Library science applies various tools and perspectives from fields like management and information technology to the collection, organization, preservation, and dissemination of information resources. It also covers how people interact with and are trained to use information. Key areas studied include collection management, information systems, research methods, and preservation. Library science is constantly evolving to incorporate new topics. Classification systems are used to organize library collections to facilitate subject access and the physical location of resources.

1. library concepts,
terms and systems
MODULE 1

2. Library science
Library science is an interdisciplinary field that applies the:
• Practices
• Perspectives
• Tools of management,
• Information technology
• Education and other areas
• Collection
• Organization
• Preservation and dissemination of information resources
• The political economy of information

3. Academic courses in library science typically include:
 Collection management
 Information systems and technology,
 Research methods
 Cataloguing
 Classification
 Preservation
 Reference
 Statistics
 Management

4. Library science is constantly evolving,
incorporating new topics like:
Database Management
Information architecture
Knowledge Management among others

5. 1.1.2 ARCHIVAL SCIENCE
Historically, library science has also included archival science. This includes:
 How information resources are organized to serve the needs of select user
groups
 How people interact with classification systems and technology, how
information is acquired, evaluated and applied by people in and outside of
libraries as well as cross-culturally
 How people are trained and educated for careers in libraries
 The ethics that guide library service and organization
 The legal status of libraries and information resources
 The applied science of computer technology used in documentation and
records management

7. 1.1.3 LIBRARY AND INFORMATION
SCIENCE (LIS)
There is no generally agreed distinction between the terms library science, librarianship, library and
information science and information science, and to a certain extent they are interchangeable,
perhaps differing most significantly in connotation.
The term library and information science (LIS) is often used; most librarians consider it as only a
terminological variation, intended to emphasize the scientific and technical foundations of the
subject and its relationship with information science.
LIS should not be confused with information theory, the mathematical study of the concept of
information.
LIS can also be seen as an integration of the two field’s library science and information science,
which were separate at one point.
A view implied by some textbooks is that librarianship refers to the professional aspects of work as a
librarian, such as certification, in-service training, and issues of gender equality.

8. 1.1.4 PROVISION OF LIBRARY AND
INFORMATION SERVICES
To understand the purpose of Library and Information
Services, as provider, we need to determine the
terminology used.
The following section will describe the “language” of
Library and Information Services as used in South
Africa as well as internationally.

9. Information
Information is data presented in a readily
comprehensible form to which meaning has been
attributed within the context of its use. In a more
dynamic sense, information is a message conveyed by
the use of a medium of communication or expression.
Whether a specific message is informative or not
depends in part on the subjective perception of the
person receiving it.
Information also includes all the facts, conclusions,
ideas, and creative works of the human intellect and
imagination that have been communicated, formally
or informally, in any form.

10. Information science
Information Science is the systematic study
and analysis of the following:

 Sources
 Development
 Collection
 Organization
 Dissemination
 Evaluation
 Use and management of information in all
its forms of communication

11. Information society
An information society is a society in which the creation,
distribution, diffusion, use, integration and manipulation of
information as a significant economic, political, and cultural
activity.
The knowledge economy is its economic counterpart whereby
wealth is created through the economic exploitation of
understanding.
Specific to this kind of society is the central position that
information technology has for production, economy, and
society at large. Information society is seen as the successor to
industrial society.
Closely related concepts are the post industrial society (Daniel
Bell), post-fordism, post-modern society, knowledge society,
Telematics Society, Information Revolution, and network society
(Manuel Castells).

12. Information literacy (IL)
Information Literacy can be defined as skill in finding the
information one needs, including an understanding of how
libraries are organized, familiarity with the resources they
provide (including information formats and automated search
tools), and knowledge of commonly used research techniques.
The concept also includes the skills required to critically evaluate
information content and employ it effectively, as well as an
understanding of the technological infrastructure on which
information transmission is based, including its social, political,
and cultural context and impact.

13. Information system (IS)
Information Systems comprise of a computer hardware and software system
designed to:
 Accept
 Store
 Manipulate
 Analyze data
 Report results, usually on a regular, ongoing basis.

14. An IS usually consists of:
 A data input subsystem
 A data storage and retrieval subsystem
 A data analysis
 Manipulation subsystem
 And a reporting subsystem
Widely used in scientific research, business
management, medicine and health, resource
management, and other fields that require
statistical reporting, information systems can
be broadly classified as spatial or non-spatial,
depending on whether the data refers to a
system of spatial coordinates.

15. Library classification

16. Library classification forms part of the field of library and information science. It is a form of
bibliographic classification (library classifications are used in library catalogues, while
"bibliographic classification" also covers classification used in other kinds of bibliographic
databases).
It goes hand in hand with library (descriptive) cataloguing under the rubric of cataloguing and
classification, sometimes grouped together as technical services. The library professional who
engages in the process of cataloguing and classifying library materials is called a cataloguer
or catalogue librarian.
Library classification systems are one of the two tools used to facilitate subject access. The
other consists of alphabetical indexing languages such as Thesauri and Subject Headings
systems. A library classification is therefore a system of coding and organizing library
materials. Examples:

17. Books, serials, audiovisual materials, computer files, maps,
manuscripts, according to their subject and allocating a call
number to that information resource.

