[LIS-Forum] RE:Articles index database

[chandrashekhar navalgund]

Dear All,
 
This is in relation to the discussion about indexing by the Librarians / Libraries by Mr. Saiful Amin and Mr. Manjunath.
 
I would like to share my observations and experiences on this topic as mentioned below:
 
First of all we should be aware that what is available in our house ( our library ) then, start searching what is available in other’s house ( other libraries as well as commercial databases etc. ) so that our readers would be happy and appreciate us that we are true professionals and we are able to know with a push of a button we are able to tell them as to what is available in our library instantly for their research / browsing. In this connection, I would like to share a recent experience of mine.
 
One of our Prof. called me over tel. and informed me that he has to make a presentation in a prestigious seminar on a topic “ migrant labours” and he had the time of two ( 2 ) days hence he would like to know all the articles pertaining to this topic published in EPW in about four-five years period. Fortunately, we started indexing service from 2000 onwards and I just took out the print out of list of articles on that topic and sent to him in about fifteen minutes time. The Prof. was so happy , appreciated and thanked to the library staff for having this service is made available immediately.
 
If we had not done indexing then I might have to depend on the Guide to Periodical Index print version or some other sources but, that would have taken lot of time. Again, the advantage here is not only EPW index of articles but all other journals articles ( for the journals which we are subscribing in our library) which can be traced and referred immediately in our library itself provided if you have made such an index. This service according to me is the first and foremost advantage of one’s own library’s indexing.
 
We are professionals and our job is to add value to the services being provided to our readers. If we start depending every thing on other’s databases and other’s resources then, we do not have the job to do excepting the traditional way of procuring and processing of books, issuing / returning of materials etc. Moreover, the present generation readers are computer savy (at least in our place) they know how to search information on their own not depending much on the library staff. If we have to get appreciation and respect from our readers as we are professionals then, we have to initiate several such things which some times, one may feel silly but in a longer period which would definitely benefit.
 
By using the commercial indexing services which contains several of foreign journals and out of those thousands of journals we might be subscribing to 50 – 100 journals. Even if the required articles are available in the list but, those journals are not available in our library then, what is the use of it? another thing is that most of the Indian journals especially, the social science journals are not indexed in many of the commercial databases.
 
So, given the above observations, it is my personal view that one should try to index the journals of their own library for quick retrieval of information and usage of it and which can also be shared with other library indexes or to create a central database of articles index like the good work being done by IGIDR Library. I would like to congratulate and appreciate the work being done by IGIDR Library team.
 
 
Regards
 
C U Navalgund
Dy. Librarian
N L S I U,
Bangalore
Tel : 080-22729259
Email : cun at nls.ac.in