Abstract Data Interpolation in Library OPAC: from the Perspective of Information Dissemination

Online Public Access Catalog (OPAC) has an important role in the information retrieval process, especially in helping users who certainly have difficulty finding the library collection they are looking for on the shelves. OPAC transformed along with technological developments where at the beginning of the emergence of this system, it still operated offline so library managers had to provide many computer devices in a special area called OPAC services. Nowadays, OPAC is starting to be developed online so that users can access this system through devices such as mobile phones, computers, and laptops connected to the internet. A few examples of libraries that implemented OPAC as the ITS Surabaya library: library.its.ac.id/opac, a public high school library: digilib.sman2banjar.sch.id. The number of library automation systems today has made it easier for various types of libraries to implement such technology, including its OPAC. Senayan Library Management System (SLiMS) and INLISLite are two examples of library management systems that can be freely downloaded and used. Some libraries in Indonesia that use both systems can be seen through their library OPACs. They are developed by some libraries either in public or private educational institutions. However, some libraries have developed their automation systems such as the Pelita Harapan University Library (UPH). Libraries that develop their own systems have full authority in designing and developing the systems they use. In the context of selecting the library system to be used, the chief librarian has an important role in deciding, but the most important thing is how the system used can meet the needs of both the librarian and the library users. Generally, library automation systems with a variety of features have connected every activity in the library. This includes the library OPAC which is part of the system. OPAC in the library automation system, such as SLiMS and INLISlite has complete metadata containing the description of a collection. Metadata has an important role to construct data as information that can be displayed on the OPAC page. Therefore, librarians must be careful when creating metadata for each library collection. The metadata created by the library will be appeared or be accessed by library users, and that will help them find what they need. The detailed information provided in the library OPAC is a description of the library collection like title, author, year of publication, publisher, city of publication, classification number, availability of books, number of copies, etc. However, OPAC metadata in most libraries often only contains a short description, it does not help the users much. With short information presented, and library visit restrictions during the pandemic, the library should concern that detailed information is a necessity. In such a situation, where a user does not have free space, they need more complete information than just a short description in the library OPAC. In terms of Information dissemination, the library OPAC should be presented because the end-users need access to find out more, and get what they wanted. OPAC development policies must provide convenience. Chatterjee and Samanta (2021) explained that library policies must be in favor of users, especially in accessing any content within the library. Library users who have an understanding and awareness of the importance of information will continue to try to access information, even if it is in remote places. Creating bibliographic data collections in a library automation system is indeed not an easy task, especially with the addition of abstracts to the library OPAC. This work will take quite a bit of time carried by the librarian, particularly in the processing unit. In the context of dissemination, abstracts are important to display so that information can be more fully presented to library users. However, as mentioned earlier, many library OPACs only provide brief information without an abstract The purpose of this study is to analyze the addition of abstract data, especially from the perspective of information dissemination.

This study provides a conceptual analysis that explores the problem of adding abstracts to library OPAC so that the information presented is more complete and helpful. The current study used the literature review. This method is chosen to provide critical arguments to phenomena or problems that are developing in the discussion of adding library OPAC abstract data and information dissemination. As described by Snyder (2019) and Nazir (2013), it is useful for providing an overview of the problems contained in a particular study, and knowledge about certain topics by reviewing books, notes, sources of literature, and reports that are related to the study. Xiao and Watson (2017) explain that literature reviews are grouped into four categories based on their objectives, namely to describe, test, extend, and critique. Observations were also made by visiting library OPACs sites from several institutions. The data generated from observations are very helpful as supporting material in constructing the scientific narrative used in answering the problems contained in this study. This study also tries to show a fact about the condition of the information presented in the library OPAC. Therefore it is very important to use observation because this activity requires researchers to see the actual conditions in the field. Anggito and Setiawan (2018) described observation as an activity that involves the power of the five senses such as hearing, sight, taste, touch, and taste based on facts produced by an empirical event.

OPAC library is one part of the existing modules in the library automation system whose function is a tool to retrieve information in the library. However, this function is not static, because it continues to evolve according to the times. For example, in the current pandemic, its functions can change according to the current situation. One of the objectives of presenting library OPAC is to improve the performance of library services as stated by Hartono (2020) that library OPAC must be designed according to the users’ needs. Realizing the importance of library OPAC makes every library continue to develop its function. One way is to provide an abstract in the library OPAC’s display. In fact, there are still incomplete OPAC libraries, without abstracts. So that it is the task of librarians that how every bibliography listing made by the library can also display an abstract. By presenting complete or detailed information, especially abstracts, it can be ascertained that it is very helpful for library users. Some examples of bibliographic displays in the library OPAC that do not display abstracts are presented below. Figure 1 is one example that still only shows a simple description of the library collection. Another observation is seen in Figure 2. The detailed information presented at the STIESIA Surabaya Library OPAC is quite simple where there are few items such as language and ISBN are not filled in so the collection description information becomes very limited.Figure 1 Details of library OPAC search results Source: http://opac.alhikmahlibrary.com/index.php?go=detil Figure 2. Display of STIESIA Surabaya Library OPAC search result Source: https://digilib.stiesia.ac.id/index.php?p=show_detail&id=17826&keywords=garis+besar+ekonomi An observation in the Unair Surabaya Library showed that the library used INLISlite where the library OPAC as seen in figure 3. The display is still limited to the collection of description data. The results of the searches carried out on the STIESIA and Unair OPAC libraries did produce information that was still simple, but this observation was carried out by searching using random keywords and the selection of search results was also carried out randomly so that there was a possibility that the metadata in some other searches had more complete results.Figure 3. Display of Unair Library OPAC search result Source: http://ailis.lib.unair.ac.id/opac/detail-opac?id=70174 From the observations made, it shows that the presentation of information in the search results is still very limited, in other words, it is incomplete. This does help, but not much. Because, as expected by library users, how the provided information must help them find the information they wanted. The development of the library OPAC’s display must be considered by every library, especially by interpolating new entries that represent the library collection. One of the data that represents the contents of a collection is a summary or often known as an abstract. The library automation systems used to develop OPAC are usually equipped with the abstract field in the bibliography module. Library software such as SLiMS and INLISlite have already accommodated abstracts in the bibliography module. Librarians as professionals in libraries certainly understand the importance of abstracts for the collection. The existence of abstracts in OPAC search results certainly provides a lot of information.

Dissemination of information carried out by libraries is not only providing information to users, but dissemination requires planning, organizing information, and the right strategy so that information meets users’ needs. The addition of data is part of the dissemination process which is carried out after an evaluation of the information provided by the library. Current users need quality information. Therefore, additional data should be done on library information media such as library OPAC. Data such as abstracts need to appear considering that the information represents the contents of the library collection. Librarians play an important role in determining the policy of adding data due to many library services are now being users oriented. Information dissemination in the library OPAC must emphasize a complete description. Libraries can add abstract data by choosing one of the methods in the summary process, namely abstraction, and extraction.