فصلنامه کتابداری و اطلاع رسانی
سال بیست و چهارم شماره 3 (پیاپی 95، پاییز 1400)

Purpose of this study is to review the definitional framework of rare books and to study the historical evolution of special collections in the world and in Iran.

Descriptive method with inductive approach has been used. First, it reviewed the existing definitions of rare books and their shortcomings to finally reach a comprehensive definition; then the historical course of special collections in the world was analyzed and the history and libraries with special collections in Iran were reviewed. The sources used in this research have been collected using documentary and library methods.

Rare books have a definition beyond the old books and the process of transferring information in them does not only include content data. In the second part, four stages were achieved regarding the evolution of special collections in the world (Identification and segregation of rare books; The evolution of rare books in academic libraries; The evolution of rare books and special collections with the opening of these sections in university libraries; Forming a professional organization (ACRL) to meet educational and communication needs), as well as the differences in approaches to special collections in different societies and cultures and the differences between blacks and whites due to differences of concern throughout history.According to experts, in terms of historical position by global definition, we are now in the fourth stage. By reviewing special collections in Iran, the first library with special collections was the library of Vank Church in Isfahan, and in total, 21 libraries with special collections were found in Iran.

Contrary to popular belief, the definition of the term "rare book", which is an important resource in special collections, can vary based on the missions and goals of libraries and their overall strategies, and in general, may not be outside the strategic framework of libraries. Books can be considered potentially scarce and the basis for identifying rare books is largely dependent on the mission of the collections and cannot be evaluated independently. Also, the history of special collections in Iran, unlike the world, does not have a clear course. The stages of its evolution are not clearly defined and the information available in this regard is related to the libraries that have these collections, and the initial purposes of their formation have been largely distorted. This issue will require serious attention to the field of research, and the elimination of existing shortcomings by researchers with different orientations.

Theses are among the first-hand scientific and research resources that have a dedication page. The main purpose of this study is to examine the audience of dedication pages of the academic and seminary theses presented after the Islamic Revolution.

The research method was library one. Data were collected through observation and Note-taking of three important dissertation databases: IranDoc, Islamic Information and Documentation Center, and National Library and Archives of Iran. 522 dedication letters were collected from 600 dissertation titles related to 77 seminary and higher education centers. In terms of the number of higher education centers or seminaries studied, most centers are located in the provinces of Tehran (14), Isfahan (9) and Qom (8), and in terms of the number of dissertations, the most studied dissertations are related to higher education centers or seminaries in the provinces of Isfahan (162), Qom (130) and Tehran (117). About 99% of the studied dissertations were defended or presented between 1995 to 2015, 331 titles (63.41%) by men and 191 titles (36.59%) by women, 127 titles (24.33%) in the seminaries and 395 titles (75.67%) in the universities.

About 85% of the theses have the dedication page among which postgraduate and undergraduate theses are the most. Non-profit university theses, Payam-e-noor, and Public university theses have the most dedication pages, respectively. Most dedication pageshave two audiences; on average, each dedication is dedicated to three. Women have more audiences than men. About 6% of the dedications are related to the thesis topic. 72% of the audience is from family and relatives, with first degree relatives being mother (31.46%), father (29.58%), spouse (16.24%) and child (7.32%) respectively. 13% of the audience are Imams (AS), which are Imam Zaman (32.31%), Prophet Muhammad (13.33%), and Imam Ali (12.82%), respectively. About 15% of the dedications are also dedicated to other scientific, religious, cultural, social, political and other groups and personalities, such as professors, teachers (20.72%), martyrs (10.81%), Imam Khomeini and friends (9.01%) and scholars of the Islamic world (8.56%) are the most frequent. Mother (31.46%), father (29.58%), wife (16.24%) and child (7.32%), respectively, have the most relationship with the author. These results, while originating from the word of God and the Imams of the Infallibles (A.S.), as a positive culture respecting and appreciating the efforts of parents has been expressed as a religious, human and moral duty. It also shows the deep connection of children with parents in Iranian culture and families.

