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Unit 4: Types of Library

science, mathematics, statistics, electronics and biology. It can also be used by publishers in naming Notes
series of related books, e.g. The Library of Anglo-Catholic Theology.
Public and institutional collections and services may be intended for use by people who choose not
to or cannot afford to purchase an extensive collection themselves, who need material no individual
can reasonably be expected to have, or who require professional assistance with their research. In
addition to providing materials, libraries also provide the services of librarians who are experts at
finding and organizing information and at interpreting information needs. Libraries often provide
a place of silence for studying.
Today’s libraries are repositories and access points for print, audio, and visual materials in numerous
formats including maps, prints, documents, microform (microfilm/microfiche), CDs, cassettes,
videotapes, DVDs, video games, e-books, audio books and many other electronic resources. Libraries
often provide public facilities to access to their electronic resources and the Internet. Modern libraries
are increasingly being redefined as places to get unrestricted access to information in many formats
and from many sources. They are extending services beyond the physical walls of a building, by
providing material accessible by electronic means, and by providing the assistance of librarians in
navigating and analyzing tremendous amounts of information with a variety of digital tools.

4.1 Types of Library

Libraries the whole world over are under threat, mainly because the people who fund them are under
the mistaken impression that they are no longer needed in the age of the Internet. I used to be a full-
time librarian, but I lost my job in 2002 for that very reason. The company that employed me took the
view that because it was “all on the Internet” there was no reason why they should employ somebody
to do what everybody could do for themselves from their desktop.
Not surprisingly, we librarians have a different take on the matter. We believe that libraries and
librarians are hugely important and will continue to be so. Indeed, the ironic thing is that the
availability of information via the World Wide Web makes us even more important and vital!
We want to dispel a few misconceptions and make more converts to the cause, not just because we
want to keep our jobs, but because we don’t want people to miss out on the benefits that libraries
can bring.
First of all, what do you understand by the word Library? Do you appreciate just how wide-ranging
libraries are? For starters, there are three main types of library:
i.e., (i) Public libraries
(ii) Academic libraries
(iii) Special libraries

4.1.1 Public Libraries

For many people, this is what a library is—a publicly funded institution that provides books for loan
and is used mainly by the very old and the very young. It is probably divided into Lending and
Reference, and the Lending stock is split between fiction and non-fiction. The threat to the public
library comes partly from the fact that fewer people now read for pleasure, and those who do are
more likely to buy their books from Borders or Water stones than borrow them from the library, and,
on the non-fiction and reference sides, information is easily and quickly obtainable from the WWW,
without the need to make a trip to the library.
However, public libraries provide much more than that, such as materials for entertainment and
information in a wide range of media. You will also find a lot of information about local services
across the spectrum, tailored to the needs of the community served by the library. Above all, you
will find professional librarians who are trained to help you find exactly what you are looking for.
This includes help with searching the Internet, which you can do from most public libraries these
days.

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