Record locking #

When you enter a record number to edit a catalogue record, the record will be locked immediately – you do not need to have made a change, you just need to be first one in. When you clear the entry number field the record is unlocked. If somehow you managed to lock it, then the office had a power failure and the workstation powered off, and subsequently you went back into the record, it will not give you a message to say it’s locked – as it knows that it’s locked for your workstation.

If you attempt to open a record which has been locked by another user, then you will be given a message, and can see the identity of the other operator:

If you opt to unlock the record from another workstation, then obviously it’s a fairly obvious decision. On doing this the record will be unlocked – then relocked to your workstation port.

For this to apply, the Enterprise parameter ‘CatalogueLock’ must be set. Bibliographic and Authority records work the same way

Screen elements #

This initial page introduces the screen elements you will encounter in Cataloguing. When you click the Cataloguing icon, a screen like this will be shown:

This is divided into several panels:

MARC format – Aurora Cataloguing supports both Bibliographic and Authority record maintenance. Please note that the choice here is not dynamic – you cannot select one or other format, but here Bibliographic maintenance is the default, and Authority maintenance is invoked by separate action.

Mode –  The Mode panel allows selection of the Cataloguing Mode:

• Add
• Change
• Delete

and also provides a set of control buttons:

	Active state	Notes
Save		Save is enabled as soon as any edit is performed on the record. – The button will be grey if inactive and not able to be used
Delete		The Delete button is enabled by selection of Delete mode. – The button will be grey if inactive and not able to be used
Clipboard		The Clipboard is enlivened when a record is copied into it – either from the record copy function, or selection from a Z39.50 search – allowing that record to be pasted in for exiting. – The button will be grey if inactive and not able to be used
Print		A record may be printed at any point.
Export to Excel		The current record can be exported as required to Excel. All exports are written to the central work file as Detail_<date>_<workstationname>.xls. Following the successful export, a question will be asked if the output file should be opened in Excel. – The button will be grey if inactive and not able to be used
Quick Holdings		When a record is being edited, the Quick Holdings function may be invoked for ease of item addition, particularly if handling multiple items. – The button will be grey if inactive and not able to be used
Spell-check		This feature remains currently under development. – The button will be grey if inactive and not able to be used

Further to the right, there is a separate set of buttons:

Allowing quick links to:

• Provides information of colour hints.
•  Windows character map
• Search

Sidebar #

On the left-hand side of the screen, you will find a sidebar:

Cover image, delivered from Syndetics, if you have an account, or using the Aurora Image Server to acquire public domain images.

Current action indicator. This indicator is provided to give a consistent and clear indicator of where you are with any record, by showing the action (add, change or delete) and the Work Format of the work currently being dealt with. 
Example Work formats: Maps, Vook, Music, ebook, eaudiobook, serial
Full details of work formats for Montage

Change	Delete	Add

Sidebar Related links #

This panel displays any current links to other records, in the form of hyperlinks:

• Child holdings
• Items
• Reserves

• Requests
• Reviews
• Orders

• Copyright licence
• OPAC View
• Search View – Opens Search screen with on bib ref search on current work

Sidebar Checkboxes #

• Work to be done – Ticking this open the Work to be done buttons at the bottom of the sidebar – selecting one runs each list that is displayed in the work to be done tab
• Link Work – Allows works to be linked and displayed in montage as a separate tab when looking at a title in montage.
  To add a Link – Find the title that is to be linked in montage click and hold onto the cover image and drag into the Link work box.
  A popup question will appear asking to confirm the link – Click yes
  A 774 tag will appear on the table with the Bib Ref of the work and the title. Save the work.
  two ring links will appear next to the works on the search screen and the linked tab will appear in Montage.
  

Work to be done – sidebar #

Initially, this checkbox is not selected.

When the ‘Work to be done’ checkbox on the Cataloguing screen sidebar is selected, then Aurora accumulates tallies of records which need some attention:

Clicking on each tally button/symbol open the work to be done tab listing the relevant works.

Tally symbol	Meaning	Notes
	Works marked for ‘review’	If your library has a trainee, or even a new member of staff, then it may be useful for that person’s work to be set to be marked for review. This applies only to catalogue records and allows the trainee to add records in exactly the same way as any other operator; the difference is that on Save, when the record is saved with Review status, this means that it is not fully indexed, and is not available in OPAC. Note that the library may also set any work added via Quick Work to be given review status Enterprise parameter BibsMarkForReviewIfQuick.It is necessary therefore for a supervisor to view the works marked for Review and confirm that the cataloguing is good. When the supervisor saves the record, the status must be reset to Normal.
	Works with an item marked as having a skeleton catalogue record
	Works marked as ‘archived’
	Works marked for ‘deletion’
	Works marked as having ‘no items’
	Works marked as ‘shadowed’
	Works (other than serials) with items to be accessioned
	Most recent works added by anyone	This lists the latest 200 works added to the database, with most recent first. The display may be sorted by clicking on the column header.
	Most recent works added by operator

Tabs #

Cataloguing is supported by a number of separate tabs, each providing different views and capabilities:

The main portion of the screen is taken up by the display of the record being created or edited, and the optional editing details for the current field:

See Editing below for the mechanics of the editing process.

MARC Tag Table – Right click menu #

Edit data #

The Edit data function can be very useful in editing the contents of a tag directly. While normal editing selects the tag and dissects the content according to subfield in the lower panel, with Edit data, you can simply edit the tag contents in the upper display as a wysiwyg (what you see is what you get) operation.

