GLOSSARY OF LIBRARY TERMINOLOGY

Abstract: Brief summary of the essential points of a document.

Academic Skills Center: The Academic Skills Center supports Albion College students in a variety of academic areas. Located in the Mudd Learning Center, the Center includes the Learning Support Center, Disability Services, the Quantitative Skills Center, and the Writing Center.

American Library Association (ALA):  Provides leadership for the development, promotion, and improvement of library and information services and the profession of librarianship in order to enhance learning and ensure access to information for all.  See http://www.ala.org/ for more information.

Andrew W. Mellon Foundation: Albion College received a grant in 2000 for the support of a collaborative effort between teams at Albion, Hope and Kalamazoo Colleges to revise or develop a new course that would include aspects of technology and library skills.  Each school's team includes two students, a faculty member, technologist and a librarian. In 2002, the Albion team developed a new course in Green Chemistry. In 2003, an English team will be developing or revising a new course as well.  See http://www.mellon.org/awmf.html for more information.

Annotated Bibliography: An annotated bibliography is a list of citations to books, articles, and documents. Each citation is followed by the annotation, a brief descriptive and evaluative paragraph. The purpose of the annotation is to inform the reader of the relevance (to the predetermined topic or thesis), accuracy, and quality of the sources cited.

Appraisal: Determining the value of an item, based on archival, monetary, or historical principles.

Acquisition:  Addition to your collections, whether by gift, donation, purchase or transfer.

Archives: Place where archival materials are located, where the selection, acquisition and preservation of archival materials takes place and access is provided to those materials.

Archivist: Professionally educated, trained, experienced person engaged in the administration of archival materials, including appraisal and disposition, acquisition, preservation, arrangement and description, reference services, and outreach

Arrangement: Intellectual and physical organization of an archival collection in accordance with accepted archival principles.

Artificial Collection: Accumulation of documents by an external body, not the original creator, pulled together because of their relationship to each other.

Assocation of College and Research Libraries (ACRL): ACRL, a division of the ALA, is a professional association of academic librarians and other interested individuals. The mission of ACRL is to enhance the ability of academic library and information professionals to serve the information needs of the higher education community and to improve learning, teaching, and research.  See http://www.ala.org/acrl/ for more information.

Association of Independent Colleges and Universities of Michigan: This unofficial organization of library directors of Michigan Independent colleges continues to meet annually and maintains a listserv for regular communication on library policy issues and day-to-day problems. 

Baker & Taylor: Leading supplier of books, movies, music and information products to libraries and retailers worldwide.  See http://www.btol.com/ for more information.

Bibliographic Instruction (BI): Used to educate library users on how to best utilize the information resources available to them.

Bibliography: A list of the books of a particular author, printer, or country, or those dealing with a particular theme; the literature of a subject

Brown Bag Seminar: Informal presentations as a means to inform faculty about information literacy and bibliographic instruction resources.

Cataloging: To provide bibliographic access from the library online catalog to the information resources available in the library's collections

Collection Development: Libraries have traditionally been associated with print collections and services. Today, print materials form only one part of the collection development effort of the library. Any format, electronic (digital or analog) as well as print may
be considered for inclusion in the collections of the library.  Our collection development budget includes five areas: books (print monographs, electronic publications, and audio visuals), periodicals (print, microform and electronic), electronic collections (primarily databases and services using the Internet for access), government documents (i.e., paper, microform, and electronic), and special collections (archives and rare books). One can view our collection development policy here.

Conservation: Component of preservation that involves the physical or chemical treatment of objects.

cyberstate.org: Although not a library organization, cyberstate has been very active in promoting access to technology for Michigan citizens over the last two years. This relationship grew out of the impressive development of the Forks Initiative as a
model for community networking.  See http://www.cyber-state.org/ for more information.

Database: Collection of data (i.e., full-text articles or library records) or file of information in a form accessible by computer (e.g., online) or indexed in machine readable form.

Description:  Analyzing and recording information on an archival collection in order to better identify and explain it.

Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC): Today, mostly used to catalog books in school and public libraries, this classification system was devised in 1876 by Melvil Dewey. The system is based on ten classes of subject (000-999), which are then further subdivided. Every book in the library is given a unique call number, which serves as an "address" for where to locate the book on the shelf. The call number is broken down into its Dewey Decimal classification and Cutter number. The cutter number for a book usually consists of the first letter of the author's last name and a series of numbers. This series of numbers comes from a table that is designed to help maintain an alphabetical arrangement of names.

Disposition: To either transfer noncurrent records to an archives, inactive records location, or to destroy them.

