Showing papers on "Resource Description and Access published in 1976"

A Century of Cooperative Programs Among Academic Libraries

Abstract: .~ A REVIEW OF COOPERATIVE PROGRAMS among colleges and universities over the last century leads to the conclusion that a few very significant developments and changes have taken place during the past decade after ninety years of laborious and diverse effort toward cooperative programs dominated by the effects of national policy and economic conditions. It is an interesting history, one made difficult by the plethora of data. The present paper uses a historical perspective in order to assess b~er the present and the immediate future. The first part chronologically prese~ts selected examples of cooperative programs. The latter section includes details on a few programs of current special significance, comments on some strengths and weaknesses, and reaches

The Evolution of Bibliographic Systems in the United States, 1876-1945.

Abstract: THIS PAPER IS an attempt to describe the structure of the mechanisms and problems in the distribution and utilization of bibliographic data in USlibraries in the period from 1876 to 1945, or from the founding of the American Library Association to the close of the precomputer age In this paper, a bibliographic system is defined as the compilation and nationwide dissemination of bibliographic information, either cooperatively or from a central source agency, to independent libraries For the period under consideration it is appropriate to speak of the evolution rather than the development of such systems The purpose of a national bibliographic system is obscured by the terminology of the times In the voluminous literature on economy in cataloging, for example, librarians did not project a national bibliographic system but wrote in terms of specific topics They wanted better catalogs with less expenditure of time and money and tended to omit stating the obvious-namely, that the savings would result in better service to library users The system could release staff time and energy for more direct service to users or for expanded services It would also provide higher quality bibliographic data, expand subject access to library materials, include more efficient access to a greater number of bibliographic entities, and furnish location information for a particular item needed but not available in the user’s local library A comprehensive universal bibliographic system remains a dream of librarians Two aspects of the system, bibliographic data from a central source and access to the item by interlibrary lending, had been part of Jewett’s dream for the Smithsonian Institution His ill-fated

From Cutter to Computer: Technical Services in Academic and Research Libraries, 1876-1976

Abstract: To GAIN AN IMPRESSION of the technical services in academic libraries in 1876, one can do so no more pleasantly. than by reading \"A Librarian's Work,\" an article written by John Fiske, assistant librarian of Harvard, which appeared in the October 1876 issue of the Atlantic Monthly. It's a longish essay. It takes the reader through the complete processing of a book \"from the time of its delivery by the express-man to the time when it is ready for public use,\" pausing to discuss the whys of procedures followed and records produced in the Harvard University Library, then, as now, the largest academic library in the country.1 Today's librarian may be struck by the intimate involvement of Fiske in the details of processing, but anyone who has worked in a very small library will recognize the pattern. Indeed, it illustrates the point that the technical services carry their histories with them, as heads of small libraries continue 'today to do the things which the heads of the larger ones did back in 1876. The isolation of the technical services in a separate division is a function of size more than a change in attitude toward the services-first a separate unit is established to handle cataloging, then one for acquisitions, later ser!als, and finally all of them together as a separate division with its specialist head. The review that follows, then, consists of a look at the vanguard of growing libraries as size forced changes in practices and in organizational structure. Academic and research libraries have tended to dominate change and codification in this area of library work, as much in 1876 as in 1976. Library heads in 1876 were not only involved in the operations of technical services; they were shaping the tools of cataloging and guiding decisions related to the technical services at a time when decisions were being made which still guide us today. It was as well, then, that they knew so precisely the functions which they were shaping. The importance of generally accepted codes for the cataloging of books was readily apparent to the 1876 leaders who met ·in Philadelphia, and the importance which they attached to cataloging is repeatedly made clear. Utley, in writing of the 1853 conference of librarians, states that there is little doubt that Jewett's explanation of his proposal to make a general catalog through the use of stereotype plates, a catalog which could be adapted for the use of other libraries,

Education for Library, Information and Archives Studies

Abstract: You will no doubt recall the objectives which were approved by the Intergovernmental Conference on the Overall Planning of National Documentation, Library and Archives Infrastructures in Paris in 1974. Accepting that we need to plan for an ’informed society’, and recognising that ‘infornlation has become the essential basis for the progress of human civilization and society’, the Conference approved the follow-

Bibliographic Systems, 1945-1976.

