ODLIS — Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science by Joan M. Reitz Now available in print! Order a copy of the hardcover or paperback from Libraries Unlimited.

C

cabinet card

An early photographic print mounted on 4 1/2 x 6 1/2 inch card stock, often a commercial portrait or vignette with the photographer's imprint across the bottom or on the back. Early albumen prints are in sepia and later examples are in silver tones and rich blacks, printed on gelatin papers introduced in the 1870s. Easy to mass produce, cabinet cards appeared in the mid-1860s, replacing the wallet-sized carte-de-visite, and were sold up to about 1905 when the tinted picture postcard became popular. Click here to see a cabinet card portrait of Sigmund Freud's mother, Amalia, and here to see a vignette of Capt. Cornelius M. Schoonmaker (1839-1889), U.S. Navy.

cable modem

A modem designed to operate over cable television lines, instead of telephone lines, providing faster data transmission because the coaxial cable used by cable TV companies has higher bandwidth. With millions of homes in the United States already wired for cable TV, Internet access via cable modem is growing.

cable television

Television service transmitted directly to subscribers via cable connection, rather than broadcast over the air to all who own receivers. Originally designed to extend service to homes in rural areas, cable TV reached nearly half the homes in the United States by the early 1990s. Today, cable systems deliver hundreds of channels, many providing specialized programming, to approximately 60 million U.S. homes, and high-speed Internet access to a growing number of people. Some cable systems allow subscribers to make telephone calls and receive new programming technologies, such as pay-per-view. Click here to learn more about cable television, courtesy of HowStuffWorks.

cache

A small section of dedicated high-speed memory built into a microcomputer to improve system performance by providing temporary storage for blocks of data and instructions that would otherwise be retrieved from slower memory. As a general rule, the larger the cache, the greater the enhancement of performance and speed. Click here to learn more about caching, courtesy of HowStuffWorks. Pronounced "cash." See also: browser cache.

CACUL

See: Canadian Association of College and University Libraries.

cadastral map

From the Latin capitastrum, meaning "register of the poll tax." A map showing boundaries and subdivisions made to record ownership and rights in land and to describe and establish the value of property, usually for the purpose of tax assessment (click here to see modern examples, courtesy of Rootsweb). A cadastral map may also show culture (roads, buildings, etc.), drainage, and other features that have a bearing on land use and value. Click here to see an 18th-century example, courtesy of the Royal Library of Denmark. To see other examples, try a keywords search on the term in Google Image Search. See also: plat.

cadel

A large capital letter composed of sweeping pen strokes creatively embellished with wide parallel calligraphic flourishes and occasional cross-strokes, giving the letterform the appearance of a versal. Cadels were an exaggerated form of gothic littera bastarda, used in medieval manuscripts from the 13th to the 15th century. Click here to see an elaborate "H" at the beginning of a calendar leaf in The Hours of Henry VII (Leaves of Gold) and here to see an illuminated example in a 15th-century Flemish manuscript (Getty Museum, MS 37). Click here to see a large rubricated cadel in a 16th-century Scottish manuscript (British Library, Arundel 285). Also spelled cadelle.

CALA

See: Chinese American Librarians Association.

calamus

The pen made from a dried reed, used from about 200 B.C. for writing in ink on papyrus, as distinct from the stylus used during the same period for writing on wax tablets and the quill pen used from the 6th century for writing on parchment and vellum (click here to see an example). Marc Drogin notes in Medieval Calligraphy: Its History and Technique (Allanheld & Schram, 1980) that a sharp point was used at first, producing monoline script. After about 100 B.C., a broad-nibbed reed was used, allowing the scribe to vary the width of pen strokes, giving the letterforms a more calligraphic appearance.

calcium carbonate reserve

See: buffering.

Caldecott Medal

A literary award given annually since 1938 under the auspices of the American Library Association to the illustrator of the most distinguished children's picture book published in the United States during the preceding year. Donated by the family of Frederic G. Melcher, the medal is named in honor of the Victorian children's book illustrator Randolph Caldecott. The ALA maintains the Caldecott Medal Home Page. Click here to view a list of Caldecott Medal winners. Compare with Newbery Medal. See also: Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award and Greenaway Medal.

Caldecott, Randolph (1846-1886)

Born in Chester in northwest England, Randolph Caldecott taught himself to draw as a child and persisted despite his father's wish that he go into banking. His first published drawings appeared in a Manchester newspaper. After various journals accepted his work, Caldecott went to London in 1872 where he studied at the Slade School with Sir Edward Poynter. His career as an illustrator got a boost the following year with the publication of Washington Irving's Old Christmas, and beginning in 1874 his illustrations appeared in the periodicals The Graphic and Punch. Lodging near The British Museum in the heart of Bloomsbury, Caldecott made many friends in artistic and literary circles and became the most popular Victorian illustrator of children's books. He died at the age of 40 in Florida after undertaking an ill-fated trip to America for his health. The annual Caldecott Medal for children's book illustration is named in his honor. Click here to see examples of Caldecott's work, courtesy of Mary Mark Ockerbloom. Other examples can be seen at the Web site maintained by the Randolph Caldecott Society (UK).

CALEA

See: Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act.

calendar

A list of the days in a year, usually arranged by month and within each month by week, sometimes indicating the dates of important events such as national and religious holidays. To learn about the history of calendars, see Calendars through the Ages. Also, an almanac listing days of the year significant to a particular culture or political entity. The calendar of forthcoming library events, provided in The Bowker Annual Library and Book Trade Almanac, includes state, regional, national, and international association meetings. Compare with chronology. See also: calendar year and perpetual calendar.

In medieval manuscripts used in Church services and private devotion, a calendar section often preceded the text, identifying the feast days celebrated in the region. The most important were highlighted in red ink ("red letter days") with other colors used to indicate degrees of importance. The Julian calendar (365 days with an extra day every four years) was adopted from the Romans, but the Roman civil year (beginning on January 1) was replaced by the Christian year in the 7th century. Click here to page through the liturgical calendar in the Burnet Psalter (University of Aberdeen Library, AUL MS 25), and here to see the complete calendar from a 15th-century book of computus texts (Celebrating the Liturgy's Books). Other examples can be seen in the Schøyen Collection (Oslo and London). The illumination of medieval calendars often depicted the labors of the month (largely agrarian) and the signs of the zodiac (see Les très riches heures du Duc de Berry, courtesy of WebMuseum). For an early printed calendar, see this example published in Venice in 1482 by Erhard Ratdolt (University of Glasgow, Special Collections, Euing BD7-f.13).

Also refers to a chronological list of the documents included in an archival collection (rolls, charters, state papers, etc.), usually annotated to indicate the date, place, contents, and other characteristics of each item--a type of finding aid that can be comprehensive or selective.

calendar year

The one-year period beginning on January 1 and ending on December 31 (following the civil year of the ancient Romans). Most journal subscriptions run for a single calendar year, although some publishers offer a financial incentive to subscribe or renew for multiple years. Compare with publication year. See also: subscription period.

calender

The part of a papermaking machine consisting of one or more smooth rollers designed to smooth paper after drying, reducing its permeability to moisture by closing the pores in its surface (click here to see an example). In calendering, the degree of smoothness depends on the amount of pressure applied by the rollers. Supercalendering produces the glossiest finish that can be applied to paper without coating it.

calf

A leather binding made from the skin of a calf usually no more than a few weeks old. Its soft, smooth, unblemished surface made it the preferred material in England for hand-binding trade editions but not on the Continent, where printed books were usually sold in paper covers to be custom-bound at the discretion of the purchaser. Calfskin bindings can be dyed any color and decorated in various ways (marbled, mottled, speckled, stained, tree, etc.). Although it is sturdy and provides a good base for tooling and blocking, the smooth surface of calfskin makes it susceptible to scratching and scuffing. Click here to see an undecorated 17th-century calf binding (Princeton University Library) and here to see a 16th-century example tooled in gold with painted polychromatic decoration in the Grolier style (Senate House Library, University of London). See also: kipskin, law calf, ooze leather, rough, russia, and Spanish calf.

calligram

See: letter picture.

calligraphy

The art of elegantly beautiful handwriting. A highly skilled penman is a calligrapher. The term also refers to handwritten characters, words, pages, and entire documents that meet the aesthetic requirements of highly skilled penmanship. In Far Eastern cultures, calligraphy is done with a pointed brush held in a vertical position. In Western and Islamic cultures, it is done with a reed, quill, or nib pen held at an angle to the writing surface. During the Middle Ages, certain scribes were known for the beauty of their script. Some became writing masters and created model books like this one created by Georg Bocskay, Croatian-born court secretary to the Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I (Getty Museum, MS 20).

In the Islamic world, the proscription on religious imagery facilitated the development of Arabic calligraphy into a sophisticated art form. Two online exhibitions of Islamic calligraphy are Letters in Gold, provided by the art museums of Harvard University, and Arabic Calligraphy, courtesy of the Islamic Arts and Architecture Organization. For Chinese calligraphy, see Chine: L'Empire du Trait (Bibliothèque Nationale de France) or Calligraphy of the Masters. To learn more about calligraphy, see the entry in Wikipedia.

call number

A unique code printed on a label affixed to the outside of an item in a library collection, usually to the lower spine of a book or videocassette (see example), also printed or handwritten on a label inside the item. Assigned by the cataloger, the call number is also displayed in the bibliographic record that represents the item in the library catalog, to identify the specific copy of the work and give its relative location on the shelf.

In most collections, a call number is composed of a classification number followed by additional notation to make the call number unique. This gives a classified arrangement to the library shelves that facilitates browsing. Generally, the class number is followed by an author mark to distinguish the work from others of the same class, followed by a work mark to distinguish the title from other works of the same class by the same author, and sometimes other information such as publication date, volume number, copy number, and location symbol.

In Library of Congress Classification (LCC), used by most academic and research libraries in the United States, class notation begins with letters of the English alphabet (example: PN 2035.H336 1991). In Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC), used by most public and school libraries in the United States, class notation consists of arabic numerals (example: 480.0924 W3). U.S. federal government documents are assigned SuDocs numbers (example: L 2.2:M 76).

call slip

A brief form that the user must fill out to request an item from the closed stacks of a library or archives, or from some other nonpublic storage area, usually retrieved by hand by a staff member called a page, although automated and semi-automated retrieval systems are used in some large libraries. Synonymous with request slip.

calotype

An early photographic process patented in 1841 by William Henry Fox Talbot, who found that by treating high-quality writing paper with light-sensitive chemicals and exposing it to light in a camera, a latent image resulted from which prints could be developed on similarly treated paper. Strictly speaking, the term "calotype" refers only to the paper negative from which positive prints were made on salted paper. Because the negative was embedded in the paper, rather than on a surface coating, the texture of the fibers and any imperfections in the paper tended to make the prints appear mottled or sketchy (see this example).

According to Robert Leggat (A History of Photography, 1999), the calotype was not as popular as the daguerreotype due to patent restrictions and because the materials used were not as sensitive to light, requiring longer exposures. The two-step process took longer and the prints tended to fade. However, the process had significant advantages over the daguerreotype: (1) retouching could be done on either the negative or the print, (2) multiple prints could be made from a single negative, (3) paper prints were easier to examine and handle, and (4) the tones of a calotype were warmer. Introduction of the collodion process and albumen prints in 1851 made the calotype obsolete, but the negative-positive process invented by Talbot has become the standard in modern photography. Click here to see other examples, courtesy of the Getty Museum. Click here to learn more about the calotype process (University of Glasgow, Special Collections).

Cambridge style

A distinctive 18th-century style of English bookbinding used mainly in university libraries and on theological works in which the boards are covered in two shades of brown leather, an effect achieved by masking and sprinkling calfskin so as to leave a stained rectangular panel in the center, surrounded by a plain rectangular frame bounded in turn by a stained outer frame. According Roberts and Etherington in Bookbinding and the Conservation of Books: A Dictionary of Descriptive Terminology, volumes bound in this style were sewn on raised cords and had Dutch marbled endpapers and red stained edges. The spine, pieced with red russia leather labels, had double blind lines on each side of the raised bands, and the covers were decorated with a double fillet close to the edges and on each side of the panel, with a narrow flower roll worked very close to the panel lines. Tooling was done in blind or gold. The style was so popular with binders in Cambridge that it came to be regarded as their specialty, although it was practiced elsewhere. Click here and here to see examples, courtesy of the Royal Library of Denmark.

camcorder

A self-contained electronic device, introduced by Sony in 1983, that combines the capabilities of a video camera and videocassette recorder (VCR) in the same portable unit. Newer camcorders record video images and sound in digital format and are considerably smaller in size (and lower in price) than earlier analog models. Click here to learn more about the history of the camcorder, courtesy of Wikipedia.

cameo

A typeface used for special effect in which the normal method of printing is reversed, the characters appearing in white against a solid or shaded background, instead of in black against a light background. Compare with outline letter.

cameo binding

A style of bookbinding popular in Italy from about 1500-1560 in which the centers of the boards forming the cover are stamped in relief in imitation of a coin or medallion. The decoration may be left blind or embellished with ink, silver, or gold leaf. Click here to see an example done in blind (Southern Methodist University). Synonymous with plaquette binding. Compare with centerpiece.

cameo stamp

In binding, a metal tool of oval shape engraved with a design, usually in the form of a picture, used from the 11th to 16th century in blind tooling to make an impression resembling cameo jewelry on the side of a leather-bound book. See also: cameo binding.

camera microfilm

In reprography, an image of an original source document, made with a camera on high-quality film (silver halide emulsion on a polyester base), usually retained by the producer for the purpose of making second-generation archival print masters ("printing dupes") from which third-generation distribution or service copies are made. Synonymous with first generation and master negative.

camera original

Processed or unprocessed photographic film exposed inside the camera, as opposed to a subsequent copy. Synonymous with original negative.

camera-ready copy (CRC)

In printing, copy typed using word processing software, or produced by some other means, that has been fully edited and is ready to be photographed for platemaking without having to be typeset. Synonymous with camera copy.

can

See: film can.

Canadiana

The national bibliography of Canada, produced since 1950 by Library and Archives Canada for use in reference and research as a selection aid, to provide bibliographic information for cataloging, and as a record of the nation's published heritage. Available online, on CD-ROM, and via FTP, Canadiana is a comprehensive list of titles published in Canada, including books, periodicals, sound recordings, microforms, music scores, pamphlets, government documents, theses, educational kits, videorecordings, and electronic documents. It also provides information about forthcoming titles to facilitate advance ordering. The printed edition of Canadiana was discontinued after the December 1991 issue and the microfiche edition after December 2000. Click here to connect to the Canadiana homepage.

Canadian Association for School Libraries (CASL)

A division of the Canadian Library Association (CLA) formed in 2004 by the merger of the Association for Teacher-Librarianship in Canada (ATLC) and the Canadian School Librarianship Association (CSLA), CASL is devoted to providing a national voice for school libraries in Canada, promoting excellence in school libraries, and facilitating the professional growth of school librarians. CASL sponsors conferences in conjunction with CLA and with provincial and territorial library associations. Click here to connect to the CASL homepage.

Canadian Association of College and University Libraries (CACUL)

A division of the Canadian Library Association, CACUL seeks to develop and promote high standards of librarianship in institutions of postsecondary education. The organization gives awards, publishes CACUL Divisional Notes, and sponsors the CACUL List-Serv. Click here to connect to the CACUL homepage.

Canadian Association of Public Libraries (CAPL)

The division of the Canadian Library Association (CLA) charged with enhancing public library service throughout Canada, CAPL holds an annual meeting in conjunction with the annual CLA conference and publishes the CAPL Newsletter. Click here to connect to the CAPL homepage.

Canadian Association of Special Libraries and Information Services (CASLIS)

The division of the Canadian Library Association (CLA) charged with enhancing special library service throughout Canada, CASLIS sponsors an annual meeting in conjunction with the annual CLA conference and an annual award for outstanding special librarianship in Canada. Click here to connect to the CASLIS homepage.

Canadian Bookbinders and Book Artists Guild (CBBAG)

Founded in 1983, CBBAG is a nonprofit association of craftspeople working in the hand book arts, including papermakers, paper decorators, bookbinders, book restorers, and paper conservators, both amateur and professional. CBBAG seeks to provide access to education in the book arts, promotes greater awareness of the book arts, and advocates high standards of excellence in the book arts through exhibitions, workshops, lectures and program meetings, and publications. CBBAG sponsors an annual book arts fair and publishes the CBBAG Newsletter. Click here to connect to the CBBAG homepage.

Canadian Booksellers Association (CBA)

A nonprofit national trade association devoted to promoting the current and future interests of the bookselling industry in Canada and to meeting the needs of Canadian booksellers. Its members include over 1,200 bookstores and over 350 publishers across Canada. CBA publishes the trade journal Canadian Bookseller in nine issues per year. Click here to connect to the CBA homepage.

Canadian Children's Book Centre (CCBC)

A nonprofit organization founded in 1976 to promote, support, and encourage the reading, writing, and illustration of Canadian books for children and teens, CCBC provides resources for teachers, librarians, students and parents, authors, illustrators, storytellers, publishers, and booksellers. The organization also administers that annual Geoffrey Bilson Award for Historical Fiction for Young People, publishes the quarterly magazine Canadian Children?s Book News, and sponsors TD Canadian Children's Book Week. Click here to connect to the CCBC homepage.

Canadian Intellectual Property Office (CIPO)

The special operating agency (SOA) associated with Industry Canada that is responsible for administering the greater part of the intellectual property system in Canada. CIPO is responsible for administering patents, trademarks, copyrights, and the legal protections for industrial designs and integrated circuit topographies. Click here to connect to the CIPO homepage. See also: U.K. Copyright Service, U.S. Copyright Office, and World Intellectual Property Office.

Canadian Library Association (CLA)

Founded in 1946, CLA has a membership of librarians and other persons involved or interested in libraries, librarianship, and information science in Canada. An affiliate of the American Library Association, CLA sponsors a national conference held at a different location in Canada each year. CLA is also co-publisher with the ALA and the Library Association (UK) of Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules. Click here to connect to the CLA homepage.

CLA divisions:

Canadian Association for School Libraries (CASL)

Canadian Association of College and University Libraries (CACUL)

Canadian Association of Public Libraries (CAPL)

Canadian Association of Special Libraries and Information Services (CASLIS)

Canadian Library Trustees' Association (CLTA)

Canadian Library Trustees' Association (CLTA)

The division of the Canadian Library Association (CLA) charged with providing a national voice for public library trustees in Canada, CLTA holds an annual meeting in conjunction with the annual CLA conference and publishes A Handbook for the Canadian Library Trustee. Click here to connect to the homepage.

Canadian Publishers' Council (CPC)

Founded in 1910, CPC is a trade association representing the interests of Canadian publishers of English-language books and media for schools, colleges and universities, professional and reference markets, and the retail and library sectors. Located in Toronto, CPC also represents the Canadian publishing industry internationally and maintains a liaison with the Association of American Publishers. Click here to connect to the CPC homepage. See also: Association of Canadian Publishers.

Canadian-U.S. Task Force on Archival Description (CUSTARD)

An international group of archivists working to reconcile the three existing descriptive content standards used by archivists--APPM (Archives, Personal Papers, and Manuscripts); the Canadian Rules for Archival Description (RAD); and the General International Standard Archival Description (ISAD[G])--into a single descriptive standard. The product is expected to be the foundation of a truly international content standard.

cancel

A new leaf or leaves printed to replace part of a book or other publication when changes are required in the text or illustrations, usually before binding but after the work has gone to press, more common in the 17th and 18th centuries than today because as printing developed, the frequency of printing errors declined.

canceled

Said of a regular order, continuation order, or periodical subscription terminated for some reason by the library or the seller. A nonserial item may be reordered if it is still available. Library holdings of a canceled serial title are noted in the catalog record in a closed entry. Serial cancellations have increased in recent years, particularly in academic libraries, due to the rising cost of print subscriptions and the availability of full-text in bibliographic databases. Compare with discontinued. See also: noncancellable.

cancellation

In the context of medieval manuscripts, a superimposed "x" used to indicate a correction by crossing out one or more letters; a form of deletion. See also: expunction.

cancellation period

The period of time a library allows a publisher, jobber, or other vendor for shipment of a book or item before the order is automatically canceled, usually 90 to 180 days. The item may subsequently be reordered from the same vendor or a different source.

candidate

A person whose application for employment has been accepted and who is being seriously considered for a position. Also refers to a person taking an examination, running for an elected office, considered for an award or degree, or destined for a particular purpose or fate. See also: short list.

canon

In literature, the accepted list of works by a given author considered by scholars to be authentic, for example, the 37 plays of William Shakespeare. Also refers to the approved list of works included in the Bible. In the most general sense, a criterion or standard of judgment applied for the purpose of evaluation. Compare with apocryphal. See also: canonical order.

canonical order

The arrangement of headings, parts, divisions, or items in an order established by law or tradition, for example, the sequence of the books of the Bible.

canon tables

A system of indexing the canonical Gospels devised in the 4th century by Eusebius of Caesarea, in which the concordance of passages numbered in the text is displayed in four parallel columns, usually placed at the beginning of a Gospel book, Bible, or New Testament. Popular during the early Middle Ages, canon tables were usually given architectural treatment in manuscript decoration. Some designs include the symbols of the four evangelists, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John. Click here to page through colorful examples in a 12th-century German Gospel book (Getty Museum, MS Ludwig II 3).

canto

A major subdivision of a long narrative or epic poem serving the same function as a chapter in a novel. Cantos are traditionally numbered in roman numerals. Examples of works divided in this way are Dante's Divina Commedia, Spenser's Faerie Queene, and Byron's Don Juan.

caoutchouc binding

The precursor of modern perfect binding. In 1836, William Hancock was granted a patent for a binding method in which single leaves, produced by trimming away the back folds of the sections, were attached directly to the cover without the use of thread by applying to the binding edge a layer of rubber solution made from the latex of various tropical plants. This form of adhesive binding did not wear well--spines cracked and pages fell out. Also called gutta percha and rubberback.

caper

A fictional work (novel, story, motion picture, etc.) in which the plot centers on the planning and eventual execution of a single daring crime, escape, race, etc., such as the robbery of a bank vault or museum collection so well protected that the operation requires meticulous organization and perfect timing, usually undertaken by two buddies or a gang whose diverse skills are essential, although their interpersonal relations may be less than cordial. Suspense centers on whether and how the plan will succeed, what happens to the plunder, and whether the perpetrators are caught (examples: The Great Train Robbery [1975] by Michael Crichton, The Ladykillers [1955] with Alec Guinness and Peter Sellers, and Topkapi [1964] directed by Jules Dassin).

capital expenditure

In budgeting, an allocation made on a one-time basis, usually for the construction of new facilities, the renovation or expansion existing facilities, or a major upgrade of automation equipment or systems, as opposed to the operating budget allocated annually or biennially to meet the ongoing expenses incurred in running a library or library system.

capital improvement

The acquisition of a long-term asset, such as a new or renovated facility, initial book stock, or new equipment, furnishings, or vehicle(s), funded on a one-time basis from a budget for capital expenditures, as distinct from the ongoing purchase of library materials, payment of salaries and wages, routine repair and replacement of existing equipment and furnishings, and regular maintenance of facilities, funded from the operating budget.

capitalization

The writing or printing of a letter, word, or words in uppercase rather than lowercase. Also refers to the conventions in a language with respect to words written or printed with certain letters in uppercase. For example, in English the first letter of the first word of a paragraph, and of each of the parts of a proper name, is normally capitalized. The general rules governing capitalization in library catalog entries can be found in Appendix A of AACR2.

capital letter

A large letter of the roman alphabet (A, B, C, etc.) that prior to the 4th century A.D. consisted of capitals only. The name is derived from the lapidary Roman letterforms incised with a chisel at the top (capital) of architectural columns and on other stone monuments. Also, any letter written or printed in a form larger and usually different from that of the corresponding small letter. Abbreviated cap. Synonymous with uppercase. Compare with majuscule. See also: capitalization, cap line, rustic capital, small capital, and square capital.

CAPL

See: Canadian Association of Public Libraries.

cap line

In typography, the imaginary horizontal line connecting the tops of the uppercase letters of a type font, often, but not necessarily, the same as the ascender line. Compare with mean line. See also: base line.

caps

See: capital letter.

capsa

A box of cylindrical shape used in libraries of antiquity for storing scrolls in an upright position (see this example). See also: scrinium.

caption

From the Latin word for "capture" or "seizure." A brief title, explanation, or description appearing immediately above, beneath, or adjacent to an illustration or photograph on a page, sometimes indicating the source of the image. Synonymous in this sense with cut line or legend. See also: overleaf.

Also refers to a heading printed at the beginning of a chapter or other section of a book and to the headline at the beginning of the text of a periodical article or section of it. See also: hanging caption.

