Modeling of the library collection acquisition process

Abstract

Сonstantly increasing assortment of literature of various genres and directions offered by publishers sets a problem for the libraries when purchasing new literature in the conditions of limited budgeting. In this connection, the task of the qualitative acquisition of the library stock is urgent. The main conceptual idea for the solution of the problem is the maximum satisfaction of the information needs of various types of library resource users. To implement the users informational preferences, a general mathematical model of decision-making support has been developed in the task of optimizing library stock acquisition. It allows it to be replenished and renewed in order to meet the information needs of library resource users and takes into account the limited budgeting for acquiring new books. The demand for library resources is considered as the optimality criterion. A formalized approach to the process of completing the library fund with popular printed publications is proposed. To reduce the area dimension of possible solutions, a model approximation of the optimization problem has been constructed. The transition from the optimization problem to its model approximation is based on the ideas of identifying the most important features of the area of possible values and the segmentation of the readership. In the practical implementation of the constructed model, the method of data mining, the method of analyzing strategic alternatives and the theory of fuzzy sets in accordance with the specifics of the problem to be solved were used in determining each significant classification problem. The model, constructed and tested on the basis of the scientific library of the Orenburg State University (OSU), allows to take into account not only the influence of various factors on the quality of the library stock, but also the issues caused by the limited budgeting of libraries.