The Organization of Information

by Arlene G. Taylor

The extensively revised and completely updated second edition of this popular textbook provides LIS practitioners and students with a vital guide to the organization of information. After a broad overview of the concept and its role in human endeavors, Taylor proceeds to a detailed and insightful discussion of such basic retrieval tools as bibliographies, catalogs, indexes, finding aids, registers, databases, major bibliographic utilities, and other organizing entities. After tracing the development of the organization of recorded information in Western civilization from 2000 B.C.E. to the present, the author addresses topics that include encoding standards (MARC, SGML, and various DTDs), metadata (description, access, and access control), verbal subject analysis including controlled vocabularies and ontologies, classification theory and methodology, arrangement and display, and system design.

Genres: Nonfiction, Library Science, Textbooks, School, Librarianship, Reference, Information Science

417 pages, Paperback

First published March 1, 1997

Reviews

[library fairy]

Once again I assert that it is my gods-given right to add my master’s textbooks to my goodreads challenge since they’re taking up all my reading time this year anyway

[Peter Neely]

This was actually a text I needed for a an introductory Information Science class. For a course that is centered on organization, it would have helped immensely if the text used had been well-organized, clear and did not contradict itself or leave things un-explained, or explained poorly. There were a few well-designed chapters, but the book itself is poorly organized and really hurts the effectiveness of using the information in the text in an efficient manner.

[Brian]

What can I say about this epic that hasn't already been said? The obsession, the sorrow, and the passion that is Information Organization comes alive in the burning pages of this masterwork. Have faith, all library science acolytes. I speak earnestly, this is an amazing book.

Assigned for the course SLIS 5200 - Introduction to Information Organization.

[Roeki]

This textbook taught me to appreciate the art of skimming. The written word has never taken a more incomprehensible form. It is as though the goal of the author was to leave future librarians in a state of aggravated disarray. A publication has never made me feel so absolutely adrift in a sea of confusion and irritation. As a future librarian, I have never wanted to burn a book so badly in my life. If you want to learn about the organization of information, do not read this textbook. I express my sincerest condolences for anyone required to read such a horrendous proclamation of knowledge.

[Phillip]

This is a textbook. There isn't anything wrong with it. But in the end it is a textbook.

[Lane Wilkinson]

I include this book only as a means of including every book published by Libaries Unlimited. In pursuit of the MLIS, I have been ordered to purchase no fewer than four text-books published by LU. I say with complete, non-inebriated candor that every successive book from LU has set a lower bar for intellectualism. My grades actually suffered from reading this book.

[Chris]

I just finished a course on Information Organization with one of the authors, Professor Joudrey. I'm glad I took this required course/read this book in the first semester of my MLIS program because it has given me a foundation for understanding information organization in the past and present, with projections into the future -- in libraries, archives, and online.

Appendices offer helpful examples of concepts presented in various chapters and the glossary & index (when I remembered to use them) saved me from banging my head against the wall during several assignments. It feels like I absorbed only a small percentage of the information and will keep this textbook on my shelves for reference.

This is an aside, but one thing I did quickly learn is that the profession of library science is as acronym-heavy as the United States military. This makes sense considering they're both systems-oriented and uber-organized (at least in theory).

[Megan]

All of my MLIS-holding cronies led me to believe "Organization of Information" is just cataloging in disguise. WRONG! This is the philosophical study of and historical record of the practices and usefulness of cataloging. I'd give it five stars if the ranking was classified as "more effective than Ativan".

[Rowan]

Decent overview of the subject. The layout and organization is terrible though. It does not follow any best practices for learning and development, so as a textbook it is difficult to get through. Someone needs to edit the next edition into a format that is more consumable.

[Erica]

soooo boring. metadata = metaheadache. Kill me now. I will never be a cataloger. NEVER.

[Kerry Crabbs]

I got through it. That's all I can say.

[Rachel Stine]

I needed this textbook for a Library Sciences class. It’s dry, overwritten, and there are sections which are factually inaccurate, at least in regards to the LIS field. They may be more accurate in other fields.

[Panda Incognito]

This textbook was exceedingly dull, poorly organized, and convoluted, but I got through it. As soon as class is over, I'm listing it on Ebay.

[April Lowrey]

I read for my class. Helps with insomnia. Lol.

