The Role of Classification in Subject Retrieval in the Future

It always seems befitting that the last speaker at a conference should gaze at a crystal ball and predict the future of the subject that has been discussed; I feel I should quote Confucius by saying that I do not invent, but transmit. In the last ten years, since the Elsinore Conference on Classification Research, classification theory and practice have produced a large body of literature and contributed to meetings such as this one. Major futuristic works, especially Classification in the 1970's, which was published early in this decade, provide the reader with a clear insight of what the future holds for each topic covered. J. Mills states of Bliss's Bibliographic Classification that "as a library classification scheme per se, the prospect is clear and bright," but "from the point of view of its future use, the prospect is less predictable." Bibliographic Classification (BC) is being revised because some ninety libraries use it and need a revised edition. Presently, no BC class numbers are provided from centralized cataloging services such as British National Bibliography, MARC tapes, etc. However, Mills asserts that if demand warrants it: "This might involve the development of a 'switching language' whereby the subject analysis and description implicit in the production of PRECIS index entries . . . could be translated quickly and economically into BC numbers."published or submitted for publicatio