Standardization in the field of library economy and documentation

Abstract

The 10th anniversary of the reorganisation of the Hungarian Office for Standardization and of the setting up of the Committee for library and documentation standardization gives rise to sum up achievements and failures of standardization in that field. The reason of the growing importance of standardization lies chiefly in the continually rising flood of documents and increasing number of users, as a consequence of which the stress upon libraries and documentation centres shows an upward tendency. This evolution urges these institutions to apply modern methods of work-shop organiastion, to apply among others standardisation.
During these 10 years the Hungarian Committee prepared 19 national standards (Table 1) on the following principles: a) to determine priorities for preparing standards according to their relative importance; b) to set out correctly width and depth of each standard/width: as determied by concentration of complex themes into a common standard; depth: as determined by standardizing only tasks occuring very frequently); c) to watch over interconnections in the system of standards; d) to use standards for training of librarians and documentalists; e) to take account of the international aspects of standardization. The propagation of our standards may be measured by repeated issues and by the number of copies (Table 4).
Among future tasks the following should be mentioned: the revision of cataloguing rules (MSz 3424-52), preparation of materials for the International Conference on Cataloguing Principles to be held 1961 in Paris, revision and extension of standard terminology for libraries and documentation (MSz 2155-55 R).
FID Publ. No. 303, prepared by M. Schuchmann, offers a concise view of standardization abroad and on the international scene. ISO TC 46 voted importand resolutions on its last session, London, June 1960. concerning bibliographic references, title pages, contents' lists and indexes of books, further on the future program of the TC 46. This program has been strongly influenced by the plans set out in the Outline of the Long-term Policy of the FID. It seems to be desirable to strengthen coordination and planning in international standardization in order that standardization may play a more effective role in improving international relations.