ENABLE CATALOGING CHECKS

This option controls all of the options on this page. If it is not checked, none of the cataloging checks described here will be run.

All of the options on this form can be changed while a record is being reviewed or edited. When an option is changed while the program is running, as soon as the Options form is closed, the program reloads the validation tables and revalidates the record.

DESCRIPTION RULES SUPPORT (DRS)

The default setting for this option is 'Follow 040', and we advise you to retain this setting.

If a record being checked is RDA (040 $e rda):

setting DRS to 'RDA' displays 'RDA Only' and 'AACR and RDA' (shared) messages

setting DRS to 'Follow 040' displays 'RDA Only' and 'AACR and RDA' (shared) messages

setting DRS to 'AACR' displays a single message: '040 $e rda, but DRS=AACR' (reminding you that you say you want to change all RDA records to AACR)

If a record being checked is AACR (040$e aacr or no 040$e):

setting DRS to 'AACR' displays 'AACR Only' and 'AACR and RDA' (shared) messages

setting DRS to 'Follow 040' displays 'AACR Only' and 'AACR and RDA' (shared) messages

setting DRS to 'AACR' displays a single message: '040 $e not rda, but DRS=RDA' (reminding you that you say you want to change all AACR records to RDA)

Under 'Description rules support':

Choose, 'Follow 040', if you want to see RDA specific messages for records that are coded as RDA (040 $e rda) and AACR specific messages for records that are coded as AACR (040 $e aacr, or no 040 $e); i.e., choose this option if you have decided to keep RDA records as RDA records and AACR records as AACR records.

Choose, AACR, if you want to see AACR specific messages for all records, whether they are coded as RDA (040 $e rda) or AACR (040 $e aacr, or no 040 $e). When you encounter an RDA record:

First, you will see a single message:

Brief: 040: $e rda, but DRS=AACR

followed by this detailed note:

040 subfield $e (Description conventions) contains 'rda' (i.e., this is an RDA record), but your DRS Option is set to 'AACR only', meaning you want to edit RDA records to AACR if you want to do this: change 040$e 'rda' to 'aacr', and edit the record; otherwise, disable this message by changing your DRS option to 'Follow 040'.

Then, if you follow the detailed instructions, and change 040 $e 'rda' to 'aacr', then you will see a list of changes that you will need to make in order to convert the RDA record into an AACR record. Don't stop with this list, however, as there will be other cataloging differences that MARC Report cannot detect, e.g., the choice of a family as a main entry.

Choose, 'RDA', if you want to see RDA specific messages for all records, whether they are coded as RDA (040 $e rda) or AACR (040 $e aacr, or no 040 $e). when you encounter an AACR record:

First, you will see a single message:

Brief: 040: $e not rda, but DRS=RDA

followed by this detailed note:

040 subfield $e (Description conventions) does not contain 'rda' (i.e., this is not an RDA record); but your DRS Option is set to 'RDA only', meaning you want to edit all records to RDA if you want to do this: add 040$e 'rda', delete $eaacr (if there), & edit the record; otherwise, disable this message by changing your DRS option to 'Follow 040'

Then, if you follow the detailed instructions, and change 040 $e 'aacr' to 'rda', then you will see a list of changes that you will need to make in order to convert the AACR record into an RDA record. Don't stop with this list, however, as there will be other cataloging differences that MARC Report cannot detect, e.g., RDA allows inclusion of names from sources other than the title page in a 245$c statement of responsibility.

CHECK FOR COMMON CATALOGING PROBLEMS

Click this checkbox to enable/disable the checking of common cataloging problems. This option is enabled by default. The common cataloging problems include hundreds of crosschecks–which we call 'Cat Checks'–designed to catch frequently occurring cataloging errors that MARC validation by itself is unable to find. You can enable or disable individual 'Cat Checks' by using the 'Cataloging Check Editor' (described below).

EDIT

By default, all Cataloging Checks are enabled.

