family, corporate body, meeting name, a work, or a subject.



Awards Grants and Scholarships in Library and Information Science - Study and research awards, grants, scholarships, and fellowships in Library and Information Science for the professional development of librarians, catalogers, and information professionals.




Best Quotes About Libraries Librarians and Library and Information Science - Top 29 Most Beautiful Quotations About Libraries, Librarians, Cataloging, Classification, Catalogers, and Library and Information Science Important Topics. Famous quotes describing why libraries and cataloging important and librarians and catalogers indispensable.




BIBFRAME - BIBFRAME (Bibliographic Framework) is a data model for bibliographic description. BIBFRAME was designed to replace the MARC standards, and to use linked data principles to make bibliographic data more useful both within and outside the library community. The MARC Standards, which BIBFRAME seeks to replace, were developed by Henriette Avram at the US Library of Congress during the 1960s. By 1971, MARC formats had become the national standard for dissemination of bibliographic data in the United States, and the international standard by 1973. In a provocatively titled 2002 article, library technologist Roy Tennant argued that "MARC Must Die", noting that the standard was old; used only within the library community; and designed to be a display, rather than a storage or retrieval format. A 2008 report from the Library of Congress wrote that MARC is "based on forty-year-old techniques for data management and is out of step with programming styles of today." In 2012, the Library of Congress announced that it had contracted with Zepheira, a data management company, to develop a linked data alternative to MARC. Later that year, the library announced a new model called MARC Resources (MARCR). That November, the library released a more complete draft of the model, renamed BIBFRAME. The Library of Congress released version 2.0 of BIBFRAME in 2016.



Biographies of Famous Librarians and Library and Information Professionals - (Who's Who in Library and Information Science)- Library and Information Science Biographies. List of biographies of top famous librarians, catalogers, library science teachers, and Library and Information Studies professionals. This is a list of notable librarians and people who have advanced libraries and librarianship. Also included are people primarily notable for other endeavors, such as politicians and writers, who have also worked as librarians.



Campus Bio-Medico University Library - The Campus Bio-Medico University (UCBM) Library is an academic medical library that provides services to the university’s students, researchers, faculty members, and medical staff. The library houses more than 25,000 volumes covering the many and varied aspects of medicine and healthcare, but the collection also includes a broad range of other disciplines. In addition, the library maintains a historical medical book collection for users who are interested in the history of medicine. This collection contains books with the historical value printed between the late sixteenth- and the mid-twentieth centuries. Moreover, the library holds a collection of titles related to the history of hospitals and health institutions of the world. In so doing, the library has built a significant resource for research in the field of medical history, bringing value to the university.

Campus Bio-Medico University Library




Cataloger's Reference Directory - 100+ Most Important Cataloging Tools and Resources for Cataloging and Metadata Librarians and Catalogers. Cataloger's Reference Directory is a collection of top free and paid cataloging and bibliographic metadata resources. It includes sources for descriptive cataloging, subject cataloging, authority control, classification, subject headings, subject indexing, and metadata description.



Cataloging - Cataloging or Library Cataloging is the process of creating and maintaining bibliographic and authority records of the library catalog, the database of books, serials, sound recordings, moving images, cartographic materials, computer files, e-resources etc. that are owned by a library. The catalog may be in tangible form, such as a card catalog or in electronic form, such as online public access catalog (OPAC). The process of cataloging involves two major activities, viz. Descriptive Cataloging and Subject Cataloging. In Descriptive Cataloging, we describe details of library resources, such as the name of creator(s), contributor(s), titles, edition, publication, distribution, date, physical description, series etc. Two popular standards for Descriptive Cataloging are Anglo-American Cataloging Rules (AACR) and its successor Resource Description and Access (RDA). Subject cataloging involves subject analysis of the resource and assignment of classification numbers using schemes such as Library of Congress Classification (LCC) or Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) and providing subject headings using schemes such as Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH).



Cataloging Metadata Examples : RDA AACR2 LCSH LCC DDC MARC-21 BIBFRAME Etc. - Bibliographic and Authority record examples of cataloging with Resource Description and Access (RDA), Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH), Library of Congress Classification (LCC), MARC 21, BIBFRAME, Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules (AACR2), ISBD, MODS, Dublin Core, etc.

Cataloging Metadata Examples : RDA AACR2 LCSH LCC DDC MARC-21 BIBFRAME Etc.



Charles Ammi Cutter’s Objects of the Catalogue (or Objectives of the Library Catalog) - The shared vision of information organization has been guided by principles. One of the most influential is Charles Cutter’s “Objects of the Catalogue,” first published in 1876 in his Rules for a Printed Dictionary Catalogue. He discussed what we expect our retrieval tools to do. If we look closely, we can see that subject and genre/form access were considered by Cutter to be important functions of the catalog.  The first object (or Objective) is to be able to find a resource if the name of the creator, or the title, or the subject of the resource is known. This finding function insists that the catalog provide access to individual resources in a collection. The second object is the collocation or gathering function. It states that users should be able to retrieve not only a single resource, but to discover all resources related to a creator, a subject, or in a particular genre or form of material. The third objective reflects a selection function. It means that users should be able to choose a resource that best fits their needs, based on either its bibliographic characteristics (such as language or format), or as to its subject-related or genre/form characteristics. Cutter’s definition of the catalog has stood the test of time, but it has been updated and expanded over the years.

Charles Ammi Cutter’s Objects of the Catalogue (or Objectives of the Library Catalog)



Chain Indexing - Chain Indexing or Chain Procedure is a mechanical method to derive subject index entries or subject headings from the class number of the document. It was developed by Dr. S.R. Ranganathan. He first mentioned this in his book “Theory of Library Catalogue” in 1938. In Chain Procedure, the indexer or cataloguer is supposed to start from where the classifier has left. No duplication of work is to be done. He/she has to derive subject headings or class index entries from the digit by digit interpretation of the class number of the document in the reverse direction, to provide the alphabetical approach to the subject of the document. Ranganathan designed this new method of deriving verbal subject heading in 1934 to provide the subject approach to documents through the alphabetical part of a classified catalog. This method was distinctly different from the enumerated subject heading systems like Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) or Sears List of Subject Headings (SLSH). He discerned that classification and subject indexing were two sides of the same coin. Classifying a document is the translation of its specific subject into an artificial language of ordinal numbers which results in the formation of a class number linking together all the isolate ideas in the form of a chain. This chain of class numbers is retranslated into its verbal equivalent to formulate a subject heading that represents the subject contents of the document. The class number itself is the result of subject analysis of a document into its facet ideas and linked together by a set of indicator digits, particularly when a classification system like Colon Classification is used for the purpose. As this chain is used for deriving subject entries on the basis of a set of rules and procedures, this new system was called ‘Chain Procedure’. This approach inspired in many other models of subject indexing developed afterward, based upon classificatory principles and postulates. Chain Indexing was originally intended for use with Colon Classification. However, it may be applied to any scheme of classification whose notation follows a hierarchical pattern.




Citation Indexing - A citation index is an ordered list of cited articles along with a list of citing articles. The cited article is identified as the reference and the citing article as the source. The index is prepared utilizing the association of ideas existing between the cited and the citing articles, as the fact is that whenever a recent paper cites a previous paper there always exists a relation of ideas, between the two papers.



Classification Number - Classification Number is a number (numbers or a combination of letters and numbers) that represents the subject or form of an item being cataloged, selected from a classification schedule or classification system. Classification Number is also called class number or class mark. It is the first part of a call number which is used to classify library resources by subject area. In a Relative location, Classification Number also shows the place of the item on the shelves and in relation to other subjects. It translates the name of its specific subject into the artificial language of the notation of the scheme of classification. The use of classification number enables library users to browse on shelves to find its materials and also additional items on the same or related subjects, and, to find out what documents the library has on a certain subject.



COMPASS - PRECIS was intended to be a complete subject statement in a form suitable for a printed bibliography, and this was not necessarily the best format for online searching. Its complex system of coding and role operators served to produce the output strings for printing which appear to be unnecessary in an online system. It did not appear to make any difference whether a concept is coded with the role operator (1) or (2). Place name was treated in several ways with the role operators (O), (1), (5) and occasionally (3) as part of the subject string. The use of role operators in such a manner was not of much help for online searching. In 1990, it was decided to revise UKMARK and to replace PRECIS by a more simplified system of subject indexing in order to reduce the unit cost of cataloguing of the British Library. As a result, Computer Aided Subject System (COMPASS) was introduced for BNB in 1991 and PRECIS was dropped.




