Transcript Slide 1

This session will cover …
• The advantages and pitfalls of using WebDewey
2.0
• General approach
• How to log on
• The basic structure of WebDewey 2.0 records
• Introduction to browse, search, and tables
• Introduction to built numbers
Advantages of WebDewey
a) You can keyword search all of Dewey, and use
Boolean searching
b) You can access notes and related numbers, by
clicking on links
c) WebDewey includes terms and built numbers which
are not found in the print version
d) Some Dewey numbers have Library of Congress
subject headings linked
e) WebDewey is completely up-to-date, but the print
version is not, and is getting more and more out of
date
Less appealing features
a) Number building can be more difficult,
especially for complicated numbers such
as literature numbers
b) Because Dewey was designed for print,
it’s not fully suited to an online interface.
It’s important to start with a good
understanding of the print version
WebDewey is not Google!
• Approach WebDewey in the way you
would the print version, by browsing down
through the summaries of the main
classes and checking the relative index.
• You still need to determine the subject and
discipline of a work, and think in exactly
the same way as when using the print
version of Dewey.
http://dewey.org/webdewey/
Once you have logged in, by default you are
using the 23rd edition of Dewey, which has
orange buttons.
Click on “Home” to see the ten
main classes
Clicking on “000” displays the summary for the ten
classes below
Clicking on “090” displays the ten classes below.
This approach enables you to find a number by
drilling down through the hierarchies
Box to build
numbers
Broader numbers
Narrower numbers
Class
summaries
LC subject headings
associated with the
Dewey number
Tables
Browse option
• Useful to check a Dewey number that may
already be on the record
• Allows you to drill down from a general to
a more specific number
On the left you enter your browse terms, and on the right
select the index that you wish to browse
Drilling down from a general to a more specific number
Search option
• Useful if you have very specific keywords,
that may not be in the relative index
• Finding the Dewey number corresponding
to a Library of Congress subject heading
• Find a more detailed Dewey number from
a base number
Tables
Introduction to built numbers
• Identified by a small “B” in your search
results
• You need look at how the number has
been constructed, and its scope.
• Sometimes the scope of built numbers is
much broader than is immediately obvious
in WebDewey
The instructions tell you to add “7” from the table “Add
as instructed under 362-363”.
This takes you to 363.1257 – but covers everything
from using seatbelts, to school traffic patrols