Theory And Practice Of The Dewey Decimal Classification System (chandos Information Professional)

Satija, M.P. The theory and practice of the Dewey Decimal Classification. Oxford, U.K: Chandos Publishing, 2007. ISBN-13:978-1-84334-234-2 (pbk)

A colleague recently remarked in an informal discussion on professional matter that it is only the DDC that has remained the same of what we were taught in our library school three decades ago. All else has changed. It is true to large extent though our basics formulated in the form of the Five Laws of S.R. Ranganathan still hold water. It is so as the need for knowledge organisation even shelf arrangement has never waned. There is no denying the fact that the DDC is a strong institutional pillar of the profession. It is still our exclusive turf in face of ever increasing threat of being run over by usurpers from allied professions.
The Dewey’s system of classification designed more than 132 years also for shelf arrangement of library books has now evolved itself into a tool for organising information on the Internet. Despite its many inborn shortcomings, and even in face of many later day technically more sound rival systems the DDC has survived and grown gracefully to become grandmother of all the library classification systems. It is used in more than one lac libraries in about 135 countries across the globe. Its use in libraries, databases and (national) bibliographies is increasing. From its use and popularity ensues more research and literature.
Professor M.P. Satija has a proven record of continuous teaching and writing on this system for more than two decades and has already collaborated with last two successive editors of the DDC. Therefore this latest book on his favourite subject is welcome. Besides four appendices this handy book has been divided onto fourteen chapters on the twin topics of the theory and practice of the DDC. By going though the book it becomes clear that it is mostly concerned with the practice and number building – a sort of how-to-do-it manual. Theory as been made subservient only to explain the techniques and rationale of the practice. Nevertheless, the first two chapters on its history and governance are exclusively of theoretical interest. This practice oriented book explains everything from layout of the system as laid out in four volumes to the process of determining the specific subject of the document and assigning a DDC number to it. Subject determination and facet analysis have been explained with apt but homely examples. The other chapters are devoted to the process of assigning class numbers to books having simple subject. The vital process of burrowing through the structured but dense net of classes in two volumes (2-3) of the schedules and accessing the appropriate number for the book has been skillfully explained with familiar examples. The craft of number building through the integration of two numbers from the schedules has been explained step by step. The provision of number synthesis with the six (auxiliary) tables has been explained by devoting a chapter to each of the six tables. The multiple synthesis wherein more advanced examples of classifying micro subjects, involving repeated number building, has been explained with sufficient examples. This chapter clearly demonstrates the growing faceted nature of the DDC, and how it is continuously bracing itself to classify micro-subjects being published in different formats and media. In the chapter fourteen, Relative index, an alphabetical key to the DDC, has been covered at length with all its intricacies. The appendices contain a chronology of the system 1873-2010, table of the DDC editors, and a tutorial with questions and answers on the DDC. Of value is its brief glossary explaining concepts and terms in a simple language, so is its modest bibliography of some important publications.
In all it is a small handy, cute and practically useful student oriented book. Simplicity, clarity and ample illustrations are its hallmarks. The book is heartily commended to the students and classroom teachers of the DDC.

Dr. Jagtar Singh
Professor and Head, LIS Deptt,
Dean, Faculty of Education,
Punjabi University,
Patiala-147002, India.