In microforms, a title or brief line of description in a type size large enough to enable the viewer to identify the photographed document without the aid of magnification. In films and filmstrips, a line of text at the bottom of a frame or sequence of frames identifying or explaining the content. A continuously moving line of text at the bottom of television screen is called a crawl. Compare with subtitle. See also: closed caption.

caption title

A title printed at the beginning of a chapter, section, or other major division of a book, or at the beginning of the first page of the text, which, in the absence of a title page, is sometimes used as the title of the whole in creating the bibliographic description. The cataloger usually adds Caption title: as a note in the bibliographic record to indicate its source. In a musical score, the title that appears immediately above the opening bars may be used as the caption title. Synonymous with head title. Compare with drop-down title.

captured archives

See: removed archives.

CAR

See: computer-aided retrieval.

carbon copy

A copy of a document made at the same time as the original by the use of thin paper coated on one side with a mixture of dark waxy pigment (initially carbon) easily transferred to a second blank sheet under the pressure of pen or typewriter. Multiple copies can be made by alternating sheets of carbon paper with regular paper, but succeeding copies become fainter because each additional layer absorbs some of the pressure. The technique can be messy if the pigment is easily smudged. Click here to see a carbon copy of an address (with holograph revisions) given by Winston Churchill to the Virginia General Assembly in 1946, courtesy of the Library of Congress. According to Richard Pearce-Moses in A Glossary of Archival and Records Terminology, carbon paper was invented in England by Ralph Wedgwood in the early 1800s and became available in the United States by the 1820s, but was not widely adopted until the introduction of the typewriter because it did not work well with quill pens. The use of carbon paper has been superseded by photocopying. Abbreviated cc.

carbon ink

An ink made from fine particles of carbon, such as soot or lampblack, mixed with a binding medium of oil, gum, or aqueous glue (see this example). Unlike the iron gall ink used in the early medieval period, which browns with age and can be so acidic that it corrodes paper and parchment, the carbon ink used in manuscripts of the late middle ages and in early printed books is highly stable and has no destructive effect on paper or parchment. However, it does not bond with the writing surface and is easily affected by water, which can present problems in restoration.

carbon print

The result of a photographic process patented by Joseph Wilson Swann in 1864 and popular until about 1910, in which a thin sheet of paper coated with a layer of light-sensitive gelatin containing a permanent pigment is exposed to ultraviolet light under a negative. The resulting image is transferred under pressure to a second sheet of gelatin-coated paper, then washed in water to set the gelatin, producing a permanent print with a raised surface where the image is darkest. The most commonly used pigments are carbon black and sepia, but a wide range of tints can be used. Because carbon prints contain no silver, they are highly resistant to fading, making them especially suitable for book illustration and commercial editions of photographic prints. Click here to see examples (Getty Museum) and here to learn more about the process, courtesy of Victoria & Albert Museum, London.

card catalog

A list of the holdings of a library, printed, typed, or handwritten on catalog cards, each representing a single bibliographic item in the collection. Catalog cards are normally filed in a single alphabetical sequence (dictionary catalog), or in separate sections by author, title, and subject (divided catalog), in the long narrow drawers of a specially designed filing cabinet, usually constructed of wood (click here to see an example). Most large- and medium-sized libraries in the United States have converted their card catalogs to machine-readable format. Also spelled card catalogue. Compare with online catalog.

card-mounted photograph

A photographic print, often a portrait, mounted on a standard-sized piece of thin cardboard, popular during the second half of the 19th century. Common sizes (according to the California Historical Society):

Cigarette card - 2 3/4 x 2 3/4 inches (1885-1895 and 1909-1917)

Carte-de-visite - 2 1/2 x 4 inches (1859-1900s)

Victoria - 3 1/2 x 5 inches (introduced 1870s)

Kodak - 4 1/4 x 5 1/4 inches (introduced 1880s)

Cabinet card - 4 1/2 x 6 1/2 inches (1866-1900)

Stereograph - 3 1/2 x 7 to 5 x 7 inches (1850s-1920s)

Promemade - 4 x 7 or 7 1/2 inches (introduced ca. 1874)

Boudoir - 5 1/2 x 8 1/2 inches (1890s on)

Paris - 6 3/4 x 9 3/4 inches

Imperial - 7 x 10 inches (introduced 1890s)

Panel - 7 1/2 x 13 inches

Compare with cased photograph.

caricature

A deliberately distorted picture of a person, or imitation of a performance or literary style, achieved by grossly exaggerating certain features or mannerisms peculiar to the object of satire. The Lilly Library at Indiana University provides America in Caricature, 1765-1865, an online exhibition of political cartoons. See also Monstrous Craws & Character Flaws and Stagestruck! Performing Arts Caricatures at the Library of Congress. See also: caricature publication and lampoon.

caricature publication

A magazine or newspaper designed to imitate another publication (or type of publication) with openly satirical intent. Published fortnightly from 1825 to 1826, the Glasgow/Northern Looking Glass, satirizing political and social life in 19th-century Scotland, is an early example of a caricature publication (Glasgow University Library, Bh14).

Carnegie library

A library facility constructed wholly or in part with grant funds provided by the American steel magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919), who in his later years devoted his considerable wealth to the promotion of libraries and world peace. Between 1881 and 1917, over 2,500 Carnegie libraries were built around the world, the majority in the United States, United Kingdom, and Canada. The libraries of many small towns in the United States still occupy facilities built with Carnegie funds. The buildings are typically monumental in appearance--to see examples, try a keywords search on the term "carnegie library" in Google Image Search. Click here to learn more about Carnegie libraries in Wikipedia and here to see images of Carnegie libraries.

The future of Carnegie libraries in the United States is uncertain. In the article "Carnegie Legacy: Preserving the Past by Looking into the Future" published in American Libraries (April 2006), architect Joseph C. Rizzo reports that of the 1,689 Carnegie libraries constructed in the U.S., only around 772 are still functioning as public libraries, another 350 are serving other purposes (museums, offices, etc.), and 276 have been demolished or destroyed by fire or other disaster. See also: Carnegie Medal.

Carnegie Medal

A literary award presented annually since 1936 by the Library Association of the United Kingdom to the author of the most outstanding English-language children's book published in the UK during the preceding year. The prize is named after the American steel magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie (1835-1919) who devoted the last years of his life to the advancement of libraries and world peace. Click here to view a list of Carnegie Medal winners. Compare with Greenaway Medal. See also: CLA Book of the Year for Children and Newbery Medal.

Caroline minuscule

See: Carolingian minuscule.

Carolingian minuscule

The first Latin script to introduce small letters, Carolingian minuscule may have evolved from Luxeuil minuscule, a script developed at the monastery in Corbie in France. It was adopted in the late 8th century by Alcuin of York, Abbot of St. Martin at Tours, in response to Charlemagne's desire for a standard alphabet in which books of the Catholic Church could be copied throughout his realm. Also influenced by English half uncials, the script Alcuin learned in his youth at the cathedral school in York, Carolingian minuscule quickly became the dominant book hand in Europe, where it was used through the 11th century and adopted in England following the Norman Conquest, replacing Insular and Anglo-Saxon scripts.

Its letterforms are wide and curved, with ligatures sparingly used, each letter written separately. Carolingian style systematized punctuation and the division of text formerly written in scriptio continuo into words and sentences. The practice of beginning each sentence with a single majuscule and completing it in minuscules was also standardized. Marc Drogin notes in Medieval Calligraphy: Its History and Technique (Allanheld & Schram, 1980) that the development of Carolingian minuscule made possible the copying of thousands of early manuscripts that would otherwise have been lost to history. Interest in Carolingian minuscule revived in the late 14th century in Italy, resulting in a humanistic script that became the basis for the lowercase letters of many modern typefaces. Click here to see a page from the 12th-century Italian Life of Mathilda of Canossa written in Carolingian minuscule (Library of the Medieval Institute, University of Notre Dame), and here to see more examples from the Schøyen Collection (Oslo and London). Synonymous with Caroline minuscule.

carousel

A detachable, circular slotted container, usually made of plastic, in which dozens of slides can be queued for sequential viewing on a specially designed slide projector (click here to see an example). Although carousels are bulky, they can also be used to store slides when not in use. Compare with magazine.

carpet page

A page in a medieval manuscript or early printed book that bears little or no text but is covered with elaborate decoration, sometimes with the Christian cross incorporated into the overall design. The term is derived from its resemblance to hand-knotted carpets imported from the East. Michelle Brown notes in Understanding Illuminated Manuscripts (Getty Museum/British Library, 1994) that this style of ornamentation, popular with the scribes of Ireland and Britain from about A.D. 550 to 900, was used to separate the major divisions of Gospel books and Bibles and may have been of Coptic origin. Examples can be seen here in the Book of Kells and here in the Lindisfarne Gospels, an illuminated masterpiece produced in Northumbria at the end of the 7th century, currently in the custody of the British Library.

carrel

Originally, a small stall or pew in a medieval cloister containing a desk for reading, writing, and semiprivate study. In modern libraries, a small room or alcove in the stacks designed for individual study (click here and here to see examples). Also refers to a free-standing desk (or two desks face-to-face) with low partitions at back and sides to provide some degree of privacy, with a shelf across the back facing the reader. Newer study carrels have built-in illumination and may be wired to provide network access for patrons using laptops.

carrier

See: physical carrier.

carta lustra

A form of tracing paper, probably made from kid parchment, that may have been used in medieval book production to transfer designs from a finished exemplar to a manuscript in process (Christopher de Hamel, The British Library Guide to Manuscript Illumination, University of Toronto Press, 2001).

carte-de-visite (cdv)

French for visiting card. A small albumen photographic print, usually a studio portrait of an individual, couple, family, or group, mounted on 2 1/2 x 4 inch card stock, a format introduced by the Parisian photographer Andre Adolphe Disdéri, who in 1854 patented a method of taking a number of photographs (usually eight) on a single plate, reducing production costs considerably. The fashion of exchanging cartes-de-visite like calling cards and collecting them in albums spread throughout the world in the second half of the 19th century. Portraits of celebrity sitters were particularly prized (see this one of Abraham Lincoln taken in 1864). Cartes-de-visite can be dated by thickness (early cards were thin), corner shape (square or rounded), image size (small at first), border style, and studio props and background. By the early 20th century, the format had been superseded by the larger cabinet cards. Here is a selection of portrait cards of 19th-century actors and actresses from the Digital Collections of the University of Washington Libraries. Click here to learn more about the history of the carte-de-visite, courtesy of The American Museum of Photography. Also spelled carte de visite. See also: visiting card.

cartobibliography

A systematic list of references to maps and/or works about maps arranged in some kind of order, with or without annotations, usually related to a particular location, region, subject, person, or time period. Also, the branch of bibliography pertaining to cartographic materials and mapping. For an online example, see Cartobibliography of Maps of the Isle of Man. The Libraries of Memorial University of Newfoundland provide the searchable Newfoundland and Labrador Maps Bibliography. The Sir George Fordham Award for Cartobibliography is given every three years by the Royal Geographical Society for distinguished contributions to the field.

cartogram

A simplified map on which the size, outline, or location of geographic features is altered or exaggerated to illustrate a concept or a set of quantitative data for which the base is not necessarily true to scale. An area proportional to (APT) map is a cartogram on which surface extent (area) is relative to the amount of map data for a feature (e.g., population), rather than the geographic extent of the base to which the feature is related. Click here to see a world map based on estimated number of Internet users in the year 2015 (from An Atlas of Cyberspaces) and here to see maps of the United States based on the number of electoral votes per state in the presidential elections since 1988. Also refers to a small diagram included on the face of a map for the display of statistical data. See also: schematic map.

cartographic materials

Any systematic representation of part or all of the surface of the earth or another celestial body (real or imaginary) on any scale. The category includes two- and three-dimensional maps and plans; nautical, aeronautical, and celestial charts; atlases; globes and planetaria; block diagrams, sections, and profiles; views; remote sensing images (including aerial photographs with cartographic purpose); cartograms; etc. Most cartographic materials are visual representations, but spatial data sets are a notable exception. In the bibliographic record representing a cartographic item, the characteristics of the material are described in the material specific details area (MSD). See also: Anglo-American Cataloguing Committee for Cartographic Materials, cartobibliography, and map library.

Cartographic Users Advisory Council (CUAC)

Committed to promoting the development and use of cartographic and spatial data, CUAC meets with representatives of various U.S. government agencies each year to (1) discuss issues and concerns raised by advances in the use of cartographic materials produced by the federal government, (2) offer the perspectives of its constituents, and (3) hear plans for new products and services from federal agencies. CUAC is composed of 12 representatives, two each from the Map and Geography Round Table (MAGERT) and the Government Documents Round Table (GODORT) of the American Library Association (ALA), the Geography and Map Section of the Special Libraries Association (SLA), the Geoscience Information Society (GSIS), the Western Association of Map Libraries (WAML), and the North American Cartographic Information Society (NACIS).

cartography

The art and science of making maps, charts, and other cartographic materials. Broadly speaking, the term includes all the steps required to produce a map (planning, aerial photography, field surveys, photogrammetry, editing, color separation, and printing), but mapmakers often apply the term only to map-finishing operations. Click here to learn about the process of making a topographic map, courtesy of the U.S. Geological Survey. Automated cartography is the production of maps and charts with the aid of digital technology, not to be confused with geographic information systems (GIS). A person who makes or produces maps is a cartographer. Synonymous with mapmaking.

cartonnage

Pieces of papyrus glued and tightly pressed together to form rigid sheets, used as boards in early bookbinding (see Coptic binding). The same material was used in ancient Egypt for making mummy cases (see this example).

cartoon

A symbolic or representational drawing in one or more panels intended to caricature a person or institution or satirize in a witty and imaginative way an action or situation of current popular interest. Usually published in a newspaper or magazine, cartoons may be captioned or contain monologue or dialogue in balloons. Political cartoons usually appear on or near the editorial page of a newspaper. Successful cartoonists are often syndicated. For examples, see Herblock's History and Oliphant's Anthem, two online exhibitions of political cartoons provided by the Library of Congress. A searchable database of New Yorker cartoons is available at Cartoonbank.com. See also: comic book and lampoon.

Also refers to an animated film created by photographing a series of drawings done as individual cels, then editing the images into a sequence of frames which, when viewed in rapid succession, create the illusion of continuous motion. To locate commercially produced cartoons, try The Big Cartoon Database.

In art, a full-sized drawing done on paper as a preliminary draft, to be transferred to a large working surface, sometimes in sections, a technique used in creating large frescoes, tapestries, and stained glass windows.

cartouche

A frame or panel, often in the form of a scroll, drawn or printed on a map or chart, usually as an inset, enclosing the title or subject of the work, name of cartographer, scale, and other descriptive information (legends). On older maps, the cartouche often includes decorative elements, ranging from simple ornamentation to elaborate embellishment. The presence of a coat of arms signified land ownership. Click here to see an example on a 17th-century map of Pennsylvania (Library of Congress). Click here to see a cartouche in the form of a medallion, and here and here to see draped examples (University of Wisconsin, Green Bay). Some decorative cartouches are very elaborate (University of Southern Maine). To see other examples, try a keywords search on the terms "cartouche and map" in Google Image Search. Also found on engravings and older bookbindings.

In a more general sense, a decorative element in the form of a scroll, often used in the Islamic decorative arts (click here to see cartouches used in the border of an 18th-century Turkish illuminated manuscript, courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art).

In Egyptian hieroglyphic inscriptions, a group of characters representing a divine or royal name or title, enclosed in an oval or oblong frame, often identifying a figure in a painting or sculpture. Click here to see examples in calcite from the reign of Akhenaten (Museum of Fine Arts, Boston). Click here to see an example in painted relief and here to see a cartouche included in a jeweled pectoral (Metropolitan Museum of Art).

cartridge

A completely enclosed physical housing, usually made of hard plastic or metal, designed to store and facilitate access to a roll of film or tape, usually wound on a single core, for example, a light-tight, factory-loaded roll of photographic film designed to be placed in and removed from a camera in full daylight without risk of accidental exposure. A cartridge is distinct from a container in being integral to, rather than separable from, the item. Cartridges may be constructed with the recording medium in a continuous loop. Some libraries use cartridge microfilm in which the ends of a length of film are permanently attached to two take-up reels for playback and rewinding. Compare with cassette.

In computing, a removable electronic storage medium (disk, memory chip, magnetic tape, etc.), as opposed to a medium that is not removable, for example, a hard disk. Some computer printers are made with slots into which font cartridges can be inserted to load a variety of fonts. By extension, any self-contained removable module used in computing equipment, for example, the toner and ink cartridges commonly used to resupply laser and ink-jet printers.

Also, a removable electro-acoustic transducer, usually encased in hard plastic, designed to hold the needle in the arm of a phonograph record player. Click here to learn how a phonograph cartridge works, courtesy of MicroPhone Solutions.

cartulary

The room or place where the official papers or records of a medieval monastery, landowner, or corporation were kept. Also refers to the register in which they were listed, synonymous in the latter sense with chartulary. Click here to explore the 15th-century Aldgate Cartulary (Glasgow University Library, Special Collections, MS Hunter 215 U.2.6).

cascading style sheets (CSS)

A feature added to HTML code that allows Web site developers to automatically apply the same layout to multiple documents. The appearance of design elements (logos, headers, footers, fonts, links, margins, etc.) is determined by one or more templates called style sheets linked to or embedded in the HTML document, rather than specified in the source code of each document. By governing style externally, CSS enables the site developer to give the pages of a Web site a uniform look and alter style of presentation as desired without having to rewrite source code. For more information see CSS Frequently Asked Questions, provided by the HTML Writers Guild.

case

In machine binding, a cover made completely before it is attached to the body of a book, consisting of two boards and a paper inlay covered in book cloth or some other protective material (see this diagram). The edition binder submits a specimen case to the publisher for approval showing the size, boards, covering, lettering, and squares. The process of attaching the case to the text block by pasting down the endpapers is called casing-in (see this example and the result). See also: case binding and recased.

Also refers to a container used by a typesetter to hold movable type. The words uppercase and lowercase are derived from the relative positions of the compartments used to store the two kinds of type.

Also, a small, flat container hinged to open like a book, in which one or two daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, or tintypes were preserved, allowing them to be carried conveniently and safely. Early examples were made of wood covered in leather or cloth, often decorated on the outside, with fabric lining and metal hinges and fasteners. The photograph(s) fitted snugly into the rear of the front and/or back half of the case, protected under a sheet of glass and a brass mat. Thermo-plastic began to replace leather in 1854. Click here to see two closed examples, courtesy of Lost & Found: Rediscovering Early Photographic Processes, an online exhibition hosted by the University of Southern California. Click here to see one open (Metropolitan Museum of Art). Similar cases were used to protect portrait miniatures during the medieval period.

case binding

A form of mechanized bookbinding in which a hard cover, called a case, consisting of two boards and an inlay covered in cloth, leather, or paper, is assembled separately from the book block and attached to it after forwarding by gluing the hinges, sewing supports, and paste-downs to the boards in a process called casing-in or hanging-in (see this example). The spine of the case is not adhered to the binding edge of the sections in case binding. When the method was first introduced in 1823, plain cloth was used to cover the boards, but by the 1830s a variety of finishes had been developed and embossing was often added. Click here to see all the parts of a typical case-bound book labeled. See also: recased.

casebook

A book containing records or descriptions of actual cases that have occurred in a professional discipline (law, medicine, psychology, sociology, social work, counseling, etc.), selected to illustrate important principles and concepts, for the use of students as a textbook and practitioners for reference. Legal casebooks are typically plainly bound (see this example). Compare with case study

cased

See: case binding.

cased photograph

A photographic image mounted in a shallow, hinged box, usually made of wood covered in tooled leather (see this example), paper, or cloth, or of metal (see example) or an early molded composite (see union case), often with a metal clasp. Common in the mid-19th century, case mounting was used to protect daguerreotypes (example), ambrotypes (example), tintypes, and porcelain photographs. Some cases are oval (example) or octagonal in shape (example), but most are square or rectangular. Gilding and fine fabric linings were often used to create a luxurious effect (example). Photographs made by later processes may be mounted in cases that once held images of an earlier type. Cased photographs are often in need of repair when acquired by a library (click here to see the conservation process). The Bancroft Library at UC Berkeley and the California State Library host a Web site on their joint Cased Photographs Project. Compare with card-mounted photograph.

case file

In archives, a folder or other file unit containing material related to a specific project, task, action, event, person, place, or other subject, or a collection of such folders or units, also known as a project file or transaction file.

case-sensitive

A computer system or software program in which uppercase letters (A, B, C...) and lowercase letters (a, b, c...) are not interchangeable as input (FAQ versus faq). On the Internet, Web addresses (URLs) are case-sensitive, but e-mail addresses and filenames usually are not.

case study

In the social and medical sciences, analysis of the behavior of one individual in a population, or a single event in a series, based on close observation over a period of time, often to reveal principles underlying individual behavior or events in general. A case study may be published as an article in a journal, as an essay in a collection, or in book form. In bibliographic databases that permit the user to limit retrieval by type of publication, case studies may be one of the options (example: PsycINFO). Synonymous with case report. Compare with casebook.

cash book

A blankbook used to record all money spent or received as payment, generally in a business in which it is necessary or desirable to know the amount of cash on hand at any given time, or in a partnership in which an accurate record of total assets must be maintained (see this example). Today, computer software is available for recording such transactions electronically. In libraries, a petty cash book may be used to record monies received (in payment of fines, etc.) and spent (usually on supplies and other minor items). Also spelled cashbook. Compare with account book.

casing-in

See: case binding.

CASL

See: Canadian Association for School Libraries.

CASLIS

See: Canadian Association of Special Libraries and Information Services.

cassette

A flat, completely enclosed container, usually made of metal or hard plastic, designed to hold a length of film or magnetic tape wound on two cores past an opening through which the film is viewed or the tape is read. The most common varieties used in libraries are audiocassettes, videocassettes, and cassette microfilm. The term is sometimes used interchangeably with cartridge, but some cartridges have only one hub. See also: compact cassette.

cast paper print

An artistic work in paper made by pouring wet pulp, colored or uncolored, into a mold and allowing it to dry. Produced since the 1970s, such works may be difficult to distinguish from embossed prints. Click here to see an example, courtesy of the Society of Scottish Artists.

catalog

A comprehensive list of the books, periodicals, maps, and other materials in a given collection, arranged in systematic order to facilitate retrieval (usually alphabetically by author, title, and/or subject). In most modern libraries, the card catalog has been converted to machine-readable bibliographic records and is available online. The purpose of a library catalog, as stated by Charles C. Cutter in Rules for a Dictionary Catalog (1904), later modified by Bohdan S. Wynar in Introduction to Cataloging and Classification (8th ed., 1992), is to offer the user a variety of approaches or access points to the information contained in the collection:

Objects:

1. To enable a person to find any work, whether issued in print or in nonprint format, when one of the following is known:

a. The author

b. The title

c. The subject

2. To show what the library has

d. By a given author

e. On a given and related subjects

f. In a given kind of literature

3. To assist in the choice of a work

g. As to the bibliographic edition

h. As to its character (literary or topical)

The preparation of entries for a library catalog (called cataloging) is performed by a librarian known as a cataloger. British spelling is catalogue. Abbreviated cat. Compare with bibliography and index. See also: classified catalog, dictionary catalog, divided catalog, and online catalog.

In a more general sense, a list of materials systematically arranged for a specific purpose, usually with brief descriptive information included in each entry, for example, an exhibition catalog, auction catalog, catalogue raisonné, course catalog, publisher's catalog, or film rental catalog. Sales catalogs are often heavily illustrated (see these examples, courtesy of the University of Delaware Library).

catalog card

In manual cataloging systems, a paper card used to make a handwritten, typed, or printed entry in a card catalog, usually of standard size (7.5 centimeters high and 12.5 centimeters wide), plain or ruled. Click here to see examples, courtesy of the Gustavus Adolphus College Library. With the conversion of paper records to machine-readable format and the use of online catalogs, catalog cards have fallen into disuse. British spelling is catalogue card.

catalog code

A detailed set of rules for preparing bibliographic records to represent items added to a library collection, established to maintain consistency within the catalog and between the catalogs of libraries using the same code. In the United States, Great Britain, and Canada, libraries use the Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules developed jointly by the American Library Association, Library Association (UK), and Canadian Library Association. Synonymous with cataloging code.

cataloger

A librarian primarily responsible for preparing bibliographic records to represent the items acquired by a library, including bibliographic description, subject analysis, and classification. Also refers to the librarian responsible for supervising a cataloging department. British spelling is cataloguer. Synonymous with catalog librarian. See also: Association for Library Collections and Technical Services and Cataloger's Desktop.

