International Library Community Research Articles

The Libraries at Koç University: Building a World-Class Library in Thirty Years

Koç University Libraries established in 1993 is celebrating the 30th anniversary of its opening. This article exhibits the different phases of this 30-year long journey including the initial planning, the constant growth and the response to the social and technological transformation dominating the future of libraries worldwide. The Libraries constitutes a model in Türkiye with its rich collections, diverse services and qualified human resources. It also attaches importance to being part of the international library community and supports global development in every way. In addition, this article covers the institutionalization of higher education in the Republic of Türkiye which is celebrating its centenary.

Նվիրվում է հայկական գրատպության 510-ամյակին (1512-2022). պատմությունը և զարգացման ընթացքը

The history of Armenian book printing is one of the bright pages of the world culture and civilization. A comprehensive analysis has shown that thanks to the development of book printing a large number of books in different languages, periodicals and bibliographic publications were published, which by their meaning and functions influenced and continue influencing the development of intercultural, scientific, educational, technological (“digitalization”) and social communications. The theme of the conference is “Heritage Preservation for Sustainable Future,” which also should equally refer to the problem of saving the Armenian cultural heritage from destruction, which remained under the control of Azerbaijanis as a result of the new Artsakh war. In order to contribute to this important matter, the author of the lines has proposed cooperation with the international library community participating in this conference.

The Concept of Controlled Digital Lending: Possibilities of Application in Croatian Libraries

The purpose of this paper is to investigate the relationship between the recommendations of the international library communities and the modern legislative framework in the Republic of Croatia on issues of copyright and related rights regarding libraries and e-lending. In 2021, a new Copyright and Related Rights Act entered into force in Croatia, and in recent years, especially in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, more attention has been paid in the literature to the concept of the so-called Controlled Digital Lending (CDL) which helps fulfil the mission of libraries in supporting research, education and participation in cultural life within the limits of existing copyright laws. The CDL allows the library to circulate a digitized title instead of a physical copy, provided that the loan must take place in a controlled manner: the loan may contain as many copies of the title as the library has legally acquired. As a concept, CDL is an interesting and suitable solution for the uninterrupted provision of library services in cases of extraordinary circumstances such as a pandemic. Given that has its roots in the American legal system that is significantly different from European legal framework of copyright, IFLA in the Statement of controlled loan e-books (IFLA Statement on controlled digital lending) published in June 2021 recommends considering the application of the CDL in the framework of national legislation, so the paper will present the position of the international library community on lending e-books expressed in the Declaration and consider the possibilities of e-lending and digital copying of printed books and its lending according to the CDL concept in the context of the new Copyright and Related Rights Act and in general within the framework of contemporary Croatian and European legislation.

A Proposed Arabic Monolingual Web-Based Terminology Management System

Arabic controlled vocabularies do not differ from all other controlled vocabularies as far as basic features are concerned, however they do bear a number of shortcomings, which have limited their effectiveness dissemination. These include the lack of adaptations to Arab-specific applications, and the failure of terms to connote the content of subject areas easily and consistently. Besides, differences and variability in terminology and syntax cause problems in cross-domain or cross-system interoperability. In addition, Existing software is unequipped to service Arabic-speaking libraries in such a way that allows them to be technologically comparable with modern libraries around the world, thus limiting their integration into the international library community. This technological shortcoming also limits the ease by which they are able to make knowledge resources attainable to researchers and other library users. This article proposes a framework for a monolingual web-based terminology management system that operates in Arabic and supports the use of Arabic controlled vocabularies. This article is based on ISO 26162:2012 Systems to manage terminology, knowledge and content — Design, implementation and maintenance of terminology management systems.

