Evaluation of encyclopaedias, Humanities

Assignment Help:

Evaluation of Encyclopaedias

A good and useful collection of general and special encyclopaedias form the backbone for the reference work in any library. The strong collection of general and special encyclopaedias in English and other languages ensure efficient reference service in a library. In this section, we will discuss various check points which can help in the selection and assessing the value of encyclopaedias before the acquisition for the library.

It is a very expensive venture to produce an authoritative set of encyclopaedia as it involves overall planning, engaging subject experts to write articles, competent indexers to provide layout artists, exhaustive index, and photographers for providing apt illustrations, accurate printing, efficient editorial and proof reading, adequate advertising through reviews in journals catalogues and announcement leaflets to booksellers, distributors, librarians etc. All these cannot be done cheaply. Reputed publishers recognise this fact by their experience in the field of publishing encyclopaedias and incur considerable expenditure to produce an authoritative work so as to earn the profit in turn. The prices of the authoritative sets of encyclopaedia are quite high, as the publishers have to meet with the expenses of high cost of production. Therefore the librarians have to make careful selection of the encyclopaedia and judicious expenditure depending upon the avail-ability of funds and space. Again, the librarian has also to consider the needs of the reader. They must be used intelligently to obtain the maximum benefit. It is not possible to make a perfect and complete encyclopaedia, as it is difficult to include all the existing information: Hence, the librarian should assess their value and find out their merits and demerits before acquiring them.

The main checkpoints for evaluating and analysing encyclopaedias are :

a) Authority

b) Scope and purpose

c) Treatment

d) Arrangement

e) Format

f) Revision

g) Limitation

h) Special features


Related Discussions:- Evaluation of encyclopaedias

Bibliographies, Bibliographies   A library catalogue and a bibliography...

Bibliographies   A library catalogue and a bibliography are distinct from each other as they serve different purposes. A bibliography is an organised list of documents compiled

Problem of violence in america, About the question of violence in the u...

About the question of violence in the usa there is an enormous literature - as well as a lot of popular perceptions which themselves incorporate some myths. Contrary to

Essential Points To Be Put Into Practice To Enhance The Trad, What is the c...

What is the citation for Bernice Bleedorn''s quotation at the end of the article, please?

Differentiate self -respect and self -esteem, Differentiate Self -respect a...

Differentiate Self -respect and Self -esteem?  Self-respect : It is a moral method; refers to the virtue properly valuing oneself. Selfesteem : It is a psychological meth

Who stands fast?, I need some help with the book I am reading.

I need some help with the book I am reading.

HLS100, #Why do DHS prefer decentralization over centralization?question..

#Why do DHS prefer decentralization over centralization?question..

Educational psychology, Educational Psychology -This psychology involves th...

Educational Psychology -This psychology involves the examined of how people learn, comprising topics as student outcomes, the instructional process, particular differences in learn

Margin of appreciation, "It acknowledges that the national authorities enjo...

"It acknowledges that the national authorities enjoy a wide margin of appreciation in matters of morals, particularly in an area such as the present which touches on matters of bel

Post-coordinate indexing systems, Post-Coordinate Indexing Systems   Th...

Post-Coordinate Indexing Systems   These systems arc also called coordinate indexing systems. As in the pre-coordinate systems, the starting point, here too, is the identificat

Applied ethics phl101, select one of the four views examined by hursthouse ...

select one of the four views examined by hursthouse on the moral status of the human foetus and critically examine one of the arguments either for or against that view

Write Your Message!

Captcha
Free Assignment Quote

Assured A++ Grade

Get guaranteed satisfaction & time on delivery in every assignment order you paid with us! We ensure premium quality solution document along with free turntin report!

All rights reserved! Copyrights ©2019-2020 ExpertsMind IT Educational Pvt Ltd