EBSCO: In addition to providing standard subscription order and claiming services for the periodicals collection, EBSCO provides a wide range of customized serials management reports for collection assessment, price analysis, and budget reports. The Albion College Library used several of the reports for its periodicals collection assessment this year. The customized electronic/print subscription files, missing copy collection, and detailed online serials list all help simplify collection management. See http://www-us.ebsco.com/home/default.asp for more information.

Electronic Reserves: Assigned reading materials requested by faculty for the use of students in particular courses.  The materials are scanned or linked from an online database through the campus computer network.

Expanded Academic Index: One of the Gale Group databases, offering abstracts and full-text access to scholarly journals, newspapers and magazines, covering subjects from arts and the humanities to social sciences, science and technology.  See http://0-web3.infotrac.galegroup.com.library.albion.edu:80/itw/infomark/0/1/1/purl=rc6_EAIM?sw_aep=albion_main for more information and to search the database.

Faculty Library Advisory Committee: This Committee functions as a forum for communication among librarians, faculty and students.  It also makes recommendations on matters of policy and procedure to the Director of Libraries and, as appropriate, to the Dean and the Faculty Steering Committee.  Duties include: Reviewing and making recommendations on library budget requests; reviewing allocations within the library budget; advising and recommending on library services to faculty; advising and recommending on library services to students; serving as a liaison between the library and the faculty and student body; advising and recommending on collection development policy; serving on search and review committees for professional library staff; reviewing periodically the criteria for professional advancement for librarians; reviewing and making recommendations on questions of  academic freedom within the library.

Federal Depository Library Program:  The Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) was established by
Congress to ensure that the American public has access to its Government's information. Since 1813, depository libraries have
safeguarded the public's right to know by collecting, organizing, maintaining, preserving, and assisting users with information from the Federal Government.  See http://www.access.gpo.gov/su_docs/fdlp/ for more information.

Finding Aid:  The descriptive tool, used in archives, to establish physical and intellectual control over a collection - a means to "catalog" the collection.

FirstSearch:  The gateway for 39 OCLC subscription databases, offering abstracts and full-text access to scholarly journal articles, book reviews, government documents, etc.

Forks Initiative: Albion College is one of the partners on the Board of the Forks Initiative. The Forks continues to serve Albion as a principle site for community access to Internet based information about the Albion community. The Albion College Library houses a Public Computer Lab in the Mudd Library for use by registered community members. For more information, go to http://www.forks.org/.

Government Documents Roundtable: A division of the ALA.  See http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/GODORT/ for more information.

Great Lakes Colleges Association (GLCA): The mission of the GLCA is to preserve and strengthen its member institutions as private colleges of liberal arts and sciences. In fostering educational quality, managerial effectiveness, and public support, it undertakes those initiatives which can be carried out most effectively by joint action. See http://www.glca.org/index.cfm for more information.

History, Arts & Libraries (HAL): Created in 2001 by the state of Michigan to enrich the quality of life for Michigan residents by providing access to information, preserving and promoting Michigan's heritage, and fostering cultural creativity.  Includes links to the Library of Michigan, Michigan Film Office, Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, Michigan Historical Center, and Mackinac State Historic Parks. See http://www.michigan.gov/hal for more information.

HVAC: "Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning"

Index: An alphabetical list, placed (usually) at the end of a book, of the names, subjects, etc. occurring in it, with indication of the places where they occur; a reference list. A library catalog is an example of an index.

Information Literacy: Information literacy is a set of abilities requiring individuals to "recognize when information is needed and have the ability to locate, evaluate, and use effectively the needed information." (ALA. Presidential Committee on Information Literacy. Final Report. Chicago: ALA, 1989.)

InMich: InMich started as a pilot project funded by a federal grant to Michigan State University and a group of academic and
public libraries using the Innovative Interfaces library system. The service allows a patron to request a book from a participating library without going through the traditional interlibrary loan process. Once requested, a book usually arrives at the patron’s home library within two days of the request. InMich is co-managed by the Albion College Library's Circulation Services and Interlibrary Loan units.  See http://inmich.mlcnet.org/ for more information.

Innovative Interfaces, Inc. (III):  III is the leading provider of Web-based solutions to all types of libraries worldwide.  The Albion College Library uses III's circulation, acquisitions and serials products. See http://www.iii.com/ for more information.

Innovative User Groups (IUG): This is an international group of library users of the Innovative Interfaces library system. The group holds an annual conference devoted to the ongoing development and use of the system. See http://www.innopacusers.org/ for more information.

Intellectual Property: Human invention, whether it be literary, artistic, symbolic, tangible or intangible, written or merely expressed. It is divided into 2 categories industrial property (patents, trademarks, industrial designs) and copyright (novels, poems, plays, film, musical works, paintings, architectural designs, etc.).