Controlled Vocabulary - Controlled Vocabulary refers to an established list, organized arrangement, or database of preferred terms and phrases (usually subject or genre/form terms) in which all terms and phrases representing a concept are brought together. A controlled vocabulary is usually listed alphabetically in a subject headings list or thesaurus of indexing terms. In a controlled vocabulary a preferred term or phrase is designated for use in surrogate records in a retrieval tool (e.g., bibliographic records in the library catalog), the non-preferred terms have references from them to the chosen term or phrase, and relationships among used terms are identified (e.g., broader terms, narrower terms, related terms). There may also be scope notes. A cataloger or indexer must select terms from a controlled vocabulary when assigning subject headings or descriptors in a bibliographic record to indicate the subject of the work (e.g. a book) in a library catalog, bibliographic database, or an index. Controlled vocabularies provide a way to organize knowledge for subsequent retrieval. They are used in subject indexing schemes, subject headings, thesauri, taxonomies, and other knowledge organization systems. Controlled vocabulary schemes mandate the use of predefined, authorized terms that have been preselected by the designers of the schemes, in contrast to natural language vocabularies, which have no such restriction.



Controversies in the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH): the Case of Illegal Aliens - Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) includes some headings which are considered pejorative or biased by some people. In this article, we shall discuss one such LCSH heading "Illegal Aliens."



Date of Publication - A date of publication is a date associated with the publication, release, or issuing of a document. The date of publication is the year in which the edition, revision, etc., described in the edition area was published. If there is no edition area, the date of the first publication of the edition to which the item belongs is considered the publication date. There are the special set of rules for transcription and recording of the date of publication in library cataloging standards, e.g., RDA rules for date of publication is given in chapter 2 (RDA rule 2.8.6) of Resource Description and Access (RDA). In Anglo-American Cataloging Rules 2nd edition (AACR2), rules for the date of publication, distribution etc. for books are given in chapter 2 (2.4F).



Derived Indexing - We have to encode the subject of a document in order to place the document itself or our records of it in our store. This means that we must in the same way be able to specify the subject. Generally, an indexer neither has time to read all the documents added to the stock nor has enough understanding about them.  He, therefore, uses short cuts-like: the contents page, preface or introduction, or publishers blurb on the book cover; or an abstract if we are looking at a journal article or technical report; or the claims for a patent specification. All of these will give some indication of the subject and will suggest certain lines of thought if we want to pursue the matter further, for example in a dictionary or encyclopedia. While indexing we may rely solely on information which is manifest in the document, without attempting to add to this from our own knowledge or other sources. This is derived indexing, that is, indexing derived directly from the document. There are some ways in which derived indexing has been used to produce printed indexes, particularly in computer-based systems. These are now often found in online systems, but the principles remain the same. However, during the process of indexing, it is practice to distinguish between intellectual and clerical effort involved in an IR system,  and computers enable is to carry out the clerical operations at high speed. Derived indexing reduces intellectual effort to a minimum and is thus suited to computer operations, which enables to get a variety of outputs from the one input. Examples of derived indexing are title based indexing and citation indexing.



Descriptive Cataloging - Descriptive Cataloging includes recording the attributes of a library item, such as the name of author(s), contributor(s), title, edition, publisher, distributor, date, the number of pages, its size, name of series, etc. Descriptive Cataloging enables the user to find and identify a book, by the name of the author, the title, variant titles, etc. Two popular standards for Descriptive Cataloging are Anglo-American Cataloging Rules (AACR) and its successor Resource Description and Access (RDA).



Extended Date Time Format (EDTF) - The Extended Date/Time Format (EDTF) is a draft date-time standard initiated by the Library of Congress with the intention of creating more explicit date formatting and addressing date types that are not currently regulated by ISO 8601. The date time format ISO 8601 describes a number of date/time features, some of which are redundant and/or not very useful, on the other hand, there are a number of date and time format conventions in common use that are not included in ISO 8601. EDTF responds to a need for a date/time string more expressive than ISO 8601 can support. Current suggestions for additions are being noted and discussed within the EDTF community with the intention of formalizing the EDTF as an ISO 8601 amendment or as an extension to other Web-based date standards. EDTF defines features to be supported in a date/time string, features considered useful for a wide variety of applications.




Five Laws of Library Science - The 5 Laws of Library Science is a theory proposed by S. R. Ranganathan in 1931, detailing the principles of operating a library system. Five laws of library science are called the set of norms, percepts, and guides to good practice in librarianship. Many librarians worldwide accept them as the foundations of their philosophy. Dr. S.R. Ranganathan conceived the Five Laws of Library Science in 1924. The statements embodying these laws were formulated in 1928. These laws were first published in Ranganathan's classic book entitled Five Laws of Library Science in 1931. These laws are: First Law: Books Are For Use; Second Law: Every Reader His/Her Book; Third Law: Every Book Its Reader; Fourth Law: Save The Time Of The Reader; Fifth Law: The Library Is A Growing Organism. These laws of Library Science are the "fundamental laws" of Library Science. These are applicable to any problem in the areas of library science, library service, and library practice. These laws are like pot containing oceans. Prior to their enunciation, the subject of Library Science had no philosophy. These laws gave a philosophical base, guaranteeing an everlasting future to the subject of library science, the profession of librarianship, and the use of libraries. These laws have provided a scientific approach to the subject of library science. Even though S.R. Ranganathan proposed the Five Laws of Library Science before the advent of the digital age, they are still valid and equally relevant today.




Frederick G. Kilgour Award for Research in Library and Information Technology (LITA / OCLC) - The Frederick G. Kilgour Award for Research in Library and Information Technology is sponsored by OCLC (Online Computer Library Center, Inc.) and the Library and Information Technology Association (LITA), a division of the American Library Association. The purpose of this award is to bring attention to research relevant to the development of information technologies, especially work which shows promise of having a positive and substantive impact on any aspect of the publication, storage, retrieval and dissemination of information, or the processes by which information and data is manipulated and managed. The intent is to recognize a body of work probably spanning years, if not the majority of a career. The award will consist of $2,000 cash and an expense paid trip to the ALA conference (airfare and two nights lodging).



Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) - Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR /ˈfɜːrbər/) is a conceptual entity-relationship model developed by the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) that relates user tasks of retrieval and access in online library catalogs and bibliographic databases from a user’s perspective. It represents a more holistic approach to retrieval and access as the relationships between the entities provide links to navigate through the hierarchy of relationships. The model is significant because it is separate from specific cataloging standards such as Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules (AACR) or International Standard Bibliographic Description (ISBD). 




Google Plus Collections & Communities for Librarians & Catalogers - Top Google+ Collections and Communities on Library and Information Science for Librarians and Catalogers to Follow in 2016. Are you on Google+? Do you know all of the Google+ Collections that you can follow and Google+ Communities that you can join for latest updates on Library and Information Science and Library Cataloging? Even if you are not on Google+ this article will present a compelling case for you to join Google+ to be updated of latest happenings in the fields of Library and Information Science and Library Cataloging.




Hindi Language Literature and Indology: Resources and Information for Librarians - A list of resources and information about Hindi language, Hindi literature, and Indology for librarians, libraries, scholars, and researchers. This will especially be useful for the libraries of universities in the United States, European countries, and other countries that have the South Asian Studies Department which provides courses in Hindi language, literature, and Indology.

Hindi Language Literature and Indology: Resources and Information for Librarians



I Love Being a Librarian Because: Top Reasons Why Librarians Love Their Job - The Librarianship Studies & Information Technology blog organized a contest for completing the slogan “I Love Being a Librarian Because…” which received an overwhelming response from librarians all over the world. The select slogans which were featured on the blog are given here, in no qualitative order. The founder of the blog, Salman Haider, posted the first slogans himself where he expressed his feelings of being a proud librarian and cataloger in three different ways. Read this article to know why librarians all over the world love their profession:




IFLA Library Reference Model (LRM) - IFLA Library Reference Model (LRM) is a high-level conceptual reference model developed within an entity-relationship modelling framework. It is the consolidation of the separately developed IFLA conceptual models: FRBR, FRAD, FRSAD.



Index -  The term ‘index’  has been derived from the Latin word ‘indicare’ which means to indicate or to point out. Here it refers to guide to a particular concept in a document. Index is a systematic guide to items contained in a document or concepts derived from it. Items denote the name of the author, title, etc.; concepts may be like classification, cataloging, etc. To elaborate a bit more it may be said that an index is a systematic guide to the items of published literature in a collection or concepts derived from a collection. The purpose of an index is to locate and retrieve the needed items or concepts in a collection. An index is consist of entries. Each entry is a unit of an index. These entries are arranged in a systematic order. An index consists of two parts: (i) Descriptive part – It gives items, ideas, and concepts; (ii) Location Part – It gives the location where the items or concepts have been discussed or is available.



Introduction to Digital Humanities - Online Course by Harvard University - Introduction to Digital Humanities is a free online course by Harvard University to develop skills in digital research and visualization techniques across subjects and fields within the humanities. It is provided on edX platform. As primary sources of information are more frequently digitized and available online than ever before, how can we use those sources to ask new questions? How did Chinese families organize themselves and their landscapes in China’s past? How did African slaves from different cultures form communities in the Americas? What influences informed the creation and evolution of Broadway musicals? How can I understand or interpret 1,000 books all at once? How can I create a visualization that my students can interact with? The answers to these questions can be explored using a wide variety of digital tools, methods, and sources. As museums, libraries, archives and other institutions have digitized collections and artifacts, new tools and standards have been developed that turn those materials into machine-readable data. Optical Character Recognition (OCR) and the Text Encoding Initiative (TEI), for example, have enabled humanities researchers to process vast amounts of textual data. However, these advances are not limited just to text. Sound, images, and video have all been subject to these new forms of research. This course will show you how to manage the many aspects of digital humanities research and scholarship. Whether you are a student or scholar, librarian or archivist, museum curator or public historian — or just plain curious — this course will help you bring your area of study or interest to new life using digital tools.




