Libraries In Poland Research Articles

Współczesne biblioteki więzienne i działalność kulturalno-oświatowa w polskich zakładach służby więziennej

Cel – W artykule przedstawiono działalność resocjalizacyjną wykorzystującą pracę kulturalno-oświatową, bibliotekę i różne formy przekazu treści, prowadzoną w polskich zakładach penitencjarnych. Głównym celem opracowania było przedstawienie aktualnej sytuacji w bibliotekarstwie więziennym i porównanie jej ze stanem z 1981 r. Metody badań – Dla potrzeb badania zastosowano metodę sondażu diagnostycznego, przeprowadzonego w 2010 r. we wszystkich, tj. 156 polskich zakładach penitencjarnych: 86 zakładach karnych i 70 aresztach śledczych. Wyniki i wnioski – Najważniejsze wnioski wynikające z badania wskazują na znaczącą rolę książki i innych materiałów bibliotecznych w działalności resocjalizacyjnej. Nie oznacza to jednak poświęcania szczególnej troski bibliotekom więziennym i doskonalenia ich działalności. Pozytywną zmianą jest wzrost liczby profesjonalnie przygotowanych pracowników Służby Więziennej, którzy nie tylko rozumieją znaczenie książki i działalności kulturalno-oświatowej, ale i w codziennej pracy organizują przedsięwzięcia popularyzujące czytelnictwo (np. wystawy książek, spotkania z autorami, konkursy wiedzy, literackie, czytanie książek przez radiowęzeł), umożliwiają osadzonym udział w kulturze i rozwijanie aktywności twórczych.

BOOK HERITAGE OF VASA DYNASTY IN VILNIUS UNIVERSITY LIBRARY

On the basis of the specimens which include the super ex-libris of the House of Vasa stored at the Rare Book Department of Vilnius University Library, the article attempts to answer the question whether the books might be attributed to the House of Vasa. The question is solved with reference to the analogues of the collection of books belonging to the House of Vasa stored in the libraries in Poland, Sweden and Germany. In addition to the major question, the article recreates the representation of the cultural life in the palace, analyses the relationship between the monarchs and a book, discusses the ways a book would reach the palatial library, highlights the topic of the collection of the books and shows their fate. The comparative analysis of the books stored in Vilnius and their analogues in Poland, Sweden and Germany enables the conclusion that they might be attributed to the House of Vasa. Al-though the provenances pertain to different per-sons, they do not deny that the aforementioned books most likely belonged to the library of Wladysław Vasa. Of course, a more substantial attribution requires more comprehensive research, the present article is expected to encourage

Prison Libraries in Poland: Partners in Rehabilitation, Culture, and Education

This article describes the rehabilitation programs of the Polish Prison Service, which incorporate various types of cultural, educational, and library activities. The main focus is on the author's analysis of rehabilitation programs in existence between 1981 and the present. The changes in the laws that govern these activities are described, as well as how the organization of the Polish prison system and the current sentence structure determine how rehabilitation programs are provided in the correctional institutions. The goals and objectives of prison libraries are explored, as they relate to the rehabilitation process and activities. The library collections and access to library materials are discussed, as well as library premises and library staffing. The author's research data form the basis for the analysis of prison library development over the last thirty years. The article also discusses various innovative rehabilitation programs that have been implemented under the theme of "education through culture and art." These include, among others, cultural and educational programs to help substance abusers overcome their addition and readjust to society, assertiveness training, and participation in cultural activities. These programs are also designed to enhance the offenders' literacy skills and to encourage their creativity and potential talent in music and fine arts. Finally, the article describes prison theater activities, literary clubs, and activities that promote reading (e.g., book exhibits, author talks, and the reading of books over the prison broadcasting system).

The state of development of digital libraries in Poland

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to describe the state of development of Polish digital libraries.Design/methodology/approachThe paper describes the establishment of the first digital library in Poland, the creation of the Wielkopolska Digital Library and other regional digital libraries. The organisational and technological solutions used by these libraries are described.FindingsThe concept of a single central library and several dozen regional libraries has made possible the creation of more than 40 digital libraries and the establishment of wide co‐operation among digital librarians. However, the passage to mass digitisation is still proving impossible at present.Originality/valueThe situation in Poland indicates a clear necessity for the introduction of appropriate legal regulations to place digitisation among the charter objectives of large libraries. The awarding of small grants does not change the situation, and sometimes even makes it worse. Digital libraries have come into being in large numbers over the last few years; because some of them have been functioning for a number of years, much experience has been acquired. Now it is necessary to move on to the next stage – mass digitisation. Polish libraries are quite unprepared for this. Digitisation continues to be treated by libraries as an experimental rather than a fundamental activity.