Cataloger's Desktop

Published on a single CD-ROM, Cataloger's Desktop is a product of the Library of Congress that provides basic cataloging documentation (including MARC formats), the Library of Congress Subject Headings list, Cutter Tables, Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules (AACR2), Library of Congress Rule Interpretations (LCRI), and more. Click here to learn more about Cataloger's Desktop.

cataloging

The process of creating entries for a catalog. In libraries, this usually includes bibliographic description, subject analysis, assignment of classification notation, and activities involved in physically preparing the item for the shelf, tasks usually performed under the supervision of a librarian trained as a cataloger. British spelling is cataloguing. See also: cataloging agency, Cataloging and Classification Section, cataloging-in-publication, centralized cataloging, cooperative cataloging, copy cataloging, descriptive cataloging, encoding level, and recataloging.

cataloging agency

A library or other institution that provides authoritative cataloging data in the form of new bibliographic records and modifications of existing records, for the use of other libraries. In the United States, the leading source of cataloging data is the Library of Congress. In the MARC record, the identity of the cataloging agency is indicated by its three-letter OCLC symbol in the cataloging source field (example: DLC for Library of Congress).

Cataloging and Classification Section (CCS)

The section of the Association for Library Collections and Technical Services (ALCTS) within the American Library Association (ALA) charged with promoting the improvement of cataloging and classification of library materials in all formats and in all types of institutions. Click here to connect to the CCS homepage.

Cataloging Distribution Service (CDS)

An agency within the Library of Congress that develops and markets, on a cost-recovery basis, bibliographic products and services that provide access to its resources for libraries in the United States, the American public, and the international information community. To accomplish its goals, the CDS employs librarians, product developers, systems analysts, programmers, operators, marketers, shippers, customer service representatives, accountants, and production staff. Click here to connect to the CDS homepage.

cataloging-in-publication (CIP)

A prepublication cataloging program in which participating publishers complete a standardized data sheet and submit it with the front matter or entire text of a new book (usually still in galleys) to the Library of Congress for use in assigning an LCCN and preparing a bibliographic record, which is sent back to the publisher within 10 days to be printed on the verso of the title page. The Library of Congress distributes CIP records to large libraries, bibliographic utilities, and book vendors on a weekly basis to facilitate book processing. If incomplete, the initial record may be amended by the Library of Congress after the U.S. Copyright Office receives the deposit copy of the published work. The CIP Program began at the Library of Congress in 1971 and is used throughout the world. Click here to see an example of CIP in the book, and here to connect to the CIP homepage. British spelling is cataloguing-in-publication.

cataloging level

See: encoding level.

cataloging source

Field (040) of the MARC record, reserved for the three-letter OCLC symbol representing the cataloging agency that created, transcribed, or modified the bibliographic record (example: DLC for Library of Congress). If English is not the language of the cataloging agency, the 040 field may also contain information about the language in which the item is cataloged.

Catalog of U.S. Government Publications (CGP)

The primary index to publications of the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of the federal government of the United States, published by the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) since 1994, and since 1895 under these former titles:

• Monthly Catalog of United States Government Publications (MOCAT) (1950-1994)
• United States Government Publications Monthly Catalog (1940-1950)
• Monthly Catalog, United States Public Documents (1933-1939)
• Monthly Catalogue, United States Public Documents (1907-1932)
• Catalogue of United States Public Documents (March 1895-1907)
• Catalogue of Publications Issued by the Government of the United States (January-March 1895)

Click here to search the CGP, which is updated daily.

catalog record

In the manual card catalog, all the information given on a library catalog card, including a description of the item, the main entry, any added entries and subject headings, notes, and the call number. In the online catalog, the screen display that represents most fully a specific edition of a work, including elements of description and access points taken from the complete machine-readable bibliographic record, as well as information about the holdings of the local library or library system (copies, location, call number, status, etc.) taken from the item records attached to the bibliographic record. British spelling is catalogue record. Compare with entry.

catalogue raisonné

A book or set of books listing and/or illustrating all the known works 1) of a particular artist (including photographers and architects), 2) of a school of artists or art movement, or 3) in a given medium, usually written by a leading expert and sometimes published as a supplement to another volume (example: Edward Hopper: A Catalogue Raisonné [1995] by Gail Levin, published in three volumes by W. W. Norton). As a general rule, each entry in the list includes date of production, size, condition, provenance, location, exhibition history, and other important information about the work. The images in a catalogue raisonné are often small and may be printed in black and white, the primary purpose being to authoritatively document the body of work rather than to display it for the reader's appreciation and enjoyment. A catalogue raisonné may not be identified as such in library catalogs, but its title often provides a clue ("The Complete Works of..." or "The Paintings of..."). To see other examples, try a keywords search on the term in Google Image Search.

catch letters

A sequence of letters (usually three) printed at the top of a page in a dictionary, gazetteer, or similar work that duplicates the first few letters of the first or last word on the page. Those printed on the verso indicate the first letters of the first word on the page; those on the recto, the first letters of the last word on the page. In some works, the letters appear in two groups separated by a hyphen, representing the first and last words on the page. Compare with catchword.

catch stitch

See: kettle stitch.

catch title

See: catchword title.

catchword

A word or part of a word printed in boldface or uppercase at the top of a column or page in a dictionary or encyclopedia that repeats the first and/or last heading appearing in the column or on the page. Synonymous with guideword. Compare in this sense with catch letters.

In medieval manuscripts and early printed books, a word or part of a word appearing in the lower margin of the last page of a quire that duplicates the first word on the first page of the following quire, enabling the binder to assemble the gatherings in correct sequence. In hand-copied books, the sequence of catchwords is unique to a specific copy. Michelle Brown notes in Understanding Medieval Manuscripts (Getty Museum/British Library, 1994) that the practice was probably introduced into Europe by the Moors. Click here to see an example in a 14th-century Italian manuscript (Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Columbia University), and here to see a decorated example in a late 14th-century Book of Hours (Syracuse University Library). Click here to see catchwords in a printed book, courtesy of the University of Pittsburgh Libraries.

Also refers to a word or phrase repeated so frequently that it has become a motto or slogan. Compare in this sense with cliché.

catchword title

A partial title composed of an easily remembered word or phrase likely to be used as a heading or keyword in a search of the library catalog, sometimes the same as a subtitle or the alternative title. Synonymous with catch title.

Categories for the Description of Works of Art (CDWA)

A specification developed by the Art Information Task Force (AITF) defining metadata elements to be used in describing works of art and architecture and surrogates of such works (example: digital images), from an art-historical perspective. Click here to learn more about CDWA.

cathedral binding

A cloth or leather binding decorated with architectural motifs of the Gothic period blocked in gold, ink, or blind, sometimes including a rose window, popular in France and England from about 1815 to 1840 when interest in Gothic art underwent a revival. To see examples of the style, try a search on the keyword "cathedral" in the British Library's Database of Bookbindings.

Catholic Library Association (CLA)

Established in 1921, CLA has a membership of librarians, teachers, and booksellers involved with Catholic libraries and the writing, publication, and distribution of Catholic literature. CLA publishes the quarterly Catholic Library World. Click here to connect to the CLA homepage.

caucus

An interest group within a political faction or party, legislative body, or organization formed (sometimes spontaneously) to address an immediate need for action on a given issue or series of related issues, usually by formulating policy, supporting candidates for political office, drafting campaign strategy, lobbying, etc. (example: Black Caucus of the ALA). Compare with task force.

causal relation

See: semantic relation.

CAV

An abbreviation of constant angular velocity, a disc recording technology in which the disc is spun at constant speed in playback regardless of whether the heads are reading the inside or the outside. Because the tracks on the inside are shorter than those on the perimeter, the constant speed of rotation means that when the heads are reading the outside tracks, they traverse a much longer linear path than when the inside is read, so linear velocity does not remain constant. The main advantage of CAV is that it allows special playback features such as freeze frame, step frame, slow motion, and reverse not possible in CLV (constant linear velocity) format; however, CAV has significantly less data storage capacity than CLV.

Caxton, William (c. 1422?-1491)

England's first printer, Caxton learned the trade relatively late in life while living in Cologne and Bruges. He brought the first printing press to England and installed it in the Chapter House at Westminster Abbey, issuing the first dated book known to have been printed in England (probably his The Dictes and Sayings of the Philosophers) in 1477. By the time he died in 1491, his press had issued approximately 100 works, including folio editions of Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales (1478) and Mallory's Morte D'Arthur (1485), which he sold to English readers in bound copies. He was an expert editor and translated into English many of the works he printed.

Click here to view pages from The Mirror of the Blessed Life of Jesus Christ printed by Caxton (c. 1490), courtesy of Glasgow University Library, Special Collections (Hunterian Bv.2.24). Click here to compare two Caxton editions of The Canterbury Tales, courtesy of the British Library. For a succinct, informative essay on Caxton's life and work, please see the entry under his name in Geoffrey Glaister's Encyclopedia of the Book (Oak Knoll/British Library, 1996). See also: Gutenberg, Johann.

CBA

See: Canadian Booksellers Association, Center for Book Arts, and collective bargaining agreement.

CBBAG

See: Canadian Bookbinders and Book Artists Guild.

CBC

See: Children's Book Council.

CBIP

See: Children's Books in Print.

CC

See: closed caption and common carrier.

CCAHA

See: Center for the Conservation of Art and Historic Artifacts.

CCBC

See: Canadian Children's Book Centre.

CCC

See: Copyright Clearance Center, Inc.

CCD

See: collaborative collection development.

CCS

See: Cataloging and Classification Section.

CCTV

See: closed circuit television.

CD

See: compact disc.

CDA

See: Communications Decency Act.

CD-I

Compact Disc-Interactive, a software and hardware standard developed in 1986 by Philips International and Sony Corporation for storing video, audio, and binary data on compact optical disk. A special stand-alone player that includes a CPU, memory, and an integrated operating system is required, capable of connecting to a television receiver for displaying images and sound or to a stereo system for sound only. CD-I technology allows the user to interact with the system by positioning a cursor to select options via a remote control device. Not widely accepted, CD-I applications are used in education, recreation (music and computer games), etc. Sometimes referred to as the Green Book standard. Also spelled CD-i.

CDP

See: collection development policy.

CD-ROM

Compact Disc-Read Only Memory (pronounced "see dee rahm"), a small plastic optical disk similar to an audio compact disc, measuring 4.72 inches (12 centimeters) in diameter, used as a publishing medium and for storing information in digital format. Stamped by the producer on the metallic surface, the data encoded on a CD-ROM can be searched and displayed on a computer screen but not changed or erased. The disc is read by a small laser beam inside a device called a CD-ROM drive.

Each disc has the capacity to store 650 megabytes of data, the equivalent of 250,000 to 300,000 pages of text or approximately 1,000 books of average length. CD-ROMs can be used to store sound tracks, still or moving images, and computer files, as well as text. In libraries, CD-ROMs are used primarily as a storage medium for bibliographic databases and full-text resources, mostly dictionaries, encyclopedias, and other reference works. Compare with WORM. See also: CD-ROM drive, CD-ROM network, and CD-ROM tower.

CD-ROM changer

A computer hardware device designed to store a small number of CD-ROMs or disc modules, with carousels and robot arms to move one disc at a time to an optical or magnetic reader and back to its storage location. Colloquially known as a jukebox. Compare with CD-ROM drive and CD-ROM tower.

CD-ROM drive

A hardware component designed to read data recorded on a CD-ROM disc, originally an external device but built into most newer microcomputers. CD-ROM drives can also be used to play audio compact discs when attached to a sound card via cable. Compare with CD-ROM changer and CD-ROM tower.

CD-ROM LAN

See: CD-ROM network.

CD-ROM network

A client-server system that makes multiple CD-ROM discs stored in a CD-ROM tower accessible to users authorized to log on to a computer network. Most bibliographic databases available on CD-ROM require special licensing for network access. Synonymous with CD-ROM LAN.

CD-ROM tower

A computer hardware device designed to store a large number of CD-ROM discs, usually connected to a server programmed to handle network access. Compare with CD-ROM changer and CD-ROM drive.

CDS

See: Cataloging Distribution Service.

cdv

See: carte-de-visite.

CDWA

See: Categories for the Description of Works of Art.

ceased publication

Said of a periodical or newspaper no longer published (see this example, courtesy of the Koninklijke Bibliotheek). Publication may eventually resume under the same title or an altered title. Also said of a work published in more than one volume, which was never completed. Library holdings are indicated in a closed entry. Compare with canceled and discontinued. See also: cessation.

Cedars Project

A research collaboration between the universities of Leeds, Oxford, and Cambridge from 1998 to 2002 for the purpose of exploring strategic, methodological, and practical issues related to digital preservation. A major component of the project was the development of a metadata framework to facilitate the long-term preservation of digital resources and to support meaningful access to archived digital content by including not only descriptive but also administrative, technical, and legal information about digital objects. Click here to learn more about the Cedars Project.

cel

A thin sheet of transparent material of standard size (usually acetate) having the same proportions as a frame of motion picture film, on which is drawn or painted a single image in a sequence of animation. Original cels from early animated films may have independent value as works of art. To see examples, try a keywords search on "cel and disney" in Google Image Search. Also refers to a transparent sheet used as an overlay against an opaque background, as in textbooks on anatomy to show in layers the various systems of the human body.

celestial atlas

A book of charts of the heavens. The "golden age" of the celestial atlas occurred from about 1600 to 1800. The early star atlas was not intended to be a guide to amateur star-gazing, but rather for the use of working astronomers, as a backdrop on which to plot, as accurately as possible, the changing positions of the moon, planets, and comets. The best celestial atlases were produced by notable astronomers, based on their own observations. See Out of This World: The Golden Age of the Celestial Atlas, an online exhibition by the Linda Hall Library in Weston, Missouri, and also The Heavens: Views of the Universe, courtesy of the Library of Congress. To see contemporary examples, try a keywords search for books using the phrase "star* and atlas" in Amazon.com. Synonymous with sky atlas.

celestial chart

A map of the heavens, showing the relative positions of known celestial bodies (planets, moons, stars, etc.) and systems of interest to astronomers and amateur stargazers, usually printed in light tones against a dark background to simulate the night sky. Click here and here to see contemporary examples (Spaceshots.com), then compare this 17th-century chart (New York Public Library) with an 18th-century example (George Glazer Gallery). Click here and here to browse interactive charts of the solar system (U.S. Geological Survey). Synonymous with astronomical map and star map. See also: celestial atlas and planisphere.

celestial globe

A map of the heavens on the surface of a sphere. Celestial globes were originally used to represent the stars and constellations of the night sky, record their relative positions, and solve astronomical problems. Mounted on a stand that included a broad horizontal band representing the horizon, the globe could be adjusted to make the elevation of the pole above the horizon correspond to the user's latitude. In such a position, the globe's rotation corresponded to the apparent diurnal rotation of the stars at the given latitude. Click here to see an 18th-century example from the collections of the Royal Library of Denmark and here to see a smaller 16th-century example in silver and brass with clockwork (Metropolitan Museum of Art). Click here to explore an interactive example (Harvard Map Collection) and here to learn more about celestial globes, courtesy of the Whipple Museum, University of Cambridge. Modern illuminated models are available for children. In libraries, celestial globes are cataloged as cartographic materials.

cell

See: alcove.

cellocut

An intaglio or relief print made from a plate consisting of a base covered with a layer of celluloid dissolved in acetone (or similar liquid plastic) that is allowed to solidify before the artist begins working the design into its surface. The result often resembles a linocut.

celluloid

Originally a trademark of the Celluloid Manufacturing Company of Newark, New Jersey, established in 1871. The term first applied to an early thermoplastic made from cellulose nitrate and melted camphor, used with dyes and other agents in the manufacture of early photographic and motion picture film and other commercial products, such as knife handles, toys, washable collars and cuffs, etc. Highly flammable and chemically unstable, cellulose nitrate film was replaced by cellulose acetate in the early 1950s, and "celluloid" became a generic term for any motion picture film base. The compound is still used in the manufacture of table tennis balls, for which no material of comparable properties has been found. Click here to learn more about celluloid, courtesy of Wikipedia.

cellulose

A long-chain polymer (C₆H₁₀O₅) commonly found in fibrous vegetable material, occurring in almost pure form in cotton fiber. When used in papermaking, it is obtained primarily from wood, but was formerly derived from cotton or linen rags. Cellulose in paper and board made from wood pulp is weakened in time by the presence of acid unless lignin is removed and an alkaline buffer added in manufacture.

Also, a family of plastics that includes cellulose nitrate, cellulose acetate, and cellulose triacetate, used as the base in photographic and motion picture films.

cellulose acetate

An umbrella term for motion picture film manufactured with a base of slow-burning acetate plastic. Because the cellulose nitrate initially used as a film base is highly combustible, manufacturers found a safe substitute in plastics of the cellulose acetate family, introducing cellulose diacetate in 1909, acetate propionate and acetate butyrate in the 1930s, and cellulose triacetate in the 1940s. Use of cellulose nitrate as a film base was phased out in the United States in the early 1950s. All comparatively nonflammable alternatives to nitrate film are known as safety film. Kodak acetate film has the words SAFETY FILM printed along the edge. Synonymous with acetate base and acetate film. See also: acetate decay and polyester.

cellulose diacetate

An early acetate plastic base for motion picture film, introduced in 1909. See: cellulose acetate.

cellulose nitrate

A flexible base produced by Eastman Kodak from the 1890s until the early 1950s for use in photographic negatives and motion picture film. Its combustibility made handling 35mm film a hazardous occupation until the introduction of safety film. Because nitrate film is also chemically unstable, organizations such as the National Film Preservation Foundation provide grant assistance to film archives to facilitate the copying of moving image collections from cellulose nitrate to a more permanent base, such as cellulose acetate or polyester. Because of the potential fire hazard, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) issues guidelines for the construction of cabinets and vaults used to store nitrate-based motion pictures. Libraries and archives often store nitrate film off-site. Synonymous with nitrate base. See also: nitrate decay.

cellulose triacetate

The strongest acetate plastic base used in the manufacture of motion picture film, introduced in the 1940s. See: cellulose acetate.

censorship

Prohibition of the production, distribution, circulation, or display of a work by a governing authority on grounds that it contains objectionable or dangerous material. The person who decides what is to be prohibited is called a censor. Commonly used methods include decree and confiscation, legislation, repressive taxation, and licensing to grant or restrict the right to publish.

The ALA Code of Ethics places an ethical responsibility on its members to resist censorship of library materials and programs in any form and to support librarians and other staff who put their careers at risk by defending library policies against censorship. The Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC) maintains a Web page on Internet Censorship. Compare with suppressed. See also: banned book; book burning; challenge; clandestine publication; Comstock, Anthony; expurgated; filtering; Index Librorum Prohibitorum; intellectual freedom; Motion Picture Production Code; and precensorship.

census

An official count and statistical analysis of the living population of a species (human or nonhuman) in a given geographic area (city, county, state, province, country, etc.) taken at a particular point in time. A census is distinct from a sampling in which information obtained about a portion of a population is used as the basis for generalization about the whole. The earliest known census of taxpaying households was recorded in China in the 3rd century B.C. More complete enumerations were conducted for military and tax purposes in ancient Rome by special magistrates called censors. The development of the modern census began in Europe in the 17th century and today includes questions concerning age, gender, ethnicity, income, housing, etc., formulated to generate data used in social planning, political redistricting, business marketing, etc. In most countries, participation in the census is compulsory, but the information collected on individual households and businesses is confidential.

In the United States, the national census, mandated by the federal Constitution, is conducted every ten years by the U.S. Census Bureau, which reports the detailed results in statistical form by state. Census data is used to apportion seats in Congress and to gather demographic and economic information about citizens and other residents, later compiled and analyzed in federal statistical publications. U.S. census data is available in the government documents collections of larger libraries and online at: www.census.gov. Summary tables are published in the Statistical Abstract of the United States, prepared annually since 1879 and available in the reference section of most libraries in the United States. See also: census tract, Domesday Book, and TIGER files.

census tract

One of many small geographic areas into which a state or country is divided for the purpose of gathering and reporting census data. In the United States, the average tract contains 4,000 residents or approximately 1,200 households. Census tract outline maps are available from the U.S. Census Bureau.

center fold

The two innermost facing pages of a section in a book or other bound publication (the verso and recto of conjoint leaves). In sewn bindings, the threads can be seen along the fold. In a saddle-stitched periodical or pamphlet, wire staples can be seen in the fold. In pornographic publications, the term centerfold refers to an illustration printed across facing pages of the center section. Synonymous with center spread.

Center for Book Arts (CBA)

Founded in 1974, CBA is a nonprofit organization with headquarters in New York City, dedicated to preserving the traditional craft of bookmaking and encouraging contemporary interpretations of the book as an art object through exhibitions, lectures, publications, and services to artists, including courses, workshops, and seminars on all aspects of the book arts. Click here to connect to the CBA homepage.

Center for Research Libraries (CRL)

Founded in 1949, CRL's members are large research libraries that seek to improve access to scholarly collections. CRL publishes a bimonthly newsletter and serves as a depository for infrequently used research materials that its members may use cooperatively. Click here to connect to the CRL homepage.

Center for the Book

An educational outreach program established in 1977 by the Library of Congress to stimulate public interest in and awareness of books, reading, and libraries and to encourage the study of books and the printed word, the Center for the Book is a public-private partnership between the Library of Congress, 35 affiliated state centers, and over 50 national and civic groups. The Center publishes Center for the Book News and sponsors the annual National Book Festival. Click here to connect to the homepage of the Center for the Book.

Center for the Conservation of Art and Historic Artifacts (CCAHA)

Established in 1977, CCAHA is a nonprofit regional conservation lab specializing in the treatment of art and historic artifacts on paper, such as drawings, prints, maps, posters, historic wallpaper, photographs, rare books, scrapbooks, and manuscripts, as well as related materials on parchment, papyrus, etc. Located in Philadelphia, CCAHA also offers on-site consultation services, educational programs and seminars, internships, and emergency conservation services. Click here to connect to the CCAHA homepage.

centerpiece

In bookbinding of the late 16th and early 17th centuries, an ornamental design such as a diamond tooled or stamped in the center of the front and/or back cover, sometimes accompanied by matching cornerpieces. Click here to view a 16th-century example (Glasgow University Library, Special Collections, BD1-d.3) and here to see a 19th-century example done in gilt red leather inlay (University of Miami, Florida). To see other examples, try a search on the keyword "centrepiece" in the British Library's Database of Bookbindings. Also refers to an embossed or engraved metal ornament attached to the center of the front cover of a book (click here to see a silver centerpiece on a 16th-century Book of Hours). Also spelled centrepiece. See also: cameo binding and mandorla.

centralized cataloging

The preparation of bibliographic records for books and other library materials by a central cataloging agency that distributes them in printed and/or machine-readable form to participating libraries, usually for a modest fee. Also refers to the cataloging of materials for an entire library system at one of its facilities, usually the central library, to achieve uniformity and economies of scale. Also spelled centralized cataloguing.

centralized processing

The practice of concentrating in a single location all the functions involved in preparing materials for library use, as opposed to technical processing carried out at multiple locations within a library or library system. Centralization allows processing methods to be standardized, but increased efficiency may be offset by the cost of distributing materials to the units where they will be used.

central library

The administrative center of a library system where system-wide management decisions are made, centralized technical processing is conducted, and principal collections are located. Synonymous with main library. See also: branch library.

central processing unit (CPU)

The hardware component of a computer that houses the circuitry for storing and processing data according to instructions contained in the programs installed on it, including the operating system, utilities to run peripheral devices, and application software. Generally speaking, the more memory and disk storage a CPU has, the more processing it can handle within a given amount of time, and the faster it can accomplish a task.

central records

The files of more than one unit of an organization, consolidated and maintained in a single location to allow greater efficiency than is possible with decentralized records. Also, the records of several individuals or entities consolidated under a common filing system. In such a system, the files of each unit or individual are usually maintained separately from those of other units, but organized according to a prescribed filing plan, with each file assigned a classification code under which it is filed. Click here to see an example at the federal government level and here to see an example at the local level. Synonymous with central files and centralized files.

cerf

See: kerf.

certificate

A written or printed statement attesting the validity of a fact, promise, qualification, status, or accomplishment, often in the form of a document of standard format issued in the name of an authorizing body. Click here to see a 19th-century example, courtesy of The Lilly Library at Indiana University. Birth and death certificates are commonly found among family papers (click here to see an example, courtesy of the Delaware Public Archives).

certificate of issue

In a limited edition, the statement in each copy giving the total number of copies printed and the copy number. In an autographed edition, the certificate may also bear the signature of the author, editor, or illustrator.

certification

In archives, the formal act of attesting to the official identity and nature of an original document or its reproduction. Compare with authentication.