The thesis topic has less influence on the author's mind for dedicating the thesis. Honor and appreciation of the writers for the hard work of parents reflects the religious culture and deep connection of children with parents in Iranian families. The love of Imams (AS) and waiting for Appearance of Imam Mahdi are the concerns of the young scholars of Islamic Iran. In general, theses writers believe in the teachings of Islam, especially theology, and are interested in defending the values ​​of the Islamic Revolution (martyrs and leaders), and this is a very important spiritual and religious capital that the leaders of the Islamic community and their families should do their utmost to preserve, protect, and celebrate such ventures and to promote, honor these kinds of minds. Researchers can also develop and promote this cultural, religious, and social communication channel through in-depth scrutiny of the various aspects of dedications. Collecting, subject organizing, and disseminating dissertation dedicationscan also be effective in providing a template and encouraging students to write a dedication page as a vehicle for communication and expressing emotional and human emotions and creating vitality. Also, collecting, thematically arranging and publishing dissertation dedication pages can be effective in providing a model and encouraging students to write a dedication page as a vehicle for communication and expression of emotional and human feelings and creating vitality. This type of work is very effective in strengthening family relations and human as well as Islamic teachings.

The purpose of this study is to identify paratextual elements in retrieving fiction from the readers’ perspective in order to provide the most appropriate access points for the readers and improve access to fictions based on the readers’ needs.

The approach of this research is mixed method conducted with sequential exploratory strategy. The statistical population in both stages of the study was readers of fiction literature. In the first phase of the study, a number of 14 story readers participated in a semi-structured interview. The collected data was coded and analyzed based on the six-step content analysis framework of Brown and Clark using MAXQDA software version 2018. In the second phase, a questionnaire designed based on 5-point Likert scale was used to data collection and the collected data was analyzed by structural equation modeling. Also, SmartPLS software version 3 was used to analyze the data.

According to the first stage results of the study, 12 paratextual elements in the form of 4 main themes of bibliographic information (including author name, title, publisher name and date of publication), information about the author (including biography,  awards and other works of the author), review/ criticism (including 3 elements of other readers' comments, literary criticism and reviews and summaries about the work) and physical characteristics (including two elements of cover design and number of pages) were identified by themes analysis of the interviews. In the second phase of the study, the results of the structural equation modeling test confirmed the effect of review and criticism, bibliographic information, and information about physical characteristics of work on improving fiction retrieval. Based on the results, reviews and criticism that have been written about the work with path coefficient of 0.517 more than other paratextual elements about the work could help the reader to retrieve fiction. After that, the bibliographic information with path coefficient of 0.287 and the physical characteristics of the work with path coefficient of 0.148 are in the next ranking. Since the value of t-statistic for author information is less than 1.96, the effect of this variable on fiction retrieval is not confirmed.

Paratextual elements could be useful in perception, evaluation, making decision, selecting resources and help fiction readers to find relevant fictions. With use of paratextual elements of fiction to enrich library catalogues and create several access points, we could develop and improve search and retrieval systems and also increase the efficiency of these systems in retrieving fiction readers need. Therefore, it is suggested that the paratextual elements identified in this study, whose effect on improving fiction retrieval have been confirmed, be used as part of describing fiction content in library catalogs. It is also suggested that these elements be used in the design and development of fiction storage and retrieval systems in libraries to increase the efficiency of these systems and enable successful search and retrieval for fiction readers.

Today, start-ups play an important role in all industries and businesses. In this regard book-related industries are one of the most important cultural industries in all of countries. So it is accordingly important in Iran. Considering the activities of start-ups in the field of books, it is necessary to conduct periodic studies on the status and quality of their activities. Accordingly, the main purpose of this study was to explain the activity status of active startups in the field of book in Iran and present development scenarios for them.