ISO 8601 - ISO 8601 describes an internationally accepted way to represent dates and times using numbers. It was issued by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and was first published in 1988. The purpose of this standard is to provide an unambiguous and well-defined method of representing dates and times, so as to avoid misinterpretation of numeric representations of dates and times, particularly when data are transferred between countries with different conventions for writing numeric dates and times. When dates are represented with numbers they can be interpreted in different ways. For example the date of writing of this glossary entry, 05/07/16 could mean May 7, 2016, or July 5, 2016. On an individual level this uncertainty can be very frustrating, in a business context it can be very expensive. Organizing meetings and deliveries, writing contracts and buying airplane tickets can be very difficult when the date is unclear. ISO 8601 tackles this uncertainty by setting out an internationally agreed way to represent dates: YYYY-MM-DD. For example, May 7, 2016, is represented as 2016-05-07. The Library of Congress has initiated a draft date-time standard known as Extended Date/Time Format (EDTF) with the intention of creating more explicit date formatting and addressing date types that are not currently regulated by ISO 8601. The EDTF is formalized as an ISO 8601 amendment or as an extension to other Web-based date standards. EDTF format is used in the MARC 21 filed 046 in the Name Authority Records in cataloging in Resource Description and Access (RDA). The current LC-PCC best practice suggests, "When supplying dates in field 046, use the Extended Date Time Format (EDTF) schema in all cases except for centuries."

ISO 8601



Key-Term Alphabetical (KEYTALPHA) - In the Key-Term Alphabetical index, keywords are arranged side by side without forming a sentence. Entries are prepared containing only keywords and location excluding the context. 



Keyword Augmented in Context (KWAC) - The acronym KWAC also stands for Keyword and Context. The KWAC system provides for the enrichment of the keywords of the title with additional significant words taken either from the abstract f the document or its contents. Since titles do not always represent the contents of a document fully, the enrichment minimizes this limitation. The problem of false retrieval, which is inherent in a purely title based indexing system, is solved to some extent.



Keyword in Context (KWIC) Indexing - Keyword in Context Indexing system is based on the principle that the title of the document represents its contents. It is believed that the title of the document is one line abstract of the document. The significant words in the title indicate the subject of the document. a KWIC index makes an entry under each significant word in the title, along with the remaining part of the title to keep the context intact. The entries are derived using terms one by one as the lead term along with the entire context for each entry.



Keyword Out of Context (KWOC) - In KWOC system, keyword or the access point is shifted to the extreme left at its normal place in the beginning of the line. It is followed by the complete title to provide complete context. The keyword and the context are written either in the same line or in two successive lines.



Libhub Initiative - The Libhub Initiative aims to raise the visibility of Libraries on the Web by actively exploring the promise of BIBFRAME and Linked Data. The objective of The Libhub Initiative is to publish BIBFRAME resources to the Web, cross-link resources which are common among libraries, and, through cross-linking improve the ability for people to discover these resources on the open Web. Ultimately, the goal is that users would then be able to click on appropriate resources and be taken back to the library’s catalog. Libraries and memory organizations have rich content and resources the Web can't see or use today -- effectively making them dark collections and invisible archives. Imagine if libraries could represent themselves together in a way the Web could see and understand. This unified voice and utility is among the core promises of BIBFRAME and the Linked Data in Libraries movement. BIBFRAME (Bibliographic Framework) is a data model for bibliographic description. BIBFRAME was designed to replace the MARC standards, and to use linked data principles to make bibliographic data more useful both within and outside the library community.



Librarian - A librarian is a person who is in charge of or works professionally in a library and is responsible for its management and services. The librarian takes care of the library and its resources. The typical job of a librarian includes managing collection development and acquisitions, cataloging, collections management, circulation, and providing a range of services, such as reference, information, instruction, and training services, etc. Librarians are trained in library and information science and are engaged in providing library services, usually holding a degree in library science. In the United States, the title Librarian is reserved for persons who have been awarded the ALA-accredited Master of Library and Information Science or MLIS degree or certified as professionals by a state agency. In a small library, such as a school library a single librarian may be responsible for managing the overall functions of the library but big libraries, such as a large academic library may have much staff to carry out different functions of the library depending on their qualifications, expertise, and functional specializations, e.g. acquisition librarian, archivists, cataloging librarian, electronic resources librarian, metadata librarian, reference librarian, serials librarian, systems librarian, etc. Based on the type of the library served, librarians may be classified as a school librarian, academic librarian, special librarian, etc. The increasing role of technology in libraries has a significant impact on the changing roles of librarians. A 21st-century librarian is required to be very much updated of technological changes. New age librarians are making greater use of emerging technologies in the library management and services to make it more popular and useful among the patrons. New age librarians are not mere bookworms, they are high-tech information professionals, and clever communicators, helping patrons dive in the oceans of information available in books and digital records.





Library and Information Association of South Africa (LIASA) - The Library and Information Association of South Africa (LIASA) is a professional non-profit organization, representing all institutions and people working in libraries and information services in South Africa.



Library and Information Science - Library and Information Science (LIS) is an interdisciplinary domain concerned with creation, management, and uses of information in all its forms. Taught in colleges and universities at the undergraduate and graduate levels and a subject of research in both industry and academia, LIS brings together a variety of theoretical approaches. Its focus is on representations of information—the documentary evidence of civilization—as well as on the technologies and organizations through which information becomes accessible. The research domain is young, beginning in the late 1960s and early 1970s, but its roots lie in the nineteenth century. LIS represents the intersection of library science, information science (originally called documentation), and communications. The first, library science, has sought to solve the problems of organizing and providing access to collections of materials. The second, information science, seeks to understand the properties of information and how to manage it. Aspects of the field of communication, always a facet of the first two, became interwoven with both as library science and information science matured and increasingly intersected with one another.




Library and Information Science Articles and News - Top 200 Most Fantastic Library and Information Science Articles and News Every Librarian Must See.




Library and Information Science - Did You Know? - Important information and facts to remember covering all the areas of Library and Information Science, Librarianship Studies and Information Technology related to libraries and library management. This collection of pieces of information in LIS will act not only as a ready reference knowledge bank on Library and Information Science but also be a good tool for appearing in the competitive exams and interviews and keeping updated with the new knowledge for LIS professionals all around the world.




Library and Information Science Dissertations and Theses - Best Reference Sources for Doctoral and Master's Dissertations and Thesis in Library and Information Science; LIS Ph.D. and MLIS Thesis and Dissertations. General reference databases are listed first which is followed by the repositories and digital libraries of individual countries and universities. It also provides information on the online availability of electronic theses in the library and information science through centrally-maintained digital repositories which not only ensure easy access and archiving of doctoral theses but will also help in raising the standard and quality of research.




Library and Information Science History On This Day - First part is "Library and Information Science History On This Day" which lists important dates, occasions, and events for libraries and librarians "by day". This is followed by a "calendar" titled "On This Day - Library History". The last part is "Library and Information Science History Timeline" which lists important events and occasion "by year grouped by century" in the history of Library and Information Science.





Library and Information Science Portal - LIS Portal is a web portal featuring interesting stories from the Librarianship Studies & Information Technology blog and other important sources. 




Library and Information Science Study and Training Courses Programs and Resources for Future-Ready Librarians - List of Study and Training Courses Programs and Resources (Including Free and Online) in Library and Information Science (LIS) for Librarians and Catalogers. 





Library and Information Science Questions Answers Quizzes - Questions covering all the areas of Library and Information Science, Librarianship Studies and Information Technology related to libraries and library management. This collection of questions will act not only as a question bank on Library and Information Science but also be a good tool for appearing in the interviews and keeping updated with the new knowledge for LIS professionals all around the world.

Library and Information Science Questions Answers Quizzes




Library and Information Science Videos - Top 200 Most Fantastic Library and Information Science Videos Every Librarian Must See. Library and Information Science Videos is an initiative of Librarianship Studies & Information Technology blog to showcase the finest LIS videos for librarians, catalogers, metadata, archives, and knowledge professionals. The videos are sourced from Librarianship Studies & Information Technology YouTube Channel which are organized based on the categories (or labels) of Librarianship Studies blog.





Library and Information Technology Association (LITA) - The Library and Information Technology Association (LITA) is the leading organization reaching out across types of libraries to provide education and services for a broad membership of systems librarians, library technologists, library administrators, library schools, vendors, and others interested in leading edge technology and applications for librarians and information providers. LITA is a division of the American Library Association.



