The traditional international COBISS conferences organised by IZUM provide an opportunity for librarians and information specialists from Slovenia and other countries connected within the COBISS.net network to exchange professional know-how, opinions and experiences.
The COBISS 2024 conference was the 24th in a row and took place on 23 and 24 October 2024 under the familiar slogan Working Together to Build Confidence in Science.
The international two-day event was organised both live and online and was attended by over 700 participants from 11 countries: some of them in IZUM’s hall in Maribor and some remotely via Zoom. We hosted 34 speakers from Slovenia and abroad.
Artificial intelligence was put at the forefront, because it is undoubtedly our new reality, silently creeping into every pore of our professional and private lives. Despite the incredible speed of technological development, we are aware of the need to find technological solutions that are suitable for all people, including individuals from vulnerable groups. We have demonstrated how the development of the new generation of COBISS software is progressing and that individual applications (COBISS+, COBISS Lib, COBISS Cat, COBISS Ela) are being improved in close cooperation with librarians. Experience also shows that the number of loans of e-materials and e-books is growing, but at the same time we should not forget that the future of the digital society depends on higher level reading skills, critical thinking and deeper understanding. We demonstrated how to help lay and professional users alike when using library services, and pointed out that it is the responsible behaviour of individuals and institutions that counts the most when facing threats in cyberspace. The theoretical contribution on the new models of bibliographic data, which are already being implemented in other countries and which we want to catch up with, was also of utmost importance.
We would like to thank everyone who participated in the COBISS 2024 conference. We look forward to welcoming you back in two years’ time. Until then, all the best in your future endeavours.
Dr. Aleš Bošnjak
director
CONFERENCE