There is considered the Federal Law of the Russian Federation of 03.07.2016 no. 342-FZ “On the Amendments to the Federal Law ‘On Librarianship’ in part of creation of the Federal State Infor-mation System ‘National Electronic Library’ ” (NEL). This law creates the legal basis for the functioning of the new state information system NEL. There are analyzed the provisions of the Federal law defining the notion of the “Federal State Information System ‘National Electronic Library’ ”, Regulations on the NEL objects, NEL participants, NEL online catalogue, etc. Separately considered the functions and authority of the operator of NEL - the Russian State Library. Statistics on the current phase of NEL operation is provided.

Standardization of library products and services is an effective way of methodical support of activities in the area of electronic resources and information technologies. System of Standards on Infor-mation, Librarianship and Publishing (SIBID) includes 93 standards, operating on interstate and national levels within the Russian Federation, and Russian translations of the ISO standards. Analysis of the national standards demonstrates that the most actively developing terminology is associated with the innovative directions in libraries’ activities. The main trend of SIBID is the development of standards describing the objects and technology of the digital environment. To disadvantages of the standards system belong the obsolescence of terminology and description of technology, as well as discord with the legislation of the Russian Federation. The improvement of the efficiency of use of standards in library operations requires the following actions: rethinking of approaches to the further development of the national system of standards for libraries; development of the integrated plan of standardization based on expertise of the operating standards; and methodical support of their implementation and usage.

Strengthening of the role of cultural and human capital in the life of society raises research interest not only to the essence and content of these concepts, but also contributes to the development of librarianship discourse of this issue. The important role of libraries associated with the preservation of cultural heritage, on the one hand, and their increasing importance in the knowledge management system, on the other hand, make libraries the key part in the structure of formation and sustainable development of cultural and human capital. The results of generalized analysis of the research study on this topic demonstrate the underesti-mation of the role of libraries in social life. Detailed study of some evaluation tools in the form of indicators, indices and indexes, ever-existing, regularly performed or specially developed for the particular purpose, has allowed to analyze them from the point of view of inclusion of the elements of cultural and human capital, as well as the possibilities for evaluating the activities of public libraries of the Ministry of Culture of the Russian Federation. For this purpose were used the results of the study related to the implementation of the Project “Cultural Map of Russia. Literature. Reading” at participation of the Russian Library Association. Comparison of the data obtained with the use of these instruments demonstrates the need to develop special integrative indicators to assess the development of cultural and human capital, as well as the role of libraries in this process and strengthening of librarianship discourse of the perspective of cultural, natural and human capital for sustainable development. Methodological basis of this discourse is in the grounds of postnonclassical science.

The article examines the activities of the Internet Archive (USA), popular e-library with open access priority, a pioneer in the field of humanitarian applications of the advanced information and communication technologies. Internet Archive - is a part of broader democratic movement for the freedom of information on the Internet, coupled with the initiatives of the use of open access license to the software, as well as the transfer to the society of the copyright for creative product with the possibility of its further development. There is analyzed the social and cultural importance of systematic archiving of the Web (copies of web pages, video and audio recording, TV news, etc.) in the context of formation of the global electronic civilization, focused on the promotion of transient data with a high citation rating. There is considered the new format of providing information services to the global audience in the field of digital archeology (Archive-It service), as well as in the field of library services (Open Library service, an electronic catalog-pointer to 23 million books from over 150 repositories). The development of the Internet Archive is considered as the original strategy of informatization of know-ledge; there is described the operation of its core projects and services (digital book repository, electronic pointer catalog, media collection, etc.) in the context of infrastructure development of the Information Society.

The article analyzes the problems of the modern libraries, which are characterized by the signi-ficant decline in attendance and search for new forms of the work with readers. There are described some methods to improve the user activity in public and University libraries; the greatest prospects are connected with the use of information technology. There are presented the classical information and library services, as well as the services based on the advanced query technology. It is stated that on the basis of this techno-logy there can be created a number of the unique services not only for academic and research activities, but for pedagogical work as well. There is proposed the technology of analyzing site traffic from the computers in reading rooms, as well as variations of implementation of pedagogical information and library services at the examples of actual problems of terrorism and drug addiction.

