Also, one of several forms of a word retrieved when the truncated stem is used as a search term in a keywords search, for example, the terms videocassette, videodisc, videorecording, and videotape retrieved by truncating "video," as in video* or video$.

From the beginning, the library included not only Bibles and works on theology and canon law but also secular works, particularly the Greek and Latin classics, which the popes collected in texts as close to the original as they could find. During the Renaissance, the Vatican Library became a center of classical culture in Europe, and its librarians were often distinguished scholars. It continues to be one of the great libraries of the Western world, attracting scholars of all nationalities to its collections of important historical documents and rare and fine books (see this photograph of the interior). The online exhibition Rome Reborn: The Vatican Library & Renaissance Culture is sponsored by the Library of Congress. Click here to connect to the homepage of the Vatican Library.

In archives, a completely secure and fire-safe enclosure for storing valuable documents or essential records. Access is restricted to a few authorized persons and environmental controls may be maintained for conservation (see this example).

Because vellum is made from the entire unsplit skin, tiny marks of hair follicles are visible on one side. Highly durable, vellum has a tendency to curl toward the grain side under conditions of low humidity. Click here to see a close-up of a vellum leaf from a 15th-century illuminated gradual (Leaves of Gold) and here to see a 14th-century French psalter and Book of Hours in grisaille on vellum (Metropolitan Museum of Art). Capable of taking a rich, dark impression from type, vellum has long been used by private presses to produce a few special copies of an edition (click here to see one of 13 copies of the Kelmscott Chaucer printed on vellum). See also: Japanese vellum, purple vellum, and vellum binding.

Also refers to a manuscript written on the material and to a fine-quality off-white paper made to resemble the membrane.

In a more general sense, any individual, company, or agency, other than a publisher, that provides products and/or services to a library or library system for a fee. A distinction is normally made between book vendors (booksellers, dealers, jobbers, etc.) and serials vendors (subscription agents, continuation dealers, etc.). A vendor may also provide automated customer services such as management reports and electronic transmission of bibliographic or invoice data. The term is also used for businesses that specialize in developing and marketing library systems, such as online catalog software and library management systems. Click here to view the AcqWeb directory of library publishers and vendors.

In a sacred text, such as the Bible, one or more sentences forming a division of a chapter, usually numbered for reference.

In computer software, a specific upgrade of an operating system or application program, usually indicated by a decimal number following the title, for example, 5.0 to indicate a significant upgrade, 5.1 a modification containing routine enhancements, and 5.11 a follow-up, perhaps to correct a minor bug in the previous version. As a general rule, there is greater risk in purchasing version 1.0 of a software program than in purchasing subsequent versions.

Although young adult males remain the primary audience in this multi-billion dollar business, studies confirm a broadening of the market to include more males aged 25-40 and females. Video games may be distributed on physical media, such as DVDs and CDs; as Internet-downloadable files; via online delivery services; or as freely redistributable software. Created by game developers, video games may be published independently or by commercial publishers.

Also refers to a circular or oval image without a border, the edges of the background gradually shading into the blank space of the page, a technique widely used in portraits, photographs, and engravings of the 18th and 19th centuries. Click here to see a 19th-century hand-colored daguerreotype vignette portrait, courtesy of the Getty Museum.

In literature and history, a sketch characterized by conciseness of style and delicacy of feeling, which gives a brief but poignant impression of a scene, character, or situation, without elements of plot or factual detail. A vignette can be part of a longer work.

The term digital library is more appropriate because virtual (borrowed from "virtual reality") suggests that the experience of using such a library is not the same as the "real" thing when in fact the experience of reading or viewing a document on a computer screen may be qualitatively different from reading the same publication in print, but the information content is the same regardless of format.

Also refers to the official records of births, deaths, and marriages maintained by an agency of local, state, or national government. The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) provide a Web site on Where to Write for Vital Records in the United States. Synonymous with vital statistics. See also: civil register.

In the physical sense, all the written or printed matter contained in a single binding, portfolio, etc., as originally issued or bound subsequent to issue (AACR2). Often used synonymously, in this sense, with book. Volume as material entity does not necessarily coincide with volume as bibliographic entity (see multipart volume).

Also refers to the loudness of the sound(s) produced by a receiver (radio or television) or an electronic playback machine (phonograph, audiocassette or CD player, VCR, etc.), usually regulated by a volume control device that can be manipulated by the listener.

In archives and records management, the amount of materials in a collection or record series, usually expressed in cubic feet or as an item count (sometimes both).