Rita Marcella, Michael McConnell, Gerald Moore and Michael Seton
Describes the results of a Scottish Library and Information Council‐funded project into the business information needs of companies in the rural areas of the north‐east of…
Abstract
Describes the results of a Scottish Library and Information Council‐funded project into the business information needs of companies in the rural areas of the north‐east of Scotland. Based on a survey by questionnaire, interviews and case studies, describes the information providers available to rural businesses, the pattern of present use of such agencies by companies, the nature of respondents’ information needs, problems in accessing information and attitudes to IT. Highlights as significant to businesses particular types of information, some of which are felt to require the support of expert advice. The use of existing agencies suggests that many companies are poorly informed as to which agencies to approach and that these are less likely to approach libraries than “business” organizations, i.e. those providers which are seen as being more dedicated to the interests of the business community. Finds that business information provision is a dynamic and constantly shifting environment, in terms of the appearance and demise of information providers; and suggests there are lessons to be learned from the experience of the traditional and long‐established services.
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Vinyl Products Ltd., Carshalton, Surrey, have appointed Mr. David Maltman as field sales manager, Paints, with country‐wide responsibility for the sales of Vinamul and Vinacryl…
Abstract
Vinyl Products Ltd., Carshalton, Surrey, have appointed Mr. David Maltman as field sales manager, Paints, with country‐wide responsibility for the sales of Vinamul and Vinacryl polymer emulsions for decorative and industrial coatings. Mr. Maltman, a Graduate of the Plastics & Rubber Institute and a Member of the Institute of Sales and Marketing Management, joined the company in 1983 as technical representative in the Midlands and North of England, having previously worked with Durham Chemicals Distributors Ltd. and ICI Ltd., Organics Division.
The purpose of this paper is to understand the classification of musical medium, which is a critical part of music classification. It considers how musical medium is currently…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to understand the classification of musical medium, which is a critical part of music classification. It considers how musical medium is currently classified, provides a theoretical understanding of what is currently problematic, and proposes a model which rethinks the classification of medium and resolves these issues.
Design/methodology/approach
The analysis is drawn from existing classification schemes, additionally using musicological and knowledge organization literature where relevant. The paper culminates in the design of a model of musical medium.
Findings
The analysis elicits sub-facets, orders and categorizations of medium: there is a strict categorization between vocal and instrumental music, a categorization based on broad size, and important sub-facets for multiples, accompaniment and arrangement. Problematically, there is a mismatch between the definitiveness of library and information science vocal/instrumental categorization and the blurred nature of real musical works; arrangements and accompaniments are limited by other categorizations; multiple voices and groups are not accommodated. So, a model with a radical new structure is proposed which resolves these classification issues.
Research limitations/implications
The results could be used to further understanding of music classification generally, for Western art music and other types of music.
Practical implications
The resulting model could be used to improve and design new classification schemes and to improve understanding of music retrieval.
Originality/value
Deep theoretical analysis of music classification is rare, so this paper’s approach is original. Furthermore, the paper’s value lies in studying a vital area of music classification which is not currently understood, and providing explanations and solutions. The proposed model is novel in structure and concept, and its original structure could be adapted for other knotty subjects.
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IT would be quite impossible adequately to report a Dublin conference of any kind in purely professional terms. The warm friendliness of its people demands an equally personal…
Abstract
IT would be quite impossible adequately to report a Dublin conference of any kind in purely professional terms. The warm friendliness of its people demands an equally personal reaction from its visitors and for public librarians certainly this is as it should be, because we are ourselves, above all, involved with people. So professional affairs at this conference were kept in their proper place—as only a part of the whole and merely providing a framework round which the business of renewing contacts and making friends could take place.
THE new library building has been open for six months now. It is pleasantly situated in an area of new buildings, and occupies a prominent island site just on the edge of the…
Abstract
THE new library building has been open for six months now. It is pleasantly situated in an area of new buildings, and occupies a prominent island site just on the edge of the shopping centre. The old library was in the middle of a shopping area, and it has been interesting to note that our removal from that site has had a more considerable effect on the traffic pattern than one would have thought.
