Page 23 - DLIS103_LIBRARY_CLASSIFICATION_AND_CATALOGUING_THEORY

Library Classification and Cataloguing Theory

Notes Controlled Vocabulary

While flexible, CC has a somewhat controlled vocabulary. Colon Classification includes, in addition
to the classification rules, schedules that dictate the subject divisions and subdivisions. One of the
criticisms of many classification schemes relates to this controlled vocabulary construct. Controlled
vocabulary ideally allows us to “reconcile all the various possible words that can be used to
express a concept ”. Inevitably in doing so, however, it includes.

2.3 Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC)
Dewey Decimal Classification System (DCC) originally produced in 1876 by Melvil Dewey for a
small North American college library is currently one of the most popular Library Classification
Schemes. DDC is being revised faster than any other Universal scheme and currently is in its 21st
edition.

Did u know? DDC is distributed in Machine-readable Cataloguing (MARC) records produced
by the Library of Congress (LC) and bibliographic utilities like OCLC and RLIN.
DDC is available online (paid service) as Web Dewey and Abridged Web Dewey (DDC 21st ed.).
DDC is also used in the national bibliographies of the UK, Canada, Australia, Italy and other
countries. Research carried out by OCLC in the 1980s established that DDC is a suitable tool for
browsing, first for library catalogues and then for the Internet.

I. Strengths and Weaknesses of the Scheme
The general characteristics and advantages of universal schemes as given earlier are applicable in
the case of DDC. Other characteristics to be noted are as follows:
The scheme is revised more frequently than any other Universal Scheme.
One more flexibility of DDC is that the numbers can be linked to other subject descriptive
systems. For example, the numbers linked to LCSH headings by most major bibliographic
services to the extent that their bibliographic records contain LCSH headings to gather with
DCC and LCC classification data. The USMARC record contains specific tags for several
different classification schemes: DDC, LCC, UDC and NLM together with tags for subject
headings including LCSH and MeSH. Selected new LCSH headings are individually linked
to DDC numbers and are made available via URL.
The USMARC format also allows for links to be made between DDC and other classifica-
tion systems, including LCC, UDC and NLM.
Digital Availability.
Copyright issues: Those who are using the classification can use the notation without
restraints in library catalogues and WWW pages, but use of the other information in the
schedules would require permission from Forest Press.
It is quite clear that a Faceted Classification is more flexible than an Enumerative Classifi-
cation Scheme. Though DDC was devised to be as an Enumerated Scheme, subsequent
revisions have absorbed the structure and methodology of faceted classification and the
use of facet analysis. As a result, subsidiary tables and ‘divide like’ devices that reflect and
can express many aspects of complex topics have been expanded.
Theoretically it could be said that DDC is more flexible than the Library of Congress
Classification and certainly simpler than UDC.

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