Established in 1967, the library now holds about 52,000 volumes of literature, making it the largest computer science library in Finland. The annual cumulation is about 1,200 monographic titles and 300 journal subscriptions. The floor area is 408 sq. meters including a reading room of 60 seats. Admission to the premises is free and collections are freely available to all visitors. Home loans, however, are normally granted only to university personnel and advanced students of the department (for exceptions, consult the library staff).
To help users search and locate the required literature, the library maintains a www-browsable database of its holdings (http://www.cs.helsinki.fi/kirjasto/ ). The database includes all journal titles and about 37,000 monographic titles, classified according to the CR Classification System of the ACM. The library is also responsible for the distribution of departmental reports, including Ph.D. theses. Paper copies may be requested from the library, and electronic versions are accessible through the department's FTP server.
The library has two full-time employees, one librarian and one secretary, assisted in their work by a library committee comprising of several members of the faculty. Any inquires to the library are welcome by post, telex, telephone or e-mail (library@cs.helsinki.fi ).