When the function is selected, the affected tag is then highlighted in light green:

You can then type over the contents in part or in total, as required. There are some specific areas where the function is particularly useful:

• where the tag has more than 10 subfields, then the subfield dissection will not display all of them – using Edit data allows all subfields (unlimited) to be addressed.
• where subfields displayed need to be reordered, or a subfield inserted into a specific position before existing subfields. (This cannot be achieved in the dissected view, without retyping subfield data).
• where data (non-authority data) is to be copied from one record to another. Hint: find the source record in Search, and then go to Details of a Work and the MARC display. You can then copy the contents of a field, and then go back to Cataloguing with the record being edited still open.

The edit is completed as soon as the cursor is moved to another field and clicked, or another function is selected.

A new subfield can be entered using function F12 to insert the ¶ character. Note that fixed fields, like 007 and 008, cannot be edited in this way, and the menu option is not available for these fields.

Insert tag #

The Insert tag option presents a further submenu of tag ‘types’ for specific selection of the tag to be inserted:

Please see Insert tag in catalogue process for full details, on all the sub menu options

Remove Tag #

An individual tag may be removed completely using this menu option. When the option is selected, the cursor must be highlighting the tag to be removed. For this reason, Aurora will provide a confirmation message, detailing the tag, and its content, to be removed:

If you agree to the removal, the tag is not immediately removed, but is now shown on a yellow highlight background, and the text is struck-through:

The tag will not be removed completely until the record is saved – at that point it may not be recovered.

Change tag #

Any tag, other than a holdings field, a fixed field, such as 007 or 008, or a mandatory field, such as 245, can be reset with a new tag number. Following the menu option, Aurora will present a request to enter the new tag:

The input box will always show the value of the originally selected tag.

Note that if a mandatory tag, e.g. 245 is selected, then Aurora will not allow it to be changed, and will give this message:

Please remember that field validation for the newly defined tag may not match the original tag, and therefore validation errors may be encountered on save.

Change holding #

This option is only enabled when a Holdings tag, e.g. 852, is selected. When selected, Aurora will pop-up an overlay form detailing all aspects possible for the specific Holding. Note that only the specific individual holding focused on can be dealt with in one action.

Bibliographic description

A brief bibliographic description is always displayed at the top of the screen to allow the operator to check that they are dealing with the correct material.

Holdings data elements

Notes in italic in the table below are from Library of Congress MARC21 details.

Checkboxes

Two checkboxes are placed at the foot of the screen:

• Show hidden fields. The MARC Holdings details present a wide range of options (detailed below), many of which may not be appropriate for all libraries. A checkbox at the foot of the screen can be used to ‘hide’ lesser used elements. When unchecked less options are displayed, ticking this checkbox shows the hidden fields
• Skeleton item. If an item has been created at the desk, it will be given a skeleton item flag, and will be put aside on return from loan. In addition, if an item is created for a record where there is no subject heading, an 007 tag, or a call number, and the Enterprise parameter SkeletonItemCheck is set True. The flag, if set, may be lifted here.
• Show hidden Locations. Shows hidden locations for the physical location drop down
• All statistical categories –

Browse #

The Browse option is only enabled where the pop-up menu is invoked on a heading field, and is context sensitive, allowing up to three sub-options:

• Browse
  • Headings – this group. This will use the heading, and display ONLY headings in the matching group, e.g. only names or only subjects.
  • Heading – names and subjects. This option allows the display of headings from name and subject groups combined. This option is not offered for other types of heading, e.g. Title. Please note that this option is also offered as a direct menu option immediately below.
  • Heading – all groups. This will browse all available headings in an Anywhere selection.

Browse heading – name and subjects #

This option allows the display of matching headings in the Headings panel below, from name and subject groups combined, when a name or subject heading tag is selected. This option is not offered for other types of heading, e.g. Title.

Place a reserve #

This option will invoke the Reservation form allowing the work, or one specific item, to be reserved.

Upgrade heading to basic authority #

This option allows a cataloguer with appropriate permissions to upgrade the selected heading to an authority where the tag selected must be a heading and is not already recorded as an authority term.

Copy record #

This function allows a record to be copied, e.g. to record a new edition, a similar separately catalogued part of a multipart work, or simply a new instance of a record in a series – all where a substantial part of the record is going to be identical to the source record.

When a record is to be copied, no updates must be waiting, i.e. the record must have been saved. The process is:

• Invoke the pop-up menu and select the menu option ‘Copy record’ (this option is not tied to any specific tag), and when clicked
• Then reinvoke the pop-up menu – and you will see that the Paste record option is now enabled. Select this.
• The mode will now change, and the new copied record is displayed in Add mode
• Note that the Holdings attached to the source record are now removed in the copied record
• Now complete the cataloguing edit operations in the same way as for a new title.

Paste record #

This option is only available when a record has been copied. Please see Copy record

Convert #

Export #

  To a new File – Saves the marc record to your individual work folder

append to existing  – if you go to a new record and want to save the marc to the same file use this. 

Help #

While selecting a row then right click context menu and selecting help opens up the Library of Congress website on that marc tag.
E.g. if you have selected a 650 tag it will open up on MARC 21 Format for Bibliographic Data: 650: Subject Added Entry-Topical Term (Network Development and MARC Standards Office, Library of Congress) (loc.gov)