Click this button to customize the 'Cataloging Check' database (which includes Common Cataloging, Filing Indicator, and ISBD Punctuation checks). This editor will allow you to enable/disable any of these checks indivdually.

You can also save your decisions as a 'Set', and can activate any previously saved set. Sets are useful if you frequently work on files for different projects, or from different sources and would like to turn off different reviews or checks for each record source.

CURRENT SET

This option lists the name of the currently activated Cataloging Check Set.

CHECK FILING INDICATOR PROBLEMS

Click this checkbox to enable the checking of filing indicators in title fields. This option is enabled by default.

CHECK ISBD PUNCTUATION

Click this checkbox to enable all of the checks for ISBD spacing and ISBD punctuation.

CHECK END-OF-FIELD PUNCTUATION

Click this checkbox to enable the checking of a field's ending punctuation. This option is enabled by default.

AT THE END OF NUMBER FIELDS (010-09X)

Click this checkbox to enable ending punctuation checks for tags 010-09X. This option is enabled by default.

These fields contain standard numbers, classification numbers, codes, and other data elements relating to the record and, as a rule, do not end in punctuation. If this option is disabled, the program will not provide error messages when these fields end in punctuation. This is not recommended, since punctuation at the end of a number may negatively impact automation that tries to make use of that number. In addition, there is this exception: if the field contains a value from a coded list (eg. 041, 042, 043, etc.), and ends in punctuation, an error message will still appear in MARC Report, whether this option is selected or not.

CHECK PUNCTUATION IN AUTHORITY RECORDS

This checkbox enables or disables _all_ punctuation checks on authority records. It is not selected by default.

A problem with checking punctuation in older authority records is that, more often than not, headings fields were terminated with punctuation. If you are reviewing a large file that contains older records (such as the LC NAF, for example), this will present problems, since tens and tens (if not hundreds) of thousands of messages will be generated. It is possible to run the punctuation checks on authority files and disable the check for end of field punctuation. To do this, create a custom Cataloging Check Set and disable the row containing the brief message: '[Tag]: No end punct. in Auth.' (Or, if you have already customized your cataloging checks, edit the set that you currently use and disable this message in that set). If you do this, however, keep in mind that you may miss errors about end-of-field punctuation in current records.

CHECK END-OF-FIELD SPACING

If this box is not checked, which is the default, the program will temporarily remove all spacing characters (space, tab, carriage return, line feed) from the end of the field before it runs the ending punctuation checks (the MARC data itself is not changed). If this box is checked, the end-of-field punctuation checks are sensitive to blank spaces, and the program will consider it an error if a field that is supposed to end with a punctuation mark (like a period) ends in a blank space instead.

NOTE: The preceding four options–CHECK END-OF-FIELD PUNCTUATION, AT THE END OF NUMBER FIELDS (010-09X), CHECK PUNCTUATION IN AUTHORITY RECORDS, CHECK END-OF-FIELD SPACING–are only consulted when the 'Check ISBD Spacing and Punctuation' option is enabled.

MANDATORY FIELDS

Select this checkbox to enable/disable checking each record for the presence of fields defined as Mandatory by LC. This option is enabled by default.

EDIT

Click this button to edit the Mandatory Field Table. This will allow you to enable/disable mandatory checks, and to add your own fields to the list of fields that the program considers Mandatory if MANDATORY FIELD CHECKING is enabled. More detailed help is available in the Mandatory Field Editor.

SUBJECT HEADINGS

Select this checkbox to enable check your records for the presence of subject headings. This option is enabled by default.

EDIT

Click this button to edit the Subject Headings table. This will allow you to add your own local subject fields to the list of (LCSH) fields that the program checks. Detailed help is available in the Editor.

CHECK NON-PRINT

By default, when 'Check for subject headings' is enabled, the program displays a message whenever a non-fiction record is found that does not have a subject heading (as defined in your subject headings table).

If you want to modify this default behavior, so that the program does not check non-print records for subject headings, then uncheck this option. Non-print is defined as records that do not contain 'a' or 't' in the Leader/06. This option is selected by default.