Also, the process by which a state agency, or a nongovernmental agency or organization authorized by a state government, evaluates the qualifications of an individual, organization, or institution to perform a specific service or function for the purpose of granting a credential. In June 2001, the Board of Directors of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) reaffirmed its Statement on Certification & Licensing of Academic Librarians opposing certification or licensing in lieu of the master's degree as the appropriate professional terminal degree for academic librarians. However, National Board Certification of library media specialists is encouraged by the American Association of School Librarians (AASL). Compare with accreditation. See also: approved program.

certified copy

A duplicate copy verified to be an authentic and accurate reproduction of the original by an official authorized to give such assurance, in most cases the person responsible for creating the original or a representative of the organization that has custody and responsibility for maintaining the original. Certified copies are often required of documents that are vital records, such as birth and death certificates and marriage licenses (see this example).

Certified Public Library Administrator (CPLA)

Jointly sponsored by the Public Library Association (PLA), Library Administration and Management Association (LAMA), and Association of Specialized and Cooperative Library Agencies (ASCLA), the ALA-APA's Certified Public Library Administrator Program, approved in 1996, is a voluntary post-MLS certification program for public librarians with three years or more of supervisory experience, designed to enable public library administrators to further their professional education and development; improve career opportunities through professional expertise; demonstrate to colleagues, trustees and boards of directors, patrons, and the wider community the acquisition of a nationally and professionally recognized body of knowledge and expertise in public library administration; and improve the quality of library service through the provision of practical knowledge and skills essential to successful library management. The Graduate School of Library and Information Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is one of the providers of the CPLA Program. Click here to learn more about the program.

certified records manager (CRM)

An information professional who has significant experience in the management of active and inactive records systems and in related areas (archives, computer systems, micrographics, optical disk technology, etc.), and who has been certified by the international Institute of Certified Records Managers (ICRM) as meeting established standards of education, training, and work experience after passing required examinations. ICRM certification must be maintained by completing a prescribed number of hours of approved educational activity during each five-year period following initial certification.

cessation

A serial or annual for which publication has ceased. Cessations are listed alphabetically by title in a separate section of Ulrich's International Periodicals Directory published annually by R.R. Bowker and in The Serials Directory published by EBSCO. A serials vendor should notify its customers of the demise of a publication to enable libraries to adjust their records accordingly. In the library catalog, the holdings of a serial that has ceased publication are indicated in a closed entry (example: v. 1-26, 1950-76).

CF

See: Christian fiction.

cf.

An abbreviation of the Latin confer, meaning "compare."

CGI

See: Common Gateway Interface.

CGP

See: Catalog of U.S. Government Publications.

chain

See: bookstore chain and chained book.

chained book

A book with a strong metal chain firmly attached to the binding, usually at its head, to secure the volume to the shelf on which it is stored, or to the desk or lectern where it is to be read, as a means of preventing unauthorized removal. In medieval Europe, the practice was common in ecclesiastical and educational institutions because the amount of labor required to produce manuscript books made them valuable. The chain could be up to five feet long, often fitted with a swivel to prevent twisting. A chained library survives in England at Hereford Cathedral. Click here to view a shelf of chained books (Schøyen Collection, Oslo and London), and here for a closer view of the fittings (Cornell University Library). Synonymous with catenati.

chain of custody

See: custody.

chain stitch

In bookbinding, a sewing stitch linked to previous sewing threads but not sewn to a support (tape, cord, thong, etc.). In Islamic binding, chain stitching was in multiples of two or four chains. Jane Greenfield notes in ABC of Bookbinding (Oak Knoll/Lyons Press, 1998) that it was also used in Coptic binding and in France during the 16th century and that modern machine stitching is a form of chain stitch. Synonymous with unsupported sewing.

challenge

A complaint lodged by a library user acting as an individual or representing a group, concerning the inclusion of a specific item (or items) in a library collection, usually followed by a demand that the material be removed. Library programs may also be targeted. Public libraries are challenged far more frequently than other types of libraries because they are supported by public funds and must provide resources and services for a highly diverse clientele ("This library has something to offend everyone"). An unambiguously worded collection development policy is a library's best defense against such objections. See also: banned book, censorship, frequently challenged book, and intellectual freedom.

champie initial

In medieval manuscripts, a style of decorated initial letter in which the body of the letter is usually in plain gold set against a parti-colored background, often of blue and red highlighted with delicate white lines. Common in Gothic manuscripts, champie initials sometimes have small extenders, as in these four examples in a 14th-century French Apocalypse (British Library, Yates Thompson 10).

champlevé binding

A style of book cover, produced in Europe from the 11th to the 13th century, consisting of a thin sheet of gold or copper in which designs were cut and the cavities filled with colored enamel. On some bindings, the enamel is limited to border and corner decoration. According to Matt Roberts and Don Etherington (Bookbinding and the Conservation of Books: A Dictionary of Descriptive Terminology), champlevé can be distinguished from cloisonné bindings by the irregular widths of the metal separating the enameled areas.

chancery

Historically, a court of record or office of public archives (see this modern example). In law, a court of equity and its laws, practices, and proceedings (example). See also: Chancery rolls and chancery script.

Chancery rolls

From the end of the 12th century, the Chancery of England, in its original role as the royal secretariat, began to transcribe onto parchment important documents it produced. The copies were "enrolled" (sewn together and rolled up) to facilitate handling. The National Archives of England, Wales, and the UK maintains a great variety of such records preserved in the original format, including charter rolls, close rolls, fine rolls, liberate rolls, parliament rolls, patent rolls, pipe rolls, scutage rolls, and more. Of great interest to historians, they are listed by series in calendars, some of which have been published. Click here to learn more about Chancery rolls and here to learn about the development of the calendars.

chancery script

A cursive script used from the 14th to the 16th century in the offices (chanceries) of royal, noble, and ecclesiastical houses for writing letters and less formal documents, adapted in 1501 as the basis of a typeface commissioned by the publisher Aldus Manutius and executed by the lettercutter Francesco Griffo. Click here to see an example of 14th-century Papal chancery script (Schøyen Collection, MS 590/41).

changed title

See: title change.

change-over cue

A small dot, oval, slash, or other mark in the frame of a feature-length motion picture, made by scraping a small hole in the emulsion layer, usually in the upper right-hand corner, as a signal to the projectionist to be prepared to change to the second projector with the next reel of film about every 15-20 minutes (see this example). The first cue appears 12 feet (eight seconds at 24 frames per second) before the end of the reel, alerting the projectionist to start the motor of the projector on which the next reel is mounted. After another 10 1/2 feet (seven seconds at 24 fps), the change-over cue appears, signaling the projectionist to make the change. When this second cue appears, the projectionist has 1 1/2 feet (one second at 24 fps) to switch projectors before the black leader at the tail of the exhausted reel is projected on the screen. Also known as "cigarette burns," the marks are sometimes visible on videorecordings of older motion pictures. Today, most movie theaters use a single projector. The reels of film are spliced together, forming one large roll fed into the projector from a horizontal revolving turntable called a platter. Also spelled changeover cue. Synonymous with cue mark, reel change marker, and reel marker.

channel

A pathway along which data is transmitted electronically from one computer, terminal, or device to another. The term also refers to the physical medium carrying the signal (optical fiber, coaxial cable, etc.) and to the properties that distinguish a specific channel from others. In data storage, a track on a specific storage medium (magnetic tape, magnetic disk, CD-ROM, DVD, etc.) on which electrical signals are recorded.

In communications, a band of frequencies assigned by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to a radio or television transmitting station for its exclusive use. In a more general sense, a one-way communications link.

Also refers to the blank space dividing columns of text written or printed on a page.

channeling

In film conservation, a pattern of irregular veins (called channels) formed in photographic negatives by the separation of the emulsion from the base, a sign of advanced deterioration characteristic of acetate-base films. With the passage of time, the base shrinks but the emulsion does not, producing stress that eventually breaks the bond between emulsion and base, causing the emulsion layer to buckle and separate from the base (see these examples, courtesy of the Library of Congress). In some cases, the emulsion tears as it buckles (see this example).

chanson de geste

French for "song of deeds." A group of approximately 80 Old French epic poems produced from the 11th to 14th century relating historical and legendary events that occurred in the 8th and 9th centuries during the reigns of the Frankish King Charlemagne and his successors (example: La Chanson de Roland). Largely anonymous, they typically recount deeds of valor in struggles of the nobility among themselves and against Muslim invaders, emphasizing the heroic ideals of knighthood and chivalry and affirming the triumph of Christianity. Whether they evolved from a continuous oral tradition sustained by wandering trouvères (minstrels) or are the work of individual poets remains a subject of debate, but in any case, they are not historically accurate. Click here to learn more about the chanson de geste, courtesy of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France.

chapbook

From the Anglo-Saxon root ceap. A pamphlet containing a popular legend, tale, poem, or ballad, or a collection of prose or verse, hawked for about a penny a copy in the streets of England from the late 17th through the 19th century, and in the United States, by traveling peddlers called chapmen or colporteurs. The content was usually sensational (abduction, murder, witchcraft, etc.), educational (travel), or moral. Chapbooks were typically of small size (6 x 4 inches), containing up to 24 pages illustrated with woodcuts, bound in paper or canvas, usually with a decorated cover title. Click here to see an example, courtesy of the Cornell University Library, and see The Scottish Chapbook Project, courtesy of the University of South Carolina Libraries. The Lilly Library at Indiana University provides an online index to its collection of chapbooks. Also refers to a modern pamphlet of the same type. Also spelled chap-book.

chapter

One of two ore more major divisions of a book or other work, each complete in itself but related in theme or plot to the division preceding and/or following it. In works of nonfiction, chapters are usually given a chapter title, but in works of fiction they may simply be numbered, usually in roman numerals. Chapters are listed in order of appearance by title and/or number in the table of contents in the front matter of a book. Abbreviated ch. Compare with canto. See also: chapter drop, chapter heading, and run-on chapter.

Also, a local division of an organization. Over 50 independent state and regional library associations are closely affiliated with the American Library Association. Each has a separate budget and dues structure, elects its own officers, and sponsors an annual conference. Each of the state chapters is represented in the ALA's governing assembly by an elected chapter councilor. The ALA also has student chapters in over 25 states. Within the ALA, chapter interests are represented by the Chapter Relations Committee and the Chapter Relations Office.

chapter drop

The position below the chapter heading at which the text of a chapter begins--lower than on succeeding pages of the text and, in most books, the same for all chapters.

chapter heading

A display heading in a book or manuscript usually consisting of a roman numeral indicating the chapter number, followed by the chapter title, written or printed on the first page of the chapter in uniform style and position above the first paragraph of the text. Set in a type size larger than the text and running heads, chapter headings are sometimes embellished with an illustration or head-piece in older editions. See also: chapter drop.

chapter title

The title that appears at the beginning of a chapter in a book, usually bearing some relation to the content of the division of the work. Chapters may simply be numbered (usually in roman numerals) or given a number and a title. They are listed in order of appearance by number and/or title in the table of contents in the front matter. See also: chapter heading.

character

Any mark, sign, or symbol conventionally used in writing or printing, including letters of the alphabet, numerals, punctuation marks, and reference marks. In indexing, the smallest unit used in the arrangement of headings. See also: loan character and nonfiling character.

In data processing, a sequence of eight binary digits (one byte) representing a letter of the alphabet, numeral, punctuation mark, or other symbol. See also: character set.

Also, a fictional person in a novel, play, short story, or other literary work. A character study is a work in which the primary theme is the inner development of a person or group of persons (example: Hamlet). In Library of Congress subject headings, "Characters" is a standard subdivision used in personal name headings for writers of fiction, particularly playwrights (example: Shakespeare, William, 1546-1616--Characters--Falstaff). Well-known characters may be given a separate heading, followed by a parenthetical qualifier, as in Jeeves (Fictitious character). See also: stock character.

characteristic

An attribute, property, or quality that forms the basis for dividing a class into clearly differentiated subclasses, for example, the characteristic "period" dividing the class "European literature" into the subclasses "classical," "medieval," "renaissance," "modern," and "contemporary," as opposed to the characteristic "form" dividing the same class into "drama," "essay," "novel," "poetry," "short story," etc.

character masking

See: truncation.

character set

A group of symbols used in computing to print and display text electronically. In alphabetic writing systems, character sets include letters, numerals, punctuation marks, signs and symbols, and control codes. The character sets of languages written in the Latin alphabet normally contain 256 symbols, the maximum number of combinations that can be contained in a single byte of data, the first 128 of which are the same for all fonts. Each character is associated with a unique binary number recognized by the computer as representing the symbol. The original IBM PC used the ASCII character set. A double-byte character set, such as the Unicode Standard, uses 16-bit (two-byte) codes, expanding the maximum number of combinations from 256 to 65,536 (256 X 256), necessary for the Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages in which thousands of characters are used. See also: ALA character set and ANSEL.

charge

To record the loan of a book or other item from the circulating collection of a library to a borrower. In modern libraries, this task involves the use of a computer. Also refers to the library's record of such a transaction, including the identity of the borrower, the title and call number of the item, and its due date. Compare with discharge. See also: item record and patron record.

Also refers to a fee or payment required of a library patron, usually for the use of nontraditional services, such as rental collections and certain methods of document delivery.

chargeout

A record of materials removed from archival storage for use, identifying the materials loaned, the date on which they were removed, and the individual receiving them or the place to which they have been moved, to allow them to be located if needed. Chargeout records can also be used to identify those who have used specific materials in the past. Periodic checks of such records are typically made to ensure that no documents have been out for an unreasonable amount of time. Also refers the process of removing archival materials for use, which may involve filling out a chargeout form or card (see this example). Also spelled charge-out.

charge slip

See: date due slip.

Charleston Conference

An informal, collegial gathering of librarians and library administrators, publishers and vendors of library materials, and other interested persons, held annually since 1980 (usually in November) in Charleston, South Carolina, to discuss issues of mutual interest. Conceived by Katina Strauch, head of collection development at the College of Charleston Libraries and editor of Against the Grain, the Charleston Conference does not include exhibits and is not associated with any professional organization.

Discussions at past Conferences have focused on the escalating cost of materials (particularly serials subscriptions), the effects of electronic publishing on libraries and vendors, licensing and access to digital content, the impact of journal aggregators on institutional subscriptions, e-journal archiving, the need for reliable and consistent usage statistics for digital resources, and the impact of market forces on scholarly communication. Attendance has grown to over 500, with librarians accounting for about one-half of the attendees. Most of the librarians represent academic libraries, many at large research institutions. Click here to learn more about the Charleston Conference.

Charlotte Zolotow Award

A literary award given annually in recognition of the author of the best picture book text written in English and published in the United States in the preceding year. The book may be fiction, nonfiction, or folklore, so long as it is presented in picture book format for children up to 7 years of age (easy books are not eligible). Established in 1998, the award is named in honor of the work of Charlotte Zolotow, distinguished children's book editor with Harper Junior Books for 38 years and author of more than 70 picture books. The award, consisting of a $1,000 cash prize and medallion, is administered by the Cooperative Children's Book Center (CCBC), the children's literature library of the School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison, where Ms. Zolotow studied on a writing scholarship from 1933-1936. Click here to learn more about the Charlotte Zolotow Award. See also: Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award, Caldecott Medal, and Greenaway Medal.

chart

A special-purpose map designed primarily to meet the requirements of navigation or one showing meteorological phenomena or heavenly bodies. A nautical chart indicates soundings, currents, coastlines, and other important maritime features. Click here to see an 18th-century chart of the harbor of Charleston, South Carolina, courtesy of the Library of Congress, and here to see charts of the Gulf Stream in an online exhibition provided by the Osher Map Library, University of Southern Maine. An aeronautical chart shows features of interest to aircraft pilots. Click here to see examples, courtesy of the California Department of Transportation. A celestial chart shows celestial bodies and systems of interest to astronomers and amateur stargazers. Click here to see historical examples, courtesy of the George Glazer Gallery. The National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, England, also provides an extensive online exhibition of historic charts. See also: portolan and synoptic chart.

Also, an opaque sheet on which data is displayed in graphic or tabular form, for example, a calendar. See also: flip chart.

charter

A legal document recording the franchise or granting of specific rights to an individual or corporate body by a governmental authority such as a legislature or sovereign, for example, the Charter of the United Nations. The texts of important charters are usually available in the government documents or reference section of large libraries. The originals are preserved by the institutions and individuals that own them, usually in archives. Click here to see one of the originals of the Magna Carta (British Library) and here to see early copies (Schøyen Collection, Oslo and London). Click here to see a 17th-century Spanish charter of nobility (Cornell University Library) and here to see the charter granted to William Penn by Charles II on March 4, 1681 (Pennsylvania State Archives). William Penn in turn granted this Charter of Privileges for the Province of Rhode Island in 1701 (American Philosophical Society). Click here to see a charter granted in 1775 by Catherine the Great of Russia, decorated with a portrait miniature of the Empress (New York Public Library). See also: chartulary.

Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals (CILIP)

A new professional association formed in April 2002 by the union of the Institute of Information Scientists (IIS) and the Library Association (UK), CILIP is now is the leading professional body for librarians, information specialists, and knowledge managers in the UK, with nearly 23,000 members working in all sectors, including business and industry, science and technology, education, local and central government, health services, national and public libraries, and the voluntary sector. Click here to connect to the CILIP homepage which includes information about the charter, mission, and goals of the new organization.

chartulary

A list or register of charters. Also, a collection or set of charters or copies of charters, especially when bound into one or more volumes for the use of the monastery, landowner, corporation, etc., to which they belong, synonymous in this sense with cartulary. Click here to view pages from the 15th-century illuminated Aldgate Cartulary (Glasgow University Library, Special Collections, MS Hunter 215 U.2.6).

chase

In letterpress, the portable rectangular metal frame in which assembled type and display matter, composed into pages, is firmly locked into position. The resulting forme is then ready to be transferred to the bed of the press for printing. The expression in chase means "ready for printing."

chased edges

See: gauffered edges.

chat

A real time computer conferencing capability between two or more users of a network (LAN, WAN, Internet) by means of a keyboard rather than voice transmission. Most Internet service providers offer a chat room to their subscribers. See also: instant messaging.

chat reference

See: digital reference.

CHEA

See: Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

check digit

A character added to a sequence of digits, related arithmetically to the sequence in such a way that input errors can be automatically detected whenever the sequence is entered as data into a computer, for example, the last character of the ISBN. When a calculated check digit is the number 10, it is represented as the character X. Synonymous with checksum.

checked out

The circulation status of an item that has been charged to a borrower account and is not due back in the library until the end of the loan period. In the online catalog, the due date is usually displayed as a status code in the catalog record to indicate that the item is currently unavailable for circulation. Synonymous with on loan. See also: overdue, recall, and renew.

check-in

The ongoing process of recording the receipt of each issue of a newspaper or periodical, a routine task accomplished by the serials department of a library, manually or with the aid of an automated serials control system. Some automated systems allow the patron to view the check-in record for a given title. See also: claim.

check-in record

A separate record attached to the bibliographic record for a serial title in which the receipt of individual issues or parts is entered on an ongoing basis, usually by an assistant working in the serials department. Most online catalogs allow users to view the check-in record to determine if a specific issue or part has been received. The check-in record may also indicate whether an issue is missing, claimed, or at the bindery. In most library management systems, the check-in record is separate from the holdings record.

checklist

A comprehensive list of books, periodicals, or other documents that provides the minimum amount of description or annotation necessary to identify each work--briefer than a bibliography. Also, the log kept by a library to record the receipt of each number of a serial publication or part of a work in progress. Also refers to a list of items required, or procedures to be followed, such as the steps in a library's opening or closing routine. Also spelled check-list.

checkout period

See: loan period.

checksum

See: check digit.

chef-d'oeuvre

See: magnum opus and masterpiece.

chemise

A thin sleeve designed to wrap around the covers and spine of a book to protect the binding from abrasion as it is removed from and reinserted in its slipcase. See also: chemise binding.

chemise binding

A slip-on cover of soft leather or cloth designed with pockets to fit over the boards of a hand-bound book, sometimes secured to the boards with bosses, used in Europe from the 12th to the 15th century as a substitute for full binding or to protect a permanent leather binding from wear. Click here to view a 15th-century Italian Book of Hours covered in red velvet over brown morocco, courtesy of the Koninklijke Bibliotheek.

chewed

See: gnawed.

chief information officer (CIO)

The title of the person in a commercial company or nonprofit organization who is responsible for managing the flow of official information, including computing and any library services--a relatively new position in companies and organizations that recognize the need for such a management function.

Chief Officers of State Library Agencies (COSLA)

An independent organization of the chief officers of state and territorial agencies designated as the state library administrative agency and responsible for statewide library development, COSLA is dedicated to identifying and addressing issues of common concern and national interest, furthering state library agency relationships with federal government and national organizations, and initiating cooperative action for the improvement of library services to the people of the United States. Click here to connect to the COSLA homepage. See also: State Library Agency Section.

chief source of information

The source of bibliographic data prescribed by AACR2 as having precedence over all others in the preparation of the bibliographic description of an item, usually the title page or a substitute, for example, the title frame at the beginning of a filmstrip or motion picture, or the title screen of a Web page. See also: supplied title.

chiffon silk

A layer of extra-thin but strong silk tissue applied to mend or strengthen a leaf in a book or other document printed on paper.

Child Online Protection Act (COPA)

Federal legislation passed in 1998 imposing civil and criminal penalties on commercial Web publishers who allow persons under the age of 18 to access material deemed "harmful to minors" under prevailing community standards. An injunction won by free speech advocates prevented enforcement of COPA. In September 1999, the Freedom to Read Foundation of the American Library Association (ALA) filed an amicus curiae brief in support of 17 online content providers, plaintiffs in a successful challenge (American Civil Liberties Union v. Ashcroft) in which the Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found the community standards clause in the law overly broad.

In May 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the application of community standards to the Internet but remanded the case to the lower court for examination of unresolved free speech issues. On March 6, 2003, the federal appeals court in Philadelphia again ruled COPA unconstitutional on grounds that the law deters adults from accessing materials protected under the First Amendment. On August 11, 2003, on the heels of the U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding the Children's Internet Protection Act, the Bush administration filed a new appeal asking the Supreme Court to reconsider COPA on grounds that other methods of protecting children from exposure to sexually explicit materials, such as filtering software, are inadequate. In a 5-4 decision in June 2004, the Supreme Court affirmed the decision of the Philadelphia court, blocking enforcement of COPA, but stopped short of declaring the law unconstitutional and, for a second time, sent Ashcroft v. American Civil Liberties Union back for a new trial. The ALA expressed its support of the decision. See also: Communications Decency Act.

children's book

A book written and illustrated specifically for children up to the age of 12-13. Included in this category are juvenile fiction and nonfiction, board books, nursery rhymes, alphabet books, counting books, picture books, easy books, beginning readers, picture storybooks, and storybooks. Children's books are shelved in the juvenile collection of most public libraries and in the curriculum room in most academic libraries. Currently available children's titles are listed in Children's Books in Print published by R.R. Bowker. Click here and here to sample 19th-century children's books, and here to see an online exhibition of Children's Books of the Early Soviet Era (McGill University Libraries). The Library and Archives Canada provides Page by Page: Creating a Children's Book. See also: children's book award, Children's Book Council, and children's literature.

children's book award

A literary award or prize given to the author or illustrator of a book published specifically for children. In the United States, the two best-known awards are the Caldecott Medal and the Newbery Medal. Click here to connect to an international list of children's book awards. See also: Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award, Carnegie Medal, Charlotte Zolotow Award, CLA Book of the Year for Children, Coretta Scott King Award, Greenaway Medal, Hans Christian Andersen Awards, Laura Ingalls Wilder Medal, Mildred L. Batchelder Award, Pura Belpré Award, Scott O'Dell Award, and Young Reader's Choice Award.

Children's Book Council (CBC)

Established in 1945, the CBC is a nonprofit trade association dedicated to encouraging literacy and the use and enjoyment of children's books. Its membership includes publishers and packagers of children's trade books and producers of book-related multimedia for children. The CBC sponsors Children's Book Week, celebrated in schools, libraries, and bookstores throughout the United States each November, and Young People's Poetry Week, celebrated in April in conjunction with National Poetry Month. Click here to connect to the CBC homepage.

Children's Books in Print (CBIP)

An author, title, and illustrator index of currently available books for children and young adults, published annually by R.R. Bowker since 1962 (ISSN: 0069-3480). Each volume includes an index of major book awards for the past 10 years. The separately published Subject Guide to Children's Books in Print (ISSN: 0000-0167) includes indexes by publisher, wholesaler, and distributor. Former title: Children's Books for Schools and Libraries. See also: El-Hi Textbooks & Serials in Print.

