Statistics in the PROLIB library system

Another statistical year has passed and by February 7, 2022, form K-03 Library report should be completed and sent to the Central Statistical Office. This year, the obligatory form of data transfer is the electronic form. Comparing the form for 2020 and 2021 – it has not changed. Therefore, when preparing the paper version, you can use the hints and reports described in our earlier article on this subject.

A change that deserves attention is the simplification of Section 11. A follow-up question related to the impact of COVID-19 on business operations in the K-03 report for 2021. To determine the working days of the library without readers, the report “Agenda Working Time Analysis” (ex2r056. w) from the PROLIB system, which will show on what days and at what times the readers’ visits to the library were recorded.

At the same time, apart from submitting a report to the Central Statistical Office, Libraries for their own purposes use many reports available in the PROLIB system. Based on our experience from previous years and your questions in the Service System, we have prepared some information about the operation of statistical reports available in the system.

Administrator module

In the Administrator module, the most popular statistical report is “Database full statistics” (adm2r001.w). It presents information on the number of bibliographic descriptions and the number of copies in the database, broken down by document type. Within each type of document, a second division into inventory books is performed. When creating a report for 2021, you should pay attention to what type of date is taken from the copy: whether it is the date of receipt (the date of adding the copy record to the database) or the date of registration (date of assigning the inventory number). Depending on the needs (precisely through the date set by the appropriate parameter), the report presents various data.

Collection module

The most important information for accountants is the information on the funds spent in the reporting year for the purchase of library materials (books, magazines, ITD (Other Types of Documents)). Using the Budgeting option and the “Budgets with a list of funds” report (aqu2r031.w) – you can obtain statistical information on the amount spent in 2021 per selected facility, broken down by document type and the amount spent, broken down monthly. When settling library vendors, you can use the “Budget Paid Vendors” report (aqu2r032.w).

Study module

In the Study module, the most frequently used report for reporting is the “Report of operators who create descriptions” (opr2r006.w). The report informs about the number of bibliographic descriptions created and modified during 2021. The Revision section contains, inter alia, information about the modified descriptions due to the change of JHPBN entries to Descriptors.

LKHW module

In the LKHW module – in 2021, a new statistical report was created – “Subject headings statistics” – launched with the use of the following procedure: subject-counts. The program counts the number of subject entries in the database with a breakdown into the type of password (eg DBN, KABA, Mesh, OTHER), type of file (passwords created by the library and downloaded from CKHW) and the wizard. In addition to counting passwords, the report also creates a detailed list of passwords.

Lending module

Lending module

The Lending Department is the module with the largest number of statistical reports. Most questions from libraries concern comparing the results of several reports. Please read the documentation before registering reports of non-compliance. Perhaps the reason for the inconsistency is a differently interpreted parameter or other assumptions for the report.

In 2021, the National Library asked public libraries for the first time to provide information on the gender and nationality of their readers. Fields have been created in the PROLIB system to collect this information. When providing data for a National Library about sex and nationality, the report – “List of readers” (read2r010.w) can be used.

There were also questions about borrowing specific types of documents. Example: The library has entered descriptions of board games. By using 2 reports: “Statistics on loan / share of audio documents” (ex2r029.w) and “Use of the book collection by inventory numbers” (ex2r032.w) it is possible to obtain information on the use of purchased games. Additionally, in the second report, “The use of the book collection ….” not only information about rentals, releases and renewals is printed, but also information about using it for reprographic orders (making a scan and photocopy) is provided on the copy.

Interesting statistical information is provided by the report “Usefulness of collections in the library for the calendar year” – performed with the use of the program – count-utility. Its task is to present the use of the entire collection in the library as a percentage. The report displays information on the number of copies borrowed / made available at least once in a calendar year. It also shows how many copies are in the database (excluding losses).

From version 2021.2.01 – readers can borrow e-books for 24 hours via the INTEGRO module. Statistical information about this very convenient for the reader form of borrowings, renewals and returns is included in the report “Statistics of e-books” (wyp2r061.w). This form of loans is pleasantly received by readers, mainly because the PROLIB system keeps an eye on the return date. The reader is not afraid of charging for detention.

Interlibrary Loan Module

Information on the number of interlibrary loans made by the library in 2021 can be found in the “Statistics for the period” report (rwm-rap-6.w). The report distinguishes 2 types of loans: Library Readers and Library Partners, i.e. cooperating institutions. The report breaks down all interlibrary loans into orders to / from domestic libraries and to / from foreign libraries.

Losses module

The most difficult thing is to agree information on the value of depleted documents in libraries where the book collection is in 2 currencies: PL and PLN. Depending on the report, the denomination is performed according to the act or according to the mathematical value. In some reports, the denomination is performed on each copy, and in others, once after summing up all the prices in PL. An example of a different operation of reports is “Statistics of depleted documents” (ubyt2r001.w) and “Value of the book collection including paper books” (ex2r054.w). In the first report, there is an additional option that allows you to print the value of losses according to the old prices. In the second report – the denomination is made on each copy.

Library catalog – INTEGRO module

The statistics of the INTEGRO module are printed in 2 places in the system. In the ADMINISTRATOR INTEGRO module – we get information about the number of search indexes used by the readers, while in the ADMINISTRATOR GUI module – with the “Catalog visit statistics” report (m21statwww.w) we get information about logged in and not logged in system users.

When analyzing the old and new statistical reports on WWW catalog visits (old OPAC WWW and new INTEGRO), the libraries noticed a significant difference in the number of catalog visitors. This is due to a different way of logging reader sessions. In INTEGRO, within a session, the reader is registered once, regardless of how many browser tabs he has opened. In the OPAC WWW, visits were recorded every time. In other words, each opening of the directory in a new tab resulted in the count of visits to the statistics. The INTEGRO statistics reflect the actual use of the library catalog.

We hope that the information provided will help you in compiling your annual statistics. An invaluable source of information about the operation of the system is our documentation, to which we refer to clarify doubts.