The central purpose of Richard Hyman's ""Information Access"" is to explore the effectiveness of the tools available for constructing and verifying catalogue records. Hyman asserts that a basic understanding of the practical and logical limitations in bibliographic records is essential for effective search and retrieval. Hyman begins by discussing historical methods or organizing information, then examines established principles of bibliographic organization for both printed records and automated sources. Moving from theory to practice, he also discusses issues such as the type of bibliographic data most readily available from printed sources compared to automated sources, and when a combination of the two is necessary.