Review of recommendations for the management of dental trauma presented in first‐aid textbooks and manuals

To be able to help at the site of the oro-facial injury, the majority of persons would turn to medical books and first-aid books to extend their knowledge. Proper information in first-aid textbooks and manuals should be the best way to present necessary procedures on how to act at the site of injury. The objective of this review is to report the quality of the knowledge presented in first-aid books and manuals. We carried out a review of first-aid international textbooks and manuals available in Medical University Libraries in Poland. The inclusion criteria were all manuals on first-aid that were written for medical staff and lay persons, and were published between 1969 and 2007. All texts were screened for dental trauma treatment recommendations. Our literature review has shown that among 45 first-aid textbooks and manuals only 19 mention procedures for use in case of dental trauma. Of those texts, only 13 detail the storage media for an avulsed tooth until replantation. Current, evidence-based, recommendations concerning first-aid procedures after dental trauma should be incorporated in forthcoming editions of first-aid textbooks and manuals. The guidance on procedures contained in reviewed texts is misleading.

Application of Selected Software Tools for Data Collection and Analysis in Library Management and Their Effectiveness Assessment

In this paper, the authors present the results of research on the use of software tools for data collection and analysis in strategic and current library management. Special attention has been paid to StatuS and Performance Analysis for Polish Research Libraries (AFBN) — the tools most frequently used by Polish academic librarians. StatuS is used by the academic libraries of Krakow Library Group and several other libraries in Poland. Performance Analysis of Polish Research Libraries (AFBN) is a national project. Its main objective is to create standards for Polish libraries based on a set of performance indicators. AFBN consists of the e-survey, a database and special software for the collection and analysis of data. The surveys are submitted by academic and public research libraries once a year. The research on the application of selected software tools for data collection and analysis in library management in Polish academic libraries was conducted in February and March 2009. Results of the research reflect attitudes of managers toward usability of such tools to support various aspects of managerial processes.

Planning for impact, assessing for sustainability

PurposeThis paper aims to explain how the Global Libraries (GL) Initiative of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation plans for and assesses the impact of its programs on libraries and communities as part of their commitment to improving lives by increasing public access to computers and the internet in public libraries.Design/methodology/approachGL encourages libraries to design programs and services that address local and national priorities. Impact assessment processes assist libraries in collecting, analyzing and reporting on evidence to show: whether activities are conducted effectively to enable learning and improve processes; whether the program makes a difference to users and communities; and what impact evidence to use in advocacy for continued support and funding. GL's process and philosophy are described and case studies from two grantee programs in two countries are provided.FindingsThe Polish‐American Freedom Foundation (PAFF) adopted innovative methods developed for them by the Information Society Development Foundation to determine baseline library usage in rural public libraries in Poland. Rather than counting borrowers, which was the approach facilitated by the available data, they conducted random sampling in target areas. This allowed them to count users who do not borrow books, and to gauge scale of repeat usage and user demographics. In so doing, the team found that libraries have a substantially higher reach than book‐lending data alone suggested. The International Research and Exchanges Board (IREX) assessed community information needs and determined that education, health, and employment are the issues about which Romanians want more information. Libraries in Romania will design services based on a careful understanding of those needs.Research limitations/implicationsThe research findings reported are drawn from systematic quantitative and qualitative evidence gathering undertaken as part of the impact‐planning and assessment programs being implemented in the two countries.Originality/valueThe paper presents a current view of the GL approach to impact assessment and service sustainability as well as two early reports, one on the results of baseline evidence collection and the other on community needs assessment in the two participating countries.

The 57th Open Seminar on Acoustics OSA'2010 Gliwice, Poland, September 20 - 24, 2010

Traditionally you are invited to acquaint with some abstracts of lectures, submitted for presentation in Open Seminar on Acoustics (OSA'10). This national Seminar, with some foreign guests, in this year is organized by Upper Silesian Division of the Polish Acoustical Society, with cooperation of Institute of Physics - Science-Didactics Center at Silesian University of Technology and Acoustics Committee of Polish Academy of Sciences. In this year OSA'10 will take place in Gliwice at the Congress-Educational Center of the Silesian University of Technology. The conference has two famous honorary patrons - the Magnificence Rector of the Silesian University of Technology, Prof. Andrzej Karbownik, and Ministry of Science and Higher Education, Prof. Barbara Kudrycka. The Seminar is a forum for all fields of acoustics. Particularly in this year, in the Seminar Program you can find the following topics: general acoustics, environmental acoustic, biomedical acoustics, acoustics in blind person's life, active noise control, acoustical emission, vibroacoustics, ultrasound, interior acoustics and others. During the Seminar, the theoretical works, experimental, measuring, technical, applied and normative ones are presented. All the lectures prepared for OSA'10 are published in the 57th Open Seminar on Acoustics Materials - in book form and on cd. This publication is intended for participants of the Seminar and for many libraries in Poland. After acceptation by reviewers, the extended form of some lectures will be published in Archives of Acoustics. Once again we have decided to organize this conference, taking into account the fact that it is an important event for acousticians and other Polish and foreign scientists. We hope that this conference program will gain acceptance and respect among its potential participants. We count on your numerous response and active participation. The Seminar is traditionally sponsored by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education. Further information about OSA'10 you can find at http://ogpta.polsl.pl/osa.

