Cataloging Committee Minutes – August 7, 2023

Sage Cataloging Committee Meeting

Meeting Minutes – August 7, 2023

Recording link: https://vimeo.com/852841828?share=copy

Attendees (14)

Lisa Hauner (OTLD – Chair), John Brockman (Baker), Perry Stokes (Baker), Beth Ross (Sage), Jon George (Sage), Beulah Carroll (Ontario), Valeria Gardner (Ontario), Christina Ostberg (Grant Co.), Dea Nowell (UCSLD), Heather Culley (Pendleton), Linda Beck (Harney), Sarah Samuels (Hood River), Mary Reser (Grant Co.), Corina Cameron (Wasco Co.), Tracy Hayes (Lake Co.)

June Minutes

Tracy Hayes moved to accept the June minutes as written. John Brockman seconded the motion. June minutes were approved.

New Business

Lisa reminded everyone to send in their votes for the best meeting time, whether we keep it the same or change the date and/or time so as many as possible would be able to attend.

New Cat 1 and Cat 2

Hurrahs and congrats were given to our new Cat 2, Linda Beck (Harney) and our new Cat 1, Heather Culley (Pendleton)!

Templates

There are templates available in Evergreen to use when creating new bibs. We have templates for Audiobook CDs, BluRay DVDs, Books, Book Club Kits, DVDs, Kits, Library of Things, Music CDs, Realia, and Serials. There is a template for TempRecords at the bottom of the drop box of templates that is not used often, nor would we encourage it to be used. TempRecords have specific situations they are used for. More about them later. If you have any trouble filling in the template fields, please contact your mentor or a fellow cataloger. Just remember to check the templates before creating a new bib.

Quick Reports

Jon stated that this feature is no longer available for use. Evergreen no longer supports it. The reports module is in the process of being redesigned and Quick Reports will be removed. Regular reports are still available.

Pre-cat records

These are records that are not connected to any specific bib record and are used when a library wants to check out an item before it’s cataloged, in the case of a patron wishing to check the item out immediately. Anytime you try to check out with a barcode that has not been attached to a bib record, the system will give you a pop-up prompt to make a Pre-cat record for immediate checkout. The problem is that these records are not completed upon check-in, leaving them floating around in the system and making trouble for stat reports that Beth needs to make.

When a Pre-cat record is checked back in, it gives an alert message: “This item needs to be routed to Cataloging” and changes the status to “Cataloging” and the location becomes “Stacks”. These items then need to be transferred to an existing bib record or a newly imported one. Lisa and John demonstrate this procedure in the recording. Printed instructions will be provided by Dea for placing on the website.

Corina asked if we could also attach the item to a new record and just delete the pre-cat? The answer is yes, but any previous circulation history would not transfer with the item.

Linda asked if there was a way to make a list of these records that need to be fixed specifically for your library. The answer was yes, Jon and Beth will run these reports and contact the owning libraries.

It was also noted that any barcode that was mis-scanned while cataloging will be in the system by that mis-scan, therefore, when the item is then scanned correctly, that barcode will be presented as not cataloged or missing. Please remember to correctly catalog any pre-cats as soon as possible. Reach out to mentors for help with putting pre-cat records into full bibs, if needed.

Library of Things (Specifically)

There has been a new category added to the Sage Library System : Stats Checkout Category for our Library of Things items. The dropdown now features “Other” when editing and/or attaching new Library of Things in your Holdings Editor. Your item will not save without this box filled. This is required for State stats reports.

Item Holdings Templates

There is more than one way to create or edit an item template. Besides the direct way described in the Niche Academy lesson for creating templates, you can also access this feature through your Holdings Editor. There is a tab on the Edit Holdings screen on the upper left, directly under the “Bib Call #” in the Record Summary called “Item Templates”. This tab allows you to edit an existing template or create a new one for your holdings. See the Template tutorial here: https://my.nicheacademy.com/sagelibrarysystem/course/53361

Using the Enhanced and Flat Text Editor

Catalogers are encouraged to use both sides while editing their records. Both have advantages to make the process more efficient and easier. The enhanced side, by right-clicking on each field, will give you the description of the contents that should be entered which can, in turn, be checked for more information from the Bibliographic Formats and Standards resource: https://www.oclc.org/bibformats/en.html You can also add a field either before or after the field you are in or delete it entirely. You can right-click on each indicator box and see what each is used for and select the one you need. The help button will tell you how to navigate. With practice, the enhanced side is a great tool.

The Flat text editor is good to visually ensure that all the fields are lining up correctly, to double check your work on the enhanced side, and to copy and paste larger sections of the record.

LCGFT Terms

Always authorize as LCGFT terms are updated frequently. https://id.loc.gov/authorities/genreForms.html and to make sure the correct vocabulary is being used. (ie. Picture books, and not Picture book.)

The second indicator should be 7 – the majority of the time.  

Second indicator 4 needs to be authorized and upgraded to a second indicator 7 or removed. 

2 exceptions to the rule, currently (Sage Specific Practices, page 7): 

655 \0$aYoung adult fiction. 

655 \0$aYoung adult literature. 

Note: 690’s are not ‘catch-alls.’ Sage has 3 approved 690 local subject added entries (Sage Specific Practices, page 8

Yes: =690 \4 $aOregon authors. 

Yes: =690 \4 $aRead alongs. 

Yes: =690 \4 $aBook club kits.     *Use the BookClubKit template* 

No: Every other local heading that isn’t for Sage. Please remove. 

https://sagestaff.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/12/SageSpecificPractices20221230.docx

Diacritics

Please check any record considered for import for weird symbols or characters. These are called diacritics and they need to be cleaned up and edited to the correct symbols for our catalog. This can be very time-consuming and difficult to catch throughout the record. Many foreign language records will have these and you can check the Spanish cataloging guide (page 8, Diacritics) on the Sage Cataloging Resource page. It has a partial ‘code breaker’.  It’s best to find a record, even if it is not as good, without such diacritics. If you find an existing record with them, please edit accordingly. Another resource to use is the Character Map app by typing in the Windows search and attach it to your taskbar for easy access. The most common diacritic is the copyright symbol which can be made by holding the Alt key and typing 0169.

Help Tickets

Please make your circulation staff and patrons aware that if they see issues like missing series information, missing or incorrect item icons, any typos, or strange diacritics, there are help tickets that can be accessed to report these. The help ticket forms can be found on the Patron site and on the Staff site.

NEXT CATALOGING COMMITTEE MEETING: 

Monday, October 2, 11:00 am PST (Subject to change after the poll is completed. Surveys are due August 14th.) 

NEXT LIBRARY OF THINGS DISCUSSION: 

Wednesday, August 16, 10:00 am PST