Important LIS term ( Begin with D)

Important LIS term (Beginning with D)

Data
The plural of the Latin word datum, meaning "what is given," often used as a singular collective noun. Facts, figures, or instructions presented in a form that can be comprehended, interpreted, and communicated by a human being or processed by a computer.

Database
A large, regularly updated file of digitized information (bibliographic records, abstracts, full-text documents, directory entries, images, statistics, etc.) related to a specific subject or field, consisting of records of uniform format organized for ease and speed of search and retrieval and managed with the aid of database management system (DBMS) software.
Database management system (DBMS)
A computer application designed to control the storage, retrieval, security, integrity, and reporting of data in the form of uniform records organized in a large searchable file called a database.

Data dictionary
A set of data descriptions documenting the fields (columns) in the tables of a database system. A data dictionary may describe the data type and other physical characteristics of fields, enumerate allowed values, and specify appropriate usage.

Date due slip
A card or slip of paper inserted in an item charged from a library collection or a small printed form attached to the inside of the front or back cover or to one of the free endpapers, on which is stamped the date the item is due back in the library.

Departmental library
A type of academic library that serves the information and research needs of the faculty members of a department within an institution of higher learning, usually a large university.

Deposit copy
A copy of a new publication sent without charge to a copyright depository or other designated library by the author or publisher in compliance with national copyright law

Descriptive bibliography
The close study and description of the physical and bibliographic characteristics of books and other materials, including detailed information about author, title, publication history, format, pagination, illustration, printing, binding, appearance, etc., as opposed to an examination of content. Also refers to a work that is the result of such study

Descriptive cataloging
The part of the library cataloging process concerned with identifying and describing the physical and bibliographic characteristics of the item, and with determining the name(s) and title(s) to be used as access points in the catalog, but not with the assignment of subject and form headings.

Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC)
A hierarchical system for classifying books and other library materials by subject, first published in 1876 by the librarian and educator Melvil Dewey, who divided human knowledge into 10 main classes, each of which is divided into 10 divisions, and so on.

Diary
A private written record of day-to-day thoughts, feelings, and experiences kept by a person who does not expect them to be published.

Dictionary
A single-volume or multivolume reference work containing brief explanatory entries for terms and topics related to a specific subject or field of inquiry, usually arranged alphabetically.

Dictionary catalog
A type of catalog, in which all the entries (main, added, subject) and cross-references are interfiled in a single alphabetic sequence.

Digital archives
Archival materials that have been converted to machine-readable format, usually for the sake of preservation or to make them more accessible to users.

Digital collection
A collection of library or archival materials converted to machine-readable format for preservation or to provide electronic access.

Digital library
A library in which a significant proportion of the resources are available in machine-readable format, accessible by means of computers. The digital content may be locally held or accessed remotely via computer networks.

Digital preservation
The process of maintaining, in a condition suitable for use, materials produced in digital formats, including preservation of the bit stream and the continued ability to render or display the content represented by the bit stream.

Digital reference
Reference services requested and provided over the Internet, usually via e-mail, instant messaging ("chat"), or Web-based submission forms, usually answered by librarians in the reference department of a library, sometimes by the participants in a collaborative reference system serving more than one institution.

Digitization
The process of converting data to digital format for processing by a computer.

Directory
A list of people, companies, institutions, organizations, etc., in alphabetical or classified order, providing contact information (names, addresses, phone/fax numbers, etc.) and other pertinent details (affiliations, conferences, publications, membership, etc.) in brief format, often published serially.

Document
A generic term for a physical entity consisting of any substance on which is recorded all or a portion of one or more works for the purpose of conveying or preserving knowledge.

Documentation
The process of systematically collecting, organizing, storing, retrieving, and disseminating specialized documents, especially of a scientific, technical, or legal nature, usually to facilitate research or preserve institutional memory.

Documentation center
An organization or agency that specializes in receiving, processing, preserving, abstracting, and indexing publications, usually within a scholarly discipline or field of research and study. Documentation centers also issue bulletins on the progress of such work for distribution to interested parties and may also prepare bibliographies on special topics, make copies or translations, and engage in bibliographic research.

Dublin Core (DC)
A standard set of 15 interoperable metadata elements designed to facilitate the description and recovery of document-like resources in a networked environment.
Dublin Core is the result of an international cross-disciplinary consensus achieved through the ongoing efforts of the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative (DCMI), aimed at providing a foundation for standardized bibliographic description of information resources available via the Internet.

Dust jacket
The removable paper wrapper on the outside of a hardcover book, usually printed in color and given a glossy finish to market the work to retail customers and protect it from wear and tear. The front of the dust jacket bears the title, the author's full name, and a graphic design. The title also appears on the spine of the jacket, with the author's last name and the publisher's name or symbol.

DVD
An abbreviation of digital videodisc, a type of optical disk of the same size as a compact disc but with significantly greater recording capacity, partly because it is double-sided.

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