The article deals with the topical issues in the field of reading, literacy and readers competence in connection with the 10th anniversary of adoption of the National Program for Reading Promotion and Development in Russia. It examines modern conceptual terminology and definitions in this area. The English term literacy has broadened its meaning adding new types of literacy, scope and duration of its use, incorporating the term “reading”. Special attention is paid to some modern theories of reading (factor, deictic and disruptive innovations). A modern practice called blended learning includes both reading from print and reading from screen. Two models of innovation development (sustainable and disruptive) describe human activities. The conditions of appearance, criteria for becoming a phenomenon, indicators of success and tools for operating disruptive innovations are presented on the example of reading. The National Program for Reading Promotion and Development as well as the international studies of reading of 10- and 15-year-old students (Progress in International Reading Literacy Study (PIRLS) and Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA)) are the examples of innovative phenomena. The strategy of development is focused on the qualitative teaching of reading/literacy from screen and its inclusion in the process of learning.

The article introduces the work of the Round table “Who and why need a program supporting children and youth reading?”, held on 3 December, 2016 at the National Library of Russia in the framework of the International Scientific-Practical Conference “Reading: Diversity of Opportunities” at the 5th St. Petersburg International Cultural Forum. The event participants discussed the Concept of establishing the National program for support of children and youth reading in the Russian Federation. Experts in the field of culture and education expressed their suggestions for inclusion in the National program for support of children and youth reading. It was stated the need for the development and adoption of such a document at the government level.

For the first time there is restored the history of the Prague Publishing house “Volia Rossii” (Will of Russia) whose books and publications are considered among the best in the Russian Abroad. There is presented the role of the magazine “Volia Rossii” in the publisher’s activity and the influence on it of the Socialist-Revolutionary Party. There is given thematic and typological analysis of the publishing products, described the most famous editions of “Volia Rossii”: “The Truth about Kronstadt”, “ ‘The Green Book’: the History of the Peasant Movement in the Black Sea Province”, G.N. Rakovsky “The End of the White”, B.F. Sokolov “Save the Children”, “Russians in Prague, 1918-1928”, V.M. Chernov “Constructive Socialism”, N.A. Bezpalov “Confessions of the GPU Agent”. For the first time there is provided information on the management of the publishing house and on many well-known authors. There are traced legal and illegal ways of distribution in the exile and in the homeland of the newspaper, magazine, books and brochures of the “Volia Rossii” Publishing house.

The review of the Catalogue of books from the Library of King Sigismund II Augustus (1520-1572), stored in the holdings of the National Library of Russia (NLR), published in 2015, presents it as the result of years-long cooperation of bibliographers of the National library of Poland and the NLR. The compilers of the Catalog: from the Russian side - M.I. Tkachenko, on the Polish side - M. Brynda. Highly acclaimed is professional introduction to the Catalogue, considering in detail the history of this book collection and the results of its reconstruction. Additional value to the publication is given by the auxiliary indexes to the catalog, which provide the abi-lity to use it as a reference on the history of books of the 16th century (index of names; index of printers, publishers and booksellers; provenance index, concordance of the obsolete and new shelfmarks and inventory numbers; concordance of shelfmarks from the handwritten inventory of the library in Zhovkva (1699) with the numbers in this catalog). Publication of the Catalogue should be regarded as another step towards the full reconstruction of the Royal Library.

From the middle of the 18th century till 1918 Orenburg was a major military centre that in many respects defined its socio-cultural space. Training of personnel for local offices and service in garrison was carried out during that time by several military educational institutions in the city. Due to the historical circumstances, so far have survived not many documents telling both about educational institutions themselves and on their educational support divisions, including libraries. The aim of this work is generalization of the currently available materials on the history of libraries of the military schools of Orenburg. Some of the documents are introduced for scientific use for the first time.

The history of opening and the first years of operation of the oldest public library in the North Caucasus - Stavropol Regional Universal Scientific Library named after M.Y. Lermontov - are described on the materials of the regional periodicals of the second half of 19th - early 20th century. Publications in the newspapers “Stavropol Gubernsky Vedomosti” and “North Caucasus” contribute to the reveal of history of librarianship in Stavropol Region from the multidiscipline standpoint and enable to fully re-present the process of interaction between public authorities, libraries and society as a whole. Analysis of library report records and notes on their activities, which were published in the local press, clearly shows not only the dynamics of the formation of collections, expansion of readership, but also the preferences of “the reading public”.

