CHAPTER -3 LIBRARY CLASSIFICATION SCHEMES: AN OVERVIEW

Library Classification can also be considered to be a process of putting books and other reading material on a subject in a logical sequence on the shelf, which could be of immense help to the users. It requires an adept thorough study and practice in the technique of classification of books, knowledge of the details and handling of the scheme of classification. A close familiarity with the broad spectrum of learning, its growth and the interrelationship of various components is also necessary. A good selection of books is the basis towards a good library collection and proper classification is fundamental in organizing collection and in the retrieval of specific books for use by the users. Classification is one of the most important steps in the organization of the libraries and has been aptly called the “Foundation of Librarianship.”3

Library classification is a system which could classify both printed and non-printed sources in a library or information center with the prime intension of organizing those sources in a most helpful order to assist library users and library staff to find and to locate them efficiently and effectively. The intension of this paper is to study the different steps related to design and construction of a library classification system. A classificationist or an editorial committee of a library classification system has the responsibility and the ownership of design, construction and maintenance of a system. The objectives of this study are:

This proposed new classification scheme is based on two main elements: hierarchism and binary theory. Hence, it is called Universal Binary Classification (UBC). Some advantages of this classification are highlighted including subject heading development, construction of a thesaurus, and all terms with meaningful features arranged in tabular form that can help researchers, through a semantic process, to find what they need. This classification scheme is fully consistent with the classification of knowledge. The classification of knowledge is also based on hierarchism and binary principle. Finally, a survey on randomly selected books in McLennan Library of McGill University is presented to compare the codes of this new classification with the currently employed Library of Congress Classification (LCC) numbers in the discipline of Library and Information Sciences.

2013

Journal of Information Science Theory and Practice, 2015

This paper describes qualities of a library classification system that are commonly discussed in the LIS tradition and literature, and explains such a system's three main functions, namely knowledge mapping, information retrieval, and shelf arrangement. In this vein, the paper states the functional requirements of bibliographic classifications, which broadly are subject collocation and facilitation of browsing the collection. It explains with details the components of a library classification system and their functions. The major components are schedules, notations, and index. It also states their distinguished features, such as generalia class, form divisions, book numbers, and devices for number synthesis which are not required in a knowledge classification. It illustrates with examples from the WebDewey good examples of added features of an online library classification system. It emphasizes that institutional backup and a revision machinery are essential for a classification to survive and remain relevant in the print and e-environment.

2006

Nowadays, in almost all libraries, librarians still maintain a rather obsolete practice of setting their books and other material according to a variation of the well-known UDC arrangement. However, the habits of today's users force libraries to provide a different approach for accessing library material, it should be in a digital form and easy to find. On the one hand, the library items should have richer description than mere UDC, i.e. using the automatic text indexing as well as considering the intentional point of view. On the other hand, users' needs should be specified to facilitate obtaining and delivery of the relevant items to the right users. Moreover, otherwise valuable implicit knowledge could be partially captured in a step-by-step form via forum discussions.

2003

Introduction Classification, broadly defined, is the act of organizing the universe of knowledge into some systematic order. It had been considered the most fundamental activity of the human mind. 1 Classification begins with the universe of knowledge as a whole and divides it into successive stages of classes and subclasses, with a certain characteristic as the basis for each stage. The progress is from the general to the specific, forming a hierarchical structure. The development of library classification was based on the logical and philosophical principles of classification. The act of library classification has been defined as the systematic arrangement by subject of books and other material on shelves or of catalogue and index entries in the manner which is most useful to those who read or who seek a definite piece of information. 2 As a shelving device and a tool of organizing bibliographic entries, a library classification schedule groups all works of the same kind together in a systematic manner, and helps users identify and locate the works through call numbers. A good, easy-to-use library classification has

The present paper lays emphasis over the need and importance of Library classification in the ICT era. ICT application is no exception to libraries and we can see it has already revolutionized library services and activities to a significant way. Any classification scheme we apply in any type of library acts as a backbone of library services. It not just helps in organizing information and knowledge but also in its timely retrieval. In the present study we have tried to highlight the need and importance of classifying documents in the technological era, as how with and without it library will suffer in its recourse to organize and retrieve knowledge and information. concerning partnerships with faculty members,database vendors to support the development of library staff in India. One purpose of this work was to develop strategies that could also be applied elsewhere in India