classification basics

1. Classification - Basics

2. What is Classification ?
• Classification in Sense 1
– Division
• Classification in Sense 2
– Assortment (it is inherent in Man)
• Classification in Sense 3
– Sense 2 + Representing each entity by an
ordinal number taken out of a system of ordinal
numbers, designed to mechanise the
maintenance of the sequence

3. • Classification in Sense 4
– Sense 3 when complete assortment is made of
an amplified universe– that is when the entities
and the pseudo-entities arising in the process of
successive assortment stand
• Classification in Sense 5
– Sense 4 with all the entities removed but only
the pseudo-entities or classes retained—each
class having the number representing it

4. Classification
Knowledge
Classification
Book
Classificatio
n
Philosophical Scientific

5. Classification Work
• Idea Plane
• Verbal Plane
• Notational Plane

6. Need for Organising
• “Knowledge explosion" - "information explosion"
- "information flood" - "information boom …..
• Documents in various languages
• Documents in diverse physical forms.
• Abstractness of the entities- Nature and
complexity of the thought content of the subject
matter
• The complexity of readers' approach to documents
and libraries.

7. Document- embodied knowledge
• Knowledge if intangible and experienced
ONLY by its many manifestations.
• A Matching between
Manifestations of knowledge
Manifestations of the Information Needs
will ensures right service to users

8. Features of knowledge
• VAST/HUGE
• Dynamic – Change is the ONLY permanent
feature!
• Multidimensional
• Heterogeneous
• Continuity
• Ambiguous
• Multilingual

9. • Features of knowledge has implications on
distribution and formation of new subjects
• A Classificationist Maps this distribution and
revise this mapping consistently with the
developments in “Universe of Knowledge”

10. Maximum use of documents
through:
• Personal assistance to readers,
• Systematic arrangement, and
• Proper display of materials in the library.

11. Arrangement
Done based on both extrinsic and intrinsic nature of
documents
• Age of reader
• Conditions attached to the use of the material
• Documents of unusual size:
• Documents of unusual gross body: Micro cards,
gramophone records, tapes, slides, and other audio-visual
material and electronic documents are shelved separately.
• Language of the document:
• Value of the document: Manuscripts
• Peculiarities of form of presentation: bound periodicals

12. • Date of printing: Incunabula
• Local history collection
• Gift collection
• Colour
• Volumes
• Binding
• Year of publication
• Fixed position- accession no.
• Thought content of the document (subject matter)
• Author/ creator
• Nature of information

13. User Approaches
• Author approach: Generally readers go to a library to find:
– i) a particular document whose author is known or
– ii) what documents by a particular author are in the library.
Marston, Elizabeth : Rain Forest
Marston, John : Dutch Courtesan
Marston, J.E. : Nature of Public Relations
Marston, Phillip :Breeder of Democracy
Marston, P.B. :Collected Poems
Marst, R.M. : Electronic Projects

14. • Title approach –
– Sometimes misquoted
– Change from one edition to another.
– Translated title changes
– Different countries -different titles, though the language may
remain the same.
Instant Astrology by Jack London
Instant Beauty Tricks by P. Brooks
Instant Book Keeping by D.C. Conaway
Instant Chicago by J. Graham

15. • Subject approach - majority of readers’
approach

16. Subject arrangement
• Filiatory sequence- APUPA arrangement
• Helpful sequence
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Subject Interest of
User

17. Species of Classification
Broadly speaking two species of classification systems - enumerative and
faceted.
• Fully Enumerative classification
– Library of Congress Classification (LCC) , Rider's International
Classification (RIC)
• Almost Enumerative classification
– Subject Classification of Brown and Dewey Decimal Classification
(DDC)
• Almost-Faceted classification
– Universal Decimal Classification (UDC) and Bibliographic
Classification of Bliss (BC)
• Rigidly-Faceted classification
– first three editions of Colon Classification (CC)
• Freely Faceted classification
– editions 4, 5, 6,7 of CC

18. Glossary
• Entity – "Any existent, concrete or conceptual -that is, a
thing or an idea" example: A boy, A book, Sweetness, A
system of philosophy, A subject of study".
• Attribute - Attribute is any property or quantitative
measure or quality possessed by or inherent in an entity.
• Characteristic - "an attribute, with reference to which the
likeness or unlikeness of entities can be determined such
that at least two of them are unlike".

19. Glossary
• Discipline- is a major continuous area, of knowledge
formed on the basis of either the similarity of the objects of
study (i.e., whether natural objectives, or social issues); or,
obtained by a similar mode of study or method of
acquiring knowledge (i.e., whether imaginative, or
empirical).
– Sciences (study of natural objects)
– Social Sciences (problems of society)
– Humanities (by imagination/perceptions)

20. Glossary
• Disciplines are further divided into basic subjects
or main classes. A main class is, conventional but
very cohesive area of knowledge.
• A traditional subdivision of an old main class is
known as a Canonical Class.
algebra, geometry, analysis…. are canonical
classes of the main class mathematics.

21. Glossary
• Isolate- A solitary, unattached idea, which cannot
be further, subdivided, and by itself it cannot form
a subject.
Isolates are arranged in what are called arrays and
chains.
• An array is a sequence of coordinate (equally
ranked) classes arranged in some definite order.
• A chain is a sequence of subordinate classes
arranged in some definite order.

22. Reference
• Prolegomena to Library Classification
– S.R. Ranganathan
• Library Classification
– A.K. Ohdedar, B. Sengupta
• Philosophy of Library Classification
– S.R. Ranganathan