Information Service of Web Resource “Books in Russian Published Abroad, 1927—1991”

Abstract

The article considers the main prerequisites for the creation of the online bibliographic resource based on the unique collection of foreign publications in Russian collected by the experts of the Russian State Library (RSL).Specialists of the Research Scientific Department of Bibliography have been working since 2001 to create the local database (DB) of books published abroad in Russian. In 2017, on the basis of DB, there was developed the new web resource, from 2018 placed on the website of Rosinformkultura of RSL in open access.The purpose of the research work is to study the distribution of new web resource service and the completeness of information-library services to users. The article for the first time covers the technological capabilities of the resource and its service component. The author analyses the statistical data of access and use of the resource and reveals the key regions on access among the eight regions of the Russian Federation. The article presents classification of queries among the main search fields most actively used when working with the DB. The author considers the specific features of information search in various data areas, including — personalia, title, keywords, geographical names, publishers, and presents distribution of materials in DB by 16 thematic areas, the largest of which are publications of fiction works. There are given the examples of search queries. Data collection is carried out in automated way using the log files of resource accesses.The article emphasizes that for the first time the users are provided with online access to previously inaccessible information about sources devoted to the Russian emigration, life and creative heritage of scientific intelligentsia reflected in printed publications. The author concludes that information service of web resource has several advantages compared to traditional library-information services: the ability to remotely access the resource, no time limit work with it, not necessarily a personal visit to the library, cover of a wider range of users, raise of social status and image of the library. The results of study confirm the demand for new web resource of RSL among users.