38th Winter School on Vibroacoustical Hazards Suppressions

Traditionally, the 43rd Winter School on Vibroacoustical Hazards Suppressions national conference was organized by Upper Silesian Division of the Polish Acoustical Society (main organizers) and by The Committee on Acoustics of The Polish Academy of Sciences (co-organizer). The Conference, as in previous years, was held in Szczyrk. The conference is a forum for all environmental vibroacoustic fields. Particularly it concerns traffic noise, industry noise, vibroacoustics of machines, room acoustics, building acoustics, noise protection and similar problems. Works which are presented during the School are theoretical, experimental, measuring, technical, applied and normative. The School lectures and other conference materials will be published in the “Materials of the XLIII Winter School on Vibroacoustical Hazards Suppressions” (in Polish) edited by dr. Roman Bukowski. This publication will be intended for participants of the School and for many libraries in Poland. Moreover you can find in this issue abstracts of some lectures presented at conference.

A new look at the university libraries in context

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss the role of university libraries in the European Research Area, focusing on collection, diffusion and the exploitation of knowledge.Design/methodology/approach – The paper describes the potential of university libraries, the development of online libraries, repositories of scientific information and publication databases. It examines the role of university libraries in Poland in the process of knowledge transfer.Findings – There has been an increase in the role of libraries as agents of information exchange within universities, together with a growth in the purchase of electronic publications. There has also been an apparent change in the perception of libraries as centres of testing and dissemination of new technologies.Originality/value – The paper offers insights into why university libraries should become actively involved in the management of intellectual property and the transfer of knowledge.

Zasoby informacyjne i narzędzia informatyczne wspomagające e-kształcenie w bibliotece akademickiej. Doświadczenia Biblioteki Głównej i OINT Politechniki Wrocławskiej z różnych form pracy ze zdalnym użytkownikiem

W artykule zaprezentowano działalność Biblioteki Głównej i OINT Politechniki Wrocławskiej na przestrzeni ostatnich lat w zakresie umożliwienia wykorzystania zasobów elektronicznych. Przedstawiono doświadczenia z różnych form pracy z użytkownikiem zdalnym, zwłaszcza w kontekście możliwości ich wykorzystania w nauczaniu na odległość. Scharakteryzowano główne zasoby informacyjne oraz narzędzia informatyczne oferowane przez Bibliotekę Główną i OINT. Zestaw prezentowanych narzędzi informatycznych i zasobów informacyjnych, choć ma charakter niepowtarzalny, to w wielu przypadkach jest wspólny dla innych bibliotek akademickich. Przedstawiony materiał pozwala zobrazować zmiany, zachodzące w wykorzystaniu zasobów elektronicznych na przestrzeni ostatnich lat w jednej z największych bibliotek technicznych w kraju.

Performance indicators and standards for Polish research libraries

The article discusses proposed standards for Polish research libraries evaluation. At the beginning, the authors present the situation of research libraries in Poland. They write about the effects of the social-political transformation in the 90s, present selected statistical data, and describe the progress in computerisation. The following part of the article relates to the currently applied in Poland standards of library evaluation. Discussed are e.g. the presently applied tools for data collection and analysis. The last part includes proposed methods for the preparation of standards and assessments for Polish research libraries.

The tourism attractiveness of Polish libraries

The aim of the article is to draw the reader's attention to the tourism attractiveness of renowned Polish libraries. These have attained a tourism function due to tourism exploration and penetration, but remain in the shadow of other Polish cultural assets. The article outlines the historical geography of Polish libraries, an analysis of tourism assets and an attempt to classify and catalogue libraries in Poland.

Keyword binding as a method of reducing the length of indexes in library catalogues (based on the experience of Digital Library of Wielkopolska)

Artykuł przedstawia stosunkowo prostą i tanią metodę skracania indeksów rzeczowych w katalogach bibliotecznych. Polega ona na przyjęciu zestawu kilkudziesięciu pojęć ogólnych - charakteryzujących się niską barierą świadomości semantycznej. Wokół tych słów budowane są subindeksy złożone ze słów występujących w opisach zawierających dane pojęcie ogólne. Skuteczność metody badano, analizując zawartość fragmentów indeksów przedmiotowych centralnego katalogu bibliotek polskich NUKAT, Biblioteki Uniwersyteckiej w Poznaniu i Biblioteki Kongresu. Metoda ta w porównaniu z metodą języka haseł przedmiotowych średnio trzykrotnie skraca długość indeksu i znacznie ułatwia czytelnikowi rozeznanie w użytym przez katalogera słownictwie. Została opracowana dla potrzeb Wielkopolskiej Biblioteki Cyfrowej i prawdopodobnie będzie stosowana we wszystkich regionalnych bibliotekach cyfrowych w Polsce.