The Code of Ethics for Librarians and other Information Workers, posted on the IFLA official website, is offered as a series of ethical propositions for the guidance of individual librarians, as well as other information workers. It can also serve as a model reference document for consideration of National associations when creating or revising their own Codes of ethics. There are described the functions of Codes of Ethics: Encouraging reflection on principles on which librarians and other information workers can form common ethical standards, rules and policies; Improving professional self-awareness; Providing transpa-rency and openness to users and society in general. In the Preamble there are set forth the basic principles of the Code. The document includes the following sections: Access to information; Responsibilities towards individuals and society; Privacy, secrecy and transparency; Open access and intellectual property; Neutrality, personal integrity and professional skills; Colleague and employer/ employee relationship. For further study of the question there is provided a number of literary sources.

The article discusses the “Ulwazi” (“Knowledge”) Program, which became the first library project in South Africa, aimed at collecting and documenting of the intangible cultural heritage and being realized thanks to the coordinating activities of the Central library of the municipality of eThekwini (Durban) and the active participation of indigenous communities. The author reveals the concept of the project; among its core objectives are the creation of a collaborative online database on the traditional Zulu culture (in both English and Zulu) as part of the information and digital resources of the public libraries of the district, and the growth of digital literacy skills of the local population. The article describes the library network of eThekwini, the main activities of public libraries in the framework of the project implementation, and the difficulties they had to face, as well as the structure of the “Ulwazi” web site, developed on the basis of Web 2.0 technology that allows to involve a large number of users in the creation and distribution of content. Special attention is paid to the social importance of the project contributing to the preservation and promotion of traditional Zulu culture, bridging the digital divide and building a tolerant society.

The article describes staffing situation in the Russian libraries. It is posed the problem of harmonization of the requirements for library professionals between employers, practicing librarians, edu-cational organizations and the government bodies in the library sector. The proposed solution of the pro-blem is the development of professional standards. The paper exposes the experience in the design of professional standards for “Library and Information Work Specialist” and “Teacher-Librarian”. There are characterized the objective prerequisites, the basic conceptual provisions of the standardization of library and information activity, experience in the development of draft documents on a proactive basis and on the basis of the state contract for execution of works. Comparative analysis of two projects in the terms of selection and description of job functions and work activities, requirements to skills and knowledge of specialists, to the educational status of librarians is conducted. There is made the conclusion that libra-rian is a unique and intellectual profession which requires the specialized education. There are defined the prospects of development of additional professional education in the library sphere in accordance with the requirements of professional standards: interaction of educational institutions engaged in training of librarians with libraries in the implementation of programs of improvement of professional skill growth and professional retraining of library staff on the basis of application of information, communication and distance learning technologies.

Today special libraries of Russia successfully master such area of activity as support of accessible tourism. However, this work has mainly mono-aspectual character, sometimes stochastic in nature, often is limited to tour-therapy. Informational-methodical and bibliographic thematic support is provided much less, and is almost missing the consultative component. The article describes an interesting experience of the Stavropol Regional Library for the Blind and Visually Impaired named after Vladimir Mayakovsky; on its basis in 2015 there was established the special-purpose structural division - Information and Advisory Support Center of Accessible Tourism “Invatourinfo”. The main goal of the Center is implementation of comprehensive informational and advisory activities in the area of tourism for the people with disabilities. The work of the Centre has poly-aspectual and algoristic character. The main principles underlying the activities of “Invatourinfo” are: integrity, continuity, adaptability and comprehensiveness. Special attention is paid to the principle of comprehensiveness, which is manifested in the ongoing functions and services of the Center, which include: research, informational and methodical, informational and bibliographic, advisory, educational, and tour-therapeutic services. This integrated approach allows to more clearly and fully incorporate the activities of “Invatourinfo” in the work of the library as a whole, and to ensure the coherence of goals of different levels. As a result, the Center is regarded as a coherent subsystem of the library system, and the activities of the Center on accessible tourism - as systemic.

In the fall of 2016, the Russian State Library for Young Adults (RSLYA) celebrated the 50-year anniversary of its creation. The article describes the current state of system of library servicing of youth, activities of RSLYA as the chief scientific and methodical centre for work with young people in the public libraries of Russia. There are presented the speeches of participants, described the events conducted on 12-13 October under the International scientific and methodical conference “Formation of the Innovative Potential of Young People and the Library”.

The roundtable discussion “Prospects of formation of the bibliographic repertoire of Russian books and periodicals” was held on 27 October, 2016 at the Russian State Library. There were made and discussed presentations devoted to creation of the “Union catalogue of Russian books 1801-1825”, possible ways of formation of the repertoire of Russian books 1826-1917, and implementation of the project on creation of database of the repertoire of Russian journals and continued editions 1728-1917.