Cataloging for Consortial Collections: A Survey

ABSTRACT

Libraries face many challenges in making electronic resources accessible and discoverable. In particular, the exponentially incre-asing number of licensed and open access electronic resources and the dynamic nature of consortial collections (platform changes, title transference between packages, and package overlap) present challenges for cataloging and discovery. From March 21 to April 10, 2017, the authors performed a selected review of library literature and conducted a survey of library consortia worldwide to ascertain the cataloging models, strategies, and advanced technological tools used to ensure discovery of consortial collections. The findings from the literature review and survey are summarized in this article.     

“Insourcing” of Cataloging in a Consortial Environment: The UC Santa Barbara–UC San Diego Music Copy Cataloging Project

A collaborative cataloging project for music sound recordings between two University of California campuses matches available staffing at UC San Diego with the need for better access to a high-priority collection of audio CDs at UC Santa Barbara, with promising results. This article discusses the decision to collaborate, the project planning process, cataloging standards and workflow issues, network level cataloging within an international database (OCLC), communication between personnel on the two campuses, managing cataloging review, an assessment of the project's achievements to date, and implications and future directions for similar cooperative projects.     

SACO: Past,Present, and Future

Abstract

This article discusses the history and development of the SACO (Subject Authority Cooperative) Program of the Program for Cooperative Cataloging (PCC). The current proposal process is examined. The University of California, Davis Library is presented as a participating institution, with some forward-looking utilization of Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH).     

Cultivating the Cooperative: PCC,the Music Library Association,and the Music OCLC Users Group

Abstract

PCC and the Music Library Association (MLA) and Music OCLC Users Group (MOUG) have a long history of coordinating and collaborating on standards, best practices, and training of the music cataloging community. The impact of these collaborations on the formation and structure of the PCC is found throughout the organization, particularly in the PCC funnels, but also in the basic concept of a cooperative cataloging community. This article describes some of the MLA and MOUG cooperative efforts that have benefited and influenced the PCC.     

Outsourcing Copy Cataloging at Adelphi University Libraries

ABSTRACT

Adelphi University Libraries contracted to outsource copy cataloging and physical processing with Blackwell's Book Services in 1995. Since May 1996, 17,000 shelf-ready titles and over 16,000 catalog records have been received and loaded to our Innovative Interfaces OPAC. Costs, implementation, workflow, and benefits are discussed in this article. The outsourcing program, although hampered by staff shortages in the Libraries, has been highly successful in achieving enhanced cataloging and improved processing at reasonable costs.     

Defining Cataloging Ethics: Practitioner Perspectives

ABSTRACT

Catalogers often need to make ethical decisions about their daily work. What is the starting point for defining cataloging ethics and how do practitioners define the concept? In this paper, the authors explore definitions of ethics and cataloging ethics in the literature, and subsequently analyze responses to a question asking respondents to define cataloging ethics. Set against the existing backdrop of the American Library Association “Code of Ethics,” the authors propose that shared values create a framework for discussing cataloging ethics, rather than a single articulated definition.     

Empowering Student Assistants in the Cataloging Department through Innovative Training: The E-Learning Courseware for Basic Cataloging (ECBC) Project

ABSTRACT

This article investigates an innovative approach to training non-traditional employees, particularly student workers, in a library's cataloging department. The author presents guidelines and pedagogical aspects of designing e-learning courseware for basic cataloging training, reviews some challenges and difficulties encountered in the project, and introduces the content and structure of prototype 2 of the courseware. This e-learning courseware for basic cataloging can be adapted to facilitate the training of other groups of new staff in the cataloging department.     

“There was Sex but no Sexuality*:” Critical Cataloging and the Classification of Asexuality in LCSH

Abstract

This paper examines the addition of “asexuality” to the Library of Congress Subject Headings as a case study from which to examine the critical cataloging movement. Beginning with a review of some of the theoretical and practical issues around subject access for minoritized and marginalized sexualities, this paper then contextualizes, historicizes, and introduces the critical cataloging movement to the literature, situating it within a larger and longer history of radical cataloging. It will define critical cataloging as a social justice-oriented style of radical cataloging that places an emphasis on radical empathy, outreach work, and recognizes the importance of information maintenance and care. This paper introduces the concept of “catalogic warrant” to characterize the process of “reading” the catalog to examine the harm or benefit of terms on users and the wider library community.     

An Amicable Divorce: Programmatic Derivation of Faceted Data from Library of Congress Subject Headings for Music

Abstract

Music catalogers have embraced in current cataloging the flexibility, intuitiveness, and expressivity afforded by the Library of Congress’s new faceted vocabularies. In order to realize the full benefits to discovery these vocabularies offer, however, methods for programmatically assigning faceted terms retrospectively to existing metadata for music resources are required in order to mitigate the costs of manual enhancement of legacy data. This article describes efforts to repurpose existing Library of Congress Subject Headings as faceted data, taking advantage of recent developments in the MARC 21 formats. Limitations inherent to this process and ideas for future directions are described.     

