SYLVESTRE (Guy). Co-ordination, Co-operation and Rationalization: An Imperative 3,1;1978;55-62
The sharing of the relatively poor book resources in Canada has been a prime concern of the National Library since its establishment in 1953. The Canadian Union Catalogue, recording the holdings of Canadian libraries, is presently the centre of national interlibrary loan. The Library's own collection has been designed to supplement other Canadian collections and the possibility of extending this support role through the establishment of a national lending collection is being studied. Shortage of funds make additional library cooperation and rationalization a necessity, although jurisdictional problems remain to be overcome. Already numerous bibliographic projects, both national and international, design to improve the compatibility of data and facilitate the sharing of resources have been carried out. DOBIS, an integrated information management system, is being developed by the Library to serve in-house and national data base requirements. Finally, to best serve users, the Library has conducted a thorough review of its role and services, and final decisions on future areas of emphasis will be made by the end of the year.