This research aims to ascertain the conceptual basics underlying the design of the "Seven Epitomes", the first library catalog to establish the bibliographic model in imperial China. The analytical framework for the study consists of a reconstructed version of the catalog and its historical contexts. In analyzing the surviving text of…

A number of academic, public, regional, and state libraries use WorldCat Local (WCL) as a resource location tool that enables users to search, find, and gain access to a range of print and electronic resources. This article describes a study undertaken to assess a Research I university's implementation of WCL. The study sought to understand the…

Experiments were designed and carried out in an attempt to identify some parameters relating to ease of manual searching in library catalogs. A comparison of the difficulty of searching the same file in card form and book form indicated that searching the book catalog generally requires more time. (4 references) (Author/NH)

This paper attempts to analyze the problem of congestion, using a mathematical model shown to be of value in other similar applications. Three criteria of congestion are considered, and it is found that the conclusion one can draw is sensitive to which of these criteria is paramount. (8 references) (Author/NH)

Recognizing the Mouseion's immediate need for reference works, Callimachus, in addition to compiling the great library catalog ( Pinakes''), also produced a large number of reference works in a myriad of subjects including anthropology, geography, history, ornithology, and literary history and criticism. (12 references) (Author)

Four different methods of arranging Chinese-language author-title catalogs were compared in terms of the amount of information required to locate entries. The results of the study reinforce the current trend toward the strictly alphabetical arrangement of Chinese-language library catalogs on the basis of Romanized entries. (JB)

A summary and overview is given of a several-year research project, Requirements Study for Future Catalogs.'' The research was intended essentially to ascertain what information should be recorded in future library catalogs in order to best serve their users. Various publications and reports based on the project are summarized. (Author/NH)

Search theory is applied to scanning library shelves or catalogs for items of immediate utility. (Author/AB)

The questions of when and how best to computerize the catalog of a large research library, and how to improve an existing conventional catalog, motivated a study of the utilization of the main catalog of the Yale University Library. The study was designed to provide a representative sample of catalog use. (7 references) (Author/NH)

This article presents case studies of the social shaping of the national union catalog (NUC) in seven countries (four in Central and Eastern Europe, two in the Baltic region, and South Africa). The purpose is to illustrate how technology developments do not occur independently of their social context but rather are co-constituted by the…

This article reports the results of a quantitative and thematic content analysis of the organization of information literature in the "Library Quarterly" ("LQ") between its inception in 1931 and 2004. The majority of articles in this category were published in the first half of "LQ's" run. Prominent themes have included cataloging codes and the…