Abstract: IT IS BEYOND my talent to compress three decades of activity-especially in a period of intense and radical change in bibliographic control-in a scholarly, definitive manner. Many of the points to be covered could well be the subject of a dissertation. Therefore, the eyewitness account technique will be relied upon whenever possible. This paper is divided into two main parts. The second part describes the major changes made in bibliographic control systems over the past three decades, while the first discusses why these changes have occurred. The viewpoint expressed here is that, left to itself, bibliographic control would not have changed. The changes that occurred are largely attributable to causes and events outside the library field.

Treated With A Degree Of Uniformity and Common Sense: Descriptive Cataloging In The United States, 1876-1975

Abstract: DESCRIPTIVECATALOGING CAN be defined as “that phase of the process of cataloging which concerns itself with the indentification and description of books.”’ I t involves several levels of work. The first level is concerned with the choice of a main entry and of added entries and references by which to provide points of access for the library user. The second involves the construction of headings-fixing the place of the names or titles in the catalog. The third step involves the identification and description of the physical itemoften by transcribing specified elements from the item itself-to aid the user in selecting or rejecting one item from the others in the file. While it is important for a cataloger always to keep in mind the users of a particular catalog and the functions of that catalog in providing the descriptive cataloging data, the cataloger has found it increasingly necessary to do this within the larger context of being able to cooperate with other libraries-either to use all or some of the data from those libraries, or to contribute data for the use of other libraries. In order to cooperate most effectively, codes have become important tools for the descriptive cataloger. This paper will deal mainly with the development of general codes that have been available for catalogers in the United States. It will also discuss the generation of bibliographical data within local libraries.

Final Report of the Catalog Code Revision Committee Subcommittee on Rules for Cataloging Machine-Readable Data Files.

Abstract: ABSTRACT A committee on rules fur cataloging machine readable data files (MRDF) recommends areas for revision of the Anglo American Cataloging Rules to integrate collections of MRDF into the mainstream of bibliographic control. The 12 working papers which support and detail these recommendations are appended to this report. They include rationales for documentation and control of MRDF and omission of descriptions of physical characteristics from catalog entries. Bibliographic descriptions, medium designation, main and added entries, title considerations, uniform titles, "edition', as an indicator, production and distribution, notes, and summaries are discussed as they pertain to cataloging. The size of file areas in terms of machine readable records and other descriptions is addressed. One report details alternate rules for archival materials, examplars, and other exceptional MRDF. A glossary of terms related to MRDF concludes the report. (CH)

Bibliography and Reference Aids in the Physics Library.

Abstract: If you're a librarian in a scientific or technical library, chances are you've heard of the Institute for Scientific Information. But the chances are equally good that what you've heard isn't the complete story. For instance. Do you know how long IS1 has been around? How many people we employ? How our services are produced? What disciplines we cover? What kind of training we offer to people who use our services? To fill you in, we've produced an all-new. color-sound film-Putting Scientific Information To Work. It takes an inside look at IS1 from our origin and development to what's happening now. Putting Scientific lnformation To Work can be shown to your library staff for its clear picture of the scientific information explosion and how ISl's data bank and retrieval systems have turned scientific information into a valuable resource instead of a problem. Or show it to the research staff of your organization-especially if you subscribe to any IS1 services. It's a good way to familiarize researchers with some of the services your library offers. Or if you're not a subscriber to an IS1 service-but would liketo be-thefllm can help you build researcher support for future ac~uisitlons. We thlnk Putting Scientific lnformation To Work is a bright and informative introduct~on to IS\\. It cbmblnes live action with an animation sequence so fine that it took thlrd prize among 200 entries at the 2nd lnternatlonal Animation Film Festival in New York. If you'd like to borrow this new 22-minute f ~ l m. without obligation, slmply fill in the coupon and return it to us. Or maybe you'd prefer to make the fllm part of an IS1 information seminar. Then check the square at the bottom of the coupon: one of our information specialists will be in touch.