A Proposal for the Introduction of an Integrative Approach

In the Teaching of Traditional Library Techniques of

Organisation & Retrieval of knowledge Sources
And
Computer-based Database Design and Development Techniques
Madan Mohan Kashyap
201, Kadambari Niwas,
Kadambari Marg, Sector-9,
Rohini, Delhi-110085
(Email: kashyap@bol.net.in)

Abstract
Presents a case for the restructuring the traditional main stream courses of library and information
science discipline and the computer application related courses taught in library and information
schools in India. Suggest that these courses need to be blended to constitute integrative courses of
study. Shows the likeness between some concepts and techniques developed by computer specialist
and library scientists. Points outs that to design and develop computer-based library information
systems and services, one needs to have knowledge about the library objectives, functions, policies,
rules, procedures, and specialised library tools and techniques, such as library classification,
cataloguing and indexing techniques, along with database design, and development tools and
techniques of information technology domain. As such, while teaching the techniques of two different
domains to the library science students it is necessary that we try to follow an integrative approach. To
achieve this objective it is necessary that we develop required study material by intermixing the
theories and techniques of the two domains of study to form a new whole. Suggests that we can
achieved the objective by revising the existing library classification and cataloguing theories, tools
and techniques of Ranganathan in particular, by way of incorporating the concepts and techniques
developed by computer specialists. As an example, signify the potentiality of Classified catalogue
Code (CCC) of Ranganathan to be converted into a code or guide for creating a comprehensive
library database, covering all types of entities associated with a library system and potentiality of
Ranganathan's general theory of knowledge classification in developing specialised databases.

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0 Introductions

Today many libraries are using computers and allied information technologies to improve
their work methods and services. Consequently, the libraries need such professional staff, or
need to train the present one, who could face the challenges placed by the introduction of
these technologies in the libraries. To meet the demand of such professional staff, the
departments of Library and Information Science in India introduced new courses of studies
to expose their students in the use and application of computers and other allied technologies.
Some courses introduced are: Computer Application in Libraries; Systems Analysis and
Design Technique; Design and Development of Computer-based Library Information
Systems; Database Organisation and Design; Library Networking; Use and Application of
Communication Technology, and so forth.
We feel that the computer and information technologies biased courses need to be
restructured, revised, and more harmoniously blended with the traditional main stream
courses of library and information science discipline. We must alter the strategy of teaching
library techniques, such as classification, cataloguing, and library procedures, and the
techniques of designing computer-based library information systems and services. The use
and application of these techniques get interwoven when we shift from a manually operated
library system's environment to computer-based library system's environment. As such, it
becomes necessary that we must follow an integrative approach, when we teach these
techniques to the students of library and information science or train library staff in the use
and application of these techniques to design, develop and implement computer-based
library information systems and services.
In the following sections of this paper, we shall outline the likeness or correspondence
between certain concepts and techniques formed by computer specialist and the one
developed by the librarians, in their respective domains. We make use of these techniques
(i.e. the techniques of both the domains) in the design and implementation of computer-
based library information systems and services. As such, it is essential that lessons of study
concerning the exposition of these supplementary and complementary techniques must be
integrated.

1 Likeness in the Approaches of Techniques Developed by Computer Specialists and

Librarians

Before the arrival of computers, the librarians had formulated certain concepts, tools and
techniques for
• Organising the knowledge sources or bibliographic items collected by the libraries in
a helpful classified order according to APPUPA pattern, the name given by
Ranganathan to the desired order of arrangement of the bibliographic items
relating to associated subject on the library shelves. This pattern enables the library
members to easily locate the items of their interest in a specific subject and related
subjects kept on the left and right side the specific subject in a library.
• Creating and organising surrogates ( i.e. catalogue cards or records of bibliographic
items) in as traditional or online library catalogues, to enable the library users to
search and identify the bibliographic items of their interest through various access
points

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 With the arrival of computer and database technology, the database designers to
specify a conceptual model of a database or to formulate a data structure design (i.e. a set
of organised data about real word entities) use various database modelling techniques or
approaches. The theoretical base of these techniques is very similar to faceted technique
postulated and devolved by Ranganathan for designing a scheme for a classification and
cataloguing rules and approaches. Both these techniques are based upon similar or
congruent postulates that can help us:
• To design a conceptual schema,
• To formulate a data structure design to organise the data or data records about real
world entities (such as books, people, animals, plants, etc.),
• To create records of entities associated with a library system or any other
organisation.
• To develop and implement search mechanisms, which help us to retrieve the
required information from the library catalogues or online databases.
• To identify and retrieve bibliographic items stored on the library selves or digital
documents stored in a computer system.
If we compare these concepts, tools and techniques with the concepts and techniques of
database design developed by computer specialists, we find similarity or correspondence
between their purpose and approaches.