Children's Book Week

Sponsored since 1919 by the Children's Book Council, Children's Book Week is a local and national celebration held each November in which librarians, booksellers, publishers, and educators schedule book exhibits, read-a-thons, story hours, swap sessions, contests, book raffles, and other activities to stimulate interest in books and reading among young people. Synonymous with Book Week. Click here to connect to the Children's Book Week homepage.

children's collection

See: juvenile collection.

Children's Internet Protection Act (CIPA)

Legislation passed by Congress in 2000 that makes the E-rate discount on Internet access and internal connection services provided to schools and libraries under the Telecommunications Reform Act of 1996 and eligibility for Library Services and Technology Act funds contingent on certification that certain "Internet safety policies" have been put in place, most notably technology designed to block all users from accessing visual materials that depict child pornography or are considered obscene or harmful to minors. Filtering of text is not required. In March 2001, the American Library Association (ALA) and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) filed separate suits challenging CIPA on grounds that filtering restricts access to constitutionally protected information.

In May 2002, a three-judge panel in federal district court unanimously ruled CIPA unconstitutional, agreeing that current Internet filtering software blocks speech protected under the First Amendment. In June 2002, the U.S. Department of Justice appealed the decision to the U.S. Supreme Court and on June 23, 2003, by a 6-3 vote, the Supreme Court reversed the lower court decision, ruling that First Amendment protections are met by the law's provision that filtering software is to be disabled by the library without significant delay at the request of an adult user. The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced that public libraries and schools wishing to retain federal technology funding must certify by July 1, 2004 that filtering software is installed and in use on all computers providing Internet access, including those used only by staff. CIPA provides no funds for libraries to implement filtering. Some libraries and library systems have decided to forgo federal library funds in order to maintain local control over Internet access.

In a statement of objectives regarding CIPA issued on July 25, 2003 by ALA president Carla Hayden and the ALA executive board, the ALA pledged to identify technological options that minimize the burden on libraries, continue to develop and promote viable alternatives to filtering, and gather and disseminate authoritative information and research on the effects of CIPA and filtering on libraries and library users, including evaluative information for use in selecting filtering software. Click here to connect to the ALA's CIPA Web site. See also: Child Online Protection Act and Communications Decency Act.

children's librarian

A librarian who specializes in services and collections for children up to the age of 12-13. Most children's librarians have extensive knowledge of children's literature and are trained in the art of storytelling. See also: children's room.

children's literature

Literary works created specifically for children, as distinct from works written for adults and young adults, including poetry and prose, fiction and nonfiction. Children's literature began with the oral transmission of nursery rhymes, songs, poems, fairy tales, and stories. During the early 17th century, the horn book came into widespread use in Britain and the American colonies, but it was not until the late 17th century with the publication of the popular Tales of Mother Goose by Charles Perrault (1628-1703) that written literature for children emerged as a separate genre.

By the mid-18th century, the British writer, printer, and publisher John Newbery (1713-67) perceived that a market existed for children's books and began publishing illustrated works intended to be morally instructional (Little Goody Two-Shoes). Not until the 19th century did children's literature break away from didacticism, first with the publication of the fairy tales of Hans Christian Anderson (1805-75) and the brothers Grimm, and later with Edward Lear's Book of Nonsense (1846) and Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865) and the sequel Through the Looking Glass (1871).

The illustrations in most early children's books were printed in black and white, but by the 1860s the English printer Edmund Evans (1826-1905) began issuing picture books in color, illustrated by artists such as Walter Crane (1845-1915), Kate Greenaway (1846-1901), and Randolph Caldecott (1846-86). The publication of the children's classics Little Women by Louisa May Alcott in 1868 and The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain in 1876 marked the beginning of realism in juvenile fiction. Today, children's literature has earned a place in the hearts of millions of readers, and a worldwide market exists for books and periodicals for children of all ages.

Recently published children's books are reviewed in Bookbird, Booklist, The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books, The Horn Book Magazine, The Lion and the Unicorn, and School Library Journal (SLJ), and reviews are excerpted in Children's Literature Review, a reference serial published by Thomson Gale. Click here to view a sample of 19th century children's literature, courtesy of the Thomas Cooper Library, University of South Carolina, and here to connect to the de Grummond Children's Literature Collection site maintained by the University of Southern Mississippi Libraries. See also Kay Vandergrift's Web site on the Social History of Children's Literature. Synonymous with juvenile literature. See also: children's book award and juvenile collection.

Children's Literature Review (CLR)

An annual reference serial published since 1976 by Thomson Gale, providing excerpts from reviews, criticism, and commentary on books for children and young adults, arranged alphabetically by name of author, with cumulative author and title indexes at the end of each volume. ISSN: 0362-4145.

children's magazine

A periodical published specifically for young people, usually geared to a specific reading level. Some children's magazines focus on a particular subject or interest (click here to see a 19th-century example, courtesy of the British Library). Modern examples include Your Big Backyard for preschoolers (ages 3-5) and Ranger Rick (ages 6-12) in natural history. A selection of magazines for children is provided in the reference serial Magazines for Libraries. Yahoo! also provides a list of magazines for kids.

children's room

The area in a public library, or one of its branches, reserved for collections and services intended specifically for children up to the age of 12-13, usually staffed by at least one children's librarian and furnished to accommodate persons of small stature. Some children's rooms include a comfortable corner or alcove designed for group storytelling, puppetry, etc.

children's services

Library services intended for children up to the age of 12-13, including juvenile collection development, lapsit services, storytelling, assistance with homework assignments, and summer reading programs, usually provided by a children's librarian in the children's room of a public library. Compare with adult services and young adult services. See also: Association for Library Service to Children.

Chinese American Librarians Association (CALA)

Established in 1983, CALA seeks to promote better communication between Chinese American librarians employed in the United States and serves as a forum for discussion of the problems of its members. An affiliate of the American Library Association, CALA publishes the semiannual Journal of Library and Information Science in English and Chinese, the CALA Newsletter in three issues per year, and the semiannual CALA E-Journal. Click here to connect to the CALA homepage.

Chinese style

In China and Japan, the evolution of the book proceeded as in the West, from scroll to leaves enclosed in a cover, but by a different route. Instead of binding separately cut leaves in codex form, a continuous roll of writing material was accordion-pleated, creating a series of folded leaves left uncut at the fore-edge with writing (and later printing) on one side only. Also known as Japanese style. See also: double leaf.

chip

A shortened form of microchip, a high-speed miniaturized integrated circuit, etched in a semiconducting material (usually silicon) on the surface of a tiny, wafer-thin piece of metal, for use as microprocessor and memory in computers and other electronic equipment. The design of increasingly powerful microchips has been the driving force behind the information technology revolution that began in the second half of the 20th century. See also: random access memory and read-only memory.

chip board

A thin, cheap, low-density board manufactured from recycled paper and other cellulose fibers. Although chip board is sometimes used in case binding, binder's board is preferred in hardcover trade editions. Also spelled chipboard.

chipped

The condition of a book that has small pieces missing from the edges of its cover, dust jacket, or pages, not as prized in the market for antiquarian books as a copy in mint condition (click here to see examples, courtesy of My Wings Books).

chirograph

A handwritten document, usually a deed or other public instrument. Also, an early method of preventing counterfeiting in which a written record, usually of an agreement or transaction, was made in two copies (or in part and counterpart) on the same sheet, often with writing across the space separating the copies, then cut or torn down the middle in serrated fashion, each of the parties receiving one of the two pieces, which served to authenticate the other (see this example).

chiro-xylographic

A type of blockbook produced during the 15th and 16th centuries, combining woodcut illustrations with manuscript text, an early method of producing multiple copies of illustrated books. Click here to view pages from a facsimile of a blockbook with the text written in littera bastarda (Library of the Medieval Institute, University of Notre Dame). See also: xylography.

CHOICE: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries

A review publication founded in 1964 by the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) and published in 11 issues/year, CHOICE provides reviews of 6,000 to 7,000 English-language books, Web sites, and other resources per year, focusing on titles of interest to the librarians and teaching faculty responsible for collection development in college and university libraries (ISSN: 0009-4978). Arranged by discipline, CHOICE reviews are prepared by academic reviewers from completed books, not galley proofs. Each issue also includes an editorial, a bibliographic essay, and at least one feature article, with separate author, title, and topic indexes at the end. Reviews on Cards (ROC) contains the same set of reviews as the printed magazine, each printed on heavy-duty 4 1/4 x 5 1/2 inch paper stock to facilitate routing to individual selectors. CHOICE is also available online by subscription under the title Choice Reviews.online. Click here to connect to the CHOICE homepage.

choir book

A book containing music sung or chanted by the choir in religious services. Medieval choir books used in services of the Catholic Church were of large size in order to be visible to the entire choir, often beautifully illuminated for display on a lectern in the sanctuary. The category includes the antiphonal, gradual, and missal. Click here to view a selection of medieval choir books (Getty Museum, Los Angeles) and here to page through the San Diego Choir Book (Connecticut College). Compare with hymnal.

chorographic-scale map

See: intermediate-scale map.

choropleth map

From the Greek choros ("place") and plethos ("magnitude" or "fullness"). A thematic map on which color, shading, hatching, or some other graphic technique is used to show the density or frequency of a quantifiable variable (e.g., population, mortality, precipitation, etc.) in each of several administrative or enumerative areas, based on average number of occurrences per unit of area, usually divided into classes. Click here to see color used to indicate population density by administrative district on a map of Bangladesh (to enlarge click on lower right-hand corner of image). This example shows transit collisions by state in the United States for the year 2000 (Federal Transit Administration). To see other examples, try a keywords search on the term "choropleth map" in Google Image Search. Compare with dasymetric map.

chorus score

The score of a musical work originally written for solo voice and chorus, which shows only the choral parts and any accompaniment arranged for keyboard instrument. See also: vocal score.

chrestomathy

A collection of choice passages from the literary works of an author (or authors), especially one compiled as a sample of literary specimens or as an aid in the study of a language.

Christian fiction (CF)

Novels and stories in which Christian religious belief is a major (sometimes predominant) element in the development of plot, theme, and character. The market for Christian fiction has expanded considerably in the United States in recent years. New titles are regularly reviewed in Booklist and Library Journal. To learn more about the genre, see the CF section of Genreflecting. See also: religious book.

chromolithograph

A color lithograph produced by preparing a separate stone for each color of ink and printing one color in register over another, as opposed to applying tints by hand after printing to produce a colored lithograph. For some prints, as many as 30 stones were used to create the desired effect. Introduced in the 1830s, the technique did not come into widespread commercial use until the 1860s and remained the most popular method of color printing until the end of the 19th century when less expensive photographic processes were developed for reproducing color. Click here to view a selection of chromolithographs in the Beautiful Birds exhibit, courtesy of the Cornell University Library, and here to see two examples by 19th-century American artist George Catlin (Yale University Library). See also: oleograph.

chromo-photograph

See: crystoleum photograph.

chronicle

Originally, a detailed chronological record of contemporary events, usually recorded year by year over an extended period of time, with little or no interpretation or analysis and no pretense of literary style. The first examples, world histories beginning with Creation, relied largely on biblical sources. Local chronicles began in the 9th century during the reign of King Alfred with the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, eventually covering the history of England from 60 B.C. to the 12th century. In the 13th century, vernacular chronicles began to emerge.

Two later examples are the 14th-century Grandes Chroniques de France and Jean Froissart's 15th-century Chroniques, the latter representing a fusion of the traditional chronicle with medieval romance (both are in the Bibliothèque Nationale de France). Froissart's text, translated by John Bourchier, is available online from the Electronic Text Center (University of Virginia Library). The Royal Library of Denmark provides images from the manuscript Chronique Martinienne ("Martian Chronicle"), a French translation of a Latin world chronicle written at the end of the 13th century, and from the Book of Chronicles published in 1493. Also known as The Nuremberg Chronicle, the latter work was edited by the humanist historiographer Hartmann Schedel.

In modern usage, a list of events described and recorded in the order in which they occurred. The treatment is fuller and more connected than annals.

chronicle play

A drama based on material from the chronicle histories of England, for example, those written by Hall and Holinshead. Popular during the Elizabethan period, chronicle plays were at first loosely structured but evolved into sophisticated character studies, exemplified by the history plays of William Shakespeare. A more recent example of a history play is A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt (1960).

chronogram

An inscription in which certain letters, made conspicuous, when read as roman numerals, indicate a specific date, for example, the motto ChrIstVs DVX; ergo trIVMphVs on a medal struck in 1632 by the Swedish King Gustavus Adolphus, the capitals of which when added produce the sum 1632. Also, the record made by a chronograph.

chronological

The arrangement of data, records, items, headings, entries, etc., according to their relation in time, from earliest to latest. In library classification systems, the period subdivisions added to subject headings are listed in chronological order (example: --Antiquity, --Medieval, --Renaissance, then by century from the 15th to 20th). The opposite of reverse chronological.

chronological file

In archives, a file containing materials arranged by date or some other time sequence (see this example, courtesy of the University of Rhode Island). When circulated for reference, such a file is called a reading file. Abbreviated chron file and chrono file. Synonymous with continuity file and day file.

chronological subdivision

In library cataloging, a subdivision added to a class or subject heading to indicate the period of time covered by the work. Generally associated with historical treatment of a topic, chronological subdivisions are often used after the subdivision --History, as in the heading France--History--1789-1815. They are also used under artistic, literary, and music form/genre headings to modify the main heading, as in American poetry--20th century. Synonymous with period subdivision.

chronology

A book or section of a book that lists events and their dates in the order of their occurrence. Most chronologies are limited to a specific period (example: Roman Empire), event (World War II), or theme (women's history). Book-length chronologies are usually shelved in the reference section of a library (example: Day by Day: The Sixties, Facts on File, 1983). Click here to see an example of an online chronology of book history. In a more general sense, a document that describes events or other information in order of their occurrence, to allow the reader to follow their development in time. Compare with calendar.

In serials control, the date of publication associated with the volume enumeration.

chrysography

From the Greek chrys ("gold") and graphia ("writing"). The art and craft of writing in ink made from powdered gold, as practiced by the medieval scribes who produced illuminated manuscripts from the early Christian period through the 16th century. Click here to see examples in an 11th-century Ottonian sacramentary (Getty Museum, MS Ludwig V 2). Beginning in the 6th century, the vellum leaves of some Byzantine books were dyed or painted purple to provide a luxurious, high-contrast background for text written in gold (see this example, courtesy of the Library of Congress). Also refers to writing done in gold letters. See also: gilding.

Church and Synagogue Library Association (CSLA)

Founded in 1967, CSLA provides a forum for church and synagogue libraries to share practices and find solutions to common problems, inspire a sense of purpose among church and synagogue librarians, and guide the development of church and synagogue librarianship toward recognition as a formal branch of the profession. CSLA publishes the bimonthly publication Church & Synagogue Libraries. Click here to connect to the CSLA homepage. See also: Association of Christian Librarians, Association of Jewish Libraries, and Catholic Library Association.

church library

A library maintained on the premises of a house of worship, containing books, pamphlets, and other materials related to its faith and to the history of the institution. Very old church libraries often have rare books and manuscripts in their collections, for example, the Hereford Cathedral Library in England which owns a historical collection of chained books. Cathedral libraries may restrict the use of all or a portion of their holdings to readers who have a research interest in their collections (example: Canterbury Cathedral Library in England). Most synagogues also have a library, with some materials in Hebrew. See also: Association of Jewish Libraries and Church and Synagogue Library Association.

CI

See: competitive intelligence.

CILIP

See: Chartered Institute of Library and Information Professionals.

cinching

A condition that results when loosely wound film is rewound too tightly on a reel, causing the film to move against itself on the roll. As the film tightens, any dirt or other irregularities on its surface will cause fine scratches, called cinch marks, angled in the direction of movement. Also, the wrinkling or folding over of magnetic tape on itself, caused when a loose tape pack is stopped suddenly.

cinefilm

See: motion picture.

cinema

A broad term encompassing the motion picture industry and distribution system, the films produced, and the art form they represent. It is also used in Europe and the UK to refer to the theater in which motion pictures are publicly shown.

cinematography

Derived from the name of the Cinematographe apparatus invented in 1895 by Auguste and Louis Lumière, the term is applied both to the art and scientific methods of motion picture photography and to the entire process of making motion pictures, including photography, processing, editing, printing, and projection. The cinematographer (also known as the "director of photography") is typically in charge of the camera crew and provides advice to the film director as needed concerning the camera angles and shots that are possible in each scene and their technical requirements. Also refers to the act of making a motion picture. In the United States, an Academy Award is given each year for best cinematography.

cinema verité

A French term meaning "film truth" applied to a style of documentary filmmaking that began in the early 1960s in which the director strives for spontaneity and candor by avoiding preconceived notions about the subject and by the use of unobtrusive, portable equipment (example: Chronicle of a Summer [1961] by Jean Rouch). Instead of following a predetermined narrative line, the filmmaker poses questions interview-style to elicit self-revelation from the subjects, who are ordinary people (not actors) filmed in real locations in unrehearsed situations. Part of the broader tradition of realism, cinema verité aims to show the mundane truth and social context of everyday life. In the United States, the films of Frederick Wiseman are in this tradition. Not to be confused with direct cinema in which the subjects are photographed without any outside intervention.

ciné mode

The arrangement of successive images on roll film with the frames (portrait or landscape) oriented vertically, parallel with the edges of the film. Synonymous with motion picture mode and vertical mode. In microfiche, the arrangement of images with the frames filling the rows in a column, from top to bottom, before proceeding to the next column. Compare with comic mode.

CIO

See: chief information officer.

CIP

See: cataloging-in-publication.

CIPA

See: Children's Internet Protection Act.

cipher

The initials of a personal name, written or arranged in ornamental form of such complexity and/or artistry as to form a private mark or symbol. Click here to view the cipher of William III of England, tooled in gilt on the leather binding of a 17th-century Bible (Glasgow University Library, Special Collections, Ds-c.2) and here to see the calligraphic cipher of Ottoman Emperor Suleyman the Magnificent (Metropolitan Museum of Art). Compare with cryptonym.

In a more general sense, secret writing or code intended to be understood (deciphered) only by those who know the key to it. In data processing, an encrypted character that can only be decrypted with a key.

ciphertext

In cryptography, encrypted information that cannot be read without knowledge of the secret "key" or rules for converting it back into its original plaintext form, except through the process of cryptanalysis.

CIPO

See: Canadian Intellectual Property Office.

circa

A Latin word meaning "about," used to indicate lack of certainty but reasonable probability concerning a date, for example, the approximate birth and/or death date(s) of a person for whom official records are lacking. Abbreviated c. or ca.

Example: c. 1922 (about 1922)

circuit edges

A style of flexible leather binding with projecting covers that fold over at the head, tail, and fore-edge, completely covering the edges of the sections like a box, used mainly on Bibles and prayer books carried by clergymen who traveled a regular circuit of rural parishes, presumably to protect the text from exposure to the elements. Synonymous with divinity circuit and divinity edges. Compare with Yapp binding.

circular

A promotional piece (advertisement, announcement, directive, etc.), usually in the form of a printed letter or leaflet distributed to a large circle of people at the same time via the mail, as a newspaper insert, door-to-door, or at a commercial establishment and intended to be passed on to others interested in its content (see this 19th-century example). Compare with circular letter.

circular letter

Correspondence intended to be distributed throughout an organization or group to ensure that important information is disseminated systematically and consistently. In the 18th century, this form of communication was used by politicians to make their views on public issues widely known. One of the most famous examples is a letter issued in 1767 by the Massachusetts legislature to other colonial assemblies in response to the Townshend Acts, urging American colonists to unite in resisting taxation without representation in the British Parliament. Click here to see an example circulated in 1779 by the Boston Committee of Correspondence (Massachusetts Historical Society). Beginning in 1813, circular letters issued in printed form allowed a military commander in the U.S. Army to announce changes in the chain of command, give orders, or establish procedures to be followed by the men under his command. Click here to see contemporary use of circular letters by departments of the New Jersey state government. A circular letter differs from an advertising circular in being a form of internal rather than external communication.

circulating book

A book that can be charged to a borrower account for use inside or outside the library facility, as opposed to one restricted to library use only. Compare with noncirculating.

circulating collection

Books and other materials that may be checked out by registered borrowers for use inside or outside the library. In most academic and public libraries in the United States, circulating materials are shelved in open stacks to facilitate browsing. Compare with noncirculating.

circulating library

A type of library established by booksellers and other businessmen in Britain in the early 18th century that provided popular reading material to the general public for a limited period of time in exchange for payment of a modest fee (usually no more than a shilling per month), comparable to a modern rental collection. Michael H. Harris states in History of Libraries in the Western World (Scarecrow Press, 1995) that by 1800, most of the larger towns in Britain had such libraries, some remaining profitable into the 20th century. According to Harris, William Lane of London was one of the most successful founders, establishing chains of bookstores that included circulating collections, and even publishing fiction and popular nonfiction to fill the shelves. Mudie's Circulating Libraries, established in the 19th century by Charles E. Mudie, had over 25,000 subscribers in the London area alone. With the introduction of inexpensive paperback editions and the growth of public libraries in the early 20th century, interest in circulating libraries declined. Synonymous with two-penny library. Compare with subscription library.

circulation

The process of checking books and other materials in and out of a library. Also refers to the total number of items checked out by library borrowers over a designated period of time and to the number of times a given item is checked out during a fixed period of time, usually one year. In public libraries, low circulation is an important criterion for weeding items from the collection. Books for which circulation is anticipated to be high may be ordered in multiple copies to satisfy demand or given a more durable binding to withstand heavy use. Some online circulation systems provide circulation statistics by classification and material type for use in collection development. Circulation is a fundamental to access services. Abbreviated circ.

In publishing, the number of copies distributed of each issue of a serial publication, including complimentary copies, single-copy retail sales, and copies sent to paid subscribers. Compare with total circulation.

circulation analysis

Close examination of statistics compiled on the circulation of library materials, usually broken down by classification, material type, category of borrower, time of year, etc., to determine patterns of usage, an important tool in budgeting, collection development, staffing, etc.

circulation desk

The service point at which books and other materials are checked in and out of a library, usually a long counter located near the entrance or exit, which may include a built-in book drop for returning borrowed materials. In small and medium-sized libraries, items on hold or reserve are usually available at the circulation desk, which is normally staffed by one or more persons trained to operate the circulation system and handle patron accounts. To see modern examples, try a keywords search on the term in Google Image Search. Synonymous with loan desk. Compare with reference desk.

circulation history

A record that a patron borrowed a specific item, retained (with or without the borrower's consent) for a significant length of time after the item is returned to the library. Most online circulation systems are designed to automatically delete all indication that a lending transaction has occurred, once the item has been checked in, and in the United States retaining such records may be a violation of state law. Although it has been argued that circulation histories are useful in demographic studies, and would enable libraries to offer patron-friendly services, retention of such information raises serious concerns about privacy, especially in the light of recent federal legislation intended to facilitate investigation of terrorist activities (see USA Patriot Act).

circulation record

See: patron record.

circulation statistics

A count maintained of the number of items checked out from a library during a given period (usually a year), or the number of times a specific item is checked out during a given period, usually broken down by type of material and/or classification. Circulation statistics can be kept by hand, but most automated circulation systems provide detailed statistical reports by day, week, month, and year, which can be analyzed to determine usage patterns, an important aid in budgeting, collection development, staffing, etc. Compare with circulation history. See also: in-house use.

circulation status

The conditions under which a specific item in a library collection is available for use. An item may be on order, in process, at the bindery, for library use only, available to be checked out, on loan until a certain due date, recently returned, missing, lost, or billed. Compare with loan status.

circulation system

The methods used to record the loan of items from a library collection by linking data in the patron record to the item record for each item loaned. An effective circulation system provides means of identifying items on loan to a specific patron (including those that are overdue) and enables circulation staff to place holds, recall items needed before the due date, and notify borrowers when items are overdue. An automated circulation system is capable of generating circulation statistics for planning and reporting purposes. Abbreviated circ system. Synonymous with charging system. See also: barcode, library card, and self-checkout.

CIS

See: community information system and Congressional Information Service, Inc.

citation

In the literary sense, any written or spoken reference to an authority or precedent or to the verbatim words of another speaker or writer. In library usage, a written reference to a specific work or portion of a work (book, article, dissertation, report, musical composition, etc.) produced by a particular author, editor, composer, etc., clearly identifying the document in which the work is to be found. The frequency with which a work is cited is sometimes considered a measure of its importance in the literature of the field. Citation format varies from one field of study to another but includes at a minimum author, title, and publication date. An incomplete citation can make a source difficult, if not impossible, to locate. Abbreviated cite. See also: citation analysis, citation index, preferred citation, and self-citation.

Examples:

Book:

Chappell, Warren. A Short History of the Printed Word. Boston: Nonpareil Books, 1970.

Periodical article:

Dow, Ronald F. "Editorial Gatekeepers Confronted by the Electronic Journal." College & Research Libraries 61 (2000): 146-154.