The approach used in this study is mixed (quantitative and qualitative). This means that in the first stage of the research, a quantitative approach was used to collect information and explain the status of start-ups. Then in the second part of the research, a qualitative approach was used to formulate their future scenarios. In the quantitative part of the present study, survey research method was used. Also in the second part of this study, which is dedicated to scenario development for future drawing, formative scenario planning method was used. In the first part of the study population, there were 154 active start-ups in the field of books. According to this, 58 of which were in the field of electronic books, 26 of them are in the field of audio books, 65 of them are in the field of distribution and sales of printed books and 5 of them are in the field of social networks. In the second part of the present study, semi-open interviews were conducted with 9 scientific and executive experts in this field to formulate scenarios. To analyze the contents of interviews, hidden qualitative content analysis with inductive approach was used.

The results of this study showed that the main focus of startups is in Tehran and their formation life dates back to the last two decades. In general, start-ups in this field are weak and this weakness is due to the weak field of books in the country. The financial and infrastructure capabilities of these companies are very low and in most cases require support, and investor institutions and accelerators rarely enter these areas due to the slight profitability of this field. In terms of legal and administrative infrastructures, there are many gaps facing these companies in the book industry and it is necessary to reform the procedures, laws and executive infrastructures and facilitate the activities of these institutions.

The aim of the explanatory research is presenting a method for illustrating children’s book by analyzing, monitoring and identifying the performance of illustrators and publishers of Iran children’s religious books based on the social semiotic approach.

The population of the research was 34 children’s religious books with religious characters’ topic for alef age category (the age period, which starts from the birth to 6 years old) extracted from Iran National digital children’s Library. Regarding the low amount of the population, all of them selected as sample. The tool of data gathering is a comprehensive checklist captured by a book under the title of “The Grammar of Visual Design” authored by Kress and Leeuwen (2006) that is known as the bible of analyzing the illustrated books based on social semiotic approach. Based on the special checklist, all books were evaluated and investigated quantitatively and qualitatively based on six variant elements of Composition, Point of View, Dimension, Form, Color, and Context.

One of the findings of the research was evaluating religious based on social semiotic approach. In addition to these evaluations and measurements, further findings showed that the score of evaluated books based on social semiotics approach principles is as below: color (with 3.54 score), form (with 3.1 scores), composition (with 2.6 scores) and the context (with 1.28 scores). The point of view principle because of its qualitative approach evaluated qualitatively as an independent criterion. The qualitative approach in this regard showed that the point of view of authored books is the opposite, general and distant. Wholly the score of the books based on these principles is very low and it shows the low attention of publishers and illustrators to illustration principles. Evaluating the books based on publishers and illustrators showed that “Jame-ye-pazhoohesh: “JameatolQuran) are the most fruitful ones and evaluating the books based on publishers, and Masoumeh Boroumand’s works are the most quality nooks illustrated for this age range and topic.

It seems that neglecting illustration principles and unaccustomed with the visual and pictorial symbols and signs cause serious challenges and difficulties for children, teenagers and Young and cultural system of the county (Iran). Thus, it is advisable to use the necessary principles, elements, and methods for children’s book illustration in compiling the suitable books for children.

 The disabled like others, need information and information acquisition skills to play a positive role in society. By providing a variety of resources and information services, the public library has an important role in providing services to the community, including the disabled, and can provide the background and opportunity for the presence of the disabled in society. The purpose of this study is to identify the requirements and characteristics of a disability-friendly public library.

 The study was a descriptive applied study using a content analysis method and systematic search, to identify the requirements of public libraries to provide services to the disabled, in Web of Science, Scopus, Google Scholar, and PubMed. From the search in 4 databases, 738 documents were retrieved. Initially, all bibliographic information of articles and sources found from four databases were examined, extracted, and entered into EndNote X7 software, and duplicates were removed. In the next step, the titles of the remaining articles were examined. After reading the abstract of the remaining articles, if the article was deemed appropriate, their full text was studied. Finally, 40 documents were examined.

