Technical Services Program Review
Blue Ribbon Committee
Cataloging Focused Discussion
January 18, 2001
How non-TSD colleagues use the services of the Cataloging Department:
- Negotiating with cataloging to get materials cataloged, in particular gift items
- Negotiating with cataloging to get purchased materials cataloged that may come directly to branch or unit, i.e., EPSL or Government Documents
- Deal with reference materials and VICTOR Web - interested in how the end user is able to find materials.
Issues of interest or concern:
- The selection policy for adding internet sites to the catalog
- Adding databases developed by library faculty to the catalog. One example:
- Attending to Early Modern Women database of over 200 sites.
- Adding un-cataloged collections to the Cataloging Priorities list: international government documents, pre-1976 and 1976-1991 government documents, and Patent Depository items
- Getting lists of lost materials to help selectors identify materials that should be replaced
What the Cataloging Department does well:
- Better at dealing with rush things
- Materials are processed more quickly and not showing up in catalog weeks before receiving item
- It is easier to find items in the catalog
- Serials cataloging has an outstanding production rate
- Productivity of retrospective items is high
- There was a good partnership with the Maryland Room to clean up backlog of materials through an ongoing retrospective project
Sidebars:
The establishment of the Help Desk is positive. One central place to send questions or problems is helpful. You don't have to know who to go to.
Good efforts by Donna King for the withdrawal processes.
Francis Hsu would re-do cataloging when needed. She did work quickly and faculty members were delighted by her efforts.
Suggestions for the Cataloging Department to do things differently or change:
- Be able to show the range of years of a serial in the information shown on the "screen of 7"
- Be able to search by journal
- Assign call numbers for materials with Z call number to appropriate subject area; reclassify existing Z's to subject areas (this will help with browsing capability)
- Change the Z call number for the electronic journals or remove it entirely. Is a call number needed if it is a web site?
- Have everything searchable in the bibliographic record
- Be able to search sub-series. Create added entries for each volume of a series.
- Begin listing electronic indexes in the notes field for journal records. The notes field for journal records indicate where the journal is indexed. This list points to printed indexes no longer used instead of electronic indexes.
- Identify items that are a multi-volume set even though a particular volume is not owned or published yet.
- Index monographic series with the individual titles. Patrons often lack some piece of information such as series title or volume number which makes it difficult for them to locate the individual volume.
- Conferences are difficult to find.
- Reduce the number of items in the un-cataloged backlog.
- Show more clearly that there are hotlinks in bibliographic records. The placement of URL information seems hidden. Patrons do not often go beyond the "screen of 7" and give up.
- Do not catalog materials such as company catalogs or manuals with full marc records. Some materials do not merit full records.
Feedback:
- Technical Services and Public Services staff need to switch places to better understand issues and concerns.
- Technical Services should work with end users to better understand their questions and issues.
- Include LT's in decision making processes
- Peer training sessions offered by Technical Services are helpful.
- Staff can send comments to Help Desk. Help Desk could be asking for feedback as well. Help Desk staff should send feedback to person who sent comment.
- Discussion should take place between Collection Management, Public Services and Technical Services to discuss ordering processes, peak work times, how do to things more effectively and efficiently.
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© 2001 University of Maryland Libraries
Last Revised: Feb. 5, 2001
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