The Bibliography Section’s Working Group on Guidelines for National Bibliographies in the Digital Era has completed its draft Guidelines. The Guidelines are now posted on the IFLA Website for world-wide review.
http://www.ifla.org/VII/s12/guidelines-national-bibliographies-electronic-age.pdf
The working group would like to receive comments from practitioners and researchers and would particularly appreciate any reaction from those who are in the process of establishing or improving the national bibliography.
Please send your comments to Maja Žumer (maja.zumer@ff.uni-lj.si), the editor of the Guidelines and chair of the working group, by July 15th, in order for the working group to assess the comments prior to the August 2008 IFLA World Congress in Quebec. The working group will consider any further comments that are submitted by August 30.
Beacher Wiggins, Chair
Bibliography Section
Background
In the last ten years, the Bibliography Standing Committe (SC) has discussed how national bibliographies should respond to the growing significance of electronic media and, in particular, web publications. At the same time, the SC was aware that some national bibliographic agencies need guidance in establishing a modern national bibliography.
The SC established a working group in 2002 to investigate development and update of guidelines, with examples and references, to help national bibliographic agencies start or improve bibliographic services. In the following year, the scope of the working group’s remit was extended to include guidelines for electronic national bibliographies. The working group was tasked to
- Develop selection principles for incorporation of electronic resources within national bibliographies
- Specify a data model and access points for electronic national bibliographies
- Specify the functionality of the electronic national bibliography
The intended audience for these guidelines are, in the first place, those charged with the
management of national bibliographic services, particularly those charged with the implementation of new national bibliographies. Secondly, these guidelines will be of interest to managers and staff of established national bibliographic agencies who are responding to opportunities and challenges posed by new technology and media.
The document consists of relatively independent chapters, each of them addressing a separate issue. At the same time, the guidelines were planned as a whole. The Guidelines can be used in both ways: reading all the chapters in sequence or only individual chapters, as needed.