[Erica Guevara]

A text I needed for my master’s class… and by golly I’m counting it as a read book on Goodreads because it was a very long tedious read!

[Katie]

i read this cover to cover for class so it counts, damn it.

[Kimberly]

This book was a textbook for an information science course that I took. The topics are pretty self-evident from the title. The book covered many good topics that any information professional should be familiar with. Chapter titles included: retrieval tools, history of organization of recorded information, metadata, encoding standards, system and system design, subject analysis, controlled vocabularies, and classification systems. Overall full of god information, provided overviews of many topics, and included many notes and suggestions for further readings.

[Tina Stucky]

This was our textbook for my Organization class that I’m taking for my Master’s Degree. While it was very tedious and dry, I did learn a lot about the history of how libraries organize information, the major influencers of metadata schemas and classification systems, and what the future of library, archives, and museum organization might look like.

[Gretchen]

It's a bit of a lie to say I read this book, but I read enough to get the general feel for it. As far as textbooks go, it was pretty readable. Not so readable that I could stay awake for very long, though.

[Rachel]

Definitely the most dry of all the textbooks for my masters (and those who have had to read the Rubin textbook as well for 701 will find this amazing), not only that but Taylor had such a round about way in telling things that I never really seemed to understand them.

[Tressa]

This is a textbook but it's still pretty bad. For a book that is supposed to be about the organization of information, it should take its own advice and be a little more organized with the information that it is trying to explain!

[Theresa]

Used this is one of my first SLIS classes. Good overview of information organization.

[Agnė]

2.5 out of 5

[Kristin Robinson]

It was dry, yet informative. It was also required reading in a class for my MSLIS. I wouldn't recommend it for recreational reading unless you love information science as much as I do!

[Theresa Coleman]

The book was a helpful resource in the hardest class I have taken in the masters program. It’s always good to learn new things.
So totally glad this class is about to end.

[Jana at ThatArtsyReaderGirl.com]

I'd like to give it 0 stars.

[Sammy]

No thank you. Lots of definitions, and gets you well immersed, but Cataloging is not for me.

[James]

Considering it is a book about organizing information, the irony is that the information in it has some of the worst organization I have encountered in a reference text/ textbook. This book is absolutely atrociously written and organized. It is required reading for my introductory course in, unsurprisingly, the organization of information in my MLIS program, and I can say without a doubt that I would have gotten more out of the class this semester had I not had to dredge through this god awful text. Coupled with that that there were required reflections on each chapter so that the authors could revise for the next edition, I hope that it is taken to heart because it could be a third the length and still be longer than necessary for the introductory level. There is an inordinate amount of time spent on histories that don't apply to practical methodology, tools introduced with pages spent on histories and no explanation of how they work, pages of complaining about the state of the discipline at a level well outside the scope of introduction, I could go on. I have written over 12 pages of critique as a requirement for my class and I could have written twice as much (why that should impact my grade at all I am not sure), and frankly nothing in this book was new information outside of lectures, and if it was my only resource for this subject, I would probably quit altogether because I would be completely lost when it comes to any sort of practical methodology for the field that this book should be the point of entry for. If I could give it 0/5 I would have.

[Amy Layton]

Currently, I'm using this book for my LIS 415 (Library Organization) class--which Danny Joudrey teaches.  So, he'd of course use his book.  And what he teaches in class is exactly what is covered in the most recent edition of his and Taylor's book, so it's safe to say that it is hugely comprehensive.  I mean, truly--this book has indexes, glossaries, acronym descriptions, graphics, further reading...  Of course, he himself has noted that despite the fact that it literally came out this year, it's already outdated (and we're only in March!!).  But that's just how it is when it comes to library science.  But, for broad ideas of what different cataloging systems are like, the basics of records and attributes and elements, this is the absolute best place to start.

Review cross-listed here!

[Kate]

I would not recommend this book for beginners in information science. The book itself is poorly laid out (the irony!) and assumes you already have beyond a basic understanding of the subject. As others note, it's extremely dry and academic. The index is not thorough, the information is clearly outdated (it has an unhealthy obsession with Yahoo Directory, for instance), and there are too few examples to ground theory in real world applications. Knowledge organization is a nebulous topic, you have to use examples. An updated version is supposed to be coming out soon, but as it stands the 3rd edition is of little use to anyone.