The coronavirus pandemic, libraries and information: a thematic analysis of initial international responses to COVID-19

PurposeThis study aims to present and discuss the international library and information community’s initial responses to the coronavirus pandemic. It chronicles official statements from various library and information associations as they were released in real-time, thereby providing a contemporary and historical snapshot of the early stages of this global health crisis. The aim is to both historically and thematically contextualize these initial responses to help establish a foundation upon which to anchor, build, extend and analyze approaches to the pandemic as it unfolded (and indeed as it continues to unfold at the time of this writing in June 2020).Design/methodology/approachDrawing upon a qualitative documentary analysis of statements on COVID-19 released by various international library and information associations, this study provides a thematic analysis of these contemporary policies. Specifically, this thematic analysis was carried out to identify and illuminate major themes appearing within the statements. Further, a comparative thematic analysis was then undertaken to compare the themes across all statements to discover and determine convergences or divergences in content and coverage.FindingsThe formal statements released by these organizations feature and share many similar themes in their initial responses to COVID-19, including support for/solidarity with libraries; information provision; maintaining services; digital migration of services; workplace arrangements/concerns; contextual contingencies of libraries (diversity of kinds, circumstances and challenges); health concerns and proper/good hygiene; countering dis/misinformation; external collaborations with public health agencies; and partnerships with industry including publishers.Research limitations/implicationsAlthough this study’s purview is admittedly limited in size and scope – involving six, albeit major, library and information associations from mainly English speaking countries – it can be used as a foundation for further studies into how libraries and information centres in other English and non-English speaking countries responded to the coronavirus pandemic.Practical implicationsThis study can help inform current, alternative, contingency or other future library responses geared towards or tailored for the coronavirus or other health-related crises. It can also be used as a baseline to track the trajectory of library responses and actions as they unfolded throughout the COVID-19 crisis.Social implicationsBy providing the start of an account and analysis of the international library and information science (LIS) community’s initial responses, this study also contributes to the broader (ongoing) conversation about the coronavirus pandemic and intervenes in emerging historical examinations of this crisis. This study could be of interest to LIS scholars and practitioners, in addition to public health researchers, public policymakers, cultural studies academics and historians, interested in how different and intersectional efforts – in this case, the international LIS community – contributed and can contribute to this pandemic and other similar or parallel crises.Originality/valueThe international library and information community’s initial responses to this global health crisis are contextualized, thereby serving as a foundation upon which to anchor, build and extend other research on responses to the pandemic as it unfolded. Drawing upon a qualitative documentary analysis of these statements, this study presents and discusses the international library community’s initial responses to the coronavirus pandemic. It chronicles these statements as they were released in real-time, thereby providing a contemporary and historical snapshot of the early stages of this crisis. The aim is to both historically and thematically contextualize the international library and information community’s initial responses to help establish a foundation upon which to anchor, build, extend and update the international library community’s responses to the pandemic as it unfolded (and indeed as it continues to unfold at the time of this writing in June 2020). This foundation, it is hoped, will help illuminate their respective positions, circumstances, convergences, divergences and areas of possible (future) cooperation, coordination and collaboration.

Ecological education in the libraries of the world

In the latter 50—30 years of the 20 th century the excessive load on the environment became obvious, and through the efforts of many natural scientists the young independent discipline of ecology came into being and became popular research and discussion vector in economics, sociology, and politics. For today, the international library community has accumulated solid and diverse experience related to ecology and sustainable development. However, these efforts are insufficiently presented in Russian professional publications. The role of libraries in building ecological outlook has become more evident in the circumstances of ecological crisis and intensifying focus on the problem. The libraries’ efforts reflect the global trends and approaches taken by scientists and researchers, politicians, industrial and agricultural producers, educationalists and cultural figures, and the wide public as ecological information users. The libraries’ experience and efforts in ecological education and information awareness evidence that educa­ting ecological and information culture has been growing into a new relevant function of the libraries in the modern world.

