Library Congress Research Articles

Presidential Address by IFLA President Sinikka Sipilä to the IFLA World Library and Information Congress, 80th IFLA General Conference and Assembly, 2014, Lyon, France

Presidential Address by IFLA President Sinikka Sipilä to the IFLA World Library and Information Congress, 80^th IFLA General Conference and Assembly, 2014, Lyon, France

The All-Russian Library Congress - 2014: XIX Annual Conference of the Russian Library Association

The article presents the thematic review of the work of the All-Russian Library Congress - XIX Annual Conference of the Russian Library Association held on 18-23 May, 2014 in Ryazan, the Library capital of Russia in 2014. The Congress, devoted to the theme «Libraries in the Year of Culture», was conducted at the support of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation and the Government of the Ryazan Region.

To the 90th Anniversary of the I Library Congress of the RSFSR

The article, based on the research of the transcripts of the First Library Congress of the RSFSR, analyzes and summarizes the views of the participants of the congress on such issues, as the targets of library work, the acquisitions development, organization of library network and mobile libraries, the forms of mass library work, training and re-training of library staff. The article stresses the importance of the library congress for the development of library theory and practice, both, in the Soviet times and today.

Educational and enlightening 79th WLIC in Singapore! A report on selected events at IFLA 2013

Purpose – This report aims to summarize selected presentations of the International Federations of Librarians Associations and Institutions (IFLA) 79th world congress held at Suntec City centre, Singapore, and highlight Asian participation in the World Library and Information Congress (WLIC) 2013. In addition to its content, the IFLA congress provides opportunities to discuss emerging issues and best practices with colleagues, vendors, and consultants across the globe. Design/methodology/approach – Reports from the viewpoint of an IFLA 2013 congress participant and paper presenter; presents an overview of the selected events with more detail on some of the presented papers and Continuing Professional Development and Workplace Learning (CPDWL) workshop. IFLA congress attracts librarians from all sectors and work environments from around the globe. It is difficult to document the entire conference happenings in a single report because of its huge and diverse nature; therefore a selective approach is used. Findings – The WLIC in Singapore was one of the most exciting social and professional events of the year. Over the years, the author finds that IFLA congresses deliver the best value in professional development; the educational value of the IFLA congress that author has had attended is consistent and cost-beneficial. Practical implications – It is not possible for any one person to cover all aspects of IFLA; it contains presentation summary of selected papers maybe of particular interest to readers who missed these sessions. Originality/value – The Singapore congress was worthwhile and enlightening, revealing the diversity of current developments in library service delivery worldwide. This report summarizes information about the congress useful for professionals who did not attend.

Innovation during evolution: Document Supply Service digitises library collections

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to discuss the development of digitisation practices at the National Library of Australia Document Supply Service, its convergence with similar efforts in the Library's Digitisation and Photography Branch, and how the Library used Relais to manage and report on its digitisation activities. Design/methodology/approach – The authors use a case study approach and their own personal experiences with implementing these services. Findings – Digitisation based on ILL/DD user demand contributes to building a library's digital collections and helps to preserve valuable collections. Libraries are encouraged to seize opportunities that help to achieve its strategic goals, experiment with new and different approaches and technologies, persevere in the face of obstacles or slow uptake of ideas and solutions, and never stop looking for opportunities to improve user services. Originality/value – This paper was originally presented at the IFLA World Library and Information Congress, 79th IFLA General Conference and Assembly, 17-23 August 2013, Singapore, Session 200, “Strengthening Access to Information: The Future of Resource Sharing”.

EVA (ErwerbungsVorschlags-Assistant) assists in collection building! Using ILL data for patron-driven acquisition

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to describe the “ErwerbungsVorschlags-Assistent” (EVA), its underlying concepts and first usage statistics and experiences at the University Library of Duisburg-Essen, and explore its methodology of patron driven acquisition in regard to printed material, specifically interlibrary loan requests. Design/methodology/approach – The authors use a case study approach, describing the effects of the new system on existing ILL workflows and collection development decision-making. Findings – EVA has been in production in several German university libraries since October 2011. ILL requests are automatically compared to specific criteria in regard to their suitability as an acquisition, enriched with external data, and presented to the appropriate subject librarian. Originality/value – This paper was originally presented at the 2012 IFLA World Library and Information Congress in Helsinki, Finland, session 139, “Treating print in an increasingly digital collection: issues, dilemmas, and directions”, 14 August 2012. ILL, collection development, and ILL system developers will find the content useful.

The All-Russian Library Congress: XVIII Annual Conference of the Russian Library Association

On the All-Russian Library Congress, held on 12-17 May in Penza, the Library Capital of Russia’2013, at support of the Regional Authorities and the Penza Regional Library named after M.Y. Lermontov.

Libraries and Publishers: Challenges, New Roles and Models of Interaction

On the Round Table devoted to the Theme: “Contemporary Book Environment. New Models of Interaction of Publisher - Book Retailer - Library in the Knowledge Society”, held in the Framework of the All-Russian Library Congress: XVIII Annual Conference of RLA.

