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62 ORGANIZACIJA ZNANJA 2014, LETN. 19, ZV. 2 COBISS.Net network and the free exchange of biblio- graphic records, created in autonomous library informa- tion systems of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Republic of Macedonia, Slovenia and Serbia (2003) on behalf of the Bulgarian libraries. The work on con- verting the library database into the COMARC format started two years later. The preparation of conversion tables for the COMARC format took about two years. The main problem of convert- ing the records was the absence of an international format during their creation. There were difficulties of different nature – from different cataloguing solutions that were not consistent over time to the absence of indicators and the lack of repetition of subfields in CDS/ISIS. A solution had to be found for all these deficiencies. This took place in close cooperation between the experts from IZUM and the National Library. As a result of that, 820,000 bibliographic records were converted at that time. In the COBISS.BG database, there are currently over 900,000 records in the COMARC format. Since 2010, the National Library has been practically involved in the creation and exchange of bibliographic records through the COBISS.Net network. Being theoretically familiar with UNIMARC, the experts from the National Library have not only been applying the COMARC format, but have also had suggestions for its improvement. Development of the COMARC format The COMARC format is pragmatically oriented. It was created on the basis of UNIMARC but it uses only the fi- elds necessary at the particular moment of the cataloguing practice. Such development of COMARC was appropria- te because the system was designed for and implemented in the libraries in Yugoslavia. In 2003, an Agreement was signed between the former Yugoslav republics for establi- shing the COBISS.Net network for the free exchange of bibliographic records created by their autonomous library information systems. They continued following common cataloguing principles and rules, due to the fact that up to a certain period they were part of the same state and the development of librarianship and cataloguing, in parti- cular, was unified. This uniformity is an advantage of the COBISS system. A need for change occurred when The National Library of Bulgaria joined the system and began working on the conversion of bibliographic records in the COMARC format. Although the cataloguing practice in Bulgaria is close to that of the other countries participating in the COBISS.Net network, it still has its special features. The rules for creating name access points (Лютова, A. Г. ( Lyutova, A. D.), et. al. eds ., 1989, pp. 40–41) led to creating a solution, which was to add new fields in blocks 7XX and 9XX in COMARC/B (COMARC/B format za bibliografske podatke: priročnik za uporabnike, 2008) and block 7XX in COMARC/A (COMARC/A format za normativne podatke: priročnik za uporabnike, 2008). Block 5XX of COMARC/B is very well developed, but the field 545, called Section title, which exists in UNIMARC, can be added. According to the definition "This field contains the title of a general section in which a piece-analytic being cata- logued is contained." According to the UNIMARC model for component parts "This could be a section for only one issue or a section that occurs repeatedly in issues of journal." The presence of such a field would make the information in the bibliographic record more precise and describe the listed documents in more detail. The COBISS.Net network is a system which has already brought together 7 countries and the idea is for it to conti- nue expanding. It is important which approach should be adopted when developing such unified systems. When adapting and developing the communication format based on UNI- MARC, a decision should be made whether to include only fields necessary up to that stage or to include a maxi- mum number of fields, so that no additional changes are necessary in case any future problems arise. The UNIMARC format is constantly evolving in relati- on to the overall regulatory basis of cataloguing and the development of information technologies. The increa- sing worldwide unification in this area inevitably leads to common directions for the development of formats; however, countries such as Bulgaria, which do not have sufficient financial resources, cannot follow the deve- lopment of the UNIMARC format. Until recently, the format was available online, and we were able to track changes. This way of access is no longer available, which limits its accessibility and affects its popularity. UNIMARC has a lot of advantages, among which the following stand out: • UNIMARC reflects the international experience in the electronic cataloguing of documents. • UNIMARC was created following the general prin- ciples and at the same time including the specifics of national libraries and bibliographic agencies in order to ensure the international exchange of bibliographic data in machine-readable format. • UNIMARC is the most modern and best-structured Nadia Karachodjukova: THE IMPROVEMENT OF THE COMARC FORMAT ...