The Cataloging Advisory Group

Abstract

Communication of public catalog issues throughout the University of Alabama Libraries has been and still is a major concern of the cataloging department. Many cataloging department heads hold the firm belief that improved user access to the libraries' collections can be provided through an improvement in the communication patterns between several key departments of the libraries and the catalog department. Through the input of a group of public service and collection development librarians, the department should be able to assess the time priorities for materials processing, resulting in a greater degree of probability that useful backlogs would be made accessible with a minimum of delay. As a cataloging department head, it is also my belief that a discussion of the cataloging process and the concerns of the catalogers could lead to more consistent and more efficient processing of materials. In November 1993 the Cataloging Advisory Group was formed as a one-year experiment in communication. Since that time the group has gone through numerous changes in both membership and charge but has continued to be one of the stronger discussion groups in the UA Libraries. The paper explores the group and its successes and failures during its six-year history.     

The Impact of Productivity and Quality of CJK Cataloging–A Brief Comparison Between CJK 2nd Edition and 3rd Edition

ABSTRACT

This report compares the features of the 2nd and 3rd editions of OCLC's CJK cataloging as implemented at the Chicago Public Library. The 3rd edition is faster for cataloging than the 2nd edition. Alternatively, the 2nd edition has other benefits including stability. Perspectives such as the quality of CJK cataloging between the 2nd and the 3rd edition are discussed also.     

The Cataloging of Self-Published Items

Abstract

This article presents the results of a 2015 survey of librarians who catalog self-published items. The survey was conducted in response to the growing popularity of self-publishing and the increasing prevalence of self-published items in libraries. Survey respondents were asked to describe how they are cataloging these items and to provide representative examples of the records they have created. An analysis of both the survey responses and the records is presented, followed by suggestions for best practices for cataloging these items.     

Public Services Satellite Cataloging Operations and Non-Print Backlogs

Abstract

Satellite cataloging operations using public services staff trained specifically to complete non-book cataloging are almost nonexistent or are very rarely written about in traditional library literature. A search of the literature provides little or no evidence of their existence. On the surface, they would appear to take more time, effort, and budget outlay to bring up and maintain. There are real advantages as well as some disadvantages to maintaining these operations. There is a risk as public services staff have a primary responsibility to provide public and reference services and very little time to catalog as well as eep up with the changes in cataloging rules and practice. But it can work with planning, organization, and cooperation between the departments and staff involved.     

Russian,Japanese, and Latin Oh My! Using Technology to Catalog Non-English Language Titles

Abstract

Nearly every library where the dominant language is English also has materials that are written in other languages. These materials can present unique challenges for catalogers. Many non-English language materials are located in the array of collections of the Special Collection Department of Mississippi State University (MSU). To properly process and catalog these materials, the cataloger used online tools which provided a greater understanding of the materials, allowing a higher cataloging standard. The author discusses the various tools and methods that were used to catalog these materials.     

Dealing with False Friends to Avoid Errors in Subject Analysis in Slavic Cataloging: An Overview of Resources and Strategies

ABSTRACT

This article discusses errors in subject analysis for Slavic materials due to “false friends,” words similar in form but different in meaning. An overview of false friends in Slavic languages is presented, followed by case studies demonstrating how false friends in book titles can lead to errors in subject analysis. We also review the resources that can assist Slavic catalogers in identifying false friends: print dictionaries, online lists, online translation tools, and records from the catalogs by the national libraries of countries of publication. Finally, implications for workflow in dealing with Slavic false friends in cataloging practice are discussed.     

From Council to Program: Creating the Program for Cooperative Cataloging

Abstract

By early 1994, the Cooperative Cataloging Council had created the framework for a Program for Cooperative Cataloging to put its principles and goals into action, but much remained to be done. Decisions taken in the months ahead regarding standards, training, uses of technology and the future of existing cooperative programs would be crucial in gaining buy-in from catalogers and administrators, and determining whether the PCC would achieve the goals of better, cheaper, faster, and more cataloging.     

The Program for Cooperative Cataloging: Backstory and Future Potential

Abstract

In 1988 the Library of Congress and eight library participants undertook a two-year pilot known as the National Coordinated Cataloging Program (NCCP) to increase the number of quality bibliographic records. Subsequently the Bibliographic Services Study Committee reviewed the pilot. Discussions held at the Library of Congress (LC) and in other fora resulted in the creation of the Cooperative Cataloging Council, and, ultimately, the establishment of the Program for Cooperative Cataloging (PCC) in 1994. The conditions that contributed to a successful approach to shared cataloging are described. The article concludes with considerations for expanding the future effectiveness of the PCC.     

Text Mining and Subject Analysis for Fiction; or,Using Machine Learning and Information Extraction to Assign Subject Headings to Dime Novels

Abstract

This article describes multiple experiments in text mining at Northern Illinois University that were undertaken to improve the efficiency and accuracy of cataloging. It focuses narrowly on subject analysis of dime novels, a format of inexpensive fiction that was popular in the United States between 1860 and 1915. NIU holds more than 55,000 dime novels in its collections, which it is in the process of comprehensively digitizing. Classification, keyword extraction, named-entity recognition, clustering, and topic modeling are discussed as means of assigning subject headings to improve their discoverability by researchers and to increase the productivity of digitization workflows.