Library Associations - Library associations are Professional organizations formed to bring together librarians who share common interests in subjects, types of services, or other factors. Especially national associations, such as CILIP or the American Library Association, and of these there are examples in most countries of the world. Benjamin Franklin said- “An investment in knowledge pays the best interest,” so the investment in the libraries will be the best investment in the development of knowledge and will be paid with high returns to the society. As we are aware that “Unity is strength”, hence associations are formed to unite the professionals of a particular field of common interest areas. Professional associations are playing an important role in the development of a particular subject field. It is true for the library and information science profession as well. Library associations at different levels have been playing a significant role in the development and promotion of library systems. They are providing a platform to discuss various issues and problems regarding the libraries.
Library Associations help in various ways. First of all, they unite the professionals and give them voice strength. Seminars, conferences, workshops, training programs, orientation courses, short-term training courses, ICT literacy awareness events are arranged from time to time by the library associations for keeping their members abreast of new developments in the field of library and information science/service. This activity helps in the enhancement of skills and knowledge of library professionals. Many of these associations publish newsletters and journals to provide the latest information and research findings to library professionals.



Library Automation - Library automation refers to the use of the computer to automate the typical procedures of libraries such as cataloging and circulation. In the process of library automation, a library makes the use of computers and other technologies to support its systems and services. Library automation is the conversion of a library’s procedures from manual to computerized, such as from a card catalog to an OPAC, or from manual circulation cards to an integrated library system. Automation is a process of using machinery for easily working and saving human power and time. The main purpose of library automation is to free the librarians and library staff and to allow them to contribute more meaningfully to the spread of knowledge and information. In Library Science automation is ‘the technology concerned with the design and development of the process and system that minimizes the necessity of human intervention in their operation.’¹ Beginning in the 1960s with the development of the machine-readable catalog record (MARC), the process of automation has expanded to include the core functions of acquisitions, cataloging and authority control, serials control, circulation and inventory, and interlibrary loan and document delivery. The library automation field is currently dominated by a handful of systems vendors (Auto-Graphics, EOS International, Ex Libris, Follett, Innovative Interfaces, Polaris Library Systems, SirsiDynix, TLC, and VTLS). Recent trends in library automation include the growing importance of "add-ons" mostly related to the delivery of digital content (link resolvers, portal and metasearch interfaces, and e-resource management modules often provided by third-party vendors), better integration with the Web environment (rewriting fat PC clients as browser applications, using XML and style sheets for display, and developing XML import and export capabilities) and for academic libraries, closer integration of library systems with learning management systems.



Library Circulation - Library Circulation is the function of lending library materials (books, serials, sound recordings, moving images, cartographic materials, etc. that are owned by a library) to the users of the library. Library Circulation includes checking out library materials to library users, renewing the borrowed items, reserving checked out items for the patron, checking in materials returned, checking the materials for damage at the time of return, if found damaged then giving that to responsible staff for repair and when repair is not possible then replacement, renewal of materials, receiving payment of fines for damaged and overdue materials and payment for subscription to the library and other charges, maintaining order in the stacks by re-shelving the library materials by call number given by classification system, such as Library of Congress Classification (LCC) or Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) system. There is a Circulation Desk, a long counter usually located at the main entrance of the library to carry out library circulation activities. It is the service point to register for the library card, check out, renew, and return library materials. Library staff at circulation desk also provides basic search and reference services in the use of library and placement of information resources.



Library Classification - Classification or Library Classification or Book Classification or Bibliographic Classification is the process of arranging, grouping, coding, and organizing books and other library materials (e.g. serials, sound recordings, moving images, cartographic materials, manuscripts, computer files, e-resources etc.) on shelves or entries of a catalog, bibliography, and index according to their subject in a systematic, logical, and helpful order by way of assigning them call numbers using a library classification system, so that users can find them as quickly and easily as possible. Call number consists of a class number providing class designation, a book number providing author representation, and a collection number denoting the collection to which it belongs. In ordinary classification, we deal with the arrangement of ideas and the objects in a systematic order. But in library classification, we are concerned with documents, and the aim is to arrange these in the most helpful and permanent order. Similar to knowledge classification systems, bibliographic classification systems group entities that are similar and related together typically arranged in a hierarchical tree-type structure (assuming non-faceted system; a faceted classification system allows the assignment of multiple classifications to an object, enabling the classifications to be ordered in multiple ways).




Library Lovers' Day - Library Lovers’ Day is celebrated on 14th February each year to honor libraries, librarians, book lovers, and lovers of libraries. On Library Lovers’ Day, we celebrate the enduring relationship between our community and the libraries. This also provides an opportunity to celebrate those who love and support libraries and to remind decision makers how loved and cherished libraries are by the entire community. Not everyone receives flowers on Valentines Day but everyone is welcome at their library.




Library of Congress - Library of Congress, the de facto national library of the United States and the largest library in the world. Its collection was growing at a rate of about two million items per year; it reached more than 155 million items in 2012. The Library of Congress serves members, committees, and staff of the U.S. Congress, other government agencies, libraries throughout the country and the world, and the scholars, researchers, artists, and scientists who use its resources. It is the national centre for library service to the blind and physically handicapped, and it offers many concerts, lectures, and exhibitions for the general public.




Library of Congress Classification - The Library of Congress Classification (LCC) is a system of library classification developed by the Library of Congress. It was developed in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries to organize and arrange the book collections of the Library of Congress. Over the course of the twentieth century, the system was adopted for use by other libraries as well, especially large academic libraries in the United States. It is currently one of the most widely used library classification systems in the world. The Library's Policy and Standards Division maintains and develops the system. In recent decades, as the Library of Congress made its records available electronically through its online catalog, more libraries have adopted LCC for both subject cataloging as well as shelflisting. There are several classification schemes in use worldwide. Besides LCC, the other popular ones among them are Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC), Universal Decimal Classification (UDC), and Bliss Bibliographic Classification (BC). Out of these, DDC and LCC are the classification systems which are most commonly used in libraries. The potential of Library of Congress Classification (LCC) system is yet to be explored in libraries. This article describes the various aspects of LCC and its suitability as a library classification system for classifying library resources. The Library of Congress was established in 1800 when the American legislatures were preparing to move from Philadelphia to the new capital city of Washington, D.C. Its earliest classification system was by size and, within each size group, by accession number. First recorded change in the arrangement of the collection appeared in the library’s third catalog, issued in 1808, which showed added categories for special bibliographic forms such as legal documents and executive papers. On the night of August 24, 1814, during the war of 1812, British soldiers set fire to the Capitol, and most of the Library of Congress’s collections were destroyed. Sometimes after, Thomas Jefferson offered to sell to Congress his personal library; subsequently, in 1815, the Congress purchased Jefferson’s personal library of 6,487 books. The books arrived already classified by Jefferson’s own system. The library adopted this system and used it with some modifications until the end of the nineteenth century. Library of Congress moved to a new building in 1897. By this time, the Library’s collection had grown to one and a half million volumes and it was decided that Jefferson’s classification system was no longer adequate for the collection. A more detailed classification scheme was required for such a huge and rapidly growing collection of documents. The Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC), Cutter’s Expansive Classification and the German Halle Schema were studied, but none was considered suitable. It was decided to construct a new system to be called the Library of Congress Classification (LCC). James C.M. Hanson, Head of the Catalog Division, and Charles Martel, Chief Classifier, were made responsible for developing the new scheme. Hanson and Martel concluded that the new classification should be based on Cutter’s Expansive Classification⁴ as a guide for the order of classes, but with a considerably modified notation. Work on the new classification began in 1901. The first outline of the Library of Congress Classification was published in 1904 by Charles Martel and J.C.M. Hanson – the two fathers of Library of Congress Classification. Class Z (Bibliography and Library Science) was chosen to be the first schedule to be developed. The next schedules, E-F (American history and geography), were developed. But E-F were the first schedules to be published, in 1901, followed by Z in 1902. Other schedules were progressively developed. Each schedule of LCC contains an entire class, a subclass, or a group of subclasses. The separate schedules were published in print volumes, as they were completed. All schedules were published by 1948, except the Class K (Law). The first Law schedule—the Law of United States, was published in 1969, and the last of the Law schedules to publish was KB—Religious law, which appeared in 2004. From the beginning, individual schedules of LCC have been developed and maintained by subject experts. Such experts continue to be responsible for additions and changes in LCC. The separate development of individual schedules meant that, unlike other classification systems, LCC was not the product of one mastermind; indeed, LCC has been called “a coordinated series of special classes”. Until the early 1990s, LCC schedules existed mainly as a print product. The conversion of LCC to machine-readable form began in 1993 and was completed in 1996. The conversion to electronic form was done using USMARC (now called MARC21) Classification Format. This was a very important development for LCC, as it enabled LCC to be consulted online and much more efficient production of the print schedules. In the year 2013, the Library of Congress announced a transition to online-only publication of its cataloging documentation, including the Library of Congress Classification. It was decided, the Library’s Cataloging Distribution Service (CDS) will no longer print new editions of its subject headings, classification schedules, and other cataloging publications. The Library decided to provide free downloadable PDF versions of LCC schedules. For users desiring enhanced functionality, the Library’s two web-based subscription services, Cataloger’s Desktop and Classification Web will continue as products from CDS. Classification Web is a web-based tool for LCC and LCSH. It supports searching and browsing of the LCC schedules and provides links to the respective tables to build the class numbers for library resources. LC has also developed training materials on the principles and practices of LCC and made those available for free on its website.




Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) - Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) is the list of headings produced from the subject authority file maintained by the United States Library of Congress for use in bibliographic records. It is popularly known by its abbreviation as LCSH and is sometimes used interchangeably with the phrase subject authority file. LCSH is a multidisciplinary vocabulary that includes headings in all subjects, from science to religion, to history, social science, education, literature, and philosophy. It also includes headings for geographic features, ethnic groups, historical events, building names, etc. Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) is the most widely used subject vocabulary in the world. It is the model for many other vocabularies in English and other languages and has been translated into numerous languages. The strongest aspect of LCSH is that it represents subject headings of the Library of Congress, the national library of the United States, one of the richest of national libraries of the world. The administrative and managerial machinery of LC has made it possible for LCSH to stand out as an undisputed leader. LCSH is also used as indexing vocabulary in a number of published bibliographies. LCSH comprise a thesaurus or a controlled vocabulary of subject headings which is used by a cataloger or an indexer to assign subject headings to a bibliographic record to represent the subject of a work he/she is cataloging. LCSH contain the preferred subject access terms (controlled vocabulary) that are assigned as an added entry in the bibliographic record which works as an access point and enables the work to be searched and retrieved by subject from the library catalog database. The controlled vocabulary identifies synonym terms and selects one preferred term among them to be used as the subject heading. For homonyms, it explicitly identifies the multiple concepts expressed by that word or phrase. Cross-references are used with headings to direct the user from terms not used as headings to the term that is used, and from broader and related topics to the one chosen to represent a given subject. The fortieth edition of Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH 40) contains headings established by the Library through January 2018. The headings included in this list were obtained by creating a file consisting of all subject heading and subdivision records in verified status in the subject authority file at the Library of Congress. There were 342,947 authority records in the file then. The subject authority database from which the headings in this edition were drawn indicates that the file contains approximately 24,390 personal name headings of which 23,272 represent family names, 10,034 corporate headings, 6 meeting or conference headings, 481 uniform titles, 242,511 topical subject headings, and 61,885 geographic subject headings. There are 764 general USE references, 4,351 general see also references, 299,751 references from one usable heading to another, and 362,646 references from unused terms to used headings. The creation and revision of subject headings is a continuous process. Approximately 5,000 new headings, including headings with subdivisions, are added to LCSH each year. Proposals for new headings and revisions to existing ones are submitted by catalogers at the Library of Congress and by participants in the Subject Authority Cooperative Program (SACO). More information on SACO may be found at <URL http://www.loc.gov/aba/pcc>. Approved proposals become part of the online authority file of subject headings at the Library of Congress, from which various publications are created. Five services provide information about new and revised headings. First, a distribution service supplies the subject headings in the MARC 21 authorities format via Internet FTP on a weekly basis to supplement the master database file of subject authority records. Second, L.C. Subject Headings Monthly Lists are a timely source of information about new and changed subject headings, class numbers, references and scope notes. The lists are posted monthly to the World Wide Web at http://www.loc.gov/aba/cataloging/subject/weeklylists. Third, Classification Web provides World Wide Web access to Library of Congress Subject Headings and Library of Congress Classification to subscribers. Fourth, subject authority records are included in the Library’s Web authorities service and may be searched and viewed at http://authorities.loc.gov. Fifth, subject authorities are freely available for searching and download through the Library’s Linked Data Service at http://id.loc.gov.





Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) - The Master of Library and Information Science (MLIS) is the master’s degree required for the profession of library science, librarianship, and library service. It is required for the position of a librarian in libraries and information resources centers. Various library schools, i-schools grant degrees under different titles, like Master of Library and Information Studies (MLIS), Master of Library Studies (MLS), Master of Science in Library Science (MSLS), M.S. M.A. or M.Sc. in Information Science ...



A Millennial Librarian - A new generation of librarians is emerging to change the lives of their students and patrons even going beyond books. Librarians are creating a space that has books that reflect their student's diverse population and spaces that build empathy and knowledge of different cultures and societies. 



Name Authority Record - Name Authority Record (NAR) - A record that shows a personal, corporate, or geographic authorized access point, cites the sources consulted in determining the choice of the preferred form for the access point representing the entity, the variant access points, and records additional identifying information for the entity.



OCLC - OCLC is a nonprofit global library cooperative providing shared technology services, original research and community programs so that libraries can better fuel learning, research and innovation. Through OCLC, member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat, the most comprehensive global network of data about library collections and services. Libraries gain efficiencies through OCLC’s WorldShare, a complete set of library management applications and services built on an open, cloud-based platform. It is through collaboration and sharing of the world’s collected knowledge that libraries can help people find answers they need to solve problems. Together as OCLC, member libraries, staff and partners make breakthroughs possible.OCLC - OCLC is a nonprofit global library cooperative providing shared technology services, original research and community programs so that libraries can better fuel learning, research and innovation. Through OCLC, member libraries cooperatively produce and maintain WorldCat, the most comprehensive global network of data about library collections and services. Libraries gain efficiencies through OCLC’s WorldShare, a complete set of library management applications and services built on an open, cloud-based platform. It is through collaboration and sharing of the world’s collected knowledge that libraries can help people find answers they need to solve problems. Together as OCLC, member libraries, staff and partners make breakthroughs possible.



Online Directory of Librarians and Library and Information Science and Services Professionals - Online Directory of Librarians and Library and Information Science and Services Professionals is a free international online directory and list of librarians and library and information science and services professionals working in libraries, information centers, and other similar institutions. Library and Information Science students who are currently studying or LIS professionals who are not currently employed or are retired are also included in the directory. It is an ambitious project to bring at one place information about librarians and library professionals worldwide at one place which can be viewed and searched online.

Online Directory of Librarians and Library and Information Science and Services Professionals




Only librarians like to search, Everyone else likes to find - This quote by Mr. Roy Tennant initially appeared in an article published in the Library Journal in October 2001 entitled Digital Libraries - Cross-Database Search: One-Stop Shopping. In the article, he talks about searching in multiple databases through a single interface ...



Other Title Information - Other Title Information is information (words or phrases, e.g. a subtitle) that appears in conjunction with, and is subordinate to, the title proper of a resource. Other Title Information is a statement appearing on the item that provides additional information about the nature of the item, its purpose, scope, form (e.g., a biography), genre (e.g., a mystery novel), contents (e.g., conference papers) or subject. It may include any phrase appearing with a title proper that is indicative of the character, contents, etc., of the resource or the motives for, or occasion of, its production, publication, etc. In the bibliographic record, Other Title Information is transcribed following the whole or part of the title proper or parallel title to which it pertains. If the information is lengthy, it may be given in a note or may be abridged ...



Place of Publication - A place of publication is the place associated with the publication, release, or issuing of a resource or document. There are the special set of rules for transcription and recording of the name of the publisher in library cataloging standards, e.g., RDA rules for the place of publication is given in chapter 2 (RDA Rule 2.8.2) of Resource Description and Access (RDA). In Anglo-American Cataloging Rules 2nd edition (AACR2), rules for the date of publication, distribution etc. for books are given in chapter 2 (2.4C).



POPSI (Postulate-Based Permuted Subject Indexing) - The inherent weakness of chain indexing has been its dependence on a scheme of classification. Another weakness was its disappearing chain. In view of this situation, the information scientists at the Documentation Research and Training Centre (DRTC), Banglore, directed themselves from these limitations; the Postulate Based Permuted Subject Indexing (POPSI) is the results of these efforts. It was developed by Ganesh Bhattacharya. POPSI does not depend on the Class Number but is based on Ranganathan’s postulates and principles of the general theory of classification.



Pre-Coordinate Indexing Systems - Nowadays most of the documents deal with complex and compound subjects, each comprising a number of components or concepts. The coordination of these component terms is either done at the input stage or at the output stage. The index in which the coordination of components (index terms) is done at the input stage, is known as a pre-coordinate index.  Coordination of index terms at the input stage means coordination of index terms at the time of preparation of the index by the indexer. In pre-coordinate indexing, a number of selected terms or keywords are coordinated by the indexer and the cards are prepared for display to the users. Examples: Ranganathan’s Chain Indexing, G. Bhattacharya’s POPSI, and Derek Austin’s PRECIS,  COMPASS,  etc. Pre-coordinate indexing systems are conventional systems mostly found in printed indexes. In this type of system, a document is represented in the index by a heading or headings comprising of a chain or string of terms. These terms taken together are expected to define the subject content of the document. The leading term determines the position of the entry in the catalog or index, while the other (qualifying) terms are subordinated to it. Since the coordination of terms in the index description is decided before any particular request is made, the index is known as a pre-coordinate index. Pre-coordinate indexes are mostly prevalent as printed indexes. For example, the indexes to abstracting and indexing journals, national bibliographies and subject indexes to library catalogs apply principles of pre-coordinate indexing in varying measures. Such indexes are compiled both manually as well as with the help of a computer. Thus, the pre-coordinate index constitutes a collection of index entries in which concepts from documents are coordinated according to a plan using a linear sequence at the time of the index headings are prepared. These concepts are then represented either by symbols (when using a scheme of classification) or words of the indexing language in use. The next step is to synthesize or to put the components in an order recommended by the rules of the language. This means that the concepts are pre-coordinated and the index file consisting of a collection of such pre-coordinated concepts that are available in the library’s collection of documents. These pre-coordinated indexes when arranged alphabetically are known as alphabetical subject indexes or alphabetical subject catalogs.  When arranged according to a scheme of classification they are known as classified indexes or classified catalogs.