Interwar Internationalism and the Rebuilding of the Catholic University of Louvain Library (1914–1928)

ABSTRACT Drawing upon archival sources from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace (CEIP) and the Nicholas Murray Butler papers, this article situates postwar reconstruction of the library within the context of the wider internationalist movement and interwar attempts to replace nationalism with internationalism as a means to guarantee an enduring peace. The article analyzes the manner this library served as a symbol of the destruction of cultural heritage, civilization's conquest over barbarism, and the potential for moving beyond a state system focused on warfare. By contrasting the actions of the CEIP and the international library community that supported the project, this article views the campaign to rebuild the library through attempts to promote internationalism and foster reconciliation in Europe, exposing the difficulties faced by internationalists working in a transnational context to sway public opinion and overcome the power of nationalism as an animating force among states and citizens.

IFLA Statement on Net Neutrality and Zero-rating: At the backstage of the problem

The article analyzes the IFLA Statement on Network Neutrality and Zero-rating adopted on August 15, 2016 at the meeting of the World Library and Information Congress of the 82nd IFLA Conference inColumbus,USA, its importance for the international library community, as well as the socio-economic and cultural context, which was due to its adoption. Speaking in defense of network neutrality and against the practice of the zero-rating, IFLA designated a zone of latent for that period conflict of commercial interests of Internet providers and rules of equal access of the user to all types of content without speed and additional fee. Conflict this year later, in 2017, became public in the period of active struggle against the abolition of the principle of network neutrality in theUnited States.The market rate of traffic, the green light of which was opened as a result of the cancellation of network neutrality in theUnited Stateson December 14, 2017 by the Federal Communications Commission, is particularly sensitive for libraries with limited funding, unable to pay for high-speed Internet. In addition to paid access to broadband Internet, the obvious danger for libraries is the practice of zero rating, providing free and unlimited traffic in the framework of popular social networks or package tariff plans from large corporations, which leads to the monopolization of the information market by the largest IT corporations and the further marginalization of libraries.The displacement of cultural and educational institutions as a non-profitable sector on the roadside negatively affects libraries as providers of access and as creators of Internet content; strikes both on the acquisition of funds, and on the maintenance of readers of high-quality noncommercial information. As natural opponents of progressing monetization, the Library's networks favor the interpretation of the Internet as a public service, a publicly available public resource with a transparent and stable tariff, legislatively protected from attempts by providers to receive super-profits.

From MARC 21 - to BIBFRAME model: The evolution of the machine-readable formats of the U. S. Library of Congress

The BIBFRAME model is introduced; its origins are discussed. The author explains why Russian cataloguers have become interested in this LOC’ project. The developers argue that BIBFRAME is to initiate bibliographic standards transformation into the associated data model of a higher level and will make bibliographic information more useful for within and outside of bibliographic community. The structure comprises the model (structures information on three main abstraction levels: work, expression, item), glossary, and tools. The differences between BIBFRAME and MARC are revealed. BIBFRAME development stages, step-to-step implementation program are characterized. BIBFRAME and RDA tools are compared. Expert opinions on BIBFRAME concept and the prospects of its implementation in the global library practice are reviewed. The author emphasizes that BIBFRAME makes a formal access point for the library community to enter the larger data network where links between objects are of primary importance. The author also discusses terminology problems. She also voices her hope that we will not have to catch up with the international library community and will be represented on the Semantic Web, too.

The sixth unwritten law of library science

The five laws of library science, written by S. R. Ranganathan in 1928, drastically modified the idea of public library and oriented its evolution, placing the information needs of the reader at the center of its own reason to exist. However, there is a sixth unwritten law, which since 1851 has led the efforts of the international library community. This research draws the path and sets the milestones that identify this law, from Jewett’s Plan for Stereotyping Catalogues to IFLA’s Universal Bibliographic Control (UBC) program .

