Nguyen Minh Hiep
The General Library
Vietnam National University
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Fax: 84-8-835 0096
Hoang Le Minh
Networked Computing Lab
College of Natural Sciences
Vietnam National University
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
A modern library is one that utilizes new information technology, so that it can provide information more easily and faster to its users. In the age of information explosion, a library do not function alone. Instead, libraries join together to form a library system or a library network such as a library consortium. This means that libraries that have similar function, or subject areas, or in the nearby geographic area get together in order to form a consortium to serve their patrons more effectively. A modern library should have the following concepts:
• The open concept
- This concept helps the library users to access information more easily
- This concept also promotes the use of library materials with open stacks.
- Libraries should have same kind of standards and formats even they may have different automated systems so that they can benefit more fully from networking. Standards apply to the use of bar codes in the library circulation system, the MARC format and subject headings for cataloging system, and the organization of online cataloging and reference.
- Library schools and the library associations should play an important role in the guiding the unification of library activities.
- Once a library network is formed, attention should be paid to create online catalog system.
- Plans for collection development should be made.
- Interlibrary loan network should be planned
- To link with each other in the local or national network as well as with Internet, each member should develop its home page on the web server and the library users should learn to use the web browsers to retrieve information.
- The local area network and the national network should enable the users to gain access to information from international databases such as DIALOG, NEXIS, etc...
- Educating the library users to be familiar with the library hardware and software in order to obtain up-to-date information.
With a few exceptions, most Vietnamese libraries including the university libraries are underdeveloped. The users seldom come to use the libraries. The students use the libraries as a comfortable place for them to read and memorize their textbooks rather than doeing their own researches that need the usage of the library materials.
The libraries do not provide adequate information services to their students and the faculty due to lack of up-to-date books and other resources. Furthermore, the university library does not play any important role in the past and even at the present time it was not given an important role as a nuclei of the university campus.
- The image of the closed stack library with all books and other materials arranged by its sizes and locked in the separate rooms is a familiar practice in Vietnam. The library users have to go through a lot of red tape in order to get access to the library materials. The reference services and reference tools are not well organized, and that causes much inconvenience to the library users.
- The library services as a whole is poor, it does not have reference service and/or interlibrary loan service.
- Each library is an island itself therefore there is no connection among libraries. The interlibrary does not exist. In the past, the interlink between the southern university libraries was well organized and achieved a good standing but it did not exist long enough to prove the necessity of the interlibrary concept, due to the lack of the library management skills.
- There is no library association which plays a significant role in bringing librarians together and also play, or in setting up a library curriculum for the library schools.
• The organization and management of the libraries are not consistent within the libraries because of the following reasons:
- There is no library association to play a leadership role.
- Lack of professional librarians -- the role of the library was not as important in the eyes of the university managers therefore the head of the library is usually a non-professional one or the one that was charged with too many tasks outside the library management.
• The library automation was not well planned or did not exist.
- There are many libraries that do not have any computers, or if there are computers, they are used for processing documents, or for the use of CDS/ISIS software to manage databases for a library network. The library also uses its computers to print cards for their catalogs! There is little online system for users to use to retrieve information.
- Librarians do not have knowledge of system analysis, therefore most libraries have problems when they try to plan for an automated system.
- Not all libraries have automated systems therefore library network does not really exist.
• Lack of librarians who have knowledge of how to modernize the libraries. The teaching at the professional library schools including at the university level does not meet the needs of library modernization.
- The university libraries were not developed due to librarians' lack of management and professional skills.
- At the present time, although there are some "trained librarians" at the bachelor degree level in library and information science, yet the library school curriculum needs to be carefully and thoroughly evaluated.
• The libraries do not provide adequate users education on effective use of library resources
- The university does not educate the first year students how to use the library effectively, therefore the users do not know how to use the library.
- The library does not organize their materials well enough, and the librarians' knowledge do not meet the development of their field. Thus they do not know how to expand the library services to their users.
3.1. INTRODUCTION TO THE LIBRARY SYSTEM OF HO CHI MINH CITY NATIONAL UNIVERSITY
The National University of Ho Chi Minh City consists of following colleges:
• College of Natural Science
• College of Social Science and Humanities
• College of Technology
• College of Economics
• College of Pedagogy
• College of Architecture
• College of Finance and Account
• College of Agriculture and Forestry
• College of Law
3.2. THREE PARALLEL STAGES IN BUILDING THE LIBRARY SYSTEM AT THE HO CHI MINH CITY NATIONAL UNIVERSITY
First Stage: Preparation and Training. Standardize and unify the library technical services and library management.
• Holding seminars on modern library services and library management.
• Sending responsible staff to libraries abroad to study, gain experiences, and set up cooperation.
• Organizing training courses for staff of the participant libraries to unify technical services. Promoting the plan for setting up the interlibrary network.
• Library organization and management. Discussing the problems of every participating library 20 units
• Cataloging and classification. Introduction and practice of the Dewey Decimal Classification. Introduction to the subject analysis and practice of using the Library of Congress Subject Headings List 40 units
• Library automation. Online Catalog 30 units
• Open stacks. Public services. Library preservation 20 units
• Visiting. Internship. Research reports. Discussion 20 units
Second Stage: Automation of libraries in the system.
Third Stage: Building up libraries and the library network for the National University. Connecting the participant libraries to the Graduate library within the network of the National university. Organizing the resource sharing and the interlibrary loan system.
4. LIBRARY DEVELOPMENT TRENDS, LIBRARY COOPERA-TION, AND THE "MULTIPLICATION OF A LIBRARY SYMBOL"
4.1. Under the open concept in the cooperation, the libraries in the geographic area have formed part of the national networks in order to have a resource sharing system and interlibrary loan system.