PRECIS (Preserved Context Index System) - PRECIS is an acronym for PREserved Context Index System or PREserved Context Indexing System. PRECIS is a computer assisted pre-coordinate subject indexing system developed by Derek Austin in 1968 as a result of long research which the Classification Research Group (CRG) undertook to give a new general classification for information control. In 1969 British librarians Derek Austin and Peter Butcher issued PRECIS: A rotated subject index system, published by the Council of the British National Bibliography. This appears to be the first published report on an innovative method for adding subject data in the form of descriptors to the computerized MARC record. This system is considered as the most important development in alphabetical approach to subject specification in recent years. The system aims at providing an alphabetical subject index which is able to cater to the variant approaches of the users along with their context. In order to achieve this objective, the system arranges the components of a document, into a significant sequence, thus, all the important components in the string are used as approach points. Simultaneously, the terms are displayed in such a fashion that every term is related to the next term in a context dependent way. Moreover, the system is amenable to computer operation, which further adds to the advantage of the system as the entries will be prepared and arranged automatically by the computer.




Problems of Natural Language in Indexing - Derived indexing is based on the natural language of the documents which proves to be problematic sometimes in the Subject Indexing Process. These problems prompted to move towards the use of Assigned indexing. These problems can be categorized under two heads: Problems inherent in the language and Problems pertaining to relationships.




Public Library Management: Online Course - Whether you earned a library science degree or entered the profession from another career, this Professional Certificate program will help you take your career as a public library manager or director to the next level. With our team of professors and expert practitioners, you’ll hone your skills in budgeting and finance, personnel, diversity, identifying community needs, strategic planning, managing infrastructure, marketing, and grant writing. The program will be taught through job-embedded assignments that will help make the learning relevant while strengthening your capabilities. Those who complete the program and earn the Professional Certificate will be well-prepared for public libraries’ common management responsibilities ... ... ...

Public Library Management: Online Course




Publisher's Name - Publisher's Name is the name of the publisher is the name of a person, family, or corporate body responsible for publishing, releasing, or issuing a document or resource. For early printed resources, printers and booksellers are treated as publishers. There are the special set of rules for transcription and recording of the name of the publisher in library cataloging standards, e.g., RDA rules for publisher's name is given in chapter 2 (RDA Rule 2.8.4) of Resource Description and Access (RDA). In Anglo-American Cataloging Rules 2nd edition (AACR2), rules for the date of publication, distribution etc. for books are given in chapter 2 (2.4D).



R. K. Sharma - (full name, Ravinder Kumar Sharma; born January 1, 1956) is a librarian from India. He is currently working as Librarian in the United Nations Information Centre for India and Bhutan (UNIC), New Delhi. He is a knowledge management expert in exploring information on the UN system using various online UN information resources. He is a focal point for providing necessary information support to the public at large on the United Nations and global contemporary issues.  Dr. R. K. Sharma is also a nodal expert on the digital library for the UN System in India. Keeping the spotlight on the library profession has been Dr. Sharma's key motto. His passion has driven him to intensely network among libraries and library professionals and made me thirsty to understand how in these highly challenging and charged times, new and emerging technologies can assist libraries to claim their rightful space in the sun. Besides having an extraordinary record of serving top academic and research libraries, he has been associated with key national and international professional organizations working for the growth and development of the libraries in the country.  Currently, he is serving as the President of the Delhi Library Association. His strong organizational skills and ability to integrate receptive changes have enabled him to achieve his persistent goal of ensuring financial stability for libraries and promoting their overall growth and development. As an active senior professional, Dr. R. K. Sharma has served on many selection committees as a library expert.  He has delivered lectures at various platforms, organized several seminars, conferences and workshops and chaired several technical sessions at the national and international seminars, conferences and workshops.   Dr. Sharma has contributed many research papers in refereed journals and edited many books.  His interests are library & information management, computerization of library information services, web-based library services. He is always keen to explore further means of co-operation by which he could contribute to the information society at large.



Ramesh C. Gaur - Professor (Dr.) Ramesh C. Gaur (born July 1, 1966) is a librarian from India. He is presently working as Dean, Director (Library & Information) and Head of the Kalanidhi Division at the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA), New Delhi, a body under the Ministry of Culture, Government of India. Prof. Gaur is one of the senior-most faculty/officials in IGNCA and also officiates for Member Secretary whenever he is on tour or /and on leave. As a Dean, IGNCA he is responsible for the management and smooth running of various academic programs including  7 postgraduate diploma courses and 5 short term certificate courses in various disciplines such as cultural management, South Asian studies, Buddhism, digital library & data management, cultural informatics, conservation, folklore, tribal studies, research methodology, ethnographic documentary making, and screen writing, etc.



RDA Alternatives - In Resource Description and Access (RDA) cataloging rules there are a number of guidelines and instructions that are labeled as alternatives. Alternative guidelines and instructions in Resource Description and Access (RDA) provide an alternative approach to what is specified in the immediately preceding guideline or instruction. A cataloger can choose to follow the rule or the alternative. Example of RDA Alternatives: At RDA 2.3.2.9: Resource Lacking a Collective Title, the general instruction states: “If: the type of description chosen for the resource is a comprehensive description and the resource lacks a collective title then: record the titles proper of the parts as they appear on the source of information for the resource as a whole … …” Immediately after the examples, an alternative is given as: “Devise a collective title by applying the instructions … If considered important for identification or access, record the titles of individual parts as the titles proper of related manifestations …” If you observe the screen image of RDA Toolkit, just after the label Alternative there are icons that link to various policy statements. If you go to the LC-PCC PS for this alternative, it says: “LC practice/PCC practice for Alternative: Generally, do not apply.” So according to LC-PCC PS on the alternative instruction, the cataloger should not devise a collective title in this case.



RDA Core Elements - Core elements in Resource Description & Access (RDA) are minimum elements required for describing resources. Core elements are a new feature of RDA which allowed for certain metadata elements to be identified as “required” in the cataloging process. The assignment of core status is based on attributes mandatory for a national level record, as documented in the FRBR/FRAD modules. At a minimum, a bibliographic description should include all the required core elements that are applicable. Core-ness is identified at the element level. Some elements are always core (if applicable and the information is available); some are core only in certain situations. Core elements are identified in two ways within RDA. The first is that all core elements are discussed in general, and listed as a group, in the sub-instructions of "RDA 0.6: Core Elements". In the separate chapters, the core elements are also identified individually by the label “CORE ELEMENT” at the beginning of the instructions for each element. They are clearly labeled in light blue at each core instruction in RDA Toolkit. If the status of an element as core depends upon the situation, an explanation appears after the “Core element” label.




RDA Exceptions - In Resource Description and Access (RDA) cataloging rules there are a number of guidelines and instructions that are labeled as exceptions. Some instructions are scoped as being applicable only to certain types of resources (such as serials). An exception is an instruction that takes precedence over the immediately preceding instruction and applies to a specific type of resource, condition, etc. Here in RDA Toolkit, a LC-PCC PS appears which suggests the LC practice is to apply the guidelines in Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials (Books) (DCRM(B)) for books published before 1801 and selected early 19th century resources instead of RDA rules. Unlike alternatives and options, exceptions are not subordinate to general instructions, therefore, RDA exceptions generally do not require policy statements, although some exceptional situations may require some additional considerations. Exceptions must be followed when applicable. They are provided when it is necessary to depart from a rule’s instructions because of a specific type of resource or situation.



RDA Options - In Resource Description and Access (RDA) cataloging rules there are a number of guidelines and instructions that are labeled as options. Options appear in two forms in RDA, viz. optional additions and optional omissions. The optional addition of data that supplement what is called for in the immediately preceding instruction or the optional omission of specific data called for in the immediately preceding instruction. Hence, it can be said that optional instruction offers the opportunity to either supplement required data with additional information (metadata), or omit data from what is instructed in the preceding rules. Here it is important to note that each library or cataloging agency can decide when or whether to follow the options or just follow the rules in the immediately preceding instruction. They may choose to establish their own policies and guidelines on the application of the options or leave decisions on the use of options to the cataloger’s judgment.



