Organisation of Information Services

1) Give three reasons for the need for documentation and information centres. 
The three reasons for the need for documentation and information centres are:
a) Libraries until recently were concerned only with the supply of documents. The information need of the users shifted from documents as a whole to the information contained in the documents.
b) Emphasis of service was shifting to meet the changing complexity of information needs of users.
c) Users need carefully evaluated, analysed, consolidated and repackaged
information oriented towards their special needs.

2) State what constitutes the information infrastructure of a country. 
The information infrastructure comprises a set of institutions, organisations and resources which support information flow, its handling and delivery from generator to the user. It encompasses libraries, documentation and information centres, referral centres, information analysis centres, data centres, clearing houses, etc.

3) Name the three different types of documentation and information centres ample of each type.
The three types of documentation and information centres are those that are owned, funded and run by government or other agencies (Example INSDOC, DESIDOC); institutions meeting specialised interest (Centre for Documentation for Rural Development, Hyderabad); and institutions operating at different levels (International Serials Data System).

4) State the levels at which information and documentation centres operate. 
There are at least four levels at which documentation and information centres operate, viz., global, regional, national and local.
Global Level - International Nuclear Information System, Vienna.
Regional Level - Technonet Asia for Industrial Information, Singapore.
National Level - Thailand Documentation Centre, Bangkok.
Local Level - Technical Information Centre of  Defence Research and Development Organization

5) List the functions of documentation and information centres. 
The functions of documentation and information centres are: collection, processing , storage , retrieval , dissemination , publication of information and documents supply.

6) List the steps in the planning of documentation and information centres  
The steps in the planning of documentation and information centres involve the following
Formulation of objectives , identification of users and users and requirements; estimating the inputs – information sources, manpower, facilities and finance ; working out the management structure ;planning the services and products ; preparing the action plan for implementation; review and evaluation of the development phase.

7) List five new specialised information centres that were established in India during the eighties. 
The five documentation and information centres in India established in the eight are : National Center for science Information,Bangalore;NISSAT sectoral Centre for Textile Technology , Ahmedabad ; Environmental Information System; Biotechnology Information system and the patent Information System.

8) State the main focus of the development of information services for the future. 
The main focus of the development of information services for the future is modernization of information services through networking of information components using computer and communication technologies.

KEY WORDS
Database : Organised set of data stored in a computer and which can be searched automatically.
Can contain usable raw data or a description of the sources where data can be found. Includes both bibliographic and non bibliographic data. Bibliographic databases result from the accumulation of bibliographic records (secondary information).
Data Centre : An organisation handling raw or partially processed data or partially processed results.
FID : International Federation for Information and Documentation. A non- Governmental international organisation engaged in promotion and co-ordination of documentation and information activities through  out the world. Its headquarter is located at The Hague (Netherlands).
Information Policy : A set of decisions taken by a government, through appropriate laws and  regulations, to step up the harmonious development of information transfer activities in order to
satisfy the information needs of the country
Infrastructure : Set of institutions, organisations, resources, which supports the flow, handling and delivery of information from the generator to the user, including its acquisition, processing, repackaging and transfer
National Information System : Set of discipline, mission, or functionoriented information centres (or infrastructure) operating in a co-ordinated way and through the use of common techniques of information handling in accordance with the goals of the national information policy to satisfy the needs of the users at large.
Network (Information) : A set of inter-related information centres and systems associated with communication facilities, which are co-operating through more or less formal and institutional agreements, in order to jointly implement information handling operations with a view to pooling their resources and better serving the users
Sectoral Information Centres : Information centres devoted to specific disciplines or missions or functions and offering specialised services.
Referral Centre : A centre which provides indication of sources (per-sons, institutions, publications, etc.) from which in-formation may be obtained on a given subject; mechanism for switching user to the sources of information
Unisist : It is a programme evolved by UNESCO around 1470 towards a World Science Information System, With the objective of advancing measures for sharing of information by the countries of the world through co-operative agreements among governments, international organisations and operating services.