Cambridge University Library
RDA for non-cataloguers
Written for Cambridge use by Celine Carty
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Overview
What is RDA?
Why do we need RDA?
What does this mean in Cambridge?
How to recognise RDA records
Looking at RDA records
RDA & discovery
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What is RDA?
The new cataloguing standard
replacing AACR2 (AngloAmerican Cataloguing Rules,
2nd edition)
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Why a new standard?
It’s about time!
1978
Slide by Chris Oliver, used with permission
Problems with AACR2
Written in the context of card catalogues
• abbreviations
• limited number of contributors that could be included
Inadequate rules for the description of new types of resources,
especially electronic resources
Lack of a theoretical framework to act as a reference point
when dealing with new situations
The road to RDA
2004
Work starts on AACR3
2005
-> Resource Description and Access
2009
RDA text is completed
2010-2011
US National Test of RDA
2012
Decision announced by Library of
Congress, British Library, National
Library of Australia and others
31st March 2013
RDA Implementation
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Continuity from AACR2 to RDA
• continue to record the title
• continue to record the edition
• continue to record the date of publication
But …
• new vocabulary
• new way of thinking about how we do these steps
• new theoretical model
Theoretical underpinning of RDA
RDA is based on a combination of:
FRBR (Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records) &
FRAD (Functional Requirements for Authority Data)
ICP (IFLA’s Statement of International Cataloguing Principles)
Cataloguing decisions focus on the user tasks of FRBR:
Find, Identify, Select, Obtain
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RDA in Cambridge
Implement RDA in all original cataloguing of print
monographs, integrating resources and serials in 2013
31st March cambrdgedb database (UL, CSL, Medical,
Moore & Squire Law Libraries)
1st October all other Cambridge libraries
Other formats (maps, music, electronic resources, etc.) will
move to RDA during the academic year 2013-14
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What does RDA implementation mean?
RDA is specifically designed so that RDA records are
compatible with AACR2 records, and can co-exist in the same
database
No plans for manual conversion to RDA of:
 our existing AACR2 records
 full-level AACR2 records downloaded in copy-cataloguing
workflows, even after Mar. 2013
Many global updates will be made using batch processes,
e.g. amendments to the authority forms of names
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UL & cambrdgedb
Training for UL, CSL, Medical, Moore & Squire Law Library
staff started December 2012
Around 75 staff, including all who do any cataloguing at all in
the cambrdgedb database
Formal training (minimum 20hrs) Jan-March 2013
Ongoing support from April onwards
Similar programme for other Cambridge libraries (all other
Voyager databases) in June-Sept 2013
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RDA is here – what does this mean?
Even when cataloguing in RDA, still using:
• Voyager
• Newton/LibrarySearch/LibrarySearch+
• MARC21 encoding
• Same subject headings, same classification
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RDA is already here
Already have nearly 4,000 RDA in cambrdgedb
Almost 100,000 RDA name authorities already in the
database (with more coming)
Some suppliers already sending RDA records
BL contributing them to BNB and creating CIP records in RDA
Voyager, Newton, LibrarySearch and LibrarySearch+ coping
fine
- some minor display issues will be fixed with next
Voyager upgrade, later this year
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RDA spotting in the wild
In MARC records:
040 containing $e rda
Additional clues:
 Leader “Cataloging form” = i
 33X ... $2 rda...
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Identifying RDA in MARC – the Leader
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Relationship designators
Relationship designators in 1XX/7XX fields (“Main author”
and “other entries” in Newton)
• these follow authorised access points (headings) for
persons, corporate bodies, and families
• they can relate to various levels of involvement – eg
creator (author, composer, etc) and contributor (editor,
illustrator, etc) – and use a controlled list of vocabulary
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Transcription of information
RDA emphasises transcription from the resource, so we see
fuller data in title, statement of responsibility and other areas.
Introduction to the physics of waves / Tim
Freegarde, University of Southampton.
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RDA and AACR2’s “rule of three”
Under AACR2, the “rule of three“ meant that:
• if there were more than three authors/editors/etc, the
cataloguer transcribed only the first and gave an access
point only to that first name
The “rule of three” disappears under RDA
• the cataloguer now transcribes all names unless unduly
onerous and provides access points for all those names –
again, unless unduly onerous
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Rule of three example
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Publication information
AACR2 included all information about publication,
manufacture, distribution and copyright in one field
RDA separates out information about publication,
manufacture, distribution and copyright
Now use copyright symbol © instead of letter “c”
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Abbreviations and RDA
RDA is a largely abbreviation-free standard
• abbreviations which RDA now spells out include:
• p. ( pages);
• ill. ( illustrations);
• ports. ( portraits);
• v. ( volume/volumes)
• exception: cm (because it’s considered a symbol)
• NB: abbreviations are used when they appear on the
resource itself
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Latin terms and RDA
RDA moves away from Latin, preferring English instead
Latin terms which are not used in RDA include:
• et al. ( and x others);
• s.l.; s.n.; n.d. ( place of publication not identified;
publisher not identified; date of publication not
identified);
• ca. ( approximately)
NB: Latin terms are used when they appear on the resource
itself
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Goodbye GMD
GMD (General Material Designation) in AACR2, bracketed
information in the title that conveys the type of material (for
non-print resources)
[electronic resource], [sound recording],
[videorecording]
Confusing combination of carrier and content information
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Changes to the database
Various settings have been changed in Voyager already to
incorporate the RDA changes
New tag tables in the Cataloguing module, changes to the
display mapping in Newton, etc.
Voyager upgrade to accommodate the final RDA changes
Display and indexing under ongoing review
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Changes to authority records
Lots of changes for RDA done as global updates to authority
records, files released in batches to libraries
Global changes underway now (March 2013):
• Expand abbreviations (arr., acc., unacc., Dept., cent., fl., ca.)
• Replace “b.” and “d.” in dates with hyphens
• Change “violincello” to “cello” in headings
• Changes to Bible (O.T. and N.T.) and Koran headings
• Change Koran to Qur’an
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Changes to the authority file - 2
During these automated changes, please be patient!
~30,000 updated authority records per day
There will be a delay in dealing with the large number of
updated records locally, but they are being done.
There may be a slight delay until all catalogue records
containing a particular name are all changed to the RDA form,
but hopefully the effects of this will be minimal
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Getting books to the shelf
While everyone is learning something new, cataloguing will
inevitably take a bit longer
However, workflows have been adapted as much as possible
to ensure that the number of books reaching the shelf each
week remains roughly the same
We aim to minimise the impact on users as much as possible
Urgents and reader requests will still be processed in the
same timeframe
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RDA …
takes us from where we are
moves us to a new track
puts us on the right track for
the next part of the journey
Slide by Chris Oliver, used with permission
Why is RDA important?
To get bibliographic data out of the library silo
• visible on the web
• interacting with the data of other metadata communities
Clearer language for library users
Easier for computers to manipulate
Well-defined and structured data elements
Open up our world to others who want to use our data
Move away from using MARC (a library-only standard)
Benefits of RDA
Now
Future
• designed to work in
current catalogues
• ready to take advantage of
new database structures
• compatible with AACR2
records
• function in the semantic
web, linked data
environment
• co-exist with AACR2
records in the same
databases
• visible in the web alongside
other types of metadata
Slide by Chris Oliver, used with permission
http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/libraries/login/RDA/
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More information
The slides for this presentation, along with lots of other RDA
resources and documentation, are available from:
http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/libraries/login/RDA/docs.html
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