Interlibrary Loan (ILL): Borrowing of materials not owned by the Albion College Library and lending of materials from our collections not owned by other libraries.

Journal: A periodical collection of articles or other material such as reports, proceedings, or transactions issued by a society, an organization, or an institution.

J-STOR: The Albion College Library is a charter member of this highly innovative project to digitize complete backfiles of academic journals in the liberal arts. As a result, the library receives significant discounts for new titles added to the JSTOR
database. It also offers to Albion College faculty and students a powerful search engine for locating articles in the complete database. A number of new collections were added in 2002.  See http://www.jstor.org/jstor/ for more information and to search the database.

Kaplan: Offers materials for test preparation, including the LSAT, GRE, MCAT, etc.  See http://www.kaplan.com/ for more information.

Library of Congress Classification: Originally developed by Herbert Putnam, it was influenced by both the DDC and Cutter numbers, but was specifically designed for the use of the Library of Congress and replaced the fixed location system created by Thomas Jefferson. Many of the classification decisions were based on the particular needs of the Library of Congress rather than on a rational, more general, basis, therefore the classifications do not always make as much sense; however, most academic libraries do use it. It divides subjects into broad categories (A-Z) but is essentially enumerative.

Library of Michigan: The Library of Michigan is a key state agency for providing a number of free database services to all libraries in Michigan. See http://www.michigan.gov/hal for more information.

Library Orientation Exchange (LOEX): A self-supporting, non-profit educational clearinghouse for materials used in library instruction.  See http://www.emich.edu/public/loex/loex.html for more information.

Library Services and Technology Act (LSTA): While the LSTA retains the state-based approach of other federal library
legislation, its focus is on two key priorities for libraries—information access through technology and information empowerment through special services.  See http://www.ala.org/washoff/lsta.html for more information.

Link Server: A link server allows "one-click" access to electronic resources. Instead of searching through a variety of databases, the user identifies an item of interest by searching one index, and then uses a link-server to locate the item in full-text, wherever it may be.

Magazine: A periodical publication containing more "popular" articles, written for a general audience

MALC: Three years ago AICUM joined with similar organizations for Michigan public universities (COLT) and community colleges to form MALC. The purpose of MALC is to provide a single voice for academic libraries in setting policies and resource decisions in Michigan.

Manuscript: Archival term associated with documents of historical or literary value.

MARCIVE: Provides cataloging for current acquisitions, MARCIVE provides customized and/or enhanced MARC records, catalog cards or shelflist cards, book labels, smart barcode labels, and matching authorities records for cross references; retrospective conversion services; Web documents.  See http://www.marcive.com/HOMEPAGE/web1.htm for more information.

MelCat: The Michigan eLibrary, formerly known as AccessMichigan, is the state's 24/7 virtual library, a service of the Library of Michigan. It is designed to offer every library and resident of the state equitable and easy-to-use access to a core set of information resources, including MeL Catalog, a statewide catalog, ILL and delivery service; MeL databases, commercial databases purchased by the Library of Michigan for all MI residents; MeL Digital Collections, a growing selection of digitized resources, including manuscripts, realia, and objects; and MeL Internet, a collection of Internet links organized by subject and selected by librarians who are experts in their topic areas.

Michigan Archival Association (MAA): The nation's oldest state archival association and one of the largest regional
organizations of its kind.  See http://www2.h-net.msu.edu/~maa/ for more information.

Michigan Council of Federal Depository Libraries: See http://www.michigan.gov/hal/0,1607,7-160-17449_18637_18649---,00.html for more information.

Michigan Library Association (MLA): MLA is a membership organization that promotes libraries and library issues in the state. It also provides considerable continuing education opportunities for members and non-members alike. The Albion College Library staff attends its workshops and annual conference as well as serving in various capacities in its divisions, roundtables, committees, and Executive Board. See http://www.mla.lib.mi.us/ for more information.

Michigan Library Consortium (MLC): MLC is the provider of OCLC services and group database licensing in Michigan. They also provide training services that the Albion College Library staff takes advantage of every year, as they receive significant discounts as members. MLC is also a key player in statewide planning in Michigan.  The Albion College Library Director is the president-elect of MLC.  See http://www.mlc.lib.mi.us/ for more information.

Microfilm: Film containing microphotographs of the pages of a book, periodical, etc.

Microform: Any microphotographic information storage medium; a microphotographic reproduction on film or paper of a book, periodical, etc., requiring magnification to produce a readable image.

Midwest Archives Conference (MAC): MAC is the nation's largest regional archival association, including corporate, government, church, and university archivists from 12 heartland states.  See http://www.midwestarchives.org/ for more information.