Making sense of the future of libraries

We examined five major projects conducted by library associations and related organizations between 2011 and 2016 that focused on the future of libraries and/or librarianship. We employed a sensemaking perspective as the foundation for our research. Through a sensemaking perspective, meaning is intersubjectively co-created. Threats to identity have created triggers for organizations to reexamine the roles of libraries in their communities. This reexamination of the roles of libraries within the community creates or develops a shared context which impacts both professional identity and advocacy efforts. While it is not clear the exact shape and scope of this crisis in the library profession, it is ‘real’ in that it has been meaningfully named, interpreted and enacted. The issue has been discussed coherently and cohesively in the international library community. It is clear that there is concern, internationally, for the future of librarianship.

World Library and Information Congress in Cape Town: New Strategic Directions

There are described the distinctive features of the World Library and Information Congress: the 81st General Conference of International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) held on 15-21 August, 2015 in Cape Town (South Africa). There are shown the main trends in the development of international library community through the prism of Draft of the New IFLA Strategic Plan.

Library bookbinding in Greece

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate the current status of library bookbinding in Greece. Design/methodology/approach – Two surveys were circulated among libraries and bookbinders. They aimed at determining the extent of use of bookbinding, the necessary characteristics of durable library bookbinding according to the respondents’ opinions and the relationship between bookbinders and libraries. Findings – The gathered data reflect the attitudes of Greek librarians and bookbinders and outline the current status of library bookbinding in Greece. They showed that bookbinding is extensively used as part of the preservation strategy for the majority of the Greek libraries. Most libraries resort to outsourcing. The specifications set by libraries are usually minimal, and it is left to the bookbinders to recommend the best solutions. Both librarians and binders emphasised openability and durability as the most important qualities of the bound volumes and quoted several relevant technical details. A model library binding technique is suggested in this study. Originality/value – Such an investigation has never been attempted before. This research can be useful to the Greek Libraries Central Administration and also to the whole Greek library community for the improvement of the current situation, and may help towards the development of a national standard. It may also be useful for the international library community as a case study, presenting the situation in Greece.

Kyrgyz Libraries Community – Co-Operation for Development: New Challenges and New Approaches

“Kyrgyz Libraries Information Consortium”, one of the largest library associations in the country, celebrates its 10th anniversary. The Consortium was established in 2002 and through membership, it comprises more than 400 libraries within Kyrgyzstan, including the National Library, the State Patent and Technical Library, the Library of the Academy of Science, and many other academic and regional libraries. The Consortium’s creation was an answer to the challenges the country faced: lack of information, very low level of technological development, no budget for collection development, lack of cooperation and collaboration between libraries in the country as well as with the international library community.
 The history and development of the Consortium, the Consortium mission, its goals, its main initiatives and the strategic directions to be taken are presented in the article. The importance of library development and how libraries in developed countries established strong and effective organizations are reviewed and analyzed here. This paper also presents the challenges and approaches that must be taken for future development of libraries in Kyrgyzstan.

New labour in libraries: the post‐Fordist public library

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the value of French School Regulation theory for questions of relevance to researchers and practitioners working in the field of information policy in general and public librarianship in particular.Design/methodology/approachThe paper is divided into two parts. Part one outlines Regulation theory's twin analytic tools of Fordism and post‐Fordism and its value for questions about the evolution of the public library. Part two provides an example of the approach's explanatory potential when applied to a series of public library planning documents produced by the Government of Ontario, Canada from the 1950s.FindingsAn interpretation of the evolution of the identity of the library user from patron to customer to information producer‐consumer is proposed at the intersection of the neoliberal state's austerity in social spending, the ubiquity of the new information and communication technologies, and fundamental changes in libraries as sites of waged‐work.Research limitations/implicationsThe research facilitates the development of a political economy of the contemporary public library of potential value to the international public library community. Also, conceiving of the public library as first and foremost a site of productive work forces one to re‐engage with the meaning of shifting relations between the library user and the institution on working conditions.Originality/valueThe applicability of a relatively under‐utilized theoretical framework is modelled that enables one to ask new questions of relevance to the field of library and information science.

