ABSTRACT
This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part explores bibliographic access systems and reviews their basic functions. It examines the most important types of access systems in greater detail and explains how to use them. The online catalog permits greater accessibility to catalog records, costs less to maintain, and can provide additional useful information, such as the status of a book—on the shelf, checked out, on reserve, or on order. Regardless of the medium—book, card, microform, or computer terminal—the essential function of a library catalog is to provide access by author, title, and subject to catalog records of materials in a particular library. The typical index provides access to periodical articles in a particular subject area, such as the humanities, the social sciences, the arts, history, religion, or philosophy. The typical index provides access to periodical articles only, but some index newspapers only, and others index a variety of composite works.