18.  The library classification system is similar to the
classification system that is used in biology,
bibliographic classification systems group entities that
are similar typically arranged in a hierarchical tree
structure.

 A different kind of classification system, called a
faceted classification system, is also widely used which
allows the assignment of multiple classifications to an
object, enabling the classifications to be ordered in
multiple ways.

19. DDC Rap

20. Library classification of a piece of
work consists of two steps
Firstly the 'aboutness' of the material is ascertained. Next, a call number,
(essentially a book's address), based on the classification system in use at the
particular library will be assigned to the work using the notation of the
system.

21. It is important to note that unlike subject heading or Thesauri
where multiple terms can be assigned to the same work, in
library classification systems, each work can only be placed
in one class. This is due to shelving purposes:
 A book can have only one physical place. However
in classified catalogues one may have main entries as
well as added entries.
 Most classification systems like Dewey Decimal
Classification System (DDC) and Library of Congress
classification, add a cutter number to each work which
adds a code for the author of the work.

22. Classification systems in libraries
generally play two roles
Firstly they facilitate subject access by allowing the user to find out
what works or documents the library has on a certain subject.
Secondly, they provide a known location for the information source
to be located (e.g. where it is shelved).

23. Database (DB)
A Database is a large, regularly updated file of digitized
information:
 Bibliographic
 Records
 Abstracts
 Full-text documents
 Directory entries
 Images
 Statistics

24. Related to a specific subject or field, consisting of records of uniform
format organized for ease and speed of search and retrieval and
managed with the aid of a database management system (DBMS)
software.
Content is created by the database producer. For example:
The American Psychological Association, which usually
publishes a print version (Psychological Abstracts) and
leases the content to one or more database vendors (EBSCO,
OCLC, etc.) that provide electronic access to the data after it
has been converted to machine-readable form (PsycINFO),
usually on CD-ROM or online via the Internet, using
proprietary search software.

25. Most databases used in libraries are:
 Catalogues
 Periodical indexes
 Abstracting services
 Full-text reference resources leased annually
under licensing agreements that limit access to
registered borrowers and library staff

26. Internet
The Internet is the high-speed fibre-optic network of networks
that uses Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocols
(TCP/IP) to interconnect computer networks around the world,
enabling users to communicate via:
 E-mail
 Transfer data
 Transfer program files via File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
 Find information on the World Wide Web
 Access remote computer systems such as online catalogues
and electronic databases easily and effortlessly, using an
innovative technique called packet switching
The Internet began in 1969 as ARPAnet, a project of the U.S.
Department of Defense. It now has hundreds of millions of
regular users worldwide.

27. Classification system
A Classification system is a list of classes arranged
according to a set of pre-established principles for the
purpose of organizing items in:
 A collection
 Entries in an index
 Bibliography
 Catalogue
 Into groups based on their similarities and differences
 To facilitate access and retrieval
Most library collections is classified by subject.
Classification systems can be enumerative or hierarchical,
broad or close. Most public libraries use Dewey decimal
classification.

28. Catalogue
 A Catalogue is a comprehensive list of the following:
 Books
 Periodicals
 Maps
 Other materials in a given collection, arranged in systematic order to facilitate retrieval
(usually alphabetically by author, title, and/or subject).
 In most modern libraries, the card catalogue has been converted to machine-readable
bibliographic records and is available online.
 The purpose of a library catalogue, as stated by Charles C. Cutter in Rules for a
Dictionary Catalogue (1904), later modified by Bohdan S. Wynar in Introduction to
Cataloguing and Classification (8th ed., 1992), is to offer the user a variety of approaches
or access points to the information contained in the collection:

29. Description Objects
To enable a person to find any work,
whether issued in print or in non print
format, when one of the following is
known:
 The author
 The title
 The subject
To show what the library has:  By a given author
 On a given and related
subjects
 In a given kind of literature
To assist in the choice of a work  As to the bibliographic edition
 As to its character (literary or
topical)
The preparation of entries for a library catalogue (called cataloguing) is performed by
a librarian known as a cataloguer. Abbreviated: cat.

30. Collection
A Collection is also referred to a
number of documents (books,
reports, records, etc.) assembled in a
single physical or virtual location by
one or more persons, or by a
corporate entity, and arranged in
some kind of systematic order to
facilitate retrieval

31. Library collection
A Library Collection is:
The total accumulation of books and other materials owned by a library
Catalogued and arranged for ease of access often consisting of several smaller
collections
 Reference
 Circulating books
 Serials
 Government documents
 Rare books
 Special collections
The process of building a library collection over an extended period of time is called
collection development.

32. Media
Media, in this instance, is a generic term for non-print library materials. Examples:
 Films
 Filmstrips
 Slides
 Video-recordings
 Audio-recordings
 CD-ROMs
 Machine-readable data files
 Computer software
Microforms’ are not considered media because they are reproductions of print
documents. The person responsible for managing a media collection and associated
equipment is a media specialist.