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Librarians have been classifying for years and perhaps we can look to their definitions. L.M. Harrod (comp.) The Librarians' Glossary, 4th ed, 1976. (sorry about the age of my copy at least it accommodates Stuart's suggestion that the meaning has become corrupted over time!) Classification: 1. The arrangement of things in logical order according to their degrees of likeness, especially the assignment of books to their proper place in a scheme of book classification. 2. A scheme for the arrangement of books and other material in a logical sequence according to subject or form. 3. A "coding" system within which the series of symbols indicating a concept, or semantemes, are subject to certain order relationships. 4. Any method of recognising relations, generic or other, between items of information, regardless of the degree of hierarchy used and whether those methods are applied din connection with traditional or computerized information systems - the definition adopted in the terms of reference of the FID Committee on Classification Research (FID/CR) in 1973. Regards, Susan Susan Mansfield Records Manager Corporate Services Directorate Scottish Enterprise 150 Broomielaw 5 Atlantic Quay Glasgow G2 8LU Direct Line: 0141 228 2468 Fax 0141221 3217 E-mail: [log in to unmask] <mailto:[log in to unmask]> ________________________________ From: The UK Records Management mailing list on behalf of Stuart Orr Sent: Wed 06/09/2006 7:58 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Definition of Classification Paul I used to work in the Old Bailey and your question about classification reminds me of those lawyers that insisted a witness replied either Yes or No to a question that could not be answered so simply. I therefore do not think my response will win your lollipop. Classification is simply grouping things systematically. The latter element is the bit that is usually missing in records management classifications I have seen. Aristotle talked about classes or categories: "...a category was like [a] container with things either inside or outside the container...the properties the things inside the container had in common were what defined the category" (Taylor. 'The organisation of information'). Bowker & Starr talking about classification in its broadest sense described it as "...a set of boxes (metaphorical or literal) into which things can be put to do some kind of work - bureaucratic or knowledge production...". Various people of the past twenty years have suggested that records managers have misunderstood and misused the term classification and I think that was right and is still in part right. Much older US and UK literature seems to have used the word to describe filing order. Two of the classic principles of classification are firstly that each scheme (or at least each level in a hierarchical scheme) should be based on a single classificatory principle, such as classification by size, and secondly that the classes should be mutually exclusive. These elements are frequently missing and the schemes fail to add value. Stuart Orr ______________________________________________________________________ Scottish Enterprise Network http://www.scottish-enterprise.com Address and Contact Numbers 150 Broomielaw 5 Atlantic Quay Glasgow G2 8LU. Tel: +44 (0)141 248 2700. Fax: +44 (0)141 221 3217 Message is sent in confidence for the addressee only. It may contain legally privileged information. The contents are not to be disclosed to anyone other than the addressee. Unauthorised recipients are requested to preserve this confidentiality and to advise the sender immediately of any error in transmission.