世界図書館・情報会議：第79回IFLA（国際図書館連盟）年次大会

世界図書館・情報会議：第79回IFLA（国際図書館連盟）年次大会

E‐ILL and Russian e‐books

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine the challenges ILL librarians are faced with when trying to borrow or lend e‐books through traditional interlibrary loan channels, especially in the context of international lending and borrowing.Design/methodology/approachThe authors use Russian language e‐books and e‐readers as a model for understanding the challenges presented by numerous file formats and e‐reader types, multiple alphabets (e.g. Latin, Cyrillic), and national copyright laws and licensing restrictions.FindingsInternational ILL requests for e‐books present a host of challenges beyond the usual licensing restrictions encountered in one's home country. A wide variety of unfamiliar and perhaps incompatible file formats, a lack of compatible e‐readers, and national copyright laws are just a few of the barriers to obtaining e‐books from abroad. It may become a regular part of the ILL librarian's job to develop protocols for locating digitized materials and forming working relationships with language specialists who can assist in providing access to these materials.Originality/valueThis paper was originally presented as part of a panel presentation on e‐books and interlibrary loan at the 2011 IFLA World Library and Information Congress.

Open access to national bibliography:Polish approach

PurposeAlthough the “open access” and “bibliography” appear to be contradictory concepts, as the first applies to the idea of direct and unrestricted access and the use of the resources' content and the latter refers to the list of resources' descriptions, the issue of open access to bibliography is widely discussed by the librarians' community nowadays. This paper aims to elaborate on the subject of the Polish national bibliographic agency's approach along with its experiences and problems.Design/methodology/approach“Open Access to National Bibliographies: Best Practices and Business Models” was the subject of the Bibliographic Section's session of the IFLA World Library and Information Congress that took place in Gothenburg in 2010. This article is based on a discussion paper presented at the session.FindingsThe better realization of the idea of “open access” to bibliography needs more effort and further cooperation among the libraries, publishers and institutions of law especially in respect of copyright, legal deposit and press laws. International exchange of experience and popularization of good practice in this field is necessary for success and inclusion of the national bibliography into open bibliographic universe.Originality/valueThe Polish National Bibliography is a public good, i.e. a non‐commercial product. Its principal aim is to give complete and reliable bibliographic data about the intellectual and cultural heritage and to make them easily accessible not only for librarians and other actors of the publishing market, but also for the general public.

World Library and Information Congress IFLA-2010

On the World Library and Information Congress IFLA-2010 held in Gothenburg on August, 10-15, 2010.

Opening Address to the World Library and Information Congress, IFLA 76th General Conference and Assembly, Gothenburg, Sweden, August 2010

Opening Address to the World Library and Information Congress, IFLA 76th General Conference and Assembly, Gothenburg, Sweden, August 2010

The DeathFlip Project: Automating Death Date Revisions to Name Headings in Bibliographic Records

The 2005 revision of Library Congress Rule Interpretation 22.17, allowing the addition of death dates to personal name headings with open dates, had a significant impact on the maintenance of bibliographic records. The decision not to include open date forms as “see from” fields in revised authority records destined catalog maintenance staff to higher levels of manual review and editing. At Kent State University this prompted a search for better options and resulted in the creation of a shadow authority file intended solely for automated “flipping” of open date headings to the new forms. The file is available to other libraries for use and experimentation.

World Library and Information Congress, Milan, 2009: Address to the General Assembly by the President of IFLA

World Library and Information Congress, Milan, 2009: Address to the General Assembly by the President of IFLA

The Impact of Digital Technology on Contemporary and Historic Newspapers, Proceedings of the International Newspaper Conference, Singapore, April 1‐3, 2008, and Papers from the World Library and Information Congress, Québec, Canada, August

The Impact of Digital Technology on Contemporary and Historic Newspapers, Proceedings of the International Newspaper Conference, Singapore, April 1‐3, 2008, and Papers from the World Library and Information Congress, Québec, Canada, August

Diffusion of Professional Norms: the impact of IFLA in South Africa

A study of the impact of the work of IFLA, including its role in the development of information literacy programmes, on the profession in South Africa, based on the views of South African professionals attending the World Library and Information Congress, 73rd IFLA General Conference, held in Durban, 19—23 August 2007. A series of focus group and other interviews was used. Themes arising from the discussions are: • That IFLA has a strong role to play in advice, guidance, and the development of standards; its role in national policy development is necessarily limited. • That the Congress is an important meeting place and its proceedings a source of inspiration to those who have come with a `prepared mind'. • That the influence of its work and proceedings could be greater if it were communicated in accessible forms in partnership with existing publications such as the IFLA Journal . • That, for the younger professional, seeking to become involved, IFLA is a daunting organization.

IFLA WLIC 2008 Quebec City, Canada

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide a flavour of the World Library and Information Congress: 74th IFLA General Conference and Council.Design/methodology/approachThe paper gives an outline of the issues, content, speakers, participants, social networking and location of this conference.FindingsThe conference was informative, useful and provided wonderful international networking opportunities.Originality/valueThe paper provides a report of a major annual international conference of value to international information and library professionals.

Libraries and the First Nations People of Canada

Plenary address presented at the World Library and Information Congress: 74th IFLA General Conference And Council, 10—14 August 2008, Québec City, Canada. Describes the author's childhood as a member of the First Nations People of Canada and his discovery of the value of books and libraries. Describes the social conditions of young people living in poor First Nation communities in Canada and his efforts to establish libraries, summer reading camps, reading clubs and creative writing literary awards for children and youth in these communities.

World Library and Information Congress, Québec, 2008: opening address by the Governor General of Canada

World Library and Information Congress, Québec, 2008: opening address by the Governor General of Canada