Citation style manuals are available in the reference section of most academic libraries or try the Google list of online style guides. See also Online! A Reference Guide to Using Internet Sources courtesy of Bedford/St. Martins. See also: APA style, electronic style, and MLA style.

citation analysis

A bibliometric technique in which works cited in publications are examined to determine patterns of scholarly communication, for example, the comparative importance of books versus journals, or of current versus retrospective sources, in one or more academic disciplines. The citations in student research papers, theses, and dissertations are also examined by librarians for purposes of collection evaluation and development. Synonymous with citation checking.

citation chasing

A legitimate research technique in which the bibliographies of works already located in a literature search are examined ("mined") for additional sources containing further information on the topic. The process can be facilitated by using a citation index.

citation checking

See: citation analysis.

citation index

A three-part index in which works cited during a given year are listed alphabetically by name of author cited, followed by the names of the citing authors (sources) in a "Citation Index." Full bibliographic information for the citing author is given in a "Source Index." Also provided is a "Subject Index," usually listing articles by significant words in the title. Researchers can use this tool to trace interconnections among authors citing papers on the same topic and to determine the frequency with which a specific work is cited by others, an indication of its significance in the literature of the field.

Citation indexing originated in 1961 when Eugene Garfield, Columbia University graduate in chemistry and library science and founder of the fledgling Institute for Scientific Information (ISI), received an NIH grant to produce the experimental Genetics Citation Index, which evolved into the reference serial Science Citation Index. ISI subsequently published Social Sciences Citation Index beginning in 1972 and Arts & Humanities Citation Index from 1978. See also: bibliographic coupling and citation chasing.

citation order

In Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC), the order in which the facets or characteristics of a class are to be combined in number building. For example, the subject "juvenile court procedure in the United States" is expressed in a notation built or synthesized from four facets: 345/.73/081/0269. The citation order for the discipline of law (34) is: branch of the law (criminal 5), jurisdiction (United States 73), topic in branch of law (juvenile court 081), and standard subdivision (procedure 0269). Instructions for citation order are provided in the Schedules. When number building is not permitted or possible, instructions are provided with respect to preference order in the choice of facets (DDC).

citation style

See: citation.

cite

To quote or refer to an authority outside oneself, usually in support of a point or conclusion or by way of explanation or example. In scholarly publication, the source of such a reference is indicated in a footnote or endnote. Also used as a shortened form of the term citation.

cited half-life

A measure developed by the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI) of the number of publication years from the current year which account for 50% of the current citations received by a journal. For example, a journal would have had an ISI cited half-life of 2.7 years in 2004 if, of the total number of citations referring to it from all other journals tracked by ISI, 5.08% were to articles published in 2004, 28.84% were to articles published in 2003 or 2004, and 57.62% were to articles published in 2002, 2003, or 2004. A higher or lower cited half-life does not imply any particular value for the publication. Journals that provide rapid communication of current information are more likely to have a lower cited half-life than primary research journals. Dramatic changes in cited half-life over time may be the result of changes in the journal's format. Cited half-life can be useful to librarians in collection management and archiving decisions.

city directory

A three-way directory that lists the residents and businesses located in a specific town or city alphabetically by name, with street address and telephone number included in each entry. In a second section, name(s) and addresses are listed by phone number, and in a third section, names and phone numbers are listed by street address. Published annually and sold by subscription, current city directories often include zip code and census tract locators for use in marketing. In libraries, they are usually shelved in ready reference or in the reference stacks. Click here to search the Shaw's Dublin City Directory published in 1850. Synonymous with cross-reference directory.

city map

A map, larger in scale than a road map, showing in considerable detail the streets, public transportation lines, hospitals, schools, libraries, museums, parks, and other major institutions and landmarks within the boundaries of a city. Click here to see a 16th-century city map of London (Folger Shakespeare Library) and here to browse a collection of historical city maps of Tianjin, courtesy of the Cornell University Library. Online access to World City Maps is provided by the Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection.

cityscape

A general or broad view of a city or town (or portion of it), made by photographic or artistic means, usually from a distant and/or elevated point of view, often showing the skyline; the urban equivalent of a landscape. To see examples, try a keyword search on the term in Google Image Search. See also: bird's-eye view. Also, a genre of art in which the principal subject is the urban environment (click here to see examples by the American impressionist Childe Hassam, courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art).

civil register

An official record of births, marriages, deaths, and other major events in the lives of the citizens of a governmental unit. Some countries have a national civil register, for example, the UK. Its General Register Office is part of the Office for National Statistics. See also: vital records. Also refers to a record of cases tried in a civil court (see this example).

CJCLS

See: Community and Junior College Libraries Section.

CJK

An abbreviation used for materials published in the Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages and for the Chinese, Japanese, and Korean character sets.

CLA

See: Canadian Library Association and Catholic Library Association.

CLA Book of the Year for Children

A literary award established in 1947 and presented annually under the auspices of the Canadian Library Association to the author of the most outstanding children's book of creative writing (fiction, poetry, retelling of traditional literature, etc.) published in Canada during the preceding year. The author must be a citizen or permanent resident of Canada. Click here to see a list of past award winners. Compare with Amelia Frances Howard-Gibbon Illustrator's Award. See also: Carnegie Medal and Newbery Medal.

claim

A notice from a library informing the publisher or subscription agent that a specific issue of a newspaper or periodical on subscription, or item on continuation order, has not been received within a reasonable time, with a request that a replacement copy be sent. Claimed items are noted in the check-in record attached to the bibliographic record that represents the publication in the library catalog. See also: claim report.

Also refers to the process used by a depository library in the Federal Depository Library Program (FDLP) to inform the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO) that an item number on its list of selections was included on a shipping list, but the document was not received. Claims must be filed by the depository within 60 days of receipt of the shipping list, except when a raincheck was issued. Claims can be filed online using the Web Claim form available on the FDLP Desktop.

claim report

The publisher's or vendor's response regarding the status of a claim made by a library for material not received as expected on subscription or continuation order. Synonymous with claim check.

clamshell box

A protective container, often fitted to the dimensions of the enclosed object, hinged along one side to open like a book, allowing the contents to be inspected without removal (click here to see an example). Libraries typically store videocassettes intended for circulation in hard plastic clamshell boxes. Those used in archival storage are usually buffered and may be designed to pass the Photographic Activity Test (PAT). To see examples, try a keywords search on the phrase "clamshell and archival" in Google Image Search. Synonymous with clam shell case. Compare with solander.

clam shell case

See: clamshell box.

clandestine publication

A book, pamphlet, newspaper, broadsheet, speech, song, etc., published and distributed in secrecy, without official knowledge or sanction, usually expressing controversial views during a time of political unrest and censorship (click here to see a 16th-century Dutch example, courtesy of the Koninklijke Bibliotheek).

clasp

A hinged fitting made of ornamented metal, ivory, or bone attached to the fore-edge of the boards of a book, used from the 14th to the early 17th century to keep the leaves pressed firmly together and to prevent the covers from warping. Prior to 1200, leather strap fastenings were used for this purpose. Greek-style bindings sometimes had a clasp at the head and tail and two on the fore-edge. Michelle Brown notes in Understanding Illuminated Manuscripts (Getty Museum/British Library, 1994) that in English bindings the catch or pin was attached to the lower board, and in most Continental bindings to the upper board.

Click here to view a 16th-century leather binding with two plain brass fore-edge clasps, tastefully aligned with bands of blind tooling across the back cover (Glasgow University Library, Special Collections, Ah-y.11). On luxury bindings, clasps of precious metal were sometimes engraved with a name, date, motto, or religious phrase, as on this example of a late-15th-century panel-stamped binding (Koninklijke Bibliotheek). Ornate clasps might feature cameo portraits, sometimes added later (Wellesley College Library). To see other examples, try a keywords search on the term "clasps" in the British Library's Database of Bookbindings. Today, clasps are used mainly on personal diaries and albums, sometimes with lock and key.

class

A grouping of objects or concepts based on one or more characteristics, attributes, properties, qualities, etc., that they have in common, for the purpose of classifying them according to an established system, represented in library classification systems by a symbolic notation. In hierarchical classification systems, the members of a class (example: books) are divided into subclasses (children's books), which are in turn subdivided into more specific subclasses (picture books), and so on.

In Dewey Decimal Classification, a subdivision of any degree of specificity, for example, the class "Library and information sciences" represented by the notation 020. The 10 highest-level divisions of DDC (numbered 0-9 in the first-digit position) are its main classes.

In human resources management, a group of positions within an organization for which the qualifications, duties, responsibilities, evaluation procedures, etc., are comparable and which share the same scale of rank and pay. In library employment, positions are typically classified as follows: library director, librarian, library technician, library technical assistant, and clerical assistant.

classic

A widely read work recognized as outstanding in its field. Such a work remains in print long after initial publication; is translated, adapted, and issued in multiple editions; and continues to be the subject of criticism, commentary, study, and analysis (example: The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain). Also refers to a feature film (Chaplin's The Gold Rush) or documentary (Robert Flaherty's Nanook of the North) that has withstood the test of time. Compare with classics. See also: cult classic.

classical border

An ornamental band around text and/or miniature in a medieval manuscript, containing motifs derived from the art of ancient Rome (acanthus scrolls, garlands, cornucopia, vases, candelabra, medallions, cameos, masks, portrait busts, putti, etc.), a style of manuscript decoration that flourished in Italy during the Renaissance (15th and 16th centuries). Click here to see a late 15th-century Florentine example and here to see an example from Rome (British Library, Burney 333 and 175), or browse the classical borders in this late 15th-century Florentine Book of Hours (Morgan Library, MS M.14). Click here to see a less ornate example in a 16th-century French Book of Hours (Morgan, MS M.85).

classics

All the non-Christian works written in the Greek and Latin languages prior to A.D. 600 (example: The Republic of Plato). In a broader sense, outstanding books on any subject, whether fiction or nonfiction, written for adults or children. Compare with classic.

classification

The process of dividing objects or concepts into logically hierarchical classes, subclasses, and sub-subclasses based on the characteristics they have in common and those that distinguish them. Also used as a shortened form of the term classification system or classification scheme. See also: Cataloging and Classification Section and cross-classification.

classification schedule

The names assigned to the classes and subdivisions of a classification system, listed in the order of their symbolic notation. In a hierarchical classification system, the arrangement of the schedule(s) indicates logical subordination. For example, in Dewey Decimal Classification the schedules consist of the class numbers 000-999, the associated headings, and notes concerning use, with logical hierarchy indicated by indention and length of notation. See also: auxiliary schedule, main schedule, relative index, and schedule reduction.

classification scheme

See: classification system.

Classification Society of North America (CSNA)

A nonprofit interdisciplinary organization devoted to promoting the scientific study of classification and clustering and to the dissemination of scientific and educational information related to its fields of interest. CSNA publishes the biannual Journal of Classification and the CSNA Newsletter. Click here to connect to the CSNA homepage. See also: International Federation of Classification Societies.

classification system

A list of classes arranged according to a set of pre-established principles for the purpose of organizing items in a collection, or entries in an index, bibliography, or catalog, into groups based on their similarities and differences, to facilitate access and retrieval. In the United States, most library collections are classified by subject. Classification systems can be enumerative or hierarchical, broad or close. In the United States, most public libraries use Dewey Decimal Classification, but academic and research libraries prefer Library of Congress Classification. See also: Classification Society of North America, Colon Classification, and notation.

Classification Web

A Web-based cataloging and reference product released in 2002 by the Cataloging Distribution Service of the Library of Congress that enables users to search and browse the complete LC Classification Schedules and LC Subject Headings. Correlations are provided between LC class numbers and subject headings. Updated weekly, the product also provides automatic calculation of classification table numbers, a permanent institutional or personal notes file, and the ability to link to local Web-based online catalogs for most of the major vendors. Click here to learn more about Classification Web.

classified

The status of a document to which access is restricted to a few authorized individuals within a military or government agency, research institution, private corporation, or other organization, usually because it contains highly sensitive information that might be misused by unauthorized persons. When secrecy is no longer required, the document may be declassified. See also: Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), intelligence, need to know, overclassified, reclassification, and sensitive but unclassified.

Also refers to a reference tool (catalog, index, dictionary, encyclopedia, etc.) organized according to a classification system, usually by subject or some other arrangement based on content, as opposed to a strictly alphabetical or numerical listing of entries.

classified catalog

A subject catalog in which entries are filed in the notational order of a pre-established classification system, with bibliographic records under as many subject headings as apply to the content of each item. An alphabetical subject index facilitates the use of a classified catalog, which is usually maintained alongside an author and/or title catalog. Synonymous with classed catalog and class catalog. Compare with dictionary catalog and divided catalog.

classified index

An index in which entries are arranged under headings and subheadings indicating hierarchical divisions and subdivisions within classes based on the subject matter indexed, rather than in alphabetical or numerical sequence. To use such an index effectively, a subject index is required.

classify

To arrange a collection of items (books, pamphlets, maps, videocassettes, sound recordings, etc.) according to a system of classification, based on the characteristics (facets) of each item. Also, to assign a class number to an individual item in a collection, based on its characteristics.

class number

The specific notation used in Dewey Decimal Classification to designate a class, for example, 943.085 assigned to works on the history of the Weimar Republic in Germany. In Library of Congress Classification, the corresponding notation is DD237. See also: base number, discontinued number, interdisciplinary number, and number building.

classroom collection

A small semi-permanent collection of library materials selected by a school library or academic library for the general classroom use use of an instructor and the students enrolled in a course (or courses). Compare with classroom library and classroom loan.

classroom library

A small collection of library materials located permanently in a school classroom for the use of instructor and students in support of the general curriculum. Such a collection may include reference materials such as a dictionary, thesaurus, atlas, general encyclopedia, etc. Compare with classroom collection and classroom loan.

classroom loan

A small collection of library materials on temporary loan from a school library or academic library to a classroom, for the use of instructor and students, usually in support of a specific project or curriculum unit. Compare with classroom collection and classroom library.

clay tablet

The earliest known books were inscribed on small, thin, wet slabs of clay, using a thin, sharp instrument called a stylus to incise the wedge-shaped cuneiform characters of the written languages of ancient Mesopotamia. The finished tablets were sun-dried or kiln-fired, then enclosed in a protective outer shell of dried or fired clay inscribed with a title or abstract of the contents. Click here to see Sumerian examples, courtesy of the Schøyen Collection (Oslo and Norway). Although clay tablets were too heavy to be portable in large numbers and too small to record long texts effectively, they were much more durable than the papyrus scrolls that superseded them. Click here to learn more about clay tablets, courtesy of the University of Minnesota Libraries.

clearinghouse

An organization or unit within an organization that functions as a central agency for collecting, organizing, storing, and disseminating documents, usually within a specific academic discipline or field. A clearinghouse may also assist the research process by maintaining records of information resources for referral (examples: ERIC and LOEX). Also spelled clearing house.

CLENE

See: Continuing Library Education Network and Exchange Round Table.

CLENERT

See: Continuing Library Education Network and Exchange Round Table.

cliché

From the French word clicher, meaning "to stereotype." A word, phrase, or expression so overused that it has lost its impact and, to some degree, its original meaning. Considered unimaginative, clichés are avoided by serious writers and speakers, except in dialogue when the author wishes to make a point about the mentality of the speaker. Dictionaries of clichés are available in the reference section of larger libraries.

In literature, an overused plot element or character type whose lack of originality detracts from the overall quality of the work.

cliché-verre

A photomechanical method of printmaking, popular with French painters in the 1850s, in which the image is created by exposing photographic paper to light through an image scratched with a sharp instrument in an opaque ground-coating on a smooth, transparent surface, such as glass or film, a technique permitting fluidity of line similar to that achieved with etching. To see examples, try a keywords search on the term in Google Image Search. Synonymous with glass print and hyalography.

click-and-drag

To change the position of an icon, filename, window, or other movable element on a computer screen by clicking on it with a pointing device, such as a mouse, and then holding down the button to shift the element to another location on the screen. The technique can be used to reposition windows on a microcomputer desktop, move computer files from one directory or subdirectory to another in storage, and organize bookmarked Web sites in folders in most Web browsers.

click-on license

Licensing terms stated in a notice appearing on the installation or opening screen of a software or electronic information product, which the manufacturer considers the user to have accepted by the act of selecting an icon or link to continue. Such agreements often include provisions and restrictions that have not been uniformly enforced in the courts, because they give software publishers more rights than are permitted under federal copyright or patent law. The controversial Uniform Computer Information Transactions Act (UCITA) would allow software publishers to embed non-negotiable, enforceable contract terms in this type of mass-market license. Synonymous with click-through license and click-wrap license. See also: shrink-wrap license.

client

A person who uses the services of a professionally trained expert, or of a professional organization or institution, usually in exchange for payment of a fee. Librarians employed in academic and public libraries usually refer to the people they serve as users or patrons because libraries have traditionally provided most services without charge. Information brokers who operate on a fee-for-service basis can be more appropriately said to serve "clients."

Also refers to a computer connected to a network such as the Internet, equipped with software enabling the user to access resources available on another computer, called a server, connected to the same network. See also: client-server.

clientele

All the people who use a library's services and collections on a regular or irregular basis, usually those living in the district that fundss its operations or who are members of the institution it serves. Successful collection development depends on the librarian's knowledge of the information needs and preferences of the library's users. The primary clientele consists of the largest or most important category of person using a library's services and collections on a regular basis, for example, undergraduate students at a college library. The hours that a library is open may be established to accommodate the needs of its primary clientele. See also: user survey.

client-server

Wide area (WAN) or local area network (LAN) architecture that makes it possible for a client computer (usually a PC workstation) to download information or processing from a server machine, as opposed to a system that uses dedicated terminals connected to a minicomputer or mainframe. The size and speed of computer required as a server (microcomputer, minicomputer, or mainframe) depend on the nature of the applications to be installed and the amount of anticipated use. Also refers to the software used to establish the connection between a client and server. See also: Open Systems Interconnection.

clinical trial

A research study conducted at a hospital, university, physician's office, community clinic, or other medical facility in which human subjects answer specific health questions, usually about prevention options, new treatments (or new ways to use existing treatments), new screening and diagnostic techniques, or options for improving the quality of life of people with serious medical conditions. A clinical trial is conducted according to a plan called a protocol specifying what types of patients may participate in the study, schedules of tests and procedures, drugs and dosages to be used, length of study, and outcomes to be measured. Each participant must agree in advance to observe the rules stated in the protocol. Participants are usually volunteers, but may in some cases be paid. Although some risk may be involved in participation, a clinical trial that is well-designed and properly executed gives patients a participatory role in their own health care and may provide access to new research treatments and therapies before they become widely available. In the United States, clinical trials are regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). In MEDLINE and other health-related bibliographic databases, search results can be limited to the publication type "clinical trial." Synonymous with clinical study.

clinometric map

See: slope map.

clipboard

A small amount of computer memory reserved as a temporary storage place in the exchange of data between software applications. In word processing, this is normally accomplished by selecting the option to "cut" or "copy" from one document and "paste" into another. Data transferred to the clipboard is lost when another cut/copy operation commences, unless saved as a separate file.

clipping

A page, piece of a page, or pages cut or torn from a printed publication, usually from a newspaper or magazine, by a person who wishes to save an article, editorial, letter to the editor, photograph, cartoon, etc. Click here to see old newspaper clippings glued into a scrapbook (note the acid paper). Large collections of clippings are usually stored in a clipping file, arranged by subject or some other method of classification. Compare with cutting and tear sheet. See also: clipping service.

clipping service

A service, usually performed in a special library, in which news announcements, articles, photographs, and other items of interest to the host organization are clipped from current periodicals and news services on a daily or weekly basis to be forwarded to appropriate personnel within the organization, based on pre-established interest profiles (example: BurrellesLuce). Directory information for commercial clipping services is available in the reference serial Literary Market Place. Synonymous with clipping bureau.

CLIR

See: Council on Library and Information Resources.

CLMP

See: Council of Literary Magazines and Presses.

cloisonné

From the French cloison meaning "partition" or "compartment." An elegant style of book cover produced by Italian and Greek craftsmen of the 11th century in which an ornamental design in narrow metal strips was soldered onto a metal plate, and the open spaces between the strips filled with enamel in various colors, to form the outer surface of the cover. Books bound in this style are usually very valuable, especially when in good condition. Click here to see a 12th-century book cover plaque in champlevé enamel, courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The technique of cloisonné originated in ancient China (click here to view a collection of examples). Compare with champlevé binding. See also: rare book.

close classification

A classification system in which the main classes and divisions are minutely subdivided, allowing very specific characteristics of each subject to be differentiated. Also, the classification of works to the fullest extent permitted by the notation of a classification system (DDC). The opposite of broad classification.

closed caption (CC)

A continuous moving line of text (called a crawl) along the bottom of the screen in a television broadcast giving the narration or dialogue and noting any non-speech vocalizations (laughter, screams, dogs barking, etc.) or sound effects (music, applause, doorbells, etc.). Used mainly for the hearing-impaired and in bilingual programming, closed captioning is visible only with the aid of a special decoder. In library cataloging, the phrase closed captioned is entered in the note area of the bibliographic description to indicate that an item includes the feature.

closed catalog

A library catalog to which new bibliographic records are no longer added or in which additions are restricted to certain categories, although existing records continue to be removed as they are revised, corrected, and/or converted to machine-readable format. After retrospective conversion is completed, a closed catalog is usually removed from public access and eventually discarded. Compare with frozen catalog and open catalog.

closed circuit television (CCTV)

A video system used internally in some large libraries for conferencing and to monitor traffic for security purposes.

closed-end index

An index covering one or more documents or publications compiled all at one time (example: Canadian Feature Film Index, 1913-1985). Compare with open-end index. See also: single index.

closed entry

A note in the bibliographic record for a serial or continuation giving the complete information for all the parts or volumes published, or in the holdings statement in the catalog record for such a title, indicating all the parts or volumes held by the library (example: v.1-10 1936-1945), as distinct from the open entry for an ongoing serial subscription or continuation order (example: v.1- 1936- ). For newspapers and periodicals, a closed entry usually indicates that the subscription was canceled or the publication ceased.

closed file

In archives, a collection of documents in which additions or changes are unlikely to occur. Synonymous in this sense with cut-off file. Also, a file of records to which access is restricted or denied, except under special circumstances.

closed reserve

An item on reserve that may be checked out by a registered borrower but may not be removed from library premises. Also, a reserve collection shelved in a closed stack from which requested items must be retrieved by a member of the library staff. Compare with open reserve.

closed stacks

A shelving area in a library to which only members of the library staff have access, established to protect the collection or conserve space by using aisles narrower than the width that is standard in open stacks. Materials are retrieved from closed stacks by staff members upon request. Click here to see closed stacks at the Library of Congress. See also: call slip.

closed tear

A tear in a book or other printed publication with no material missing. Compare with open tear.

closeout

A book title offered for retail sale at a significantly reduced price because the publisher is allowing it to go out of print. A rebate may be offered by the publisher to the bookseller for copies that do not sell.

close score

A vocal music score in which all the parts are given on a minimum number of staves, usually two, as in a hymn (AACR2).

closet drama

A play written to be read rather than performed on the stage, for example, the dramatic works of the French poet Alfred de Musset. Also refers to a drama originally intended for performance, which survives as a work of literature but is rarely if ever performed (example: Byron's Manfred).

close-up

A still photograph or shot in a motion picture made with the camera positioned near the subject, generally closer than normal viewing distance, filling the frame with the image. The technique is often used to bring out the detail in small objects (see these examples) or to highlight a portion of a larger subject, for example, the face (see this example). As a general rule, the closer the photographer can get to the subject, the larger it will appear in the final image, with the minimum focusing distance of the camera determining how close the photographer can get. Special camera attachments and macro lenses are often used to increase magnification in macro photography. Click here to learn more about close-up photography. Also refers to a portrait showing only the face (example). Also spelled close up.

closing

All the procedures followed by the staff of a library when the facility closes at the end of a day, such as informing patrons that it is time to leave, checking the premises to be certain all users have vacated, logging off computer systems, turning off lights and equipment, locking doors, switching on pre-recorded phone messages, activating security alarms, etc. Size and design of facility determine the length of time and number of staff required to close. In very large facilities, a checklist may be followed for each floor, and one or more security guards may assist in clearing the building. Compare with opening. See also: library closure.

cloth

A generic term for any woven material used since the early 19th century to cover the boards of a book, as opposed to the leather, parchment, or vellum used in earlier bookbinding or the paper covers used today. Dyed book cloth used in edition binding is woven from cotton or linen, filled with starch sizing, or coated or impregnated with some other compound to prevent adhesives from penetrating, then pressed under heat. Because the covers of cloth-bound trade editions are not designed to withstand heavy use, publishers add an attractively designed paper dust jacket for protection (and marketing purposes). Volumes that must withstand heavy use are often given a library binding in a heavier, more durable material such as buckram. The term is also used in publishers' catalogs to distinguish the hardcover from the softcover edition of a work. For examples of cloth bindings, see the online exhibition Cover Story: 19th Century Cloth Book Covers (George A. Smathers Libraries, University of Florida). Synonymous with cloth-bound. See also: half cloth, publisher's cloth, and quarter cloth.

