Glossary of Library Terms
Annual
A title which is published once a year.
Abstract
Summary of the essential points of an article or book.
Bibliography
A list of references on a particular topic. It can be published as a book or be part of a scholarly paper.
Bibliographic databases
Bibliographic databases, or indexes, are collections of references to articles. They often include a brief summary of what the article is about.
Call Number
Number on a library item consisting of a series of numbers and letters (for example, B 920.092 H83H). The call number indicates the location of the item in the library. The first part of the call number is based on the Dewey classification scheme.
Catalogue
Usually an electronic database system containing information describing items or collections of items held by the Library.
CD-ROM
Compact Disk Read-Only Memory. A computer disk on which information is stored.
Citation
Reference made by an author to a source of information they have used, for example, another author's ideas or words.
Conspectus
Refers to a standardised means of describing library collections and to a database of such collection descriptions. For example, conspectus level 2a means a collection contains ‘basic or introductory material’.
Copyright
Legal right of authors, and other owners of intellectual property, to control the use of their written or artistic work.
Database
Collection of records, usually stored on a computer or CD-ROM.
Dewey Classification
System of numbers for arranging library materials according to subject.
Ejournal
An electronic publication that is published regularly, either solely or in addition to a printed version.
Ephemera
Material such as pamphlets, newspaper cuttings, advertising brochures, how-to-vote cards, menus. The State Library has several ephemera collections, including the Riley & Ephemera Collection, Australian Art and Artists files and the Theatre Programmes Collection.
Folio
Large-sized book. Shelved in a separate sequence from smaller-sized books.
Full-text database
An electronic database that allows searching for articles in ejournals and ebooks where electronic copies of items are retrieved as a result of a search. They include the complete content of articles, which can usually be printed, emailed or saved.
Hard copy
Printed version of an electronic or microform document, graphic, and so on.
Heritage Collections
A State Library of Victoria term broadly used to describe items held in the Library’s Australian Manuscript, Pictures, Maps, Children’s Literature and Rare Books collections.
Holdings
All items in a library's collection.
Incunabula
Books produced from moveable type in the early days of printing – before 1500AD.
Information databases
Collections of articles and article references that can be searched and browsed on a computer. See also Bibliographic databases and Full-text databases.
Interlibrary loan
Loan of material from one library to another for use by a reader. Arranged at the State Library of Victoria by the Library’s Document Delivery Service.
ISBN/ISSN
International Standard Book Number/International Standard Serial Number. A unique number issued to a particular edition of a book (ISBN) or serial title (ISSN). Useful for identifying items with similar titles or serials that have changed names.
Journal
Usually a periodical issued by an institution, corporation or learned society, containing current news and reports of activities and work in a particular field.
Keyword
A word or phrase that is relevant to the information being sought. Once entered into a database search facility, each database record is examined to find those documents containing that specific word or phrase.
Legal Deposit
Legal right of some libraries to receive a free copy of each item published in the country or state. The State Library of Victoria is the Legal Deposit Library for Victoria.
MARC view
Shows a catalogue entry in Machine Readable Catalogue format. MARC is a code used by library cataloguers and is mainly of use to library staff. It provides the mechanism by which computers exchange, use, and interpret bibliographic information.
Microform/microfiche/microfilm
Terms that refer to various formats for the storage of documents that have been photographed and reduced in size. Items are usually stored in this format in order to conserve space or to preserve materials that deteriorate rapidly. Examples of State Library materials stored on microform include newspapers, periodicals, journals and government documents.
Monograph
More commonly known as a ‘book’. A monograph is a publication complete in one volume or a finite number of volumes.
Open access
Books and other items freely available for self-service use by library users.
Periodical
An item published at regular intervals. For example, magazines, journals, annuals.
Realia
Non-printed or written, three-dimensional items held by the Library. Examples of realia in the Library's collection are Ned Kelly’s armour and Henry Lawson’s umbrella.
Record
Information held in a database that relates to a specific item.
Reference collection
The part of the library’s holdings that contain a selection of materials such as encyclopedias, dictionaries, almanacs, directories, or statistical sources as well as periodical indexes, and subject bibliographies. They generally provide brief information for the initial stages of research. Each of the Library's reading rooms and the Information Centre have their own reference collection containing material relevant to its subject focus.
Serial
See ‘periodical’.
Stacks
High-density storage area for library material, usually accessible only to staff.
Subject heading
A term that describes the subject of an item and assists a user to locate an item in a catalogue.
Volume
In relation to monographs - one of the books of a work printed and bound in more than one book. In relation to periodicals - a series of issues of a periodical, usually covering one calendar year or other regular time frame.
Workstation
Desktop computer that gives access to the Library's catalogue, to databases on the Library computer network and to the Library's website.
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