Dr Gururaj S Hadagali UNITI SPECIAL LIBRARY SYSTEM

Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali UNIT-I: SPECIAL LIBRARY SYSTEM Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali Assistant Professor Department of Library and Information Science Karnatak University, Dharwad – 580 003 6/14/2021 1

2 Patterns of modern scholarship and Research The core distrust of the humanists may also be trace to the actual pattern of modern scholarship and research. If the modern time is the Age of Science, the millennium before that, was the Age of Humanities. The top-dog of yesterday has been turned into the under-dog of today. Since the Industrial Revolution, when matters took a turn, scholarship and research have veered that two World Wars, the spate of research in science and technology has increased thousand fold, creating an imbalance and a great disparity between humanistic and scientific studies. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

3 After all, research and scholarship, which are the basic components of a culture, have the same end in view, for all times, i. e. the benefit of humanity – the overall progress of man intellectually, socially and materially. It cannot be gainsaid, that a major share of public funds are now a day’s diverted to researches in sciences and technology, while humanities, including the social sciences, are pitifully neglected. But basically, the latter research is positively directed towards the benefit of man and the Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021 improvement of human relations.

Library as an Integrative force 4 The critical intellectual problems of our time, resulting in the failure of communication between scientists and the rest, is capable of being solved to some extent, through the agency of libraries, which are pre-eminently instruments of communication. Librarians can see that scientific ideas are not locked up in the mind of the scientist or in his report of research which is sometimes ‘classified’, but are communicated to others who are interested, although there are formidable hurdles Dr. to. Gururaj overcome. S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

5 Some drastic changes in the pattern of modern librarianship are inevitable in the context of the predominant trends in contemporary culture; but librarianship as a profession dedicated to providing the most efficient system of human communication must stick fast to its social objectives, acting as an integrating force in society. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

6 Information Centre vs Special Library The difference between information centres and many special libraries is one of degree with reference to the services they provide. Three functional levels of service are presently offered by these two types of information institutions. At the minimum level, the special library disseminates information and a material acquired by them, answers reference questions, directs users about the details on research information to appropriate sources to keep their users informed of current developments in the field. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

7 At the intermediary level, a special library or an information centre, offers complex literature searches in specific fields, compiles extensive retrospective bibliographies, selects and transfers relevant research material in anticipation of demand, produces current awareness bulletins in specific disciplines, new products or new processes, or SDI services based on group of individual profiles. At a higher level, an information centre offers highly specialized consolidation and repackaging services which involve analysts, synthesis and evaluation of information and present them in a form required by users. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

Genesis and Growth 8 Special library is a product of the twentieth century. It is directly related to scientific and technological research and industrial development. Many early libraries were specialized only because they contained manuscripts relating to limited scholarship of the age. They exist today, like all other types of libraries – public, academic etc. to perform certain social functions, being part of the mechanism by which modern society needs, the needs of their parent organizations. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

9 We know that, the public library caters mostly for the recreational demands of general readers and provides general information whenever required; that the academic library provides original texts, scientific works and journals, etc. for students, academics or research workers and also some reference service; while in the special library, the entire work is directed towards supporting the activities of the organization to which it is attached, not merely by providing books and journals and general information, but by making available specialized information on particular subject fields to the research staff. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

10 Development of this new pattern of library, with clearly demarcated boundaries within which it could function, started a century ago, keeping pace with the contemporary industrial, scientific and technical development and the urge for social progress and prosperity, through trade and commerce. This created social demands for organizations related to these categories of human activities, to possess libraries serving special interests to Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021 them.

11 Thus we find, that in the nineteenth century, London, as the English metropolis, became the focal point of scientific and industrial interest, and established its claim as the greatest library centre of the world, having well over 300 special libraries. Some extremely rich libraries in this category, such as, Victorian and Albert Museum, Public Records Office, India Office, Foreign Office, the Athanaeum Club, the Reform Club, and later on, Patents Office, Geological Museum, Armsrong College, Science Museum, etc. were established during the Victorian era and the subsequent period. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

12 Similarly, in USA, special libraries developed during the nineteenth century, for the practical, purpose of technical and mercantile affairs. Around 1820, special technical libraries began appearing on the scene. Library of the College of Physicians, established still earlier, was followed successively by Academy of Natural Sciences, Harvard Law School Library, Patent Office Library, Smithsonian Institution and Peabody Museum, Cambridge Museum of Comparative Zoology, Department of Agriculture Library and John Crerar Library. They occupy unique positions in the history of the Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021 development of special libraries in the nineteenth

13 The ideas of special library therefore, may be traced back to the nineteenth century, although its consolidation and phenomenal growth are events of current history. A group of American librarians gathered together at Bretton Woods, new Hamapshire, on July 2, 1909, to deliberate upon a new pattern of library which was growing rapidly in the States, and they decided that this new type of library should be called ‘Special Library’. At that time there were only 50 of them; by 1960, they increased to 10, 500. What a tremendous growth in course of half a century. Unprecedented opportunities have thus opened up for special librarians, because of this phenomenal growth of special libraries not only in Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021 the U. K. , U. S. A. and the European countries, but also

14 This has been due to the tremendous expansion of budgets for research and development, since the Second World War, which has generated corresponding proliferation of recorded materials and has demanded consequent and commensurate responsibility of librarians to manage such large volumes of literature, for the benefit of researchers, scientists and technologists. The prospects, however, bring with them, new skills, techniques and bases of knowledge not visualized by the profession, at earlier stages of the development of libraries. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

Definition and Scope 15 There have been various attempts at defining ‘special library’ and there seems to be no end to this. According to J. E. Wrigth, “the expression ‘special library’ means a library which is concerned almost exclusively with the literature of a particular subject or group of subjects… it also includes libraries which have collections of a particular form of material”. According to him, it includes “libraries of colleges, universities and schools, of learned and professional societies, of Government Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021 departments, and libraries of research, industry

16 D. V. Arnold contends that ‘a special library is one that serves a group of readers who have an ‘extra library’ existence as a group. ’ D. R. Jamieson, however, would suggest to qualify Arnold’s definition by adding that, ‘the activities of the group shall be directed to a common purpose’. A special library, according to Foskett, ‘is one serving a group, having an extra-library existence, whose members direct at least some of their activities towards, a common Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021 purpose.