1.1 Techniques of Database Design or Structure

The design of a database structure involves three different levels of activities: (i) conceptual
level, (ii) algorithmic or programming level, and (iii) storage level.
The activities at conceptual level relate to the initial phase of data processing. During
this phase one begins by identifying the objects, things, events or entity types whose data is
to be processed and stored by the computer system. Once the pertinent entity types are
identified, their relevant attributes or data elements are listed and the format, in which they
are to be organised and stored, namely the data structure or database structure, is selected.
The selected structure, format or schema at this level represents only conceptual view or
model of the data (or the database).
The activities of the algorithmic level represent the initial steps of implementing the
selected data structure. These steps involve the specification of the required functions of the
selected data structure and the operations that are to be facilitated by the chosen data
structure. Such specifications are coded in a program using a procedure-oriented language.
The mechanism used in the program to implement various data structures includes linear list,
inverted list, linked list, and so on.
The activities of the storage level have to do with physical representation of the data
structure in the computer storage. During this phase one is concerned with physically
configuring the data, that is, with the internal linkage, in the computer storage subsystem.
Array and files are tools used to configure or build such mechanisms.

1.2 Correspondence between the Approaches of Database Design and the Design of
a Scheme for Library Classification

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The data in a database is organised in variety of ways, and the details for structuring the
data or data records with in a database are called data models. A data model has a fixed
set of language constructs that are used for describing data and also have counterpart
graphic representations for each construct, which enable the system designer or analyst to
build and represent the database structure diagrammatically.
The database modelling (or design) is a process of determining the structure and
contents of a database. It is a complex process and constitutes of three phases namely, (i)
conceptual design phase, (ii) logical design phase and (iii) physical deign phase.
The conceptual design phase starts from requirement analysis and description and
results in the global or conceptual schema of the database. A conceptual schema is high-
level description of the structure of the database and is independent of any particular
Database Management System (DBMS). A conceptual data model is the language that is
used to describe conceptual schema. A conceptual model specifies the rules according to
which database records are to be logically structured and helps us describe the logical
database structure.
The logical design phase starts from converting conceptual schema into a logical
schema. A logical schema is the specification of the structure of database that can be
implemented on and processed using DBMS software.
The physical design phase is concerned with the description of the implementation of
database in a storage device; it describes the storage structures and access methods used
to effectively and efficiently access data from storage devices. A physical design is
custom-made to a specific database management system. Low level or physical data
models, also called implementation-oriented models provide concepts that describe the
details of how data is stored in the computer storage device. The three most widely used
implementation-oriented models are relational, network, and hierarchical model (Vossen,
1991).
Systems analysts or database designers use logical database-modelling techniques,
such as entity-relationship modelling technique and object modelling technique, to
analyse and document the conceptual and logical design of a database, and data flow
diagrams to illustrate how the data will be captured, stored, used and maintained in a
database system environment.
Logical data modelling approach first gained recognition in Dr. Peter Chen's article
Entity-Relationship Model: Towards a Unified View of Data (1976). Since then, data
modelling or database modelling has become the common practice in design and
development or of database systems. Using a data modelling technique, we can establish,
organise or structure database of an information system and document its details.
The Entity-Relationship data analysis and modelling approach is basically an
analytical technique that can be used to identify and describe the entities associated with
an enterprise/ organisation/ problem area or about which an enterprise, organisation or
person wishes to store information and designing a conceptual schema or model of a
database. This database design technique is based on the following fundamental concepts
is aided by graphical display known as Entity-Relationship Diagrams (E-R diagrams):
• Entity: An entity is something that can be seen, touched, conceptualised, or
otherwise sensed, and about which collect and store data , or describe it
• Entity Type (or Entity Set), which represent a set of distinguishable real-world
objects or things (mini world) with common properties and about which an