RDA Toolkit - RDA Toolkit is an integrated, browser-based, online product that allows users to interact with a collection of cataloging-related documents and resources including RDA: Resource Description and Access. RDA Toolkit is published by the RDA Copyright Holders, viz. the American Library Association, Canadian Federation of Library Associations, Facet Publishing, the publishing arm of CILIP: the Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals.² ALA Publishing is responsible for the day-to-day management and development of RDA Toolkit.




Research - Research is a systematic, exhaustive, and intensive investigation and study of a topic, often employing hypothesis and experimentation, to discover new knowledge, facts, theories, principles, and laws. Research comprises "creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of humans, culture and society, and the use of this stock of knowledge to devise new applications." It is used to establish or confirm facts, reaffirm the results of previous work, solve new or existing problems, support theorems, or develop new theories. A research project may also be an expansion on past work in the field. Research projects can be used to develop further knowledge on a topic, or in the example of a school research project, they can be used to further a student's research prowess to prepare them for future jobs or reports. To test the validity of instruments, procedures, or experiments, research may replicate elements of prior projects or the project as a whole. The primary purposes of basic research (as opposed to applied research) are documentation, discovery, interpretation, or the research and development (R&D) of methods and systems for the advancement of human knowledge. Approaches to research depend on epistemologies, which vary considerably both within and between humanities and sciences. There are several forms of research: scientific, humanities, artistic, economic, social, business, marketing, practitioner research, life, technological, etc.



Resource - A work, expression, manifestation or item. The term includes not only an individual entity but also aggregates and components of such entities (e.g., three sheet maps, a single slide issued as part of a set of twenty, an article in an issue of a scholarly journal). It may refer to a tangible entity (e.g., a book, a DVD, an audiocassette, serials, sound recordings, moving images, cartographic materials, pamphlets, reports, newspapers, music scores, microfilm, microfiche etc. that are owned by a library) or an intangible entity (e.g., a website, blog, computer files, e-resources). In the area of descriptive cataloging, some terms or concepts have replaced older ones due to the adoption of RDA. One such concept is that of a resource. In Resource Description and Access (RDA) and most other modern cataloging texts, the terms resource and information resource have replaced references to library materials, information package, document, and other such words representing individual formats such as a book, videotape, map, and the like.




Resource Description - Resource Description is a set of data recording and identifying an entity. It is the process or the product of creating a bibliographic or metadata record (a surrogate) or a brief representation containing essential attributes describing an information resource, based on established standards, such as Resource Description and Access (RDA) or Anglo-American Cataloging Rules (AACR2). Resource Description is that portion of the descriptive cataloging process in which elements that identify a resource are transcribed into a bibliographic record; also, the portion of the bibliographic record (i.e. descriptive data) that results from this process.



Resource Description and Access (RDA) - RDA stands for “Resource Description and Access” and is the title of the standard, that is the successor to AACR2. Resource Description and Access (RDA) is a standard for descriptive cataloging providing instructions and guidelines on formulating bibliographic data. Resource Description & Access (RDA) is a set of cataloging instructions based on FRBR and FRAD, for producing the description and name and title access points representing a resource. RDA offers libraries the potential to change significantly how bibliographic data is created and used. RDA is a standard for resource description and access designed for the digital world. It provides (i) A flexible framework for describing all resources (analog and digital) that is extensible for new types of material, (ii) Data that is readily adaptable to new and emerging database structures, (iii) Data that is compatible with existing records in online library catalogs. RDA is a package of data elements, guidelines, and instructions for creating library and cultural heritage resource metadata that are well-formed according to international models for user-focused linked data applications. RDA goes beyond earlier cataloging codes in that it provides guidelines on cataloging digital resources and places a stronger emphasis on helping users find, identify, select, and obtain the information they want. RDA also supports the clustering of bibliographic records in order to show relationships between works and their creators.



Resource Description and Access (RDA) Cataloging Resources - 100+ Most Important Resource Description and Access (RDA) Tools and Resources for Cataloging and Metadata Librarians and Catalogers. "Resource Description and Access (RDA) Cataloging Resources" is a collection of top free and paid cataloging and bibliographic metadata resources.



Semantic Web and Linked Data - Semantics is the study of the meanings of words and phrases in language. The word 'semantic' stands for the meaning of. The semantic of something is the meaning of something. The Semantic Web is an extension of the current web in which information is given well-defined meaning, better enabling computers and people to work in cooperation. A new form of Web content that is meaningful to computers will unleash a revolution of new possibilities. The Semantic Web will enable machines to comprehend semantic documents and data, not human speech and writings. The explicit representation of the semantics of data, accompanied with domain theories (that is, ontologies), will enable a Web that provides a qualitatively new level of service. The Semantic Web is a collaborative effort led by then World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) to provide a framework that allows data to be shared and reused across application, enterprise, and community boundaries.

Semantic Web and Linked Data




South African Librarians' Day (10th July) - In 2014 on the anniversary of the Library and Information Association of South Africa (LIASA), 10 July, was declared as South African Librarians' Day, a special day dedicated to celebrate librarians. All LIS sectors are encouraged to celebrate the day in their special way. The day is also used to raise awareness of the profession through various platforms, and the value added by librarians towards optimal access to relevant information, thus developing an informed nation.



Statement of International Cataloguing Principles - ICP 2016 by IFLA Cataloguing Section and IFLA Meetings of Experts on an International Cataloguing Code. The original Statement of Principles - commonly known as the “Paris Principles” - was approved by the International Conference on Cataloguing Principles in 1961.  Its goal of serving as a basis for international standardization in cataloguing has certainly been achieved: most of the cataloguing codes that were developed worldwide since that time have followed the Principles strictly or at least to a high degree. More than fifty years later, having a common set of international cataloguing principles is still necessary as cataloguers and users around the world use online catalogues as search and discovery systems. At the beginning of the 21st century, IFLA produced a new statement of principles  (published in 2009) applicable to online library catalogues and beyond. The current version has been reviewed and updated in 2014 and 2015, and approved in 2016. The 2009 Statement of Principles replaced and explicitly broadened the scope of the Paris Principles from just textual resources to all types of resources, and from just the choice and form of entry to all aspects of bibliographic and authority data used in library catalogues. It included not only principles and objectives, but also guiding rules that should be included in cataloguing codes internationally, as well as guidance on search and retrieval capabilities. This 2016 edition takes into consideration new categories of users, the open access environment, the interoperability and the accessibility of data, features of discovery tools and the significant change of user behavior in general.




Subject Approach to Information in Libraries - Most of the users approach information sources not with names, who might have been responsible for their creation, but with a question that requires an answer, or a topic for study. Users seek documents or information on a particular subject. In order to make provision for this common approach, it is necessary to arrange documents on the shelf and entries in catalogs in such a way that items on a specific subject can be retrieved. In other words, it may be said that subject approach is very important in the access to and exploitation of documents in a library.



Subject Cataloging - Subject Cataloging involves subject analysis of the resource and providing corresponding subject headings from a controlled vocabulary or subject heading list, such as Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH), Medical Subject Headings (MESH) and assignment of classification numbers using schemes such as Library of Congress Classification (LCC) or Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC). Subject Heading is defined as the most specific word or group of words that captures the essence of the subject or one of the subjects of a book or other library material which is selected from a subject heading list containing the preferred subject access terms (controlled vocabulary) and assigned as an added entry in the bibliographic record which works as an access point and enables the work to be searched and retrieved by subject from the library catalog database.



Subject Heading - Subject Heading is defined as the most specific word or group of words that captures the essence of the subject or one of the subjects of a book or other library material (e.g. serial, sound recording, moving image, cartographic material, manuscript, computer file, e-resource etc.) which is selected from a subject heading list containing the preferred subject access terms (controlled vocabulary) and assigned as an added entry in the bibliographic record which works as an access point and enables the work to be searched and retrieved by subject from the library catalog database. Subject headings are also used in a bibliography and index. The controlled vocabulary identifies synonyms terms and selects one preferred term among them to be used as the subject heading. For homonyms, it explicitly identifies the multiple concepts expressed by that word or phrase. In short, vocabulary control helps in overcoming problems that occur due to the natural language of the document’s subject. Hence, if vocabulary control is not exercised different indexers or the same indexer might use different terms for the same concept on different occasions for indexing the documents dealing with the same subject and also use a different set of terms for representing the same subject at the time of searching. This, in turn, would result in ‘mis-match’ and thus affect information retrieval. Cross-references are used with headings to direct the user from terms not used as headings to the term that is used, and from broader and related topics to the one chosen to represent a given subject. A subject heading may be subdivided by the addition of form subdivisions, geographical subdivisions, chronological subdivisions, and topical subdivisions to add greater specificity or add a parenthetical qualifier to add semantic clarification. Two popular subject heading lists are Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) and Sears List of Subject Headings.




