RDA: Resource Description and Access

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RDA Resource Description and Access

• A Cataloguing Code for the Future
• -- Change or Evolution?
• Svensk Biblioteksförenings kommitté för
  katalogisering
• 13 November 2007
• Judith A. Kuhagen, Library of Congress
• Washington, D.C.

2
Katalog 2.0

• Does your conference theme also mean
• Cataloguing 2.0? Yes!
• Cataloguer 2.0? Yes!
• What isnt changing responsibility to meet
  users needs!

3
Reactions to change

• Those who expect moments of change to be
  comfortable and free of conflict have not learned
  their history.
• Joan Wallach Scott
• But also
• challenge,
• opportunity,
• improvement!

4
Future of cataloguers?

• It is not the strongest of the species that
  survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one
  most responsive to change.
• Author unknown, commonly
• misattributed to Charles Darwin

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Emotions of change

• More threatening aspects of definitions
• to make radically different
• to replace with another
• especially if change for the sake of change
• More reassuring aspects of definitions
• to undergo a modification of for a new purpose
• to undergo transformation, transition

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Change or evolution?

• Question really is not appropriate as an or
  question because evolution is defined as
• a process of change in a certain direction
• the process of working out or developing

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My answer?

• RDA is both
• -- a change from the past
• and
• -- a transition into the future
• of Catalogue 2.0
• (and Cataloguing 2.0/Cataloguer 2.0)

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Topics today

• Why a new standard?
• RDA goals
• RDA standards, principles, and models
• RDA structure and content
• Proposals in Access Point Control draft
• Preparing for RDA

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New cataloging environment

• Wide range of information carriers wider depth
  complexity of content
• Metadata (bibliographic information) created by a
  wider range of personnel in and outside libraries
• Some using new metadata schema (Dublin Core,
  etc.)
• Descriptive data in digital form (ONIX, etc.)
• Improved database structures

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Standard for that environment

• Align with conceptual models (FRBR, FRAD) to
  build well-formed metadata
• Encourage use as a content standard for metadata
  schema
• Encourage international applicability
• Address current problems
• Provide more consistency
• Be principle-based (IME ICC)
• To build catalogers judgment
• Encourage application of FRBR/FRAD

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Why not just keep revising AACR2?

• AACR2
• 1978
• 1988
• 1998
• 2002

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Background

• 1997 International Conference on the Principles
  and Future Development of AACR, Toronto
• Worldwide experts invited by the JSC
• Reviewed principles
• Content vs. display
• Logical structure of the rules
• Seriality
• Internationalization

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From AACR3 to RDA

• April 2005 decided to start afresh by
  rethinking and restructuring AACR3
• Came as a result of concerns that a revision of
  AACR2 would not accommodate digital resources
• Adopted the name Resource Description and Access

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International developments IFLA

• Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records
  (FRBR)
• Functional Requirements for Authority Data (FRAD)
• Updating of the 1961 Paris Principles
• IFLA Meetings of Experts on an International
  Cataloguing Code

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International developments VIAF

• Virtual International Authority File
• Linked system connecting existing authority files
• Project OCLC, Deutsche Nationalbibliothek,
  Library of Congress, and now Bibliothèque de
  France
• Not connected to RDA but such a project will
  allow easier use of RDA by non-English communities

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VIAF OAI model
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Other collaboration

• RDA/ONIX framework for categorizing resources in
  all media for both libraries and the publishing
  industry
• RDA/DC/IEEE/LOM/Semantic Web Data Modeling
  Meeting, London 2007 -- recommendations
• Make vocabularies for types of carrier, etc.,
  available in SKOS or RDF schemas
• Develop an RDA application profile for Dublin Core

http//www.bl.uk/services/bibliographic/meeting.ht
ml
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Implementationscenarios

• Potential implementations of RDA
• Goal Relational/object-oriented database
  structure!
• Linked bibliographic and authority records
• Flat file database structure (no links)

http//www.collectionscanada.ca/jsc/working2.html
ed-2
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• RDA goals

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RDA will be

• A new standard for resource description and
  access
• Designed for the digital environment
• Developed as a web-based product (paper also
  available)
• Description and access of all digital and analog
  resources
• Resulting records usable in the digital
  environment (Internet, Web OPACs, etc.)