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 organisation or a person wants to collect and keep facts, data or information.
BIBLIOGRAPHIC ITEM, LIBRARY, EMPLOYEE, CITY, and MOUNTAIN
are examples of entities.
• Attributes, which represent the elementary properties of entities or the attributes
acquired entities due to relationships with other entities. For attributes, attributes
of entity PERSON are: Name, Height, Weight, Address, Date-of-Birth, Place-of-
Birth and so on. Place-of-Birth is the attribute that is acquired by the entity
PERSON due its connection or relationship with the entity PLACE; the
relationship being Is-Born-In between the entities EMPLOYEE and PLACE
(CITY, TOWN, VILLAGE). The date_of_birth is the attribute of the relationship
Is-Born-In between the entities EMPLOYEE and PLACE (CITY, TOWN,
VILLAGE).
• Relationships, which represent the associations or connections among entities.
Examples of typical relationship are: Employee-of that relates EMPLOYEE and
his place of work LIBRARY. The entities acquire certain descriptive elements or
properties due to their association, connections or relationships with other entities.
Relationships between entities are either one-to-one, one-to-many, or many-to-
many.
Beside the entity-relationship analysis and modelling approach, another data
modelling approach, named the object-oriented analysis and modelling approach, is also
popular these days. There is some similarity between the concepts or terms used in both
of these data modelling approaches. Object modelling is a technique for identifying
objects within the systems environment and the relationships between them. According to
the object modelling technique the real world consists of objects like, men, women, trees,
books, tables, and so forth. All objects belong to some class and have certain set of
defined attributes and behaviours. An object, then, is an instance of a class. Consider the
object (class) LIBRARY BOOK or MONOGRAPH. It has certain attributes: a title,
extent, subject and price. It has also certain behaviours or functionalities. For Example, it
can be borrowed by a library member for certain time and returned to the library in given
time. Finally it has an identity: a call number that distinguishes it from other library
books or monographs. These concepts are briefly described below:
• Object: An object is something that can be seen, touched, or otherwise sensed,
and about which users store data
• Object Class: An object class is something that constitutes of a set of objects with
similar attributes (properties), common behaviour, and common relationships
(association) with other objects.
• Attributes: Attributes are the characteristics of interest (data) about an object.
• Behaviour: Behaviour of an object either changes or returns the state of on object.
It refers to those things that the object can do and the correspondence functions
that can act on the object’s data (or attributes). “In object-oriented circles, an
object's behaviour is commonly referred to as a method, operation or service."
[Whitten, et al, 2001. Pp. 646-672].
The basic concepts of entity-relationship analysis and modelling approach are the
foundation of the logical database modelling technique with the help of which we can
outline a conceptual model (also called conceptual or logical view) of a database, which is
an application-independent and storage independent general abstract or logical description

5
of the database. The conceptual level design or model of a database relates to the
representation of that part of the real world that the database is about. For example, when we
design a bibliographic database we are concerned with various kinds of ‘Information or
Knowledge Resources' (i.e., documents or bibliographic items), a subset of real world
entities.
The conceptual level database involves identifying and specifying:
- The entity types, which are the sets of entities with which we are concerned. In
the case bibliographic database design case the entity types or classes involved
are: (i) Monographs - Simple and Composite, (ii) Serials, and (iii) Independent
Works or Contributions (Analytic) forming part of Simple or Composite
Monographs, or Serials.
- The attributes of the entities. An attribute is a property or a fact about an entity
or entity types. It is a piece of information or elementary data about an entity or
about a relationship. Title, for example, is the attribute of the entity document (a
monograph, a serial or an analytic), and so is a date of publication, size, and
extent. A string of symbols used to represent an attribute of a particular entity is
called a value of the attribute. Thus "1994" and "xx+200p" may be the values of
the attributes - date of publication and extent of a particular monograph, a serial,
or an individual volume of a serial or a multi-volume monograph.
- The relationships or associations among the entities. For example, the
relationship between the entity BOOK (i.e. work) and the entity AUTHOR is
that a book is written by or edited by an author. The terms written by or edited by
indicate the relationship that exists between the entity types MONOGRAPH
and AUTHOR.

