COMPETENCY G

“THE TRUE UNIVERSITY OF THESE DAYS IS A COLLECTION OF BOOKS.”         -Carlyle

G.
Understand the system of standards and methods used to control and create information structures and apply basic principles involved in the organization and representation of knowledge.

       Information structures are tools that have been created to allow organization of information to allow users to access the information they are seeking without sorting through thousands of irrelevant documents. In Library 248, Beginning Cataloging and Classification, I learned a lot about Robert S. Taylor, and how he helped pioneer the information field and has lead information retrieval to where it is today. In the article “The process of asking questions,” Robert S. Taylor, explains the process an information structure goes through when a search inquiry is entered. Many questions are asked of information systems, yet it becomes the job of the researcher to learn how to manipulate the questions to meet the requirements and limits of the information structure.

       In Library 248 I learned about creating and using MARC records. Many quizzes and exercises allowed me to practice using different tags to create an accurate record. I performed searches using the Library of Congress online catalog and I compared their records to those found through the King Library’s online catalog. Some of the assignments I had for Library 248 involved creating MARC records from information given to me on specific books, movies and CD’s (Library 248 Tags).

      For an assignment in Library 248, I had to choose two online catalogs to compare and contrast (Library 248 Catalog). I chose to look at websites that related to children. I used the catalogs from Children’s Books Online and International Digital Children’s Library. The overall appearance of the catalogs and the ease of use I felt were important when dealing with content for children. The catalogs needed to reach out to the children, while still providing relevant and up to date content. I chose to research an obscure children’s book using both catalogs to determine if I could find the book. I was unsuccessful in my search attempts.  Both catalogs were focused on providing information to children from all over the world. Both sites used colors and graphics to reach out to the children and both had quick links to favorite books and specific well loved subjects that made searching easier for a child.

      Library 248 taught me a lot about online cataloging. The MARC tags were a challenge to memorize, however now that I know what each number means I can read a MARC record and understand the information I have been given. Acquiring this knowledge has helped me in my current job at a high school library and allowed me to add many new books to the catalog which in turn has allowed access to the students.


References

Library of Congress (2006). On These Walls. Retrieved July 20, 2011 from http://www.loc.gov/loc/walls/

Taylor, R.S. (1962). The process of asking questions. American Documentation, 11, 391-396.

Evidence:
Libr 248: Catalog Comparison