RE: call # indexes

["Card, Sandra" <scard@xxxxxxxxxx>]

We currently have three call number indexes:

LC call numbers

SuDoc numbers

Other call numbers, which include:  Dewey numbers for juvenile non-fiction,
juvenile fiction numbers (basically Cutters), ANSCR numbers for music
recordings, locally assigned accession numbers for VHS [the DVDs are being
cataloged in LC].

Our WEB OPAC is set up in such a way that most of the call numbers can be
searched from one box.  The exceptions are the children's fiction and the
ANSCR numbers.  We also recently added a separate search box for SuDocs,
because the way to search them was too 'hidden'.  This was done with some
JavaScript to recognize other call numbers and send the search to the
correct index.  The logic works something like this:
   if the call number starts with a number (Dewey) go to "other"
   if call number starts with FLIC (our VHS prefix) go to "other"
    and so on


We could not do this with the juvenile fiction and the ANSCR because they
start with letters as do the LC numbers.

To see what this looks like, go to

http://www.calstatela.edu/library/opac/catalog.html

and select the call number search

and if you click on the other numbers link, it leads you to a search screen
for children's fiction/ANSCR numbers, ISBN/ISSN numbers, and the recently
added SuDoc number search box [although the SuDocs can still be searched
from the main screen as long as a : or / is included]

http://www.calstatela.edu/library/opac/exceptions.html


One thing to consider with multiple vs. single call number indices is how
will it affect your SCAT table.  Ours is currently based only on the LC
index.  We could include the Dewey and VHS without problem, but some of the
SuDoc and ANSCR prefixes would conflict with LC prefixes and the juvenile
fiction runs A-Z.  I originally included the other index in the SCAT table
but removed it because of the skewing from the juvenile fiction.

Other considerations are the size of your collection and the number of
patrons you have.    For a small collection, there may be less need for
multiple indices.




Sandra Card
Systems Librarian and Technical Services Librarian
John F. Kennedy Memorial Library
California State University, Los Angeles
5151 State University Drive, Los Angeles 90032-8300
scard@xxxxxxxxxx
Phone: 323-343-4894    FAX: 323-343-3992






-----Original Message-----
From: Nae Hyun Kim [mailto:nkim@xxxxxxxxxx]
Sent: Thursday, September 11, 2003 6:44 AM
To: innopac@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: call # indexes


Dear Innopac users,

We currently have two call # indexes, one for print and the other for 
audio-visual materials. So far, we haven't found any use of having two 
indexes, actually it's just one more thing to remember when cataloging 
and when searching by call #. But before we mix them up together, I 
wanted to ask others who use more than one index how it can be useful.

Thank you.

Naehyun Kim
Cataloger
Manhattan School of Music



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