Ranganathan's faceted approach (also called theory of knowledge classification) is

based upon the concepts of five fundamental categories or facets, namely Personality,
Matter, Energy, Space and Time (cf., Ranganathan, 1967); 1964; Kashyap, 1983;
Spiteri, 1996; Broughton, Vanda. 2001). If we critically examine the purpose and the
definition of the concepts Personality, Matter, Energy, as provided by Ranganathan, we
find them similar to the three fundamental concepts of Entity-Relationship Data Analysis
and Modelling Technique, namely, Entity Types, Attributes and Relationships (cf.,
Kashyap, 2003). In addition, as Neelameghan points out (cf., Neelameghan, 1992; 1992),
the General Theory of Knowledge Classification developed by Ranganathan can also be
applied in designing specialized databases. Further, designing faceted classifications and
putting on the Web, especially on commercial web sites are increasingly become
common. (cf., Adkisson, 2003)
According to Ranganathan, "library classification is the classification of subjects or
knowledge classification" (Ranganathan. 1967, p.94) and a subject is an organised or
systematised body of ideas, facts, data, information or knowledge concerning some
thing/things or an exposition of theoretical construct(s) embodied in a bibliographic item.
The content of a bibliographic item is the product of intellectual, transintellectual,
creative activity or the imagination of man recorded in an intelligible, coherent and
communicable form. The focus of study and description in a work or bibliographic
document can be about a conceptual (abstract) or concrete (physical) entity/entities and
their properties. The Ranganathan’s postulate, principle and cannons for classification

6
are concerned with developing a framework for a scheme for subject classification and
subject indexing system for organisation of documents, information about documents and
their contents (i.e., the description of abstract or physical entity/entities or their attributes
in the bibliographic documents).
Ranganathan faceted approach is based on the postulates that the subjects of studies can
be broadly divided into BASIC (or Simple) SUBJECTS and their subsequent hierarchical
subdivisions called COMPOUND SUBJECTS, and COMPLEX SUBJECTS. A Basic (or
Simple) Subject is field of study or discipline (branch of learning) or an aggregate of such
fields; mutually exclusive and totally exhaustive first order array of subjects of a scheme for
classification (e.g. Mathematics, Arithmetic, Geometry, Physics, Light, Heat, Biology,
Cytology, and so on). According to Ranganathan a Compound Subject is formed by
combination of a Basic Subject and one or more isolate concepts, belonging to the five
fundamental categories or facets, namely Personality [P], Mater [M], Energy [E.], Space [S],
and Time [T].
The Fundamental Category Personality [P] and its various levels constitute of
hierarchically organised concepts representing the sets of entities or entity types and their
subsets, forming the subject studies within the scope of a given field of study or a BASIC
SUBJECT. By entity or entity type he means: 'any existence, concrete or conceptual, that
is, a thing or idea'.
The Fundamental Category Mater [M] and its various levels constitute of hierarchically
organised concepts of the Matter Material (MM) and Matter Property (MP) type attributes
of the focal entity types, included in Personality [P] category of a BASIC SUBJECT.
According to Ranganathan, Fundamental Category Mater [M] represents what something
is made of, or any property, or quality or quantity like measure of an entity. The isolate
ideas or concepts representing the intrinsic matter, material, properties, or attributes of
entity or entity class; that is, qualities, quantities, functions, activities, processes, growth,
change of state, behaviour or characteristics of entities or objects belong to the focal facet.
Examples are Colour, Inflammation, Reliability, Weight, State, Harmony, Authority,
Constitution, Structure, Hardness, Softness, and Iron (as content of Blood or as a
material of Iron-Table)
The Fundamental Category Energy (or Action) [E] covers the isolate ideas or
concepts that represent the energetic actions, operations (mental or physical), how
something is processed or evolves, or impacts on the focal or core entity (i.e., the object
or thing affected by action on it, by or through another entity and bring change in the core
or focal entity belonging to first round Personality Facet [1P]) are deemed to belong to
the category “Energy." In other words, this category includes isolate ideas or concepts
relating to the energetic actions or interactions that exist among and by all kinds of
entities -- inanimate, animate, conceptual, intellectual and initiative." (Ranganathan, 1967.
pp. 400). The entity types that are source of energetic actions, operations (mental or
physical), or any other relationship are deemed to belong to round two Personality Facet
[2P]. The attributes of entity types belonging to second round Personality Facet [2P]
constitute component of second round Matter Facet [2M], and second round Energy Facet
[2E] constitute of concepts representing the associations, interrelationships, interactions
(including action on or by other entities) that may exist between the entities belonging to
second round Personality Facet [2P] with other entity types, which are deemed to belong to
third round Personality Facet [3P] and so on.

