Today the combined stocks of
"the great library of Russia" number more than 31
million items, almost a sixth of which are in foreign languages.
Every year this repository takes in more than half a million new
publications: books, albums, brochures, periodicals, newspapers,
leaflets and new examples of printed fine art. Today as before,
the library has a right to a statutory copy of any publication
issued in the country, but many works are also acquired by
purchase or subscription, and also through exchanges with Russian
and foreign libraries, establishments of learning and publishing
centers. Some seven thousand publications are donated to the
library each year by different individuals and organizations.
Each year the library welcomes almost 1.5 million readers, more
than half of whom are scholars or specialists in particular
fields. A whole system of reading rooms has been created for them
with a present day capacity of 1,390 places. One of the rooms is
exclusively for the use of children and teenagers. The number of
publications supplied to readers in the course of the year is
currently over 11 million.
Work
on the computerization of the library began in 1987,
prompted by the requirements of the stage it had reached
in its development. At present the library has about 200
computers joined together in networks which make it
possible to supply readers and other users with various
kinds of informational services. The ultimate goal of
this long-term project is the creation of a National
Library information center as the hub of a network
covering the city, the region and Russia as a whole.