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RDA will be

• A multinational content standard providing
  bibliographic description and access for the
  variety of media and formats collected by
  libraries today
• Independent
• Of the encoding communication format (e.g., MARC
  21, MODS, Dublin Core)
• Of the display format (e.g., ISBD, OPAC labels)

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Connection to ISBD

• As a content standard, RDA does not use the
  International Standard Bibliographic Description
  order of data elements and prescribed punctuation
• However, RDA description chapters based on
  foundation of ISBD elements as used in FRBR
• Appendix for ISBD display of RDA records

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Audience for RDA

• Developed for use in English- language, Western
  environment
• But intent to be more neutral so can also be
  used in other communities

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Internationalization

• Translations will substitute any specific terms
  in English
• Changes in instructions to remove bias for
  English in choosing sources in the resource,
  forms of name, reference sources, etc.
• Alternatives language, script, numeric systems,
  calendars, etc.
• More to be done in future names in some
  languages, non-Western music, etc.

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RDA will

• Support user tasks
• Find, identify, select, obtain FRBR
• Find, identify, contextualize, justify FRAD
• Enable users of library catalogues, etc., to
  find and use resources appropriate to their
  information needs
• library staff, on-site users, remote users

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Who develops and supports RDA?
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JSC Project Management Team
Back Tom Delsey, RDA editor Hugh Taylor, CILIP
Barbara Tillett, LC Alan Danskin, BL. Front
Deirdre Kiorgaard, ACOC and chair John Attig,
ALA Marg Stewart, CCC Nathalie Schulz, JSC
secretary. Missing Marjorie Bloss, Project
Manager.
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Creating RDA

• Process of creating RDA
• Editor prepares draft chapters
• JSC reviews draft chapters
• Editor revises draft chapters
• JSC constituencies (and others -- including
  Swedish colleagues) review draft chapters
• JSC considers comments and requests changes to
  text by the Editor

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• RDA structure and content

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RDA 2006 structure

• General introduction
• Part A Description and access
• Part B Access point control
• Part C Data about data
• Appendices
• Capitalization, Abbreviations, Initial articles
• Presentations of descriptive and authority data
• Glossary Index

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RDA Nov. 2007 structure

• General introduction
• Attributes
• Works and Expressions Manifestations and Items
• Persons, Families, Corporate Bodies
• Concepts, Objects, Events, Places
• Relationships
• Works and Expressions Manifestations and Items
• Persons, Families, Corporate Bodies
• Concepts, Objects, Events, Places
• Appendices
• Capitalization, Abbreviations, Initial articles
• Presentation (ISBD display, etc.)
• Controlled lists
• Glossary
• Index

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Appendices

• ACapitalization
• BAbbreviations
• CInitial articles
• DRecord syntaxes for descriptive data
• ISBD, MARC 21 Bibliographic format displays
• ERecord syntaxes for access point control data
• MARC 21 Authority format displays
• Appendices for controlled vocabulary lists
• Role designations, relationship designations,
  types of carriers, types of content, etc.

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New structure Attributes

• Introduction
• General guidelines for resource description
• Resource identification - FRBR Identify
• Carrier description - FRBR Select
• Content description - FRBR Select
• Acquisition and access information - FRBR
  Obtain
• Former Part A content rearranged

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New structure Relationships
FRBR Find

• Persons, families, corporate bodies associated
  with a resource
• Relationships between FRBR Group 1 and Group 2
  entities
• Related resources
• Relationships among FRBR Group 1 entities Works,
  Expressions, Manifestations, Items

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Names of entities preferred, variant

• General guidelines
• Persons
• Families
• Corporate bodies
• Places
• Works, expressions, manifestations, and items
• Additional instructions Musical, legal, and
  religious works

FRBR and FRAD Find
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Data about data

• Source of data
• Title from container
• Description based on
• Convention followed by agency for
  transliteration, etc.

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New terminology

• AACR2 terms
• Heading
• Authorized heading
• Main Entry
• Added Entry
• Authority control
• Uniform title

• RDA terms
• Access point
• Preferred access point
• Access point/creator of work
• Access point
• Access point control
• Preferred title

concept of naming the work includes name of
creator when applicable
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New elements

• Media, Carrier, and Content Types to replace GMDs
• To be more comprehensive, e.g.
• File characteristics for digital materials
• Video format characteristics
• Custodial information for archival resources
• Braille characteristics
• URLs
• Entity identifiers (person, corporate body, work)
• Language of the person

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Transcription

• Importance of transcription of data to identify
  the resource varies
• Rare books very important!
• Digital materials not as important
• Take what you see
• Correction of inaccuracies elsewhere
• Facilitating automated data capture

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Organization within chapters

• Elements and sub-elements
• Similarities across all types of resources
• Required or optional
• Some additional instructions for certain types of
  resources or content
• Some repetition of information due to development
  as a Web tool -- wont be read in linear fashion

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Customizing RDA

• Instructions coded by type of content, mode of
  issuance, etc.
• Can create a customized version of the Web-based
  RDA to see only the instructions you need or want
  to see
• General cartographic
• General serial
• etc.