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 Ranganathan postulated that we always study an entity or entity set, (i.e. any existence,
which may be either conceptual (or abstract) - god, democracy, truth, and so forth, or
concrete (or physical) - plant, heat, light, cell, and so forth). Further, when study an entity or
entity set we study its / their attributes (properties), and interrelationships, interactions with
(including action on or by) other entities, in space and time context. These postulates are
found useful to develop a scheme for a library classification. With the help of such a scheme
we can organise the bibliographic items and their surrogates (i.e. bibliographic records) in
helpful order and enable a library reader to retrieve the bibliographic items of his interest
from the entire library collection with ease, based upon subject approach.

1.3 Correspondence between Methods of Organising Computer Files and

Classified Catalogue Files

An indexed or inverted file organisation is a process or method of organising computer files

so that a record or set of records in a computer file (main or master file) can be searched
through an index or index file. An index or index file is used to access or pick a specific set
of computer records from the master file. There are two types of indexes: primary indexes
and secondary indexes. A primary index is one, which is built up using unique identifiers
(i.e. primary key values) and pointers to the corresponding records in the main file. Further
to build a primary index it is necessarily that the individual records in the master file are
stored according to primary key sequence. Whereas, a secondary index is one that is built up
using non-unique identifiers (i.e. secondary key values) and pointers to the corresponding
records.
The librarians already knew the use of indices, for accessing or searching bibliographic
records or items from a main file of a library-classified catalogue. For this, we refer to the
technique developed by Ranganathan, known as Chain Procedure (cf. Ranganathan,
1988). This procedure helps us to prepare class index entries (i.e. an index file) for a
Classified Catalogue. These entries or file enable us to locate bibliographic entries of
bibliographic items, belonging to a particular class (or a subject category) or its subdivisions,
in the classified part (i.e. from main or master file) of the catalogue. If a library user wants
to locate a set of bibliographic items on a topic, he would not begin to search all the
bibliographic records in the classified part (i.e. the indexed file) of the catalogue from the
beginning to end until comes across the topic of his interest. Rather he is directed to the
specific location in the classified part (i.e. the indexed file) of the catalogue to actually find
the bibliographic records of bibliographic items of his interest (along with complete data
about them), through the alphabetical part (i.e. the index file) of a catalogue. The
alphabetical part of the catalogue is in turn is arranged sequentially to an alphabetical order.
It may be observed that a classified catalogue of a library and correspondingly a
database of a computerised information system, which is organised using indexed or
inverted file organisation method, are split into two parts, each part serving different
function. In case of a classified catalogue, one part, called the classified part, holds all the
records of bibliographic items in classified order. The other part, called the alphabetical part,
contains sequentially arranged subject approaches or descriptors, to trace the relevant
records of bibliographic items on a particular subject from the first part. Similarly, one part
of a database called the main file or indexed file. This part holds of all the records of entity
types, physically organised in some suitable manner. The other part of a database consists of

8
sequentially arranged, one or more indexes (index/inverted files), which help us to trace and
retrieve a specific entity record or a set of entity records from the main or master file. Both
types of organisation help us in retrieving records and consequently data or information
about a particular bibliographic item/entity or a set of bibliographic items/entities from the
catalogue or database. However, the librarians, to designate the two parts of a library
catalogue and computer specialists to designate the two parts of a database use different
terms.
The correlation between some approaches of library science and database designing
techniques, as shown in the previous section, is due to fact that both areas of knowledge are
concerned with information storage, processing and retrieval activities.
After having shown the correspondence between library science and database design
and development techniques, in the subsequent part of the paper, we shall examine the
potentialities and means of following the integrative approach in handling the traditional
library science courses and the database organisation and designing techniques of
information technology. The traditional library science courses, such as, Library
Administration (i.e. Course relating to library procedures or routines), Library Cataloguing
(Theory and Practice) and the related information technology techniques need to be
coalesced into one stream forming an integrated course of study and teaching in library and
information science.

