[MinervaCats] Cataloging Tip of the Week

[Ellen Conway]

Dear Catalogers,

This week's tip concerns a fairly minor detail that can have a major effect
on the way an item is displayed in the OPAC.  If your patrons appreciate the
difference, it will be worth the small amount time needed to perform this
task.

I am referring to the 856 field in the bib record, also known as the
"electronic location and access" note.  When you bring in a new bib record
with this field, usually it will appear with the first subfield identified
as "3".  An example follows:
y 856 4 1 |3Table of
contents|uhttp://www.loc.gov/catdir/toc/ecip0514/2005017215.html

If you take a moment to go to the top of the screen, select "View" and
"public display" you will see that this note will appear in the OPAC as:
  Connect to Connect to
http://www.loc.gov/catdir/toc/ecip0514/2005017215.html<http://minerva.maine.edu/search/.b2405859/.b2405859/1,1,1,B/l856~b2405859&FF=&1,0,,1,0>

Now go back to the bib record and change that subfield "3" to "z" (and
save):
y 856 4 1 |zTable of
contents|uhttp://www.loc.gov/catdir/toc/ecip0514/2005017215.html

If you again go to "View, Public display" you will notice that the OPAC
record now looks like this:  Connect to Table of
contents<http://minerva.maine.edu/search/.b2405859/.b2405859/1,1,1,B/l856~b2405859&FF=&1,0,,1,0>

This looks a lot better, and makes a friendlier appearance.  This has been
discussed numerous times at Cataloging Users meetings, but it is a step that
many catalogers still forget to take.  I hope that in the future you will
remember not to skip over this step.

There will be no tip next week-- sorry!  Tips will be back the week of June
4.
Thanks,
Ellen




-- 
Ellen M. Conway
Maine InfoNet Cataloging Consultant
797-9464, cell ph. 329-5443
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