Perceptions of LIS development in Vietnam: Educational outcomes and the way forward

The authors have been involved in the design and delivery of several LIS training and education programs in Vietnam in recent years. This activity has led them to become aware of library developments and initiatives taking place within Vietnam, and of issues that will affect future development of the library and information industry. Some of these developments have been documented, primarily in English language sources. The literature review in this article has attempted to draw together these sources to present a summary of library development in Vietnam to the present time. In order to collect input from Vietnamese information professionals currently in the workforce, in early 2008 ten young information professionals who were undertaking postgraduate studies in education and librarianship were interviewed. Their viewpoints on the critical factors in library development in Vietnam over the next decade are discussed in this article. Information about current library initiatives was also provided to the authors and is reported on, supplementing that which appears elsewhere in the literature. Realistic options for the Vietnamese library and information industry are discussed, together with a framework for the assistance that could be provided by the international library community.

The WIPO development agenda and the contribution of the international library community

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to analyze the international strengthening of copyright law in developing countries and the active involvement of the international library community in the movement against it.Design/methodology/approach – The paper describes the overprotection of intellectual property rights through international and bilateral treaties, the reaction against such through the proposal of a WIPO development agenda, and the contribution of the international library organizations to the debates and discussions in the WIPO arena.Findings – The initiative for a development agenda for WIPO has proven much more successful than many had imagined, even its promoters. The most relevant proposals made by the international library community were included in the final list of approved recommendations.Originality/value – The paper raises awareness of the relationship between copyright and access to knowledge and, in consequence, the need for library organizations to exert influence in such legisla...

The reSearcher Software Suite: A Case Study of Library Collaboration and Open Source Software Development

ABSTRACT This article examines the importance of library collaboration as demonstrated by the development of reSearcher, an open source software project at the Simon Fraser University Library, in British Columbia, Canada. A brief history of the project is provided, as well as an overview of each of the project's components, which offer electronic resource management, link resolving, personal citation management, and federated searching capabilities. The importance of libraries working together to ensure the success of the project is discussed, as well as the benefits received by members of the international library community participating in this open source alternative.

History of the Hungarian National Library

The library structure which still operates in Hungary today took shape in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The secular organizations of society at first organized their own collections together with the church libraries. At the beginning of the nineteenth century the rise of the urban bourgeoisie led to the establishment of numerous institutions not tied to the churches (clubs, educational societies, reading circles, and so on). The libraries of aristocrats (for example the library of Count József Teleki and his wife Kata Bethlen, the Festetics family, and the Ráday family) and scholars were the most important for the development of book collecting in Hungary. The idea of establishing the Hungarian national library emerged together with the intention to set up the national scholarly society, an academy of sciences. The collection is based on the library of Count Ferenc Széchényi donated for the establishment of a national library. It was first called Széchényi National Library, and operated within the frame of the National Museum up to 1949. Under the direction of the far-sighted minister of culture József Eötvös the library was made an important part of cultural policy, and its function expanded. Besides acquiring and preserving Hungarian-related documents great emphasis was placed on their scholarly processing and on research work. The National Széchényi Library became an independent institution in 1949 and occupied its present place in the Buda Castle Palace in 1985. The national library is an active member of the international library community, making great efforts to ensure its presence as an institution in international forums dealing with research on the history of books and libraries.

Freedom of access to information and freedom of expression: the Internet as a tool for global social inclusion

This paper explores how the relationship between freedom of access to information and freedom of expression is expressed across the international library community. Specifically, it analyses this relationship in the setting of Internet access in libraries where the Internet has been seen as a tool for fostering democracy and furthering social inclusion. Using preliminary analysis of data collected from a global survey of Internet access issues within the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA) member countries (2003), and by comparing this data with a survey of European library institutions carried out in 2002, the paper shows the extent to which libraries – from the point of view of national associations and national libraries – are able to use the Internet to promote freedom of access to information and freedom of expression despite the existence of barriers to this task.