Cloth was also used as a covering material in luxury hand-binding of the 16th and 17th centuries. Bindings in canvas, satin, or velvet were often embroidered in silk and/or metallic thread. To see examples, try a keywords search on the phrase "satin or velvet" in the British Library's Database of Bookbindings. See also: textile binding.

cloth board

See: flannel board.

cloth book

A small, illustrated children's book printed entirely on sturdy woven fabric and given a flexible binding for toddlers who have not yet developed sufficient manual dexterity to turn paper pages without tearing them. To withstand drooling, the cloth pages may be treated with a moisture-resistant substance. In the 19th century, this type of toy book was called a rag book.

cloth-bound

See: cloth.

cloth joint

A strip of cloth used to reinforce the inside of the front and back joints in some library bindings and in very large, thick, or heavy books. In volumes of normal size and thickness, the unreinforced joints are usually formed on the inside by the fold in each endpaper.

cloth map

A map made on woven material instead of parchment or paper, often designed for use in the field. Cloth maps are more durable than paper maps, especially in wet conditions, and they can be easily rolled up or folded for storage and transport. The technique of printing maps on cloth reached a peak during World War II with highly accurate registration of multiple colors on both sides of a single piece of fabric. Click here to see an example of a U.S. Army Air force "survival" map of Luzon Island in the Philippines issued by the Aeronautical Chart Service in 1944 (Library of Congress).

CLR

See: Children's Literature Review

CLR

See: Council on Library and Information Resources.

CLS

See: College Libraries Section.

CLTA

See: Canadian Library Trustees' Association.

club line

A single indented line at the beginning of a paragraph when it appears at the foot of a printed column or page of text, considered awkward by skilled typesetters and avoided whenever possible. Compare with orphan.

CLV

An abbreviation of constant linear velocity, a disc recording technology in which the speed of the motor that rotates the disc is adjusted to keep the linear velocity of the disc constant in playback. When the head is reading the outside of the disc, the motor runs slower because the tracks are longer than on the inside, ensuring that the same amount of data passes the read head in a given amount of time. The main advantage of CLV is that data storage capacity is significantly greater than in CAV (constant angular velocity) format; however, special playback features available in CAV such a freeze frame, step frame, slow motion, and reverse are not possible in CLV.

CMDS

See: Collection Management and Development Section.

CMOD

See: customer must order direct.

CMYK

An abbreviation of cyan-magenta-yellow-black. See: process color.

CNI

See: Coalition for Networked Information.

COA

See: Committee on Accreditation.

Coalition for Networked Information (CNI)

Founded in 1990, CNI is a nonprofit organization with headquarters in Washington, D.C., dedicated to supporting the future of networked information technology for the advancement of scholarly communication and the enhancement of intellectual productivity. Sponsored by the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) and EDUCAUSE, CNI's membership includes 200 institutions representing higher education, publishing, telecommunication, information technology, libraries, and library-related activities. Click here to connect to the CNI homepage.

coated paper

Book and printing papers to which a thin layer of mineral, wax, resin, plastic, or emulsion has been applied, either in the papermaking machine prior to drying and finishing or by a separate coating machine after manufacture, to create a smooth surface that improves appearance and printability. Some papers are double-coated using both methods. Coated papers are used for posters, wall calendars, dust jackets, magazine and catalog covers, and other materials in which detailed graphic elements predominate (art books, exhibition catalogs, coffee table books, etc.). The finish can be glossy or dull. Also known as art papers. Compare with uncoated paper.

coat of arms

A shield or its representation bearing the heraldic insignia traditionally associated with a specific person, family, institution, etc., often found in or on the bindings of books owned by royalty or members of the aristocracy. Click here to see a 16th-century example bearing the coat of arms of King Frederik II of Denmark, courtesy of the Royal Library of Denmark. See also: armorial binding.

coauthor

See: joint author.

coaxial cable

A high-capacity metal cable consisting of four layers: a solid or stranded wire encased in insulation, shielded by braided wire covered in plastic insulation (see this diagram). Various types of coaxial cable are used extensively in cable television transmission and computer networks because "coax" can carry more data and is less susceptible to interference than the twisted pair wire used in older telephone systems. Compare with optical fiber.

co-citation coupling

The idea that two scholarly papers (A and B) cited in a third (C) are bibliographically related in a way that is likely to be of interest to researchers, even when they do not directly cite one another. The relationship is stronger when both A and B are also cited in other papers besides C. Compare with bibliographic coupling.

cocked

A serious binding defect in which the spine of a book is angled or twisted in a way that prevents the boards from lining up evenly with each other. Click here to see an example, courtesy of Abebooks.com. Synonymous with cocked spine. See also: shelf-cocked.

cocked-up initial

See: raised capital.

cockle

A slightly puckered finish produced naturally or artificially as paper shrinks unevenly when dried under little or no tension, as in the production of onionskin. The boards and paper in a finished book may cockle if heat is applied following exposure to excessive moisture. The condition can be prevented by controlling temperature and relative humidity in storage. The parchment and vellum used as a writing surface in medieval manuscripts is also susceptible to cockling because it is made from membrane (see this example courtesy of the Gold Meir Library, Univ. of Wisconsin-Milwaukie).

cockled

The condition of a book in which the leaves or boards appear puckered, wavy, wrinkled, or curled, usually due to uneven distortion produced by excessive heat and/or humidity in drying. In a book cover, the condition can result from the incorrect use of adhesive (too much or the wrong kind).

cockroach

A very common nocturnal beetle-like insect of the genus Blatta, dark brown in color and of comparatively large size, known for its voraciousness and affinity for human habitations. It prefers kitchens where it multiplies rapidly if sufficient food is available. Cockroaches also feed on paste and glue and will chew through the binding of a book to get to it. They also excrete a dark-staining liquid that can be difficult to remove. The best way to prevent infestation is to prohibit food and drink near library collections. According to Jane Greenfield (The Care of Fine Books, Nick Lyons Books, 1988), boric acid powder sprinkled lightly on the shelves around books also discourages cockroaches. Click here to learn more about cockroaches and how to control them, courtesy of Health Canada.

coda

From the Latin word cauda, meaning "tail." An independent passage added at the end of a musical work or literary composition to bring the piece to a graceful conclusion by drawing preceding motifs and themes together in a satisfying resolution. The last chapter of a biography, the last essay in a collection of essays, or the last story in a book of short stories is sometimes written as a coda to tie the other parts together.

codebook

The metadata that describes a social science data set. Although codebooks have been digitized since the 1970s, social scientists continue to refer to them as "books" because they originally existed in the form of bound manuals. A codebook contains bibliographic information about a scientific study, describes the composition and format of data files, and documents methodology and study variables. See also: Data Documentation Initiative.

CODEN

A system of alphanumeric codes developed by the American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) to uniquely and permanently identify sci-tech serial and monographic publications. Responsibility for administering the system was transferred to the Chemical Abstracts Service (CAS) in 1975. CODEN is used in electronic information systems to process bibliographic data because it is more concise than the full title and less ambiguous than an abbreviated title.

code of ethics

A set of standards governing the conduct and judgment of librarians, library staff, and other information professionals in their work. The ALA Code of Ethics sets standards for equitable access, intellectual freedom, confidentiality, respect for intellectual property rights, excellence, accuracy, integrity, impartiality, courtesy, and respect for colleagues and library patrons.

CODES

See: Collection Development and Evaluation Section.

codex

From the Latin caudex, meaning "tree bark." Originally an ancient manuscript written with a stylus on hinged wax-covered tablets made of wood, metal, or ivory, called codices. From the 1st century on, a manuscript written on sheets of papyrus, fastened at one side to allow the leaves to open and close like a book, a format used for law books in ancient Rome, also popular among the Christians because of its portability (scrolls were difficult to carry and had to be unrolled to locate a specific portion of text). Parchment replaced papyrus in about the 3rd century, and paper came into widespread use with the introduction of printing in the mid-15th century.

The oldest vellum codex known to exist is the Codex Sinaiticus, a Greek Old and New Testament of the mid-4th century written in scriptio continuo in four columns per page, currently in the British Library, although some scholars consider the Codex Vaticanus in the Vatican Library to be older. Click here to see a selection of contemporary models of early codex bindings, courtesy of the University of Iowa Libraries. The term also refers to the form of the modern book, consisting of individual leaves of writing material bound together along one edge and enclosed in a protective cover. See also: pugillaria.

codicil

In law, an informal document, usually attached to a will, changing or adding to its provisions, explaining the provisions, or giving instructions for the disposition of assets. Click here to see the codicil to Thomas Jefferson's will (courtesy of the Library of Congress) and here to see the codicil to the Last Will and Testament of Henry Clay (1851). In a more general sense, an appendix or supplement to a document, usually attached to it.

codicology

Analysis of the physical structure and characteristics of a book as a means of understanding its production and to establish date and place of origin and determine subsequent history (provenance). By examining the materials used in making a book, and its page design, artistic style(s), and methods of construction, codicologists are able to identify the scribes and workshops that produced them, establish relationships between manuscripts, and assist scholars in detecting alterations (accidental or intentional) in classical and medieval texts. In the case of books that survive in altered condition, such study may also help to determine the original appearance for the purpose of documentation or restoration. Compare with bibliology. See also: paleography.

codification

The process of creating systematic rules to govern a specific activity, such as the cataloging of bibliographic materials. In the United States, Britain, and Canada, the joint efforts of the American Library Association, the Library Association (UK), and the Canadian Library Association have produced Anglo-American Cataloguing Rules, which apply to library materials in various formats (books, manuscripts, cartographic materials, music, sound recordings, motion pictures and videorecordings, graphic materials, computer files, three-dimensional artifacts and realia, microforms, and serials).

co-edition

An edition for which two or more publishers share responsibility, for example, The Great Libraries: From Antiquity to the Renaissance, published in 2000 by Oak Knoll Press and the British Library. In most cases, the original publisher grants the exclusive right to market and distribute the publication within a specific sales territory to one or more other publishers (see co-publishing). The title page of a co-edition may bear the imprint of the originator, of one of the companies granted distribution rights, or of all the co-publishers. Compare with export edition and joint publication. See also: joint imprint.

coextensive entry

The principle in indexing that the subject heading or descriptor assigned to a work should encompass all the significant concepts covered in the item (and no more). Thus a book about painters and poets would require the heading "Painters and poets," rather than the separate headings "Painters" and "Poets." Coextensive indexing is attempted in the PRECIS system. Also spelled co-extensive entry. Compare with specific entry.

coextensive heading

A subject heading that indicates all or most of the subjects of a bibliographic item, for example, the Library of Congress subject heading United States--History--Civil War, 1861-1865--Participation, African American--Juvenile literature assigned to the juvenile book Black, Blue & Gray: African Americans in the Civil War (Simon & Schuster, 1998). Also spelled co-extensive heading. Compare with post-coordinate indexing. See also: exhaustivity.

COFF

An abbreviation of cutoff.

coffee table book

An expensive book on a popular subject, usually oversize and lavishly illustrated, with the text clearly subordinate to the illustrations. Designed primarily for display and casual browsing rather than cover-to-cover reading, coffee table books are often marketed on the decorative appeal of their colorful dust jackets. In trade bookstores, they may be sold at a deep discount, especially at Christmas to attract gift buyers. Public libraries may add them to the collection when received as gifts, provided demand exists for the subject and condition is good. Academic library approval plans generally exclude them. Compare with table book.

cognitive style

The way a person habitually organizes a problem-solving or learning experience, or consistently receives and responds to information, especially whether the individual prefers content already structured (lecture-style) or is more likely to impose his/her own structure on the material (hands-on approach). Differences in learning style have important implications for the delivery of reference services and bibliographic instruction and for the design of online tutorials and library Web pages.

coil binding

See: spiral binding.

cold boot

To restart a computer by turning the power off and turning it back on again, causing the files in its operating system to be re-executed. This procedure is sometimes helpful in getting a computer "unstuck" when it locks up unexpectedly during processing and rebooting fails to get it going again, but the user should be aware that powering down will result in loss of unsaved data.

cold-crack

The tendency of the adhesive on the spine of a perfect-bound book to split at very low temperatures, reducing the text block to a pile of loose leaves. The inability of hot-melt adhesives to withstand cold temperatures makes them unsuitable for use in bindings marketed in countries like Finland and Russia where winter temperatures can be severe. The problem is eliminated in Otabind adhesive binding, which uses slower-drying, cold-resistant polyvinyl acetate (PVA) adhesive.

cold storage

A technique used by archivists and special collections librarians to extend the life expectancy of materials by storing them at below normal room temperature. Since temperature is a major factor in the chemical reactions that cause materials such as film and paper to deteriorate, its reduction can slow the effects of aging. As a general rule, cold storage begins at 65 degrees Fahrenheit and continues down to 0 degrees. A distinction is often made between cool storage at 65 to 40 degrees and cold storage (40 to 0 degrees). In preservation, cold storage is frequently used to stabilize materials in large quantities. It is particularly effective in preserving color and nitrate photographs and motion pictures. In cool storage, items can be taken directly to room temperature without acclimatization, but in cold storage, materials may be kept below freezing and must therefore pass through a staging process to bring them up to a temperature at which they may be safely handled. Also refers to the area in which materials are stored at below normal room temperature. Click here to see a cold storage vault for film (Library and Archives Canada) and here to learn more about this method of preserving film (National Film and Sound Archive of Australia).

collaborative collection development (CCD)

Agreement between two or more libraries to share the expense of collection development and management by allocating strengths in certain subject areas among the participating libraries, with the understanding that resource sharing will make materials accessible to users of all the libraries, providing a collectively richer and more useful whole than if the collections of the participants had been developed separately in response to purely local needs. The Triangle Research Libraries Network (TRLN) in North Carolina is a successful example.

A standard model for CCD in the print environment divides the information sphere into "core" and "specialized" materials. A research library has a basic responsibility to maintain a core collection on-site to serve immediate needs, especially those of undergraduates. At the same time, a commitment is made to develop collections of specialized materials in selected areas, not only to meet local priorities but also to serve consortial needs. Specialized collections are supported by the collections of consortial partners built through distributed responsibility for complementary fields. Effective delivery is essential to the success of complementary collections. Synonymous with cooperative collection development.

collaborative reference

A mode of digital reference in which reference questions are routed to reference librarians at different institutions, based on such criteria as expertise, availability, etc. The QuestionPoint service developed by OCLC and the Library of Congress, with input from participating members of the Global Reference Network, is an example of such a service. Compare with cooperative reference.

collaborator

A person who works closely with one or more associates in producing a work to which all who participate make the same kind of contribution (shared responsibility) or different contributions (mixed responsibility), for example, essays written by different authors for publication in a collection or illustrations for a children's book in which the text is written by a person other than the illustrator. See also: joint author.

collagraph

A print made from a rigid substrate (board, block, or plate) on which the image is composed of a collage of various textured, comparatively flat materials (cardboard, fabric, tinfoil, string, sand, grit, found objects, etc.) glued to the surface, sometimes with the application of modeling media. An intaglio collagraph is made by rubbing ink into grooves and fissures and then wiping away the ink on the surface before the print is pulled. A relief collagraph is taken from ink rolled over the surface, leaving grooves and fissures untouched. The two techniques can be combined in the same print. To see examples, try a keyword search on the term "collagraph" in Google Image Search. Also spelled collograph. Synonymous with collage print.

collate

To determine, usually by close examination of signatures, leaves, illustrations, and other characteristics, if a copy of a book is complete and perfect, or to compare it with descriptions of ideal copies found in bibliographies for the same purpose. Also, to compare two printed works page by page and line by line, to establish whether they are identical copies or variants of the same text.

Also, to check a book for completeness before binding, and to make sure the signatures are gathered in correct sequence, a task is made easier by collating marks printed along the back fold or in the tail margin to make misplaced sections easier to spot. The marks are removed in trimming or concealed when the lining is applied to the binding edge.

Also, to merge two or more ordered sets of documents, records, pages, or data into a single desired sequence. High-end photocopiers usually have collating capability.

collating mark

See: collate.

collation

In codicology, a complete description of both the current and the original structure of a manuscript or book, especially the arrangement of its leaves and sections. Separate descriptions may be given of current and original structures or information about both states may be conveyed in a single collation.

In binding, a list of the signatures of a book, indicating the number of leaves in each. Also, the process of checking the physical make-up of a book for correct sequence and completeness before binding, particularly the presence of all illustrations, plates, and maps not printed with the text.

In analytical bibliography, the comparison of two texts of the same work to determine which is the first edition or the definitive text.

In library cataloging, a synonym for the physical description area of a bibliographic record, now disused.

Also refers to the merger of two ordered sets of documents, records, pages, or data into a single desired sequence.

collected edition

An edition of the previously published works of an author, issued in a single volume or uniform set of volumes, usually under a collective title. Compare with author's edition.

collected work

See: collection.

collected works

See: author's edition.

collectible

Any class of things, usually old or rare but lacking intrinsic value, that people accumulate as a hobby or in the expectation that the value will rise (autographs, baseball cards, comic books, phonograph records, etc.). Also used as an adjective to describe something sought by collectors, for example, first editions and incunabula. Also spelled collectable.

collecting archives

An independent organization, or unit within a larger organization or institution, responsible for building a collection of records and documents from a variety of outside sources (individuals, families, etc.), in keeping with the mission of the parent institution and an acquisitions policy, for example, a manuscript repository in the library of a major university. Archives of this type may provide online access to a portion of their resources (example: Declaring Independence: Drafting the Documents, courtesy of the Library of Congress), or be completely electronic (USGenWeb Archives hosted by RootsWeb). See also: institutional memory and personal archives.

collecting level

The thoroughness with which materials published in a given field or subject area are selected by a library for inclusion in the collection. The following levels are generally recognized in the library literature:

0 Out of scope

1 Minimal information

2 Basic information

3 Study or instructional support

4 Research support

5 Comprehensive

Synonymous with collecting intensity.

collection

In library cataloging, three or more independent works or long excerpts from works by the same author, or two or more independent works or excerpts from works by different authors, not written for the same occasion or for the publication in hand, published together in a single volume or uniform set of volumes, for example, a book of essays written by one or more essayists. Selected by an editor, the works are listed in the table of contents in order of appearance in the text. Click here and here to see collected editions of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes short stories originally published in The Strand Magazine (Lilly Library, Indiana University). Synonymous with collected work. Compare with anthology and compilation. See also: analytical entry.

Also refers to a number of documents (books, reports, records, etc.) assembled in a single physical or virtual location by one or more persons, or by a corporate entity, and arranged in some kind of systematic order to facilitate retrieval. See also: library collection.

collection agency

A commercial enterprise that specializes in collecting past-due bills from people who owe them, usually by informing them that their credit record will suffer unless prompt payment is received. Most public libraries enter into a contractual agreement with such an agency to handle the collection of unpaid bills for items lost, damaged, or long overdue. Academic institutions have the option of withholding grades or diploma from a student until the balance on a student's library account is paid.

collection assessment

The systematic evaluation of the quality of a library collection to determine the extent to which it meets the library's service goals and objectives and the information needs of its clientele. Deficiencies are addressed through collection development. Synonymous with collection evaluation.

collection development

The process of planning and building a useful and balanced collection of library materials over a period of years, based on an ongoing assessment of the information needs of the library's clientele, analysis of usage statistics, and demographic projections, normally constrained by budgetary limitations. Collection development includes the formulation of selection criteria, planning for resource sharing, and replacement of lost and damaged items, as well as routine selection and deselection decisions.

Large libraries and library systems may use an approval plan or blanket order plan to develop their collections. In small- and medium-sized libraries, collection development responsibilities are normally shared by all the librarians, based on their interests and subject specializations, usually under the overall guidance of a written collection development policy. Compare with collection management. See also: Collection Development and Evaluation Section, Collection Management and Development Section, and collaborative collection development.

Collection Development and Evaluation Section (CODES)

The section of the Reference and User Services Association (RUSA) within the American Library Association (ALA) that addresses the collection development interests of reference and user services librarians in libraries of all types. CODES studies questions of reference collection development and maintenance, readers' advisory, user communities, and reference publishing. Click here to connect to the CODES homepage.

collection development bias

Partiality in the selection of materials for a library collection, whether against or in favor of materials presenting a particular point of view or with respect to a specific type of resource, category of publisher, etc. Although the Library Bill of Rights of the American Library Association charges librarians in the United States to "provide materials and information presenting all points of view on current and historical issues," some studies suggest that librarians tend to avoid selecting potentially controversial books and media, for reasons conscious or unconscious, undermining the goal of balanced collection development. See also: precensorship.

collection development policy (CDP)

A formal written statement of the principles guiding a library's selection of materials, including the criteria used in making selection and deselection decisions (fields covered, degrees of specialization, levels of difficulty, languages, formats, balance, etc.) and policies concerning gifts and exchanges. An unambiguously worded collection development policy can be very helpful in responding to challenges from pressure groups.

collection evaluation

See: collection assessment.

collection level cataloging

The encoding level used to control separately published documents (maps, pamphlets, ephemera, etc.) that are unrelated bibliographically and do not warrant the expense of full level or even minimal level cataloging but have research value and can be cataloged as a single item under a collective title because they share at least one unifying characteristic (author, issuing body, language, subject, genre, etc.). Synonymous with collective cataloging.

collection maintenance

Measures taken on a routine basis or as needed to preserve the materials in a library collection in usable condition, including mending, repair, binding, rebinding, and reformatting, usually the responsibility of the technical processing and serials departments.

collection management

The application of quantitative techniques, such as statistical and cost-benefit analysis, to the process of collection development, usually limited to large libraries and library systems. In a more general sense, the activity of planning and supervising the growth and preservation of a library's collections based on an assessment of existing strengths and weaknesses and an estimate of future needs. See also: Collection Management and Development Section.

Collection Management and Development Section (CMDS)

The section of the Association for Library Collections and Technical Services (ALCTS) within the American Library Association (ALA) devoted to promoting the improvement of collection management and development and to the selection and evaluation of library materials in all formats and in all types of institutions. Click here to connect to the CMDS homepage.

collective bargaining agreement (CBA)

A legally binding contract signed on behalf of library staff organized in a collective bargaining unit (union) by elected representatives authorized to negotiate terms of employment with management, including salaries and wages, benefits, job responsibilities, evaluation for promotion and tenure, grievance procedures, etc. Librarians employed at colleges and universities that grant librarians faculty status may be members of the same bargaining unit as the teaching faculty. The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) has expressed its policy on collective bargaining in Guideline on Collective Bargaining. See also: American Association of University Professors and compulsory arbitration.

collective bargaining unit

See: collective bargaining agreement.

collective biography

A work in one or more volumes containing separate accounts of the lives of two or more individuals who lived within a specific time period, distinguished themselves in the same field or activity, or have some other characteristic in common (example: Ordinary Women, Extraordinary Lives: Women in American History edited by Kriste Lindenmeyer). Written by one or more biographers, the essays in a collective biography are usually longer than the entries in a biographical dictionary and may include a biobibliography or list of references for further reading.

collective cataloging

See: collection level cataloging.

collective name

See: corporate name.

collective record group

In archives, a collection of records assembled according to artificial rather than conventional criteria, usually by the archivist from a number of comparatively small, short-lived, or satellite agencies that are related in some way, often by administration or function. The purpose of the consolidation is generally to simplify records management by reducing the number of fonds. Within such a record group, the records of each agency are typically segregated as an identifiable subgroup or series.

collective title

In library cataloging, the title proper of a bibliographic item containing several works by one or more authors issued in a single volume or uniform set of volumes, each with its own title distinct from that of the whole. Also refers to the title assigned by a cataloger to a group of separately published materials cataloged collectively.

collective work

For purposes of copyright (17 USC 101), a work in which a number of contributions by one or more authors, each a separate and independent work, are assembled, usually by an editor, to constitute a whole. Included are individual issues of a periodical, anthologies, collections of essays, conference proceedings, etc.

collector's edition

A special edition of a book, videocassette, or DVD designed to be appeal to collectors who will wish to keep it permanently in a private collection. In books, a collector's edition may be printed on better quality paper and include additional illustrations, with a binding also of superior quality. In audiocassettes and DVDs, a collector's edition may be housed in a specially designed container and include printed program notes and material not found in the standard edition. Copies are sold for a higher price, even in the secondhand market if the item is in good condition. To see examples, try a keywords search on the term "collector's edition" in Amazon.com for books, VHS, or DVD. Compare with deluxe edition.

college bookstore

A retail outlet operated in association with a college or university, selling new and secondhand textbooks and trade editions assigned by professors as reading in their courses. College bookstores also sell popular reference books, school supplies, greeting cards, college memorabilia, general interest magazines, bestsellers, and nonfiction trade titles of interest to the student market. They can be owned and managed by the institution served, operated by an independent contractor, or run as a cooperative. College bookstores are organized in the National Association of College Stores (NACS). Compare with trade bookstore. Click here to connect to the Yahoo! list of college and university bookstores.

college catalog

See: course catalog.

college dictionary

See: desk dictionary.

