Application of CDROM technology in the multimedia library of La Villette Centre for Science and Industry
| Pages | 447-452 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/eb045411 |
| Date | 01 May 1995 |
| Published date | 01 May 1995 |
| Author | Homa Malek |
| Subject Matter | Information & knowledge management,Library & information science |
Article
Application of CDROM technology
in the multimedia library of La
Villette Centre for Science and
Industry
Homa Malek
Head Information
Scientist,
Division
MEIJ,
La
Médiathèque,
Cité
des
Sciences et de
l'Industrie,
Paris,
France
Abstract:
The
Centre for Science and Industry in
Paris,
which is one of the
most attractive high-tech science museums in
Europe,
hosts a
unique
multimedia
library holding some 330 000 documents in scientific and technological fields
(books,
periodicals, films, educational software, cassettes and
CDROMs)
with an
average of 4000 users per
day.
Ever since its opening to the public
in
1986,
the
library has been fully automated with an integrated system and presently
it
operates under GEAC GLIS (running on a GEAC 9000 computer) for acquisition,
cataloguing, OPAC and circulation. The OPAC
is
also available
on
videotex
(French
Minitel).
After a brief review of the background of CDROM installation in French public
libraries, the particular case of the use of CDROMs at La
Villette
Library is
discussed.
CDROMs made available to the public are differentiated from those
used by the
staff,
mainly for cataloguing and reference purposes.
Other
than
cost,
problems related to the design of hardware and software configuration, as well as
the importance of testing pilot products, are
analysed.
Finally, future
developments including
the
replacement of the existing hardware, upgrading of
the
software and the necessity of systematic evaluation of CDROM usage by
patrons are
discussed.
1.
Introduction
Ever since the birth of optical publish-
ing in 1984 and the emergence of
CDROM in 1985 in the US, the appli-
cation of
this
medium in libraries and
information centres has increased tre-
mendously. The results of two com-
plementary surveys run among some
20 000 librarians in 1987 indicated an
application rate of 24% in American
libraries by the end of that year, while
the same results extrapolated to the
end of
1990
showed a
50%
application
rate(DBMIST& AJOUR 1988).
The situation in France has. been
somewhat different from that of the
United States. In 1986, the Georges
Pompidou Public Library in Paris ac-
quired the Grolier encyclopaedia for
reference
use,
and by
the
end of
1987
it
had produced its own multimedia cata-
logue on CDROM called LISE, con-
taining some 400 000 bibliographic
records, i.e. the entire library holdings
irrespective of their medium (Guerre
1987).
In the following years, al-
though a few publications discussed
the issue of CDROM application in
French libraries, the percentage rate of
their usage among information profes-
sionals remained fairly low.
In 1995, the eleventh anniversary
of optical publishing, most French li-
braries have acquired CDROMs either
for technical or for reference services
(Ministry of Higher Education 1994).
There are even examples of CDROM
networking by two libraries: the Pub-
lic Library of Lyon (where computers
have been networked to give access to
CDROMs, to the library catalogue,
and to a special database providing in-
formation on the city itself
as
well as
its surroundings) and Dauphine Uni-
versity Library in Paris.
This paper will discuss the particu-
lar
case
of La Villette Multimedia
Pub-
lic Library (the Médiathèque), holding
some 330 000 documents in scientific
and technological fields and featuring
in the Cité des Sciences et de l'Indus-
trie as a complementary site for the
popularisation of science and technol-
ogy.
2.
Context: a few words on the
Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie
(CSI) and the Médiathèque
The main purpose of the creation of the
CSI was to provide the general public
with a communication facility where
any visitors could discover, explore
and touch the world
in
which they live.
The CSI is therefore not just a museum
where people contemplate objects
from the past but an interactive centre
which helps them to become familiar
with the scientific and the technical
culture at a time when great techno-
logical breakthroughs are occurring.
With an average of
5
000 000 visitors
per year the CSI is one of the most vis-
ited places in Paris, after the Centre
Georges Pompidou (Beaubourg), the
château of Versailles and the Louvre
museum (and before, the Orsay mu-
seum).
The library of the Centre at-
tracts a quarter of its visitors: nearly
100 000 a month or around
4000 a
day.
The Electronic Library,
Vol.
13, No. 5, October 1995 447
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