Re: [IUG] Modifying Monographic labels

["McDonald, Stephen" <Steve dot McDonald at tufts dot edu>]

Hm.  Well, we can certainly rule out doing "intellectual" breaks in the author names.  I won't say that it would be impossible, but I would expect doing syllable breaks with reasonable accuracy would require something like a fifty-line script, at least.

But, if you can convince the supervisor to simply wrap names using rules similar to what you are doing with Dewey numbers, it should not be too bad.  Consider (and perhaps pass on) these arguments in favor of an automated line-breaking algorithm:
1)  It will be faster.  You could print 100 labels in less time than it currently takes you to edit a single label.
2)  It will require less training.  Pages and clerks won't have to learn your rules for dropping at least three digits, or how to use the old Millennium label editor, or remember how to identify a syllable break (with word-processors, a lot of students these days don't know or remember how to do that!)
3)  It will reduce errors.  You won't have a case where a clerk accidentally missed a label and the last three digits get cut off.
4)  Does:
Spielb
 erg

really look that much worse than:
Spiel
 berg

This is, after all, just a label, not a text going through an editor for publication or a paper for a teacher.  It is just an identifier.  In these days of trying to do more with less, this is one case where I think the benefits of automation far outweigh esthetic principles.

I will start thinking about a set of functions that can add line-breaks, with a minimum of 3 characters after the break.  When I have something, I'll post it.

					Steve McDonald
					Steve dot mcdonald at tufts dot edu

> -----Original Message-----
> From: innopac-bounces at innovativeusers dot org [mailto:innopac-
> bounces at