College Libraries Section (CLS)

Established in 1940, CLS is the section of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) within the American Library Association (ALA) devoted to advancing college librarianship and to encouraging the development of library services in baccalaureate degree-granting institutions. Click here to connect to the CLS homepage. Compare with University Libraries Section.

college library

A type of academic library maintained by an independent four-year college, or by one of several colleges within a larger university, for the use of students and faculty. The Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) has established Standards for College Libraries (January 2000). Compare with undergraduate library. See also: College Libraries Section.

collegiality

From the Latin collegium, meaning "community," "association," or "fraternity." Engagement by the members of a group in relations based on civility and an awareness of common interests, as between colleagues.

collocation

In library cataloging, the process of bringing together all the bibliographic records representing works by the same author, of variant titles, of different editions, of the same series, or on closely related subjects, by assigning the same access point to facilitate retrieval. For example, the preparation of entries under a heading for the predominant name of an author who wrote under one or more pseudonyms. Collocation often requires the use of cross-references to direct the user to the authorized form of the name, title, subject heading, etc. See also: authority control.

In classification, the arrangement of the subdivisions of a hierarchical classification system in a manner that places classes and subclasses of equal rank together and shows the degree to which they are logically removed from the main class.

collodion

A highly flammable, colorless or pale yellow, viscous solution of pyroxylin (nitrated cotton) in a mixture of ether and a varying proportion of alcohol. The solvents evaporate quickly on exposure to air, leaving a thin, tough, elastic, highly adhesive film on any surface upon which the solution is spread. Collodion was used as an early coating on photographic plates and film. Introduced in 1851, the collodion process solved two problems inherent in earlier photographic processes: the daguerreotype was capable of high definition but not reproducible, whereas calotype negatives could be reproduced, but print quality was affected by the texture of the paper negative and any imperfections in it. Attention focused on finding a suitable binder that would allow photosensitive compounds to adhere to a glass plate and in 1851 Frederick Scott Archer tried collodion, which had been discovered by Louis-Nicolas Ménard in Paris in 1846. Never patented, the process made possible the less expensive ambrotype (positive image on glass) and tintype (positive on a metal plate), but working with collodion was risky and photographers sometimes lost their lives in darkroom explosions and fires. Because the plate had to be sensitized, exposed inside the camera, and developed while still wet, the process, also known as wet-plate collodion, was labor-intensive. It was superseded by the gelatin dry plate, developed in the 1880s. Click here to learn more about the collodion process. See also: albumen print.

colloquy

A literary work written in the form of a conversation or dialogue (example: Aelfric's Colloquy). Plural: colloquies.

Also refers to a conference in the form of a seminar, with several speakers participating in a discussion that is conversational in style and tone. Synonymous in this sense with colloquium.

collotype

A photomechanical reproduction process in use from about 1870 to 1920 in which one surface of a glass plate is coated with a gelatin silver emulsion and exposed, when dry, to ultraviolet light in contact with a reverse negative. The light-sensitized gelatin hardens in proportion to the amount of light striking it, leaving the unexposed areas of the plate capable of absorbing moisture. Washed in water, the unhardened gelatin dissolves, leaving a raised image that can be inked to produce continuous-tone prints on high quality paper. Because the gelatin surface is delicate, collotype print runs are limited to about 2,000 copies. Click here to see examples, courtesy of the Victoria & Albert Museum, London. The EdinPhoto provides another example. Synonymous with photogelatin process.

Colon Classification

A classification system in which subjects are analyzed into facets based on their uses and relations, then represented by synthetically constructed classes with the parts separated by the colon (:). Developed by S.R. Ranganathan in the 1930s, Colon Classification is used in libraries in India and in research libraries throughout the world. To learn more about colon classification, try Wikipedia.

colonial edition

An edition of a book, usually a work of fiction, produced from sheets sold by the British publisher to other publishers or separately issued by the publisher, often on paper of inferior quality and in a less expensive binding, for distribution and sale in other parts of the British Empire at a significantly lower price than the original edition. A replacement title page may indicate that the edition is intended for the colonial market. Click here to see a colonial edition of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles (Lilly Library, Indiana University) and here to read about the history of colonial editions in New Zealand, courtesy of the New Zealand Electronic Text Centre.

colophon

A Greek word meaning "finishing touch." A statement appearing at the end of the text of an early manuscript, usually giving details of production (name of scribe, illuminator, and binder; date and place of production; etc.). The colophon may also include an expression of gratitude to the patron or client commissioning the work, a warning against unauthorized copying, or a brief comment by the scribe (often an expression of relief at having completed the task). Colophons occur sporadically in medieval manuscripts, sometimes decorated or embellished with flourishes. Click here to view an elaborate colophon in humanistic capitals, Greek capitals, and gothic book hand in a 15th-century copy of the Nicomachean Ethics (Schøyen Collection, MS 111). Early printed colophons followed the manuscript tradition, giving the name and emblem (imprint) of the printer, date of printing, number of copies printed, and sometimes an apology to the reader for any errors in the text. Click here to see the colophon in the early 16th-century Aldine edition of Dante's Divine comedy and here to see modern example (University of Pittsburgh Libraries). Synonymous with explicit. See also: impensis.

In modern printing, a statement printed at the end of the text, or on the verso of the title page of a book, especially in private press and artists' books, giving the name of the printer, typeface, grade of paper, materials used in binding, and sometimes the names of those responsible for producing the edition (click here to see an example). Also refers to a printing device, usually an emblem, used to represent a publisher's imprint (click here to see the colophon of William Morris's Kelmscott Press).

color balance

In the graphic arts, the range of colors in an image, especially as regards deviation from the accurate reproduction of tones in the original subject (e.g., the skin tones of a face), inaccurate color balance giving a general cast, subtle or pronounced, to the image. Color balance can be manipulated by the artist to express mood or to create the desired impression. In video production and transmission, color balance is tested and calibrated by means of color bars. Also refers to the ability of photographic materials to reproduce colors accurately, which may diminish as the material ages, posing problems for preservation.

color bar

A standardized electronic signal recorded at the head of a videotape for use as a benchmark to test and calibrate the color balance of video and television monitors. Established by the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE), the standard test pattern for the NTSC analog television system used in North America appears as vertical bars of seven colors: white, yellow, cyan, green, magenta, red, and blue (see this example). Click here to learn more about SMPTE color bars, courtesy of Wikipedia. British spelling: colour bar.

color chart

A calibration target consisting of a matrix or spectrum of chromatic samples set to a known standard (see this example). In computing, color charts provide reference points to ensure accurate color capture and to calibrate output devices. Synonymous with color patch. Compare with gray scale.

color fading

The deterioration of color photographs and film over time, caused by the chemical instability of the image-producing dyes used in the emulsion. As the dyes gradually break down, contrast is lost, giving the image a washed-out monochromatic appearance.

color plate

An illustration in color, usually printed separately from the text on a different grade of paper and bound with others in one or more sections of a book. Color plates are often numbered and listed by number in the front matter of a book. In publishing, color printing almost always increases cost of production. Click here to see examples from an 18th-century gardener's dictionary, courtesy of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Library. In the 19th century, when color lithography reached its peak, editions consisting of color plates with little or no text were common (see Sketches in North America and the Oregon Territory [1848] by Sir Henry James Warre and Viviparous Quadrapeds of North America [1845-48] by John James Audubon, courtesy of the Virginia Historical Society). Also spelled colorplate. Compare with duotone and monochrome plate.

color supplement

A magazine printed in color to be issued with a Sunday newspaper (example: The New York Times Magazine). Also refers to a section of illustrations printed in color for insertion in the center of a magazine or book, whether removable or not.

colporteur

From the French words col ("neck") and porter ("to carry"). A peddler of newspapers and books printed in inexpensive edition (almanacs, primers, Bibles, etc.) who traveled about the countryside in Europe, carrying his wares in a box or basket attached to a neck strap as he hawked them in the streets and door to door. In Britain, itinerant salesmen were sometimes employed by religious societies to sell or distribute religious tracts on foot. Colportage flourished from the late 15th century, when printed works first became available, until the end of the 18th century despite unsuccessful efforts by the French government to suppress the trade because it helped spread the new ideas that eventually led to reformation and revolution. Click here to view a 19th-century engraving of a colporteur, courtesy of the Disability History Museum.

column

One of two or more vertical sections of written or printed text separated from each other by a ruled line or blank space, as in ancient scrolls, newspapers, and language dictionaries. The length of a newspaper article is expressed in column inches. Abbreviated col. See also: double column and intercolumn.

Also refers to an essay providing commentary on a current issue, sometimes from a political point of view (Left, Right, or Center), usually printed on or near the editorial page of a newspaper or in a magazine or trade journal (example: Carol Tenopir's Online Databases column in Library Journal). National political columnists are often syndicated. For an example of a self-published e-mail column, see Holt Uncensored: A Candid Look at Books and the Book Industry. Compare with editorial.

column inch

In newspaper and magazine publishing, the unit of measurement in which the length of an article or size of a paid advertisement is expressed, equivalent to the width of a column of type multiplied by one inch of depth.

columnist

A journalist who writes regular commentary on current issues for publication in a magazine or newspaper, or in more than one newspaper, usually from a political position left or right of center, or expressing an original point of view on a matter of interest to readers. National political columnists are often syndicated. Also refers to a specialist in a particular field or on a given subject who writes regular commentary for a magazine or trade journal (example: Roy Tennant who writes the Digital Libraries column in Library Journal).

column picture

A miniature in a medieval manuscript that fills the entire width of a column of text but not necessarily it full height, as in this example in an early 15th-century French manuscript (British Library, Lansdowne 1178).

COM

See: computer output microform.

comb binding

A form of mechanical binding in which a row of interconnected curved plastic teeth is inserted into slots punched along the binding edge of the leaves of a publication to hold them together, used for binding calendars, lab manuals, instruction manuals, and workbooks that must open flat to be used conveniently. If the plastic spine is wide enough, the title may be printed on it. Plastic comb bindings are easily broken. To see examples, try a keywords search on the term in Google Image Search. Compare with loose-leaf and spiral binding.

combination rate

The special discounted price offered by a publisher when subscriptions to two or more serial publications are purchased by the same subscriber. The publisher normally determines the eligibility of a specific title for such a discount.

combined print

See: composite print.

comcatalog

See: computer output microform catalog.

comedy

A dramatic work in which an amusing event or series of events with a happy ending is presented for the enjoyment of the audience or reader. Comic effect is usually achieved by emphasizing incongruity of character in dialogue and/or action. When such an effect is achieved with subtle insight, the result is "high" comedy, as distinct from "low" comedy, which appeals to cruder perceptions. The earliest surviving examples of classical comedy are the 11 plays of Aristophanes, thought to have been written and performed in Athens in the 5th century B.C. Compare with farce. See also: tragedy and tragicomedy.

comes-with title

In acquisitions, a title that is not a supplement, received by a library at no additional charge as a result of purchasing another title, for example, a newsletter or directory supplied by an academic society or professional association with a paid subscription to a journal.

comic book

A booklet, usually printed in color on paper made from wood pulp, containing one or more stories told pictorially in a continuous strip of panels drawn in cartoon style, with dialogue or monologue enclosed in balloons or given in captions. An extended form of the comic strip published in daily newspapers, comic books are often issued in series and classified by genre (adventure, fantasy, romance, science fiction, etc.). They are acquired by libraries for special collections on popular culture and are of considerable interest to private collectors. For early examples, see the British Comics Collection at the British Library and Comic Books in the '50s (SUNY Buffalo). Similarity between contemporary comics and medieval manuscript illustration is the subject of the online exhibition Comics before Comics, courtesy of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France. See also: Big Little Book, comic strip, and graphic novel.

comic card

A small paper card, issued individually or as part of a set, bearing a printed caricature or cartoon, often with a line or two of humorous text, popular from the 1850s until the early part of the 20th century. In AACR2, comic cards are cataloged as graphic materials.

comic mode

The arrangement of successive images on roll film with the frames (portrait or landscape) oriented horizontally, perpendicular to the edges of the film. Synonymous with horizontal mode. In microfiche, the arrangement of images with the frames filling the columns in a row, from left to right, before proceeding to the next row. Compare with ciné mode.

comic strip

A succession of cartoon panels that tells a story graphically, with monologue or dialogue provided in balloons or captions. A comic strip may be complete in itself or part of a longer narrative published serially. The comics section of the Sunday issue of most major newspapers provides a selection of syndicated comic strips printed in color. The most famous American comic strip was Peanuts created by Charles Schulz. Other classics include Li'l Abner by Al Capp and Pogo by Walt Kelly. Click here to connect to the online exhibition Masters of the European Comic Strip, courtesy of the Bibliothèque Nationale de France, and here to explore the Comiclopedia, courtesy of Lambiek of Amsterdam. See also: comic book.

command-driven

A computer interface in which the user must type a command statement or query to achieve the desired result, usually faster than a menu-driven interface but not as user-friendly for novices who must invest time and effort in learning the system's command language.

commemorative print

A print bearing an image of a significant event, such as the signing of an important document, the founding of an institution, or a decisive military battle, shown in narrative or allegorical style, often bearing text indicating commemorative intent ("in honor of..." or "in memory of..."). Click here to see a commemorative print of the campus of Princeton University as it appeared in 1996.

commendatory verse

A poem in praise of an author and his work, written by another author. In the 16th century, publishers began printing such verses in the same volume as the commended work, for example, two poems by Ben Jonson were include in the First Folio of Shakespeare's plays (1623). Click here to see examples printed in 17th-century editions of English plays (Columbia Rare Book & Manuscript Library). More examples can be found in An Anthology of Commendatory Verse from the English Renaissance edited by Wayne Chandler (Edwin Mellen: 2005).

comment

A substantive article, letter, or editorial that challenges, refutes, supports, or expands on a previously published work. Articles considered comments include: 1) invited comments, 2) letters to the editor in response to a previously published article, 3) items providing additional information about the subject of a previous article, and 4) announcements or notices reporting questionable scientific methods or investigations of scientific misconduct (sometimes published as an "expression of concern"). Mere mention of another work is not sufficient--the commenting article must have been written primarily for the purpose of drawing the reader's attention to the referent work. In some bibliographic databases, such as MEDLINE, the publication type "Comment" is assigned in indexing to such an article, and bibliographic linkage is created between the commenting article and the article(s) to which it refers. Compare with commentary.

commentary

A critical or explanatory note or collection of notes on a sacred or literary work, accompanying the text or issued separately, usually written by a person or persons other than the author. Click here to see a 12th-century copy of a commentary on Cicero's "Scipio's Dream" written in the 5th century by Macrobius (Royal Library of Denmark). Commentaries are often devoted to major works that have been the subject of considerable interpretation, such as the Bhagavad-Gita, Bible, Qur'an, etc. (click here to see a 10th-century example). In medieval manuscripts, commentary was often written as a gloss alongside the text to which it referred (click here to see a 13th-century example, courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art). Also refers to a historical narrative written largely from personal experience, for example, Seven Commentaries on the Gallic War by Julius Caesar. Synonymous in this sense with memoirs.

In a more general sense, a series of remarks or observations made by someone with authority to speak and be heard on the subject, for example, a journalist writing a column on a political or social issue.

commercial

A very brief work, usually no longer than ten seconds to one minute in duration, broadcast on television to promote a consumer product, service, or commercial company. Most television commercials are carefully crafted by an advertising agency. A variety of visual techniques are used, from animation to live action, usually with voice-over. The sponsor pays the television network or station to run the advertisement, often in conjunction with a specific program or series, with prime-time at a premium. Compare with infomercial. See also: public service announcement.

commercial journal

A scholarly journal or trade journal published by a for-profit company, as opposed to a journal published by a university press or nonprofit organization, such as a scholarly society or professional association. Click here to see a list of examples. Relentless price increases have become an important issue for libraries that subscribe to commercially published journals.

commercial publisher

A publisher in the business of producing and selling books and/or other publications for profit, as opposed to a university press or the publishing arm of a scholarly society, professional association, or other nonprofit organization operating on a cost-recovery basis. The term includes trade publishers and popular presses. In commercial publishing, the decision to publish is influenced by sales potential, sometimes at the expense of originality and quality.

commercial television

Television broadcast stations for which profit is the prime concern. In the selection of programming, commercial stations rely heavily on ratings because their advertisers are motivated by the desire to reach the widest possible viewing audience. Compare with public television.

Committee on Accreditation (COA)

The official body within the American Library Association responsible for accrediting graduate programs leading to the first professional degree in library and information science offered at universities in the United States, under Standards for Accreditation of Master's Programs in Library and Information Studies (1992). Click here to read the COA statement on Accreditation Process, Policies & Procedures (2002) and here to connect to the COA homepage. See also: accreditation action.

Committee on the Status of Women in Librarianship (COSWL)

Established by the Council of the American Library Association as a Council Committee in July 1976, COSWL is charged with representing the diversity of women's interests within the ALA and with ensuring that the Association considers the rights of the majority (women) in the field of librarianship. Click here to connect to the COSWL homepage.

common carrier (CC)

A telecommunication service, such as a telephone or cable company, that provides wire and/or microwave services to businesses and the general public, usually at rates regulated by federal, state, or local government.

Common Gateway Interface (CGI)

A program interface installed on a Web server that allows Web pages to be linked to databases and other programs in such a way that input can be entered via the Web page and sent to a database management system for searching. Results are sent back by the DBMS and presented to the user in HTML format.

commonplace book

A book with blank pages in which passages in prose or verse are recorded irregularly by its owner as ideas for future exploration or contemplation, sometimes arranged by subject. The writer may note only his own thoughts and ideas or excerpt those of other writers or speakers. Commonplace books kept by persons of literary or historical importance, such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Thomas Jefferson (see this image), have been deemed worthy of publication. Although interest in this form of literary expression has waned, it is still used by poets (example: A Certain World by W.H. Auden). Click here to view images of the English commonplace book of Humphrey Newton (1466-1536), courtesy of the Bodleian Library, University of Oxford (MS Lat. misc.c.66). See also: diary and journal.

communications

The transfer of information from one physical location to another by electronic means. The term telecommunication refers to both analog and digital communications, including the transmission of voice and video. Data communications refers to digital communications only, occurring via modem over a telephone line, by direct cable to another PC equipped with file transfer software, from a remote terminal connected to a minicomputer or mainframe, from one node to another on a local area network (LAN), or between client and server in a network environment. A communications device is a piece of hardware, such as a modem, cable, or port, designed to facilitate data transmission.

Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA)

Legislation passed by Congress in 1996 requiring telecommunications carriers to comply with wiretapping requests made by law enforcement. A distinction was made in CALEA between telecommunications services (telephony, fax, etc.) and information services in an attempt to balance privacy and regulatory interests. A line was also drawn between public circuit-switched telecommunications networks and private telephone networks, with the former subject to CALEA and the latter exempt. In response to subsequent development of Voice Over Internet Protocol (VOIP) services (telephone service running over the Internet), law enforcement agencies petitioned the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in 2004 to provide access under CALEA to VOIP and other broadband packet switching services in the interest of national security. The American Library Association (ALA) joined the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) and the Association of Research Libraries (ARL) in filing comments before the FCC seeking exemption of libraries from CALEA and in a petition before the District of Columbia Court of Appeals arguing that the FCC lacks jurisdiction to extend CALEA to the Internet. Click here to connect to the Web page on CALEA maintained by the Washington Office of the ALA.

Communications Decency Act (CDA)

Part of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, the Communications Decency Act made it a federal offense to transmit content over the Internet deemed "indecent" on the basis of "community standards" and made it a criminal offense to have transmitted such material if received by a minor. In a suit filed by the Citizens Internet Empowerment Coalition (CIEC), the American Library Association took the lead, joined by 22 co-plaintiffs, in challenging the CDA in federal district court, consolidating its action with a similar suit by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). In June 1996, a three-judge panel ruled that the term "indecent" was unconstitutionally vague and unenforceable but upheld the portion of the CDA making it a felony to display or transmit "offensive" materials to minors. On appeal, the CDA was declared unconstitutional in June 1997 by unanimous decision of the U.S. Supreme Court, whose members agreed with the plaintiffs' argument that the law was so broad and poorly defined that it violated the First Amendment rights of adults and would subject librarians to criminal prosecution for permitting access to online materials that are not illegal in other media. See also: Child Online Protection Act and Children's Internet Protection Act.

Community and Junior College Libraries Section (CJCLS)

The section of the Association of College and Research Libraries (ACRL) within the American Library Association (ALA) devoted to enhancing library service and librarianship in libraries and learning resources centers that support the educational programs of community and junior colleges and equivalent institutions. Click here to connect to the CJCLS homepage.

community information

A format in MARC 21 designed to carry descriptions of non-bibliographic resources that fulfill the information needs of a community, including programs, services, events, organizations, and individuals (storytellers, civic leaders, etc.). Click here to learn more about the MARC 21 Concise Format for Community Information, courtesy of the Library of Congress.

community information system (CIS)

A centralized source providing government, business, historical, and geographic information about a local community or small group of communities, intended primarily for the use of local residents, prospective residents, and visitors. For an example, see the Danbury Community Network.

community service volunteer (CSV)

A person convicted of a misdemeanor assigned volunteer work in his or her community as a form of restitution. Community service volunteers are typically recommended by a probation officer based on criteria established by the library, with most libraries reserving the right of refusal. Because one of the goals of such work is to teach responsibility, attendance is closely monitored, but duties that involve handling money or accessing nonpublic computer systems are generally not assigned. Some libraries accept adult offenders but not teenagers. In most cases, the program coordinator and supervising librarian are the only employees in the library who know the volunteer is completing community service. The library benefits from unpaid labor, but CSVs often require closer supervision than paid employees. Synonymous with probation volunteer.

compact cassette

A format for magnetic audiotape introduced by Philips in 1963, compact cassettes quickly became the de facto standard for sound recordings on audiotape. Just under 4 × 2 1/2 inches in size, the audiocassette contains 1/8-inch wide, four-track tape wound on two hubs in a hard plastic shell. When played, the tape moves at 1 7/8 inches per second (47.625 mm/s). Standard tape lengths are 60, 90, and 120 minutes. In the commercial market place, the medium has been largely superseded by compact discs (CDs). Click here to learn more about compact cassettes, courtesy of Wikipedia. Synonymous with compact audio cassette.

compact disc (CD)

A digital audiorecording medium introduced in 1982 capable of storing up to 74 minutes of high-fidelity stereophonic sound in a single spiral track on one side of a 4.75-inch disc, similar to the track on a phonograph record (click here to see an example). Designed to be read by a laser beam and decoded inside a device called a CD player, compact discs not only provide clearer sound than phonograph records and audiotape but are capable of recording a much wider range of volume. Click here to learn more about CDs, courtesy of HowStuffWorks.

In libraries, CDs are usually shelved separately, often in specially designed display cases. Some libraries provide listening equipment on the premises. In AACR2, the term "sound disc" is used in the physical description area of the bibliographic record representing a compact disc, with "digital" given as type of recording. See also: optical disk.

compact edition

An edition in which the physical size of a long work is reduced, usually by altering the format without changing the content, for example, The Compact Oxford English Dictionary (second edition), reproduced micrographically and issued in a slipcase with a microprint reader. Compare with concise edition.

compact shelving

Library shelving designed to maximize the storage capacity of a given space by incorporating movable elements such as shelf ranges on tracks (see this example at the University of Connecticut). Because it is considerably heavier than normal shelving when filled, compact shelving requires more structural support, an important design consideration in the construction and renovation of a library facilities. Compare with high-density shelving. See also: compact storage.

compact storage

A library shelving area, often reserved for low-use materials, in which narrow aisles, higher-than-normal shelves, and/or compact shelving is employed to maximize storage capacity (see this example at Virginia Commonwealth University). The building must be structurally capable of supporting the additional weight. Compact shelving with movable parts may be subject to electrical or mechanical failure.

companion

A handbook intended to be used in connection with the study of a particular subject or field (examples: The Cambridge Companion to Ralph Ellison and The Oxford Companion to Philosophy). This type of reference work is often an edited collection of essays. Compare with companion book.

companion book

A book published in conjunction with a