Monograph: Any non-serial publication; a work in one volume or in a finite number of volumes.

Music Library Association (MLA):  MLA is the professional organization in the United States devoted to music librarianship and to all aspects of music materials in libraries. MLA and its members make significant contributions to librarianship, publishing, standards and scholarship, and the development of new information technologies. See http://www.musiclibraryassoc.org/ for more information.

Oberlin Group: The Albion College Library is one of the original members of this group of selective liberal arts college libraries. Oberlin Group provides numerous opportunities for collaboration and the exchange of ideas and experience among members. See http://www.oberlin.edu/~EOG/ for more information.

OCLC: OCLC supports all cataloging activities in the Albion College Library by providing bibliographic records, interlibrary loan, and access to the library's database licenses through FirstSearch.  See http://www.oclc.org/home/ for more information.

Odd Topics Society, Beta Chapter: http://www.albion.edu/library/odd_topics.asp

Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC): Many libraries have converted their old card catalogs to an electronic, online format.

Periodical: Publications issued in successive parts at regular intervals, including journals, magazines and newspapers.

Plagiarism: The wrongful appropriation and/or publication of the ideas or the expression of the ideas (literary, artistic, musical, mechanical, etc.) of another as one's own.

Preservation: Stabilization and protection of materials against damage or deterioration.  Preservation includes treatment of damaged or deteriorated materials (conservation), in addition to the reformatting (microfilm, digitization) of such items.

Primary Source: Manuscripts, records, or documents providing original research or documentation.

Processing: The activities of accessioning, arranging, describing, storing and cataloging archival and library materials.

Project MUSE: Started by the Johns Hopkins University Press, this project provides electronic access to a large number of
current academic journals. It includes a growing number of journals from other academic presses and links to J-STOR for backfile access to their subscription titles.  See http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/ for more information and to search the database.

Record: Document created or received and maintained by an agency, organization, department, or individual as a result of their regular activities.

Records Management: Controlling the creation, maintenance, use and disposition of records.

Reference: Reference is primarily defined as one-on-one assistance to anyone who contacts the library (via a visit, telephone call, or e-mail) requesting aid in locating information. It is a front line service that requires special knowledge of the
library’s available resources and how to use and find them.

Research Guide: List of sources, directories, indexes, journals, and other reference works, for the literature of a specific discipline or subject area.

Reserves: Assigned reading materials placed on hold at the Circulation Desk by faculty for the use of students in particular courses.

Retention Schedule: Records management document that specifies what documents are to be retained in offices for how long before destruction or transfer to an inactive records location or an archives.

SamePage: Albion community reading group to promote reading while fostering a sense of community.  See http://www.forks.org/samepage/ for more information.

Search Engine: The most typical type of search engine is the keyword search engine, such as www.google.com or www.altavista.com. Keyword search engines use spiders, which scan the Internet for keywords in Web sites. Although spiders can search many Web pages very quickly, not one can search all of the Internet. Because keyword search engines search many Web sites, they tend to retrieve many pages; however, they are also likely to retrieve Web pages that are not relevant to your topic.

Serials: Publications issued at regular intervals, daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, annually, or biannually, and are generally intended to be continued indefinitely.

Society of American Archivists (SAA): SAA is North America's oldest and largest national archival professional
association. SAA's mission is to serve the educational and informational needs of its individual and institutional
members and to provide leadership to ensure the identification, preservation, and use of records of historical value.  See http://www.archivists.org/ for more information.

Southern Michigan Region of Cooperation (SMRC): Supports a variety of library cooperative efforts. The Albion College Library has received equipment grants through them, though more recently they have been more focused on technology training opportunities for library staff and patrons.  See http://woodlands.lib.mi.us/smroc/ for more information.

Standing Order: Titles that are ordered in advance of publication in order to receive them quickly and usually to receive a discounted price, continuations in series that the library knows it will want to receive, etc.

Weeding: This process is assigned to the librarians by subject or departmental liaison responsibility and involves the examination of each book title on the shelves. The librarian determines whether the title should be retained, withdrawn as out of date, updated, replaced with a better copy or more recent edition, or mended or rebound. The key to these decisions is the knowledge and experience of the librarian and appropriate consultation with other librarians and faculty members in the subject area of the title.

W.K. Kellogg Foundation: See http://www.wkkf.org for more information.

Woodlands Library Cooperative: This is the state region of cooperation serving south central Michigan. The Albion College Library continues to be involved with Woodlands, whose office is located in Albion. The most important benefit to the library is the 43% book vendor discount for trade books negotiated by Woodlands with Baker & Taylor for its members.  See http://cwic1.jackson.lib.mi.us/handbook/wlcmain.htm for more information.