Subject Heading List - Subject Heading List is the printed or published list of subject headings which may be produced from the subject authority file maintained by an organization or individual. Subject heading list contain the preferred subject access terms (controlled vocabulary) that are assigned as an added entry in the bibliographic record which works as an access point and enables the work to be searched and retrieved by subject from the library catalog database. The controlled vocabulary identifies synonyms terms and selects one preferred term among them to be used as subject heading. For homonyms, it explicitly identifies the multiple concepts expressed by that word or phrase. In short, vocabulary control helps in overcoming problems that occur due to natural language of the document’s subject. Hence, if vocabulary control is not exercised different indexers or the same indexer might use different terms for the same concept on different occasions for indexing the documents dealing with the same subject and also use a different set of terms for representing the same subject at the time of searching. This, in turn, would result in ‘mis-match’ and thus affect information retrieval. Cross-references are used with headings to direct the user from terms not used as headings to the term that is used, and from broader and related topics to the one chosen to represent a given subject.



Subject Headings Manual - Subject Headings Manual (SHM) provides guidelines to use Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH). The manual was originally conceived as an in-house procedure manual to aid subject catalogers at the Library of Congress in constructing and assigning Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) in an accurate and consistent manner. SHM includes explanations of subject cataloging policy, procedures, and practices for the catalogers at Library of Congress in providing LCSH subject headings to bibliographic records and constructing new headings to be included in LCSH. Other libraries who wish to catalog in the same manner as the Library of Congress, as well as faculty at schools of library and information science who wish to teach Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) to their students, should follow the guidelines of the Subject Headings Manual (SHM).



Subject Indexing Process - Subject indexing is the process used for describing the subject matter of documents. Subject indexing involves assigning terms to represent what the document is about. Subject indexing is a crucial operation in the creation and maintenance of index file, as retrieval of information depends to a large extent on the quality of indexing. The process of subject indexing involves basically three steps: Familiarization => Analysis => Representation. The first step towards a successful index is familiarization. The indexer must become conversant with the subject content of the document. The most reliable way to determine the subject content is to read or examine the work in detail. It is always wise to look beyond the title for ascertaining the subject content of the document, e.g. table of contents, chapter headings, preface, introduction, opening phases of chapters and paragraphs, book jacket, etc. Reference sources may also be consulted and occasionally, subject specialists may have to be consulted, particularly when the subject matter is unfamiliar to the indexer.



This Day in History - Benjamin Franklin & Friends Found the Library Company of Philadelphia, the First Lending Library in America - Most Americans in the 1730s had limited access to books. Books, in early America, were rare and expensive. There were no public libraries. Only the very wealthy and the clergy had access to large numbers of books. Even men of moderate means could not readily afford books. Enter Benjamin Franklin. On July 1, 1731, Franklin and a group of members from the Junto, a philosophical association, drew up "Articles of Agreement" to form a library. The Junto was interested in a wide range of ideas, from economics to solving social woes to politics to science. But they could not turn to books to increase their knowledge or settle disputes, as between them they owned few tomes. But they recognized that via the Junto's combined purchasing power, books could be made available to all members. So it was that 50 subscribers invested 40 shillings each to start a library. Members also promised to invest 10 shillings more every year to buy additional books and to help maintain the library. They chose as their motto a Latin phrase which roughly translates as "To support the common good is divine." Philip Syng, a silversmith who would one day create the inkstand with which the Declaration and Constitution were signed, designed the Company's seal. Books were imported from England and the library was opened one day a week for lending. If a book was not returned on time, the fine was twice the value of the book. Due to its success, the lending library was imitated by other towns and provinces.



Title-Based Indexing - There is one part of a document in which authors themselves usually try to define the subject: the title. The title in itself is a one-line summary of a document and this serves as an index point, hence, title indexes came into force. This is very simple as the important terms representing the subject of the document are selected and rotated to prepare entries from the title, moreover, this could be very easily prepared using a computer. Examples of title indexes are KWIC (Key Word In Context, KWOC (Keyword Out of Content), and KEYTALPHA (Key-Term Alphabetical). It is important to note that the titles are not always provided in a manner to represent the subject, so title-based indexes are good only if the subject is clearly expressed in the words f the title Title-indexing is also referred to as Keyword indexing.



Twenty-Percent Rule (LCSH) - Twenty-percent rule is an instruction in the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) that states to assign headings only for topics that comprise at least 20% of the resource. LCSH headings assignment guidelines and examples are given below in the light of LCSH 20% rule. When subject cataloging follow these instructions to select the most appropriate subject headings for your catalog record. As a general rule in LCSH, the cataloger should assign to the work being cataloged one or more subject headings that best summarize the overall contents of the work and provide access to its most important topics. But LC practice according to this instruction restricts the assignment of headings only for topics that encompass 20% or more of a resource. 20% rule can be very helpful in keeping the subject headings focused on the major topical components of a work. The twenty-percent rule may also apply to supplemental content or notable bibliographic features, such as bibliographies, maps, images, and so on. In the case of a work containing separate parts, for example, a narrative text plus an extensive bibliography or a section of maps, or a book with accompanying materials, such as a computer disc, assign separate headings for the individual parts or materials if they constitute at least 20% of the item and are judged to be significant.



United States National Agricultural Library (NAL) - The United States National Agricultural Library (NAL) is one of the world's largest agricultural research libraries and serves as a national library of the United States and as the library of the United States Department of Agriculture. Located in Beltsville, Maryland, it is one of five national libraries of the United States (along with the Library of Congress, the National Library of Medicine, the National Transportation Library, and the National Library of Education). It is also the coordinator for the Agriculture Network Information Center (AgNIC), a national network of state land-grant institutions and coordinator for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) field libraries. NAL was established on May 15, 1862, by the signing of the Organic Act by Abraham Lincoln. It served as a departmental library until 1962, when the Secretary of Agriculture officially designated it as the National Agricultural Library. The first librarian, appointed in 1867, was Aaron B. Grosh. The National Agricultural Library houses one of the world's largest collections devoted to agriculture and its related sciences. NAL already provides access to all items in its collection through its physical location, but the Library is continually working toward delivering its collections to customers anywhere and anytime using the global reach of the Internet and the flexibility of digital formats. The NAL Digital Collections offers one avenue by which customers can use collection materials available in digital format, whether those materials originated in that format or were converted to it later. The NAL Digital Collections offers rich searching, browsing, and retrieval of digital materials and collections and provides reliable, long-term online access to selected publications.



Vocabulary Control - The term ‘vocabulary control’ refers to a limited set of terms that must be used to index documents, and to search for these documents, in a particular system. It may be defined as a list of terms showing their relationships and used to represent the specific subject of the document. An information system may help the user by explicitly assigning index terms (that is, words or notations) to the documents and controlling, at least in the case of alphabetical (word) systems, the semantic and often the syntatic relationships between these index terms the words (which may be subject headings or descriptors) are assigned from recognized subject heading lists or thesauri, and the notations from recognized classification schedules, and thus use controlled vocabulary. A controlled vocabulary is one in which there is only one term or notation in the vocabulary for any one concept. The Library of Congress List of Subject Headings is an example of a controlled alphabetical vocabulary, and the Dewey Decimal Classification is an example of a notational vocabulary (By definition, all notational vocabularies must be controlled).





Widener Library (Harvard University) - The Harry Elkins Widener Memorial Library, housing some 3.5 million books in its "vast and cavernous" stacks, is the center­piece of the Harvard College Libraries (the libraries of Harvard's Faculty of Arts and Sciences) and, more broadly, of the entire Harvard Library system. It honors 1907 Harvard College graduate and book collector Harry Elkins Widener, and was constructed by his mother Eleanor Elkins Widener after his death in the sinking of the RMS Titanic in 1912.



World Book and Copyright Day - On April 23 World Book Day is Celebrated - World Book Day or World Book and Copyright Day (also known as International Day of the Book or World Book Days) is a yearly event on April 23rd, organized by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), to promote reading, publishing, and copyright. In the United Kingdom, the day is recognized on the first Thursday in March. World Book Day was celebrated for the first time on 23 April 1995. In some countries, World Book Day is observed on different dates.





World Digital Library - The World Digital Library (WDL) is a project of the U.S. Library of Congress, carried out with the support of the United Nations Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization (UNESCO), and in cooperation with libraries, archives, museums, educational institutions, and international organizations from around the world. The WDL makes available on the Internet, free of charge and in multilingual format, significant primary materials from all countries and cultures.



Z39.50 - Z39.50 is a national and international standard defining a protocol for computer-to-computer information retrieval. It is a client-server, application layer communications protocol for searching and retrieving information from a database over a TCP/IP computer network. It is covered by ANSI/NISO standard Z39.50, and ISO standard 23950. The National Information Standards Organization of the United States (NISO) relating to libraries begin with Z39. To use Z39.50, you will need either special software or have an ILS with Z39.50 capabilities. Z39.50 acts like a “back door” into a library catalog. In order to download another library’s records, that library has to allow Z39.50 access to its catalog. If it does, though, there is no fee to pay the library providing the record.










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  • Library and Information Science Encyclopedia 

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  • Salman Haider 

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  • Librarianship Studies & Information Technology 

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  • https://www.librarianshipstudies.com/2018/03/library-information-science-encyclopedia.html 




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