2. Computer-Based Information Systems: Design and Development Approach

We can use computers to carry out near all library functions, activities or work practices.
One can computerise library processes such as acquisition, cataloguing, circulation and
control of bibliographic items; membership registration; financial controls; upkeep of
service records of employees, and so on. To do these library functions with the help of
computers, we actually develop and install computer-based library information systems.
In any organisation, a computer-based information system is generally designed to
supports the operational and managerial decision making functions of the organisation and
provides information:
a. necessary for day-to-day library operations, planning and decision making
b. to aid tactical or short run planning, and
c. for the support strategic or long term planning.
In contrast, a computer-based information system (also called library management
system) of a library serves as an information system for management, and also
bibliographic information system for library members. It provides:
• Bibliographic information about the holdings of a library and their status, to the library
members,
• The information required by library staff and management to perform day to day library
activities or functions, and
• Information which supports managerial and decision making functions of different
levels of library managers. Information, which is useful to them for tactical (or short run)
planning and for a strategic (or a long term) planning.

2.1 Methodology of Designing a Computerised Information System

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A computer-based information system of an organisation is designed, developed and made
operative using a database management system (DBMS). The databases of an information
system are created and stored on computer hosts and linked to more than one access point
via telecommunication lines. These databases are also developed and searched using the
DBMSs.
To design and develop a computerised information system and to set up its database
with the aid of DBMS, what we required is:
1. Comprehensive or total view of the organisation including its objectives, functions,
processes or activities (to be computerised) and the various entities associated with
the organisation, whose database need to be created.
2. Expertise in the design and development of a conceptual schema and sub-schema of
the database.
3. Knowledge about the capabilities and limitations of the database management
software is being used to create the database of the organisation.
4. Proficiency in the use and application of its data-definition and data-manipulation
languages of the DBMS, including its indexing and search techniques and
converting the conceptual scheme into logical structure or a data schema / model
within the framework of the given DBMS.

In addition, one must be able to:

a. Identify and describe the entity types (objects about which information is to be
collected for use) and their attributes and relationships (i.e. data elements).
b. Recognise, designate and define the essential and optional data fields and their sub-
fields (data elements) that may comprise database record structure of an entity type.
c. Provide unique identifiers and names to the data fields and sub-fields (i.e. data
elements), that is; assign unique codes to each data field and sub-fields. These
unique codes, also called content designators, consist of field tags, indicators, and
sub-fields' codes and serve as means of identifying data elements or values of fields
in a machine readable record, and
d. Specify:
1. Set of guideline or rule for identifying and using the authentic sources for
collecting data or pieces of information about an entity. That is, the appropriate
sources from where the values of the attributes (data elements) of an entity need
to be collected for description.
2. Set of rules for the domain of attributes, which define the valid values of an
attribute and guide, decision in case there are exceptions.
3. Input data format or formats in which records of entities or objects will be input
to the system (i.e. the form in which the given pieces of information about an
entity will be logically recorded).
4. Set of rules necessary for the uniform or consistent description or
rendering of the values of the attributes (data elements), or contents of
fields and sub-fields comprising the database records.
5. Set of formats in which entity records or information will be displayed ( i.e. the
formats of required outputs or reports), and
6. Identify and specify the types of access points or elements for searching the
records of bibliographic items from a database, and the method or techniques,

10
 which may be used to construct the elements of search or to formulate queries to
search the database.

Thus, to design or develop computerised library systems and services, including an on-
line catalogue, the requisites are:
1. Comprehensive or total view of a library system including its objectives, functions,
processes or activities (task systems) and the various entities associated with the
system.
2. Expertise in the design and development of a conceptual schema and sub-schema of
a library database.
3. Knowledge about the capabilities and limitations of the database management
software being used to create a given library database system.
4. Proficiency in the use and application of its data-definition and data-manipulation
languages of the DBMS, including its indexing and search techniques and
converting the conceptual scheme into logical structure or a data schema / model
within the framework of the given DBMS.

In addition one should be able to explicitly:

• State the objectives, functions, processes or activities (work practices*) of a library

system.
• Describe the various entity-types (e.g. the various types of bibliographic items,
library members, staff, etc.) about which information is to be collected for use and
their attributes and relationships.
• Designate and define the essential and optional data fields and their sub-fields (i.e.
attributes or data elements of entity-types) that may comprise database record
structure
• Assign unique codes to the identified mandatory and optional fields and sub-fields.
The unique codes or identifiers are also called content designators. These are
composed of field tags, indicators, and sub-fields codes and serve as means of
identifying data elements or values of fields in a machine readable record.
• Specify a set of rules for uniform or consistent description of the values of the
attributes - i.e., the data elements or contents of fields and sub-fields comprising the
database records
• Stipulate the guideline or rules for identifying and using the authentic sources for
collecting data or pieces of information about an entity, that is, the appropriate
sources from where the values of the attributes (data elements) of an entity need to
be collected for description.
• Delineate the domain of attributes, which define the valid values of an attribute and
guide decision in case there are exceptions.
• Specify a set of rules necessary for the uniform or consistent description or rendering
of the values of the attributes (data elements), or contents of fields and sub-fields
comprising the database records.
• Outline: (i) an input data format or formats in which records of entities or objects
will be input to the system (i.e. the form in which the given pieces of information
about an entity will be logically recorded), and (ii) a set of formats in which entity

11
 records or information will be displayed (i.e. the formats of required outputs or
reports).
• Identify and specify the types of access points or elements for searching the records
of bibliographic items from a database, and
• Describe the methodology to construct the elements of search and query formation
techniques, appropriate for computer environment.

*Note: The work practices are the methods used by people to do work, with
or without the aid of computers and other equipment. Methods define the
sequence of events that produce outputs from their requisite inputs.
Specifically, a method is a way or procedure of doing something - step-by-
step instructions (or an algorithm) for doing a task, or a set of detailed
directions to carry out work. Library staff requires well-defined objectives,
policies, methods, procedures, and controls to ensure that the system function
properly. We need to understand the existing system, manual or
computerised, if we want to do our work efficiently with or without the aid of
computers and other equipment.

3. Specialisation Required for Designing, Developing and Operating a

Computer-Based Library Information Systems

Based on what has been discussed in the previous part of this paper we can surmise that
to design, develop and manage computerised library systems and services, we need to
have
• knowledge about the library objectives, functions, policies, rules, procedures,
• command on library tools and techniques (i.e. library classification, cataloguing
and indexing techniques), and
• expertise in the application database design and development techniques.
In other words, collectively or blended together these techniques form special skills in the
area of library applications.
Thus, the use of computer technology in libraries forces us to examine and describe
afresh almost all traditional library policies, rules (including cataloguing rules),
procedures, and techniques as a whole and incorporating certain additional elements from
the database design and development technology.
In this context, if we examine the traditional cataloguing codes, like AACR-II (cf., 2)
and Classified Cataloguing Code of Ranganathan (cf. Ranganathan, 1988) we find
presently these codes serve as a tool only to develop bibliographic databases. To develop
a database(s) of library system as a whole or of all entities associated with the library
system we need augment these codes and make efforts to revise them so that they cover
the rules and guideline to create databases of other entity types associated with the
libraries. These codes need to incorporate guidelines to define conceptual schema,
logical data design or structure of a library database. One must also assimilate the
components of Common Communication Format (CCF) (cf., Simmons, and Hopkinson)
in these codes. A revised code developed incorporating all the aspects discussed may be
called Code for Library Database Design and Development.