The indicators and requirements used in public libraries in providing services to the disabled were divided into seven categories. In the category of policy and budget, the existence of appropriate policies and guidelines in the library to provide services to the disabled, in the category of advertising and development of services, the use of various methods of informing library services, in the category of accessibility and physical condition of the library, Existence of appropriate signs and boards to guide different sections of the library, in the category of services and programs, placing the safe desk in a suitable place and its availability for all groups, in the category of human resources and training, the presence of trained staff in The field of providing services to the disabled, in the category of collections, the existence of books in various formats and the category of equipment and information technology, the existence of assistive technologies (CCTV, Braille printers, screen magnification, etc.) have had the highest frequency.

 Identifying the services needed by the disabled and the characteristics of a library for the disabled can help in making informed decisions to provide appropriate services in libraries, especially public libraries. Public libraries must provide facilities and features for people with disabilities to use the services and access the information they need. Libraries should, in addition to assessing the needs of different groups of people with disabilities and the organizations and associations that support them, have the necessary planning and budget by providing the appropriate collection, accessible building, various services and programs, and the existence of various equipment and technologies.

the aim of this study is to introduce and enable research at the intersection of information behaviour studies and contemplative studies by proposing yoga as a research context in everyday life.

This conceptual paper builds on discussions of the everyday information behaviour, transcendental Information, and pleasure and profound in information science. First, contemplation is defined and discussed, along with the movement-based contemplative practices and embodiment approach. Next, yoga is proposed and explored as a contemplative practice in higher level of everyday life which consists embodied and transcendental information.

Everyday life of people in their modern world involves deep aspects of human engagement with information not only for solving problems and survival, but also for pleasure and profound in daily life. Contemplative practices such as Yoga are examples of higher things in life which become more popular both in Iran and other parts of the world. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns and its psychological impacts the number of people who turned to yoga and online yoga is increasing. Yoga is a movement type of contemplative practice. The information or knowledge in this practice is different from what we have known as traditional definitions of information. Individuals find compassion, meaning, awareness and silence by doing yoga. It engages human body in many ways and changes the perception of human about the strength and functionality of the body. In all the yoga processes information can be involved. It involves various types of sensory, tactile and physical information that are acquired and interpreted, and used with the help of human sensory capacities (such as sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch) and in relation to other forms of information. There are many moving, stretching, and balancing through a series of postures, there are breath practices which are also embodied. The physical environment, such as music, mirrors, smells, or diversity of participants, their body size, age, gender, clothing, and movements shape the information landscape of yoga practices. Embodiment is a new turn in information science which tries to bring the body into focus, as the way individuals experience information. When performing yoga, human receives tactile and audio information from the environment in which she/he is located and adjusts her/his body to prevent unnecessary movements and to perform the desired pose. Sometimes even seeing other people's movements and postures, feeling the pain in the muscles, hearing rhythm of the music or sounds of the nature, and feeling the temperature of breath can be sources of embodied information and sensual knowledge for the practitioner.

This paper builds on discourse at the intersection of contemplative studies and information science, also connecting this with recent turn of embodiment. This study extends the literature on transcendental information behaviour, elaborate yogis’ information experiences with an embodied perspective, and illustrate a relationship between information and contemplation. The kinds of embodied information employed by yoga practitioners might be recognized and appreciated more widely throughout society and opportunities for technological development and further research will be outlined.

The aim of this study was to identify the strategic factors of Internet of Things usability in Iranian libraries and to provide a model.

The research was conducted with a qualitative approach and grounded theory. To collect information, documentary method and interview with the statistical sample of 13 professors of information science and science in the country was used by snowball sampling method. Data were analyzed in three steps of open, axial, selective coding and interpretation of interview propositions and paradigm model. Responsive method was used to assess validity and double coding method was used for reliability.