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Proposals in Access Point Control draft
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Draft in Dec. 2007

• Announcement of draft review
• Posted on JSC site
• Cover letter with explanations and specific
  topics to be considered
• Draft of chapters
• Comments due in March 2008

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Access point control record

• Context missing in AACR2 the access point
  control record itself
• Some elements for both the access point itself
  and the access point control record (e.g.,
  preferred name)
• Some elements for the access point control record
  -- may be needed in access point to distinguish
  the entity (e.g., birthdate)
• Some elements only for the access point control
  record (e.g., location of the corporate body)

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Preview of proposals

• No longer a rule of 3 when naming the work
  (will be first-named creator)
• Adding a chapter for Families
• Clarifying separate identities for persons
• Birth and death dates now separate elements (may
  still want to identify when displaying dates)

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Proposals for naming works, etc.

• Question for constituencies Use original title
  or commonly-known title?
• Current disagreement within IME ICC
• No longer using Selections (doesnt identify)
• Wont assign a preferred title to some aggregate
  works (doesnt identify) for example, two works
  by one person
• No longer using Polyglot (doesnt identify) --
  name separate expressions instead

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Preparing for RDA
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Questions and answers

• FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) on adopting
  RDA and other topics available on the JSC Web
  site
• http//www.collectionscanada.ca/jsc/rda.html

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Decisions

• Data elements
• Required minimal number of mandatory elements
  (RDA 1.4)
• Options for specific situations
• Alternatives
• Related to language, script, recording
  relationships, etc.
• Encoding RDA elements
• Display of RDA-based records

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Coding RDA records

• Most RDA elements can be incorporated into MARC
  21
• Some changes/additions for MARC 21 (JSC working
  with MARBI), for example
• New Descriptive rules value for RDA
• New data elements to replace GMDs
• Controlled vocabularies (e.g., roles)
• RDA and Dublin Core mappings, further
  discussions

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Making decisions

• Who decides how to apply RDA?
• National libraries within JSC
• Library of Congress and participants in the
  Program for Cooperative Cataloging
• Other cooperative project groups
• Individual institutions
• Based on what users need! Talk with them!

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Retrospective catalog maintenance?

• Intention RDA records to be compatible with
  AACR2 records
• Need for retrospective adjustments when
  integrating RDA and AACR2 records will be minimal
• Making changes now only if there is a definite
  need for the change
• JSC keeping list of changes to consider after
  first release of RDA

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Calendar

• Remaining draft reviews
• Dec. 2007-Mar. 2008 Access Point Control
• July-Sept. 2008 Complete draft of RDA
• Early 2009 First release of RDA

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Commenting on RDA drafts

• RDA drafts documents available at
• http//www.collectionscanada.ca/jsc/rda.html
• Informal discussion subscribe to RDA-L (link on
  page above)
• Formal comments send to Chair of JSC Deirdre
  Kiorgaard, dkiorgaa_at_nla.gov.au

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RDA products

• Online (Web tool) product first
• Different pricing structures
• Additional formats co-publishers want
  information from you
• Write to JSC Chair, Deirdre Kiorgaard
  dkiorgaa_at_nla.gov.au

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RDA Online

• Early prototype available a 3-minute
  demonstration of RDA Online with a brief survey
  -- your comments wanted
• Updated prototype at the American Library
  Association meeting in January 2008
• Beta version of the Web tool available later in
  2008 (goal for IFLA in Québec in August)

www.rdaonline.org
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Training for RDA

• Catalogers will need some training in RDA but it
  wont need to be extensive
• Before 2009 Orientation to and background on
  the underlying conceptual models and the
  principles
• Training on rules that have changed between AACR2
  and RDA
• Groups that provide training are beginning to
  make plans for different packages
• Online product will assist with learning

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Summary

• Internationally-agreed principles
• IME ICC
• Internationally-agreed conceptual models
• FRBR
• FRAD
• Collaborative effort
• Resulting records for use in Web environment
• First release in 2009
• Part of transition to Catalogue 2.0

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Final thought

• If nothing ever changed, thered be no
  butterflies. (Author unknown)

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Questions?

• Now?
• Later jkuh_at_loc.gov
• Tusen tack!