ESTIMATE time, which is now, is always a time of thought for the librarian. Budgets this year show no general sign of important change, because the country is working in an…
Abstract
ESTIMATE time, which is now, is always a time of thought for the librarian. Budgets this year show no general sign of important change, because the country is working in an atmosphere of war‐time prosperity. Economists of the orthodox school advise us that this is temporary and artificial. Possibly so, although they seem to omit the calculation that ought to be made from the fact that the sixteen daily millions go mostly into English or British pockets, thence to British traders and, finally, to British banks in the form of cash or investment. Rates have never before been paid so promptly. The best financial advice we can give is this: if there is some necessary activity to be taken or work to be done, budget for it now. Especially look to your book fund: even though books are scarce, they are expensive. And have no faith in “financial after‐war promises.”
The utterance at a recent council estimates meeting of an Alderman to the effect that he opposed increase of the book‐fund of the libraries in the town because, whenever he wanted…
Abstract
The utterance at a recent council estimates meeting of an Alderman to the effect that he opposed increase of the book‐fund of the libraries in the town because, whenever he wanted a book, he bought it, was, we suspect, a vainglorious one used for a special purpose and time. It was obviously, too, that of a man who may read on occasion, but is not a regular user of books. There are many such and, no doubt, their limited point of view is to be encouraged, so far as book‐purchase is concerned. What it disregards, or does not understand, is that the real reader cannot easily contemplate life without books; he never has enough of them, even if he is not a hoarder of them. There are thousands such. Their homes are not large enough, and their purses are too limited, for them to buy everything they want to read. The “Alderman” can feel that books are cheap; he spends more, if he has the means, on a box of cigars, or a bottle of whiskey, than any ordinary book costs. A single visit to a theatre with his wife (with the inevitable accompanying dinner or supper and transport) costs him more than a shelf of them. If he throws away the book when read, or rejected—for only a few such books are read through by the type under consideration—that is of little more con‐sideration than his disposal of cigar ash or used theatre tickets. In this stringent time the greater part of the community depends upon the borrowed book. Inevitably this will increasingly be the case. Every man and woman, however, who loves books desires to possess them, and every wise librarian encourages that desire. It can reduce the use of libraries very little, if at all, and our business as librarians should be to provide for the literate nation, indeed to assist its making. There are many ways in which this might be done—the provision of lists on “Books for Every Home” with clear notes on why, for it must be realized that not every citizen knows the books that are commonplace tools. In how many homes, for instance, is Whittaker's Almanack to be found? A reference book, of course; but almost the first need of a household is a set of the best tools of this sort. Has any library yet issued a list with this special intention? Say, “Six Books necessary to Every Home”? We assume that when a reader is passionately drawn to a book he must buy it, but such attraction is mainly felt by those who are already book‐lovers. For others there are such questions as, where shall we put the books suggested? An answer may be that every librarian, in his own area, should urge that built‐in bookcases should be a feature in every house plan. He might do much to solve a real problem. He can continue, too, to assist book‐buying by his periodic exhibitions of books for prizes, presents (Christmas and birthday) and help to answer the question, “What books of great literature ought to be in every home for children and for life‐keeping?” His every convert would become also a life user of libraries.
“OH, that socialist fellow” would have been the rejoinder of older members of the Bromley establishment up to 1950 to any mention of H. G. Wells. It was not held to be an honour…
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“OH, that socialist fellow” would have been the rejoinder of older members of the Bromley establishment up to 1950 to any mention of H. G. Wells. It was not held to be an honour for the town to have been the birthplace of H. G. Wells nor was it felt that he should be honoured by the town. No plaque marked the site of his birthplace and there was no greater stock of his books in the Bromley Library than in any other.
Haverhill‐based Kemira Coatings, a leading manufacturer of factory applied coatings for wood, has been awarded four stars under the British Safety Council Five Star rating for…
Abstract
Haverhill‐based Kemira Coatings, a leading manufacturer of factory applied coatings for wood, has been awarded four stars under the British Safety Council Five Star rating for safety in the workplace, by the Council's director general, James Tye.