Introduction: The point of departure for this paper is the twofold analogy (analogy of content, analogy of medium) between printed and electronic books, the aim being to draw attention to the usual perception of their capacities and relationships, to provide a rather detailed analysis of the outcome and sustainability of such analogies and…

Introduction: Rolf Landauer declared in 1991 that "information is physical". Since then, information has come to be seen by many physicists as a fundamental component of the physical world; indeed by some as the physical component. This idea is now gaining currency in popular science communication. However, it is often far from clear…

Introduction: The term "information" in information science does not share the characteristics of those of a nomenclature: it does not bear a generally accepted definition and it does not serve as the bases and assumptions for research studies. As the data deluge has arrived, is the concept of information still relevant for information…

Introduction: This paper presents three metaphors of time present in knowledge organization systems. Analysis: These three metaphors the architectonic, ouroboric, and lachesic, can be used as lenses to analyse extant or newly designed knowledge organization systems. Conclusion: A foundational view of evaluating and theorizing about knowledge…

Introduction: Just as we have created them, the new social media technologies have shaped every aspect of our societies. Meanwhile, information science has hardly addressed the ways in which these information technologies have shaped humans, and vice-versa. The major reason is the tendency and pressure to adjust (the needs of) humans to the ever…

Introduction: To provide valuable services in the future, libraries will need to create better information systems and set up an infrastructure more in line with the current technologies. The "Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records" conceptual model provides a basis for this transformation, but there are still a number of…

Background: Cultural-historical activity theory is an important theory in modern psychology. In recent years, it has drawn more attention from related disciplines including information science. Argument: This paper argues that activity theory and domain analysis which uses the theory as one of its bases could bring about some important…

Introduction: Faceted classification appears to be of utmost importance. Ersatz facets, resource faceting and tag faceting: The distinctions are drawn between facets and ersatz facets, and between faceted resources and faceted tags. Single tag resource faceting and multiple tag information object faceting: The basic features are explored of single…

Introduction: This paper considers practice theory and the analytical implications of using this theoretical approach in information literacy research. More precisely the aim of the paper is to discuss the translation of practice theoretical assumptions into strategies that frame the analytical focus and interest when researching workplace…

Introduction: This article returns to a theme addressed in Vol. 8(1) October 2002 of the journal: knowledge management and the problem of managing tacit knowledge. Method: The article is primarily a review and analysis of the literature associated with the management of knowledge. In particular, it focuses on the works of a group of economists who…

Introduction: This paper applies the thought of Jacques Rancière to the concept of democracy as it is traditionally understood in library studies literature. Methods: The paper reviews a cross-section of instances of the link between democracy and the public library in library studies literature. It offers a close textual analysis of Michael…

Introduction: The percentage of foreign-born residents in Spain has multiplied almost fourfold over the last decade. Immigration has changed our society, both from a demographic and economic perspective, and from a cultural and political prospective. The Spanish public library network, a democratic institution that provides services, initially, of…

Introduction: Several controlled vocabularies are used for indexing three journal articles to check if better or equal consistency rates are achieved with a list of descriptors than with a standard thesaurus and augmented thesaurus. Method: A terminology set for library and information Science was used to build a list of descriptors with…

Introduction: Philosophical analyses of theoretical principles underlying these sub-domains reveal philosophy of information as underlying meta-theory of information science. Method: Conceptual research on the knowledge sub-domains in information science and philosophy and analysis of their mutual connection. Analysis: Similarities between…

Introduction: For some years bibliometric studies have identified webometrics as one of the largest information science fields. Nevertheless, most published webometric research is relatively theoretical and, as a new research field, seems unlikely to survive unless it is useful in some way. In general it is very important for academics to identify…