Navigating the authority file
From Ccslib.org
| As of September 14, 2009, the rules on this page have been approved in concept by the SCRAP committee, but the exact wording is still being adjusted. Please use these rules. Please send any feedback to SCRAP. |
All TECH logins are authorized to use the Display Authority wizard which allows you to view local authority records. WorkFlows will ask you for an override if you attempt to use other Authority wizards.
Contents |
Displaying Authority Records
Click on the Authorities group, then on the Display Authority wizard, and choose either LCNAME or LCSUBJECT.
Personal names, corporate names, series titles, and geographical headings are all searched using LCNAME; topical subject headings are searched using LCSUBJECT. (Floating subdivisions would be searchable under FLOATSUB, except the Authorities librarian generally does not load that type of authority record, so there are not many headings in that index).
Enter either a name or subject heading in the "Search for" box, select the Browse radio button if it is not already selected, then click Search.
Use the scroll bar to browse forward and backward through the authority file.
The highlighted term (the second line from the top) is the closest match to what you keyed in; if you want to see a different heading, highlight it by clicking on it.
= authorized heading
= cross reference (See or See Also) from authorized term; click on the heading in order for the heading it points to to be displayed in the bottom pane.
If you cannot find the heading, then there is no authority record in our local system for that form. In this case, be sure to check OCLC's authority file for the authorized form, and for subject headings, check both the local and OCLC authority files for alternate wordings that cover the same concept. If a needed heading is not in either the local or OCLC authority files, a new authority record may be needed.
To quickly see more of the selected authority record, click the up arrow that is between the fixed fields and the variable fields. (You will have to repeat this for each authority record you want to view.)
Any displayed heading can be transferred into or between bibliographical records quite easily using copy and paste. Find the term you wish to copy, click the field's Contents cell, press Control+C to copy it, bring up the destination bibliographic record, add a line, and then use Control+V to paste the heading into the new line's Contents cell.
Validating Headings
[Also see the Validating headings topic.]
In the Modify Title wizard, click on the Validate Heading helper near the top left-hand corner of the screen.
If a heading is authorized, WorkFlows continues to check the next heading. If all headings are authorized, WorkFlows displays how many are authorized and number of headings checked.
If a heading is unauthorized, the "Modify title: Correct current entry" screen will pop up.
Use the browse list in the middle of the screen to find the authorized heading and click the Get From List button to fix an unauthorized heading. Then click on the Next button (which authorizes the heading and goes to the next heading that needs to be authorized). If there is no authorized heading, click the Skip button. Click the Skip Rest button to skip all remaining fields in a record. To change your search string, type your new search term in the Heading field and click the Browse button.
Please ignore the Propose button, found below the Skip Rest button – this button should only be used by the Authorities Librarian. To avoid using this button accidentally and to have it grayed out, go to the Modify Title wizard’s properties and then helpers. You will need a supervisory login to change these helpers. The Validate Headings box should be checked, and click on the Configure button to the right. Then click on Behavior, and unclick the button that says “Create new authority records for unauthorized headings”. The Propose button when validating headings will now be grayed out and unavailable for use.
A heading that is not authorized (and does not have a corresponding authority record in the local authority file) has "|?UNAUTHORIZED" after it. Once an authority record is added to the database for such a heading, this subfield will disappear after the "Add, Delete, Update Databases report" (adutext) is run overnight.
Validating MARC data
When WorkFlows validates headings, it also looks at indicators and tags to see if they are correct. For example, if you have 650 _0 Northbrook (Ill.) (which should be 651), it will display as unauthorized. Change the indicator or tag in your bibliographic record and validate the record again.
Valid headings sometimes refuse to authorize for a number of different reasons. There are three scenarios on why a heading will not authorize properly.
Diacritics
Diacritics used in other languages provide a challenge for Symphony to authorize properly. In order for many of these headings to authorize properly, WorkFlows must be configured correctly. Go to the commands above the Toolbar and click on Preference and then Configuration. Set your station name to PCGUI-EDIT. After changing this setting, WorkFlows must be restarted. PCGUI-DISP should be used for public terminals, whereas PCGUI-EDIT is beneficial to the cataloger.
Using PCGUI-EDIT allows for manual insertion of diacritics (See the help screens in WorkFlows for all procedures and insertion tables) and also the ability to work with headings properly. Many headings entered while using PCGUI-DISP will not authorize properly, but will authorize properly when your workstation is configured to PCGUI-EDIT. For example, here are two headings as seen in a workstation configured as PCGUI-DISP:
- Bhagavadg*it*a
- Dvo*r*ak, Anton*in,|d1841-1904
Here are the same two headings shown on a workstation that is configured as PCGUI-EDIT:
- Bhagavadgītā
- Dvořák, Antonín,|d1841-1904
Some headings in Japanese, Korean, and other Far Eastern languages still do not authorize properly even if the workstation is configured correctly. Languages, such as Vietnamese, that often have multiple diacritics applied to the same letter are especially problematic. If you come across them, make sure that the heading is in the correct form and then skip over it.
Tags & Indicators
Incorrect Correct 650 _0 Moon 651 _0 Moon 710 2_ Bayreuther Festspiele.|eOrchester. 711 2_ Bayreuther Festspiele.|eOrchester. 650 _0 World Trade Center (New York, N.Y.) 610 2_ World Trade Center (New York, N.Y.) 600 10 Piglet (Fictitious character) 650 _0 Piglet (Fictitious character) 650 _0 Chicago (Ill.)|vGuidebooks 651 _0 Chicago (Ill.)|vGuidebooks 651 _0 Heaven 650 _0 Heaven
Change the field number manually in the bibliographic record and re-authorize it.
Capitalization & Spacing
Symphony has three levels of authority control (just cross-references, case-insensitive checking, and case-sensitive checking). CCS uses the highest level, case-sensitive checking. Headings sometimes show as unauthorized because of this configuration level. Many are the correct heading, but have capitalization, spelling, spacing, or incorrect diacritic errors. These are easily rectified by using the validating headings helper. Examples of this are:
Incorrect Correct Bryant, Bonnie.|tSaddle club Bryant, Bonnie.|tSaddle Club Diana,|cPrincess of Whales,|d1961- Diana,|cPrincess of Wales,|d1961- Bed and breakfast accomodations Bed and breakfast accommodations Twain, Mark, | d 1835-1910 Twain, Mark,|d1835-1910 (there should not be any spaces around a subfield code) Chopin, Frederic,|d1810-1849 Chopin, Frédéric,|d1810-1849 (accents are needed)