12
 Examining the Classified catalogue Code (CCC) of Ranganathan (Cf., Ranganathan,
1988), we find that this code has inherent potentiality to be used, with some modification,
as a code or guide for creating a comprehensive library database covering all types of
entities associated with a library system (cf., Kashyap, 2001; 2002A; 2002B).
Careful study of the Classified Catalogue Code (CCC) reveal that the CCC is one
code that before the development of database technology identifies and specifies different
bibliographic entity types, namely: Serial, Monograph and their sub sets. We find that
the list and definitions of various kinds of conventional and non-conventional
bibliographic items provided by him are still valid (refer CCC, Chap FE & FF). This
code also lists and defines all the possible attributes of the entity set - document. That is,
it specifies all the discrete attributes or data elements of various types of bibliographic
items, and has framed the rules for the description or rendering of their values and
grouping and fixing their relative order or sequence within a printed bibliographic record
or a catalogue card. These guidelines can be effectively used for entry and display in a
computer.
At present the rules framed in Chapter H and J of CCC are being effectively used, for
the rendering of names of
• PERSONS (Authors, Collaborators, Library Members, Library staff, and so forth);
• CORPORATE BODIES (Governments, Institutions, may be an Author, a
Collaborator, a Publisher, a Library Vendor, a Sponsor, and so forth)
• GEOGRAPHIC ENTITIES (Continents, Countries, Constituent states, of a large
country, Cities, Town, Sees, and so on)
• SUBJECT OF STUDIES, consequently name of any entity (abstract or concrete)
- Animals, Plants, Minerals etc. and other abstract entities - God, Ghost etc.
The other entities associated with the library system (not listed in the CCC) and their
relevant attribute can be identified and the required details can be incorporated in the
code (cf., Kashyap, 2001; 2002). The rules for rendering the values of the relevant
attributes of these entity types can also be specified. Most of the other entity types
associated with the library system (e.g. Invoice etc.) and their attributes can be identified
and picked up form any book on library administration.
The absence of well-defined objectives, policies, methods, procedures, and controls in
many library systems or information organisations makes the task of staff, particularly
newly appointed staff very arduous. We need to have clear idea about the working of
library systems and its procedures to develop logical process designs concerning various
library functional systems, to develop library application programs and to operate a
computer-based information system. For this purpose, that is, to make the library work
practices or functional activities transparent, we need to analyse them or decompose them
into smaller subsystems and their elements. Books like 'LIBRARY
ADMINISTRATION' written by Ranganathan, which describe all library routines or wok
methods and serve as textbooks for the traditional LIBRARY ADMINISTRATION
course are partially suitable as textbooks for teaching or as a guide book for developing
computerised library procedures or processes. Such books need to be revised, describing
the library procedures and processes using several types of modules, which may be
developed using certain structure techniques and diagramming methods. For example, we
can use
• Organisation charts to depict managerial responsibilities and line of command

13
 • Structured English to describe procedure logically
• Decision tables giving tabular views of the decision logic in procedures or
programs
• Flowcharts depicting and clarifying the relationship between various activities,
and
• Data flow diagrams showing the over all data flow through a system and draw the
basic procedural components and the data that passes among them.
Selection of the appropriate model depends upon, what is being described by the
author. (cf., Kashyap, 1999)
We have developed subject indexing techniques, classification techniques, and query
formation techniques to create a subject search terms, formation of effective queries or
to develop efficient search strategy for extracting bibliographic records. These
techniques can be used and further developed to retrieve data for the management and
control of library system by management and staff handling daily library routines.
For developing computerised functional systems professional library staff not only
need expertise in the use of the bibliographic techniques such as, subject classification,
indexing and techniques used for developing vocabulary tools (such as, thesauri), but also
high level proficiency in the use and application computers and related information
technologies. It may be pointed out that the various tools and techniques develop by
library profession for organising bibliographic items and their surrogates, and to generate
access elements useful to search and retrieve relevant information from a library
catalogue can be effectively used to generate access elements of computerised database
system of a library containing data both of bibliographic and non-bibliographic in nature.
Thus fresh approach is required in the teaching of these techniques to the students so that
they can use them in developing an effective search mechanism to retrieve information
from a library database, required by library user and the library staff to carry out day to
day library work.

References and Related Documents

1. Adkisson, Heidi P. (2003). Use of faceted classification.

http://www.miskatonic.org/library/ (2 November 2003).
2. Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules, ed. by Michael Gorman and Paul
W Winkler. (1988). Second Edition. Revised. American Library
Association, Chicago.
3. Broughton, Vanda. (2001). Faceted Classification as a Basis for
Knowledge Organization in a Digital Environment; the Bliss
Bibliographic Classification as a Model for Vocabulary Management and
the Creation of Multi-Dimensional Knowledge Structures. The New
Review of Hypermedia and Multimedia. 7 (2001): 67-102.
4. Chen, Peter Pin-Sen. (1976). The entity relationship model - towards a united
view of data. ACM Transactions on Database Systems. 1, 1; 9-36.
5. Chen, Peter Pin-Sen, ed. (1983). Entity-relationship approach to information
modeling and analysis. North-Holland, Amsterdam.
6. Codd, E. F. (1970). A relational model of data for a large shared databanks.
Communication of the Association of Computing Machinery. 13, 6; 377-87.

14
7. Codd, E. F. (1979). Extending the database relational model to capture more
meaning. ACM Transactions on Database Systems. 4, 4; 397-434.
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for Library Science, Bangalore. Second Revised Edition.
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Based Approach to Knowledge Classification and Entity Relationship Data
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14. Kashyap, Madan Mohan. (2002A). A Sketch of A Code for Developing
Computer-Based Library Information Systems - Based on Classified Code of
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