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Top > Publications > NDL　Newsletter > Back Numbers 2007 > No. 154, April 2007

National Diet Library Newsletter

No. 154, April 2007
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National Diet Library's network with libraries
in the executive and judicial agencies:
Branch Library System (part 2/2)

This article is based on the article in Japanese of the same title in the NDL Monthly
Bulletin No. 545 (August 2006)

Contents

(Last issue)
1. What is the Branch Library System of the NDL?
2. History of the Branch Library System of the NDL
  2.1. Foundation of the System
  2.2. Development of the System
3. Outline of the Branch Library System of the NDL
  3.1. Appointment of the directors of the branch libraries and the regular number of branch libraries staff
  3.2. Budget
  3.3. Conferences
  3.4. Training
  3.5. Publication

(This issue)
4. Services for the executive and judicial agencies
5. Acquisition of government publications
6. Toward further improvement of the Branch Library System

4. Services for the executive and judicial agencies 

The NDL central library plays a role in assisting library services of the branch libraries. The Branch Libraries and Cooperation Division serves as a contact between the central library and the branch libraries. The staff of each ministry/agency are able to enjoy the central library’s services including loan, copying and reference services through the branch library of the ministry/agency they belong to. In October 2004, timed with the renovation of the Tokyo Main Library, the central library increased the level of its services by, for example, increasing the maximum loan restriction, extending its library hours and providing systematized library services through the adoption of the Electronic Library Infrastructure System. Now the staff members can search and request materials which they wish to read and confirm if they are available through the NDL-OPAC at their own branch library before visiting the central library. The number of materials loaned from the central library to the branch libraries has been continuing to rise significantly.

5. Acquisition of government publications

The NDL collects publications in Japan mainly under the Legal Deposit System. This System mandates that copies of all new publications published in Japan must be sent to the NDL in accordance with the National Diet Library Law for official use and use in international exchanges as well as being accumulated as cultural goods and handed down to subsequent generations. The branch libraries themselves deposit "each publication issued by any agency of the government" as stated in Article 24 of the National Diet Library Law, that is, government publications, to the central library.

The central library sends a car regularly on a circuit around government agencies to collect government publications to be deposited from each branch library, in addition to collecting and distributing materials to be exchanged and donated among the branch libraries.

This network for depositing government publications through the branch library system has been a great success in terms of collecting government publications speedily and reliably. On the other hand, the ministry/agency to which each branch library belongs does not necessarily have a completely organized structure that keeps comprehensive and intensive control on issuing and distributing publications and public relations. In particular, at a time when paper form publications have been replaced by digital form publications, much more effort is required to recognize the actual status of publishing and to collect those publications.

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6. Toward further improvement of the Branch Library System

In March 2001, the "Basic Plan for Library Services to the Administrative and Judicial Agencies" was formulated for the purpose of upgrading the branch libraries' function to adapt to the 21st century and also providing library services in the information age, in response to the environmental changes surrounding the branch libraries.
The plan aims especially to develop the information infrastructure of each branch library and to construct a digital network between the central library and branch libraries. As for the network, an integrated network system started operating on the Kasumigaseki WAN (wide area network among the government offices) in April 2004. This system was developed based on the "Second National Diet Library Central Library-Branch Libraries Digitization Basic Plan" to replace the network system which had started working in 1998. It features the distributed union catalog database as its main sub-system. The database, which is available to staff members of each ministry/agency, enables them to execute a cross search of branch libraries'  bibliographic databases which are open on the Kasumigaseki WAN and browse the search results in an integrated way. Holding data of 14 branch libraries are now searchable.
In order to stimulate good use of library materials, the NDL set out, at the start of the Branch Library System in 1948, to compile a union catalog of about 1.8 million books which were held by all the branch libraries at that time. However, the compilation was discontinued in mid-course because of the enormous workload although it had produced some useful results. It can be said that the uncompleted union catalog project has been revived as the present distributed union catalog database.
Since the formulation of the "Basic Plan for Library Services to the Administrative and Judicial Agencies" in 2001, the information environment has been advancing more and more. In addition, through exchanges of opinions at conferences and on other occasions, it has become clear that each branch library is in a different, unique, situation and is faced with its own issues to be solved as well as sharing some of the same problems. In response to this perception, the central library and branch libraries agreed to the necessity of  new plans. In April 2007, the "Central Library-Branch Libraries Medium-term Management Guideline" was established and we are now working on the "Third National Diet Library Central Library-Branch Libraries Digitization Basic Plan."
The Branch Library System and all the branch libraries which support the network will continue to work on improving their service and reforming the management in response to the rapid environmental changes. Based on the ideals behind the establishment of the Branch Library System and its subsequent development, we will be undertaking further informatization and digitization as a library network in the 21st century.
 
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