SUS Format Integration Task Force
Final Report
10/26/98
TO: TSPC and PSCP Chairs

With the submission of this final report, we have completed the Format Integration Task Force charge. During the last 1.5 years, we restructured the tags and labels used in all the bibliographic formats in the NOTIS OPAC views to incorporate the changing practices wrought by Format Integration. After implementation, we allowed a period of "settling in" to examine the effects of changes in production and to await comments from the field. We have reviewed our formats, and recommend some changes. Most are minor and (we think) uncontroversial. Label display changes can be made by the end of 1998. Indexing changes or display constant changes require programming changes, and must be worked into FCLA programmers' assignments.

Some of these changes are necessary to correct oversights from our earlier work. But several of these changes are recommended after reviewing OCLC Technical Bulletins and noting changes in cataloging practice during this year.

The Format Integration Task Force has identified several issues that fall outside its scope but deserve to be addressed:

1) Continuous review. The Format Integration Task Force recommends that some group be charged with reviewing OCLC Technical Bulletins on at least an annual basis to see whether changes in OPAC labels and indexing may be warranted. The FITF suggests an appropriate place for the responsibility of annual review might be a new subgroup of the Technical Services Committee, perhaps a general Cataloging Subcommittee, combined with a subgroup of the Public Services Committee, together responsible for OPAC display and indexing issues.

2) Obsolete tags. The removal, alteration, etc. of obsolete tags in NOTIS records is an historical issue that needs settling, probably by just a subgroup of the Technical Services Committee (above) although it may require Public Services input. Whether obsolete tags should be handled uniformly across the state or whether changes can/should be made locally or globally are issues that should be discussed.

3) Faulty redirects. We have observed instances in WebLUIS where hyperlinks direct users to an inappropriate index. For example, when you click on text in a 780/785 field, WebLUIS performs a "t=" search. However, when the text is in author form, such as "State of Florida. Dept of Widgets. Annual Report", the "t=" search retrieves no records. This is a faulty index operation like the search redirect problem that existed for authority records where the author/title cross references didn't work. A systematic review of redirects in all fields is recommended.

4) 246 indexing. FCLA reports that the 246 indexing has never worked properly. Fixing the problem requires a new routine for checking indicators and matching them against a table in the program, and is a significant programming chore. Its priority needs to be addressed at a higher level than the Format Integration Task Force.

5) Expanding the Brief view. We have seen occasional suggestions on FCLLIST to add either the subject headings or the 780/785 (previous/following titles) to the Brief view of WebLUIS records. The Format Integration Task Force views this as a PUBLIC SERVICES issue, but strongly recommends that no fields with redirects be added to the Brief views (if at all) until all faulty redirect problems (#3, above) are corrected.

 

List of recommended changes -- will be posted to FCLLIST for comment. We repeat here that label display changes can be made fairly soon, but indexing changes or display constants changes require programming assignments.

MIXED MATERIALS
1) 245 subfields f and g need to display.
2) reorder 5xx to: 500, 545, 520, then all the others.
3) define 1st indicators as display constants:

0 Biographical sketch
1 Administrative history

MUSIC
1) 26x subfield d needs to display.
2) 505 2nd indicator 0 displays poorly in Classic LUIS.

MUSIC and VISUAL
024 should only display with 1st indicator 2. (024 1st ind 1 currently displays, but shouldn't)

246 (all formats) -- requires programming:
246 1st ind 2 should not display or index
246 1st ind 0 should not index
247 1st ind 0 should not index

570 (all formats)
570 is an obsolete tag, and its display has been requested. The FITF did not address the obsolete tags issue, but can add its display while making other changes.

774 (all formats) -- "Related materials", with display constant "Part of:"

760-787 (all formats)
Display new subfields "i" and "o":

i free-form text
o number identifier (like ISBN)

786 (all formats) -- Set "Data source entry" to display
730 (all formats) -- Set subfield n to NOT INDEX

856 (all formats) -- Set 1st indicators 0-4 to display same display constants as 1st indicator 7
 
Submitted by Denise Bennett, Chair, Format Integration Task Force, UF Marston Science Library, denise@mail.uflib.ufl.edu

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