The Dewey Decimal System and Why It’s Important to Library Users
By Guest Contributing Writer Linda Maxie
If you are a regular public library user in the U.S., you are probably aware of the Dewey Decimal Classification system, the divisional method most libraries use to arrange materials. For the next ten months, I plan to cover each of the ten main divisions used by libraries for Great Books + Great Minds readers.
"The library is a gathering pool of narratives and of the people who come to find them. It is where we can glimpse immortality; in the library, we can live forever."
— Susan Orlean, The Library Book
General Knowledge and Computer Science Division (000-099)
This first major nonfiction division covers general knowledge and computer science in the call numbers 000-099. Back in 1876, Melvil Dewey introduced the DDC, which combined the schemas used by the British Library and Dewey’s peer William Torrey Harris. The Harris system for organizing all human knowledge was based on earlier ones by English philosopher Francis Bacon and Italian publisher and printer Natale Battezzati.
The Beginning
This first section deals with knowledge as a whole. It looked a bit different in the earliest editions of the DDC, which was first published in 1876. Computers were still in the embryonic stage, so there were no subdivisions devoted to computers. Instead, many were devoted to periodicals, serials, general collections, and library science. Today, even with the addition of computer science books, this is still one of the smallest divisions in most public libraries.
Meta-Knowledge, Computers, and Information
Books on general knowledge begin this section. Popular books of lists and facts are frequently found here and so are books on the unknown. Cryptozoology and UFO books are shelved in 001.9 in a section often deemed as being controversial knowledge. According to 025.431: The Dewey Blog, conspiracy theories have recently gotten a unique Dewey number of late and can be found at 001.98.
The information and computer sciences books in this subdivision are those that examine computer programming, software, and coding. Books on computer hardware are shelved in the technology division in the 600-699 section.
By way of example, if you’re interested in understanding and preventing hacking, try 005.8 Hacking (Computer security). Or, if you want a detailed book on how to use Zoom, 004.6, “Interfacing and Communication” is the place to find it.
"Let us change our traditional attitude to the construction of programs: Instead of imagining that our main task is to instruct a computer what to do, let us concentrate rather on explaining to human beings what we want a computer to do."
— Vikram Chandra, Geek Sublime: The Beauty of Code, the Code of Beauty
After the computer books, you can find books in libraries, museums, associations, journalism, general collections of essays, and other works. The division ends with a section dedicated to old and rare books.
Overall, this division is filled with odds and ends and is well worth a look if you are just curious about knowledge and information in general.
Reference Books
Originally, general reference works of all sorts were placed in this first division. Today, most libraries place reference books in a completely different section and the books, if they are loaned out at all, can be checked out for a shorter period of time than the books in the regular collection.
Reference sections are shrinking because publishers of reference staples like the Encyclopedia Britannica are opting to have their works solely available and updated online. It’s easy to understand why. Rather than go to the expense of printing ever-more expensive print volumes that quickly become outdated, they can update much more often.
Even though publishers are saving money and getting information out faster through online distribution, that information isn’t free and readily available to everyone. Publishers, like everyone else, must make a profit and online reference sources can be expensive. So the premium version of these sources are available for a subscription fee that would be cost-prohibitive for most individuals.
For example, while The Encyclopedia Britannica has a nice, free version online with ads that anyone with a web browser can access, to get the version that users of the old print version are accustomed to, you need to either pay the hefty subscription price or use the one your library pays for.
Take Advantage of Your Library’s References
Check your local public library’s website for online references like The Encyclopedia Britannica. If you can’t find them listed, pay the library a visit, give them a call or send them an email to inquire about what sources they offer. If your librarian still employs at least one reference librarian, ask to speak to that person and have a conversation about what’s available to you online.
The awesome thing about these online sources is that they are free to patrons with a library card. Since library cards are free (unless you lose them), they are worth getting if you use them for nothing but the online reference sources.
Many libraries have online general encyclopedias. They have databases. Two databases to watch out for are EBSCO and JSTOR. While EBSCO has many popular and trade newspapers, magazines, and journal articles that aren’t available online for free, JSTOR is a great place to go for research.
And when you get a chance, go in and look through both the reference section and the 000-099 division. You may be delighted by what you find there…for free.
Books from General Knowledge and Computer Science
These books are highlighted in either my book, Library Lin’s Curated Collection of Superlative Nonfiction, or on my blog, The Nonfiction Section, at https://librarylin.com. They can be found in many libraries in the section labeled 000-099.
Kirsten Sosulski Visualization Made Simple: Insights Into Becoming Visual, 2018.
Information, operations, and management sciences expert Kristen Sosulski introduces data graphics—helping make data understandable to everyone. With this guide, businesses and individuals can make their information more engaging.
Vikram Chandra Geek Sublime: The Beauty of Code, the Code of Beauty, 2014.
Computer programmer and novelist Vikram Chandra writes about the history of coding and its relationship to writing.
Susan Orlean, The Library Book, 2018.
In 1986, a mysterious fire broke out in Los Angeles’s downtown library branch. While the case is still unsolved, Susan Orlean uncovers intriguing information about the tragedy that destroyed 400,000 books and kept the library closed for seven years.
Nancy Moses, Lost in the Museum: Buried Treasures and the Stories They Tell, 2008.
Nancy Moses explores selected artifacts stored away from the public in the world’s museums. The objects and the reasons they are kept hidden are surprising, and they give you a peek at factors that influence museum decision-making.
Alan Brinkley The Publisher: Henry Luce and His American Century, 2010.
Henry Luce, the 20th-century publishing giant who founded Time, Fortune, and Life magazines, designed his magazines to spread democracy to the rest of the world. Alan Brinkley’s biography shares his wildly successful professional life and his equally unhappy personal life.
Ed Madison and Ben DeJarnette Reimagining Journalism in a Post-Truth World: How Late-Night Comedians, Internet Trolls, and Savvy Reporters Are Transforming the News, 2018.
While Madison and DeJarnette’s discussion revolves around the 2016 U.S. presidential election, their focus is on problems in modern journalism, not politics. They find concentration on polls to the neglect of issues is a major pitfall.