17 Special library deals exclusively with the literature of a particular subject or group of subjects; and that it caters to the needs of a group united by common purposes who are specialist readers, or serves the technical information needs of such a special clientele. In its wider connotation, it may be presumed to include also libraries having exclusive collections of particular forms of non-book materials, such as films, records, etc. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

18 Ranganathan prefers to call it the ‘specialist library’ which is built up to supply detailed information respecting some limited subject field – scientific, technological or otherwise. The resources are specialized and the users are specialists. According to him, the difference between a general library and a special library lay only in the nature of the clientele and the material or the documents served. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

Meaning and Purpose 19 While other types of libraries serve multiple objectives such as education, research, recreation, cultural and social activities, the major and perhaps only objective of a special library, is the provision of information, in support of the objectives of its parent organisation. Special libraries exist in a wide variety of organizations, most of them being units of larger organizations. Their purposes are usually other than provision of education or conventional library services, invariably meeting the information requirements of the organizations to which they are attached. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

20 Special libraries are formed in research and development establishments, government departments, directorates, industrial and business undertakings, learned societies and professional associations, trade and business associations, hospitals and health services, social and welfare organizations, museums, national gallery of arts; etc. However special libraries are also established to serve a particular group of users or specialists working on a subject or a group of subjects or on a particular type of documents, etc. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

Main Characteristics 21 They are differentiated by their location. They are mostly found in private business, industrial organizations, in professional associations and learned societies, serving invariably as units of larger organizations, which do not have an educational objective as their major goal. They are differentiated by the limitations in their subject coverage. Usually, having specific rather than general objectives, they are concerned with single definite subject fields and their closely related areas. Sometimes, they are designated by the forms of material which they exclusively possess, viz. Map Library, Film Library, Record Library, etc. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

22 They are differentiated by the nature of their clientele. Serving their parent organizations, which have special interests, they cater for the demands of their specialist readers, who are skilled in their own subject fields. They have the characteristic of ‘smallness’. A big majority of them has small specialized collection, small library staff and a limited clientele, also small. The great emphasis laid on Information practices is another distinguishing feature of special libraries. � They are concerned mainly with the information needs of their clientele which they provide expeditiously, for utilitarian purposes. To fulfill this major goal, they use unconventional sources Dr. and Gururajmethods. S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

23 Although special libraries may serve a multitude of purposes, they have mostly been established to meet the vital need for research, which is it’s another distinguishing feature. Research in industry for high standard of manufacture and design; research in defense and military matters; and research in social sciences; natural, biological sciences; and engineering and technological fields, are their major concern. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

24 The factor which further identifies a special library, is its subservience to the parent organization, where the interest of the group predominates over the individual in the group. Perhaps the most important characteristic which differentiates it from rather than material and quickly disseminates that information. The unit material, which forms the basis of special library organization, is a particular piece of information, irrespective of the physical form of the material in which it is embodied whether a book, a pamphlet, a periodical, an atlas or any other graphic record. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

Functions of Special Libary 25 A special Library is a power house for the generation, storage and use of information: It performs the following functions: collects, maintains, stores and retrieves information and data keeping in view the evolving needs of its parent organization; analyses, synthesizes and evaluates information and data; provides critical reviews, monographs, reports and/or collections; Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

26 provides critical compilations; provides state-of-the-art reports; provides replies to queries; provides reprints, bibliographies and references; performs literature searches and translation services; provides abstracts, indexes and extracts; prepares accession lists, bulletins, news-letters; summaries, hand-books or manuals; disseminates current information and SDI and thus does stimulates research. Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

Types of Special Libraries 27 Special libraries can be divided into various types. Some of the kinds are given below: Government Libraries: It collects Encyclopedia, Directories, Who’s who? Who was Who, Reference Books like India-Reference Annual, Census, statistical Yearbooks, Gazette, proceedings of the meetings, sessions and other publications. Research and Development Libraries: ICSSR, NISCAIR, NISTANDS, NCL, NAL, RRI, SENDOC, DESIDOC, ICAR, ICMR, ICHR, ISRO, CSIR etc. It collects conference proceedings, scientific reports, technical reports, standards, manual, guides, specifications, projects reports, News Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021 papers etc.

28 Industrial Libraries: Important News papers, Implant projects, Pre-Investment reports, Technical reports, Govt. publications News Paper Libraries Prison Libraries Hospital Libraries Children Libraries Mobile Libraries for Blinds / Physically Challenged Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021

29 Some other special Libraries Music Library Children Library Audio-Visual Library IITs, IIMs, IISc, National Medical Library, TIFR, CRFTRI, ISIs, BARC, ISRO etc Dr. Gururaj S. Hadagali 6/14/2021