Fundusze strukturalne dla bibliotek w okresie programowania 2007-2013

Polska w ramach funduszy strukturalnych otrzyma w okresie programowania 2007-2013 około 67,3 mld euro. Jest to największa pomoc przyznana dotychczas państwu członkowskiemu w ramach Polityki Spójności Unii Europejskiej. Przed bibliotekami – zarówno naukowymi, jak również publicznymi czy nawet szkolnymi pojawiła się więc kolejna szansa na dofinansowanie działalności. W artykule przedstawione są możliwości skorzystania przez te instytucje z funduszy strukturalnych w latach 2007-2013 w ramach Programu Operacyjnego Infrastruktura i Środowisko, Programu Operacyjnego Rozwój Polski Wschodniej, Wielkopolskiego Regionalnego Programu Operacyjnego oraz Programu Operacyjnego Kapitał Ludzki.

Library cooperation the Polish way: toward NUKAT and WorldCat in Poland

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to discuss the development of library catalogs and the national union catalog in Poland and the inclusion of the latter in OCLC's WorldCat, bringing Polish cultural life from authors to researchers and composers to a worldwide audience.Design/methodology/approachTwo Polish librarians deeply involved in the liaison with OCLC over WorldCat discuss the development of library automation and catalogs in the country, in particular NUKAT, the national union catalog for academic and research libraries in Poland. The article also covers the inclusion of Polish library data in Google Scholar.FindingsThere is a wealth of Polish content now available via WorldCat – currently around 900,000 items are available.Practical implicationsMakes researchers aware of data on Polish publications that can now be found via OCLC's WorldCat and Google Scholar. Poland is one of Europe's major publishing countries, with around five per cent of Europe's publications a year.Originality/valueProvides an overview of the cataloguing situation in one of Eastern Europe's more recent member states of the European Union.

E‐learning model for Polish libraries: BIBWEB

PurposeThis article aims to describe the important role of e‐learning in Poland and to cover experiences in transferring and localising the course, know‐how about how to find strategic partners and establishing a sound infrastructure for e‐learning, and guidelines as to how to get and use feedback from learners to continuously improve the quality of the course.Design/methodology/approachThe article describes the situation in the Polish library world and the process of implementation and conducting the BIBWEB online course for librarians. It also relates to how the course improves information literacy.FindingsLibraries in Poland can considerably strengthen their role as an element of the information and knowledge society by expanding their offers regarding internet access and e‐learning. The situation in Germany in 1999 was comparable with the current situation in Poland. As a reaction to this, the Bertelsmann Foundation initiated an online course offer comprising three modules: “BIBWEB – internet training for libraries” (see www.bibweb.de), which met with great acceptance in Germany. For this reason, it made sense to translate the existing successful course product and adapt it to the special requirements of libraries in Poland. The Bertelsmann Foundation and its two project partners, the Warsaw University Library and the “Elektroniczna Biblioteka” (EBIB) library information service, have jointly developed such a Polish‐language online course (see www.bibweb.pl) and have offered it on the internet to the specialist target group since 2003.Originality/valueThis paper shows the benefits of an international educational project. Polish experiences concerning e‐learning may be useful for other nations.

Analiza wskaźników funkcjonowania Biblioteki Uniwersyteckiej w Poznaniu za lata 2002 - 2006, dla potrzeb projektu standaryzacji działań bibliotek naukowych w Polsce

The article discusses the results of the analysis of the norms and standards for functioning of Poznań University Library and includes a juxtaposition of their mean values with corresponding values in other university libraries obtained during an electronic survey carried out within the project of standardization of professional activities of research and university libraries in Poland for the years 2002 - 2006.

Regional digital libraries in Poland

PurposeTo review selected activities of Polish libraries in the field of digitising library collections.Design/methodology/approachProvides descriptive information on Wielkopolska Digital Library (WDL) – organisational assumptions, technology, functionality and resources. This paper discusses the problem of relations between regional libraries and central library.FindingsIt describes the organisation and technological solutions applied in the WDL, and characterises its resources and functionality. In addition, main problems of librarians developing digital libraries in Poland were indicated.Originality/valueA concept of a network of regional digital libraries in Poland was presented. Tasks were discussed, which regional libraries should carry out as the completion of tasks performed by the central library.

Creating a job description for an electronic resources librarian

Discusses the rules and methodology of introducing a new job description for an electronic resources librarian in an academic library in Poland. Indicates that a precise job description and its implementation in a job position linked to the strategic goals of an organisation make the structure clear and, consequently, efficient.