New technology and exchange formats

The last 15 years have seen a tremendous growth in the exchange of bibliographic records between organizations which has been assisted by advances in information technology. The library community has developed UNIMARC and the abstracting and indexing community are using the UNISIST Reference Manual to facilitate the transfer of bibliographic data between databases. Unesco is establishing a Common Communication Format in an attempt to bridge the gap between the library and A & I communities. However, different practices in record creation between organizations providing records mean that records from different sources cannot always be merged com fortably into one database even if they have been converted into the same exchange format. One way of achieving the necessary compatibility between records from different sources is by editing the records as they are received. This can be time-consuming and can make the use of records from outside sources uneconomic. New technology, in the form of intelligent terminals, can make this more of a practical proposition. Records can be obtained on-line from external databases and can then be changed either by the intervention of the operator or by programs in the terminal which can make changes to the data or tags of particular fields before adding the records to the file. Very little research has been done on the economics of using intelligent terminals to edit records but this kind of operation is likely to increase in the future as more bibliographic systems using intelligent terminals are developed

Standards for serials holdings and for serials data in the serials analytical record.

This paper was derived from a presentation at a JISC funded workshop dealing with the problem of interoperability of serials data whether constructed according to the availasble standards or derived from different library management systems

State of the art in RFID technology [in libraries]

RFID technology is beginning to be used for keeping track of traditional library materials, whether they be printed, audio-visual, CDs, DVDs, etc. RFID technology has been used for many years for identifying livestock, tagging children in theme parks in case they are separated from their guardians and for identifying equipment enclosed in boxes. Now it is being used for security and stock control in the retail world and also in the library world. The RFID chip or tag as it is called can hold substantial amount of data, which will normally include an identifier of the kind which is currently found as a barcode. Additionally it can contain data for unique identification in an inter-library loan scenario; data such as ISBN, class mark and title which can make stock control easier. The latest chips can be written to dynamically so that the data model can be updated as the state of the art in data models advances. Standards need to be developed specifically for use in the library world and appropriate ISO Committees have begun to develop these. The Danish Standards institution has published a data model and in the UK a joint Book Industry Communication / Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals working group has been set up to feed into any international standards work to contribute to the development of an international standard. Unfortunately it is proving difficult to getting international agreement because the Danish Standard which is in extensive use in Denmark has features which countries beginning now do not wish to implement in the same way

Why European institutions should take part in international activities.

This presentation is aimed at cultural institutions which includes museums, libraries and archives which usually have overlapping roles. It is not aimed at national or governmental organizations such as national libraries, archives, or libraries in government ministries. They have their own specific reasons for international activities which are not covered here. This paper aims to give reasons for participation in international activities to local government and educational sector libraries, archives and museums including private museums. Additionally, professional organisations are mentioned as they can often be a means for individuals to get involved internationally, for example through conference attendance or through representing them at international events. Of course there are already some institutions in the UK such as the Museum Documentation Association who have developed a set of rules for documenting museum objects in association with other organisations across the Atlantic and are evidently aware of the value of international cooperation. Additionally this paper is aimed primarily at discussing the benefits of cooperation with Europe

Professional librarianship: always preparing for the future

The Context Statement is Part One of my submission for my thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctorate in Professional Studies by Public Works. It is presented to be read in conjunction with Part Two of this submission, which contains publications which represent the public works. The Context Statement is written in line with the requirements of Middlesex University regulations for doctoral awards and the chapters are structured in relation to these requirements. The submitted works were not initially written for submission as part of a D. Prof. The Context Statement has stimulated me to bring together a description of the reflective practice which has been inherent in the development of my public works, both those selected for special treatment in Chapter 2 and those described throughout the context statement. In chapter 1 I place my work in context, beginning with my interest in libraries which then became specialised in the library automation field. In section 2, as mentioned I introduce four public works which are in the case of the first three represented by publications. Chapter 3 is a justification for the Doctorate in Professional Studies by Public Works, outlining the place of reflection and reflective practices throughout the development of these public works. In Chapter 4 I return to the themes of International Librarianship, General Librarianship, Library Automation and Standardization which permeate my public works, before drawing my conclusions on the importance not only of reflection but of innovation in my public works

Library automation in developing countries: the last 25 years

Library automation has developed in the industrialised world over the last 25 years and progress in developing countries cannot be separated from trends worldwide. However there are different criteria for success in developing countries which are brought out in this review. Open Source has been hailed as a solution to the economic problems but there are still organizational problems to be surmounted. There is also the possibility to develop one’s own system. Nigeria, Thailand and India are taken as case studies, illustrating different kinds of solutions that are available and various pitfalls. Predictions into the future are difficult. Internet bandwidth will improve in developing countries and open source may prove useful but economics may not improve and power supply problems are likely to remain

Digital Libraries: the infrastructure and the training needed.

In many developing countries there has always been a problem in acquiring and storing printed materials because delivery was expensive and storage difficult in a humid climate. In the digital era these problems are solvable and avoidable. However do not imagine that you can throw away all the bibliographical standards that a physical library needs. Digital libraries need a good index and need quality catalogue records and good classification to supplement full text indexing which on its own can make retrieval of relevant materials difficult. Standards like MARC and classification schemes are indispensible as are standards necessary to create the information retrieval structure. Additionally librarians must work together in teams and provide good information literacy training

CDS/ISIS information [2004]

Weblis, ISISascii and publishers' book jackets in a CDS/ISIS database

MERLIN for the cataloguer

MERLIN is the British Library's advanced computer system. A new MARC-type format has been devised to take advantage of recent developments in computer technology. Records are split up into meaningful elements which are stored separately. Catalogue entries consist of a set of pointers pointing to the elements. MERLIN supports shared cataloguing but allows libraries to have their own private views of any element or group of elements. Standardization is easier to achieve as the structure of MERLIN is designed to make use of authority files. Automatic conversion is possible between the MERLIN format and existing formats