After analyzing the findings, 8 main categories of 35 subcategories and concepts were obtained. The main categories were classified into 8 categories: control and supervision, service development, accessibility, intelligent management, security, innovation and development, information literacy training and motivation and success, and a paradigm model and a theoretical model were presented. In the theoretical model extracted, the main phenomenon is the usability of the Internet of Things in Iranian libraries, and it has been linked from the discovered classes and the main phenomenon to the main class of strategies. Findings show that the interviewees or the actors viewed the strategies as a mechanism and measure with the phenomenon of Internet of Things usability in libraries, which by adopting them, the consequences of the main phenomenon are realized. Therefore, based on the results, the strategic factors affected by the use of the Internet of Things in libraries can be considered.

The strategic factors affecting the Internet of Things usability as a pioneering process transform libraries. Strategies have a significant impact on Internet of Things usability in libraries and their future development. The eight classes identified in the presented model have been considered by the interviewees, and according to the evaluation, the importance of the strategies extracted in the success of libraries that use the Internet of Things is obvious. The extracted model shows the dimensions and strategic factors affecting the use of the Internet of Things in libraries that play an important role in achieving the consequences. The rapid adoption and expansion of the new internet of things approach and its application to library development programs is, above all, the result of the benefits of this technological approach. Based on the research results, by adopting a qualitative approach and using the method of basic theory, the model has presented the strategic factors of internet of things usability in Iranian libraries based on the mental perceptions and interpretations and definitions of the interviewees of this concept. Regarding the concept of internet of things usability strategies, the interviewees believe that the use of modern internet of things technology for information management and service development is Promotes libraries. And the concepts of traditional approaches give way to new values and new approaches.

Translating and interpreting the Quran into Persian is one of the surprisingly rich and less well-received treasures of the Persian language that in terms of vocabulary, structural diversity and phonetic transformations are much more productive than some of our known and less known Persian texts. The Quran Motarjam 704 with a few drops is a precious manuscript in Transoxianian dialect, with a solid language and its Persian words belong to Dari-speaking mainland namely Transoxiana and eastern Khorasan. The land of Transoxiana was formerly called Fara-rood (on the other side of river) and for over five centuries has been the cradle of Islamic civilization in Iran and the center of Iranian government..  The first translation of a well-known interpretation of the Quran into Persian or translation of the Tabari’s commentary, was done by the Persian scholars of Fara-Rood (Transoxiana) and Nasafi’s commentary along with many other ones such as Darvajegi and Gajdavani, Mogadamatol-Adab, Takmelatol -Asnaf, sahifatol- Azra, Tajol-Asami, Magasedollogat, Anisol- Moasherin and Matlae -Maghased have also been compiled in Persian language in this area.

This qualitative research is descriptive documentary which is done by using library method. What follows is an example that introduces the whole manuscript of the Quran 704 which is kept in Astan Ghods Razavi Library.

Paying attention to the midlines translation of this Quran shows that it is remarkable in terms of lexical, syntactic and phonetic properties, words such as difez (locast, tick) sare row (journey), Barshafidan (to become known), andokhsidan (take refuge), baraf rudan (different miscellaneous) which are not mentioned in the most of Persian dictionaries are found in this translation. collecting pure Persian words enriching vocabulary, developementing of historical grammer, preparing Iranian dialectology atlases, realizing different meanings of Persian vocabulary and solving problems of ancient texts with the help of Persian equivalents in these translations, and accessing to some linguistic differences, disparate Persian species and dialects in the Geographical areas of Persian language.  The last but not the least in this research we seek to take forgotten face of this valuable version, by introducing it to the Quranic researchers and Persian lovers.

The translation of this Quran has many linguistic consonant with Nasafi commentary and its cross-section letters have been translated the same as translation of Tabari commentary event though the first and last pages of this version has dropped and we do not know the exact time of its writing and its scribe’s name but the language of its translation is older than early eight century. Seemingly, it is the same as the translation’s language of Quran 1089 written in the fifth century by Najm-suri.