CONTENTS

EDITORIAL:  Catalogs in a Small World / by Ruth C. Carter  

CCQ INTERVIEW / Carolynne Myall, Interviews Editor  

Interview with Monika Münnich: December 2001  

by Roger Brisson

Abstract. Monika Münnich discusses her professional development and involvement in IFLA. The value and importance of becoming professionally involved on an international level is emphasized, in particular because of the growing internationalization of librarianship. The interview turns to the current cataloging situation in Germany, and a comparison between American and German cataloging culture follows. RAK (the German cataloging rules, the Regeln für die alphabetische Katalogisierung) and AACR2 are compared, as well as the computer cataloging formats MARC and MAB. The interview concludes with a summary of the recent turn of events in Germany, with a preliminary decision being made on a national level to formally introduce AACR2 in German libraries.

Keywords: Monika Münnich, RAK (Regeln für die alphabetische Katalogisierung), AACR2 (Anglo-American Cataloging Rules), international bibliographic control, Project REUSE, German cataloging.

Articles

Applying XML to the Bibliographic Description

by David J. Fiander

Abstract.  Over the past few years there has been a significant amount of work in the area of cataloging internet resources, primarily using new metadata standards like the Dublin Core, but there has been little work on applying new data description formats like SGML and XML to traditional cataloging practices.  What little work has been done in the area of using SGML and XML for traditional bibliographic description has primarily been based on the concept of converting MARC tagging into XML tagging.  I suggest that, rather than attempting to convert existing MARC tagging into a new syntax based on SGML or XML, a more fruitful possibility is to return to the cataloging standards and describe their inherent structure, learning from how MARC has been used successfully in modern OPACs while attempting to avoid MARC's rigid field-based restrictions.

Keywords: XML, AACR, Bibliographic description, standards, web

The Subject Cataloging of Monographs with the Use of Keywords

by Snunith Shoham , Rochelle Kedar

Abstract. The overall objective of this study was to examine the implementation of a different approach to the expression of the subject content of monographs in the cataloging record, i.e., the use of a post-coordinate, thesaurus of keywords, using inter-indexer consistency testing and in-depth analysis of mistakes in indexing.  A sample of 50 non-fiction monographs was subject cataloged by 16 library science students (non-experienced indexers) using the new Hebrew Thesaurus of Indexing Terms (1996). The 800 indexing records of the non-experienced indexers were compared to the "correct indexing records" (prepared by a panel of three experienced indexers). Indexing consistency was measured using two different formulas used in previous inter-indexer studies. A medium level of inter-indexer consistency was found. In the analysis of mistakes, it was found that the most frequent mistake was the assignment of indexing terms to minor subject matter (i.e., subjects that were less than 20% of the content of the book). Among possible explanations offered for these finding are: sparseness of scope notes in the thesaurus, the priority given by Israeli public libraries to Hebrew language materials in the development of their non-fiction collection and the size of the output of the Israeli publishing industry of non-fiction materials in Hebrew. The results of the consistency tests and the mistakes analysis were also examined in light of several factors: 1) the number of indexing terms assigned; 2) the length of the monographs (number of pages); and 3) subject area of each monograph; The same examinations were carried out for the subject cataloging records prepared by the Israeli Center for Libraries (ICL) for these monographs.

KEYWORDS. Subject cataloging, inter-indexer consistency, thesauri

Subject Access Vocabularies in a Multi-type Library Consortium

by Sandy Roe

Abstract. Madison High School Library joined the South Dakota Library Network (SDLN), a multi-type library consortium with a shared online catalog in 1998. This study compares subject access in this small high school library both before and after the retrospective conversion.  Vocabulary mapping between the Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH) and the Sears List of Subject Headings is discussed.

Keywords.  Subject access, Subject headings, Authority files (Information retrieval), High school libraries, Sears List of Subject Headings, Library of Congress Subject Headings, Retrospective conversion (Cataloging).

Faculty and Graduate Student Search Patterns and Perceptions of Videos in the Online Catalog

by Jeannette Ho

Abstract.  In this study, Texas A&M University faculty and graduate students from 16 departments completed a survey about their methods of finding videocassettes in the library,  how they searched the online catalog LibCat for videocassettes, and their perceptions of catalog record elements.  Results showed that the majority of respondents used LibCat the most often for finding videocassettes, performed title searching, and were satisfied with known item searches.  Finally, respondents considered authors of original works, actors, and directors as useful to both search and view in LibCat, while few perceived editor, consultant, and cameraperson as useful.

Keywords:  Video recordings, Online catalogs, Use studies, Online searching, Bibliographic records, Cataloging

CATALOGING NEWS   Sandy Roe, News Editor

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