ALSO CHECK …

In addition to the 'Non-Print' option, the program also allows you to check subject headings for print materials according to the value of the literary form code in the 008 (008/33). The options available in this list are:

Fiction (008/33 = 1, f, j)
Drama (008/33 = d)
Essays (008/33 = e)
Humor, Satire (008/33 = h)
Letters (008/33 = i)
Mixed forms (008/33 = m)
Poetry (008/33 = p)
Speeches (008/33 = s)

Any print record that lacks one of the above values will be treated as a non-fiction item.

Thus, for example, it is possible to have the program report missing subject headings for Fiction, Essays, Humor, Mixed forms, and Speeches, but not for Drama, Letters, and Poetry.

By default, when the progam is installed, only the 'Fiction' checkbox is selected.

MARC REVIEW CATCHECKS

Select this option to enable any cataloging checks that you have created yourself using the Marc Review utility.

CANCELLED MESSAGES

By default, no messages are cancelled.

EDIT–CANCELLED MESSAGES

Click this button to view a list of messages which you have cancelled (by right-clicking on brief messages when viewing or editing records). This will allow you to re-activate these messages. You may also save groups of Cancelled Messages as 'Sets', and activate a previously saved set. By default, no messages are disabled. More detailed help is available in the Cancelled Message Editor.

A very detailed help page on using Cancelled Messages is available while the program is running; to access this page, right-click on any Brief message and select the 'Help on Cancelled Messages' item.

BLOCK CANCELS OF SERIOUS ERRORS

This is checked by default and alerts you if you try to cancel a message that is warning you about something serious, like a field without a subfield, etc. If you find a good reason to uncheck this option, please let us know.

OPTIONS RELATED TO CATALOGING THAT ARE NOT AVAILABLE VIA THIS FORM

COUNTRY-PLACE TABLE

In version 2.21, a new table was added to the program to facilitate a Country/Place (008/15 x 260$a) catcheck. This table is a plain-text file called 'ctryplace.txt' located in the program folder (by default: C:\Program Files\TMQ\MARC Report). You can edit this file with a text editor like Notepad.

The format of this table is: a country code (from the MARC Code List for Countries), followed by a TAB, followed by a placename to match in the 260$a. Two-letter country codes must be entered with a trailing space before the TAB.

Note that one of the two pieces of MARC data (either the country code or the placename) must match something in the country-place table in order for an error message to be displayed. If both match, or neither matches, there will be no message.

The default table was generated using the 50 most frequently appearing 008/260a combinations in a 1.4 million record file.

This catcheck has been enabled by default. If you want to disable it, because it is causing too many false errors and/or you do not want to maintain the country-place table, open the Options, select the Cataloging Check tab, open the Cataloging Check editor, and disable the check with the brief message '260: Subfield a <> 008 Ctry' .

NON-FILING ARTICLE EXCEPTION TABLE

This table was added in version 2.26 to reduce the number of warnings for non-filing article messages.

Like other MARC Report tables, this is a plain-text file, and you can edit it with a text editor like Notepad. The file is called 'fexcepts.txt' and it is located in the program folder.

Lines beginning with blank space(s) are ignored. The file contains four tab-delimited columns, as follows:

Column 1: Y/N (Enable/Disable) an exception
Column 2: The article to be ignored (must be in uppercase)
Column 3: The language code to be ignored (must be in lowercase)
Column 4: TBA

The first three rows of the table look like this: Y A fre Y Y A spa Y Y A ita Y

How it works: In a MARC record, if a normalized article matches an article in column 2 of the table, and the lang code from the record's 008 matches the corresponding lang code in column 3, the MARC Report warning message is suppressed. For example, the three rows above will suppress non-filing article messages whenever the article is 'A' and the language code is 'fre', 'spa', or 'ita'.

To suppress all warnings for a particular article, set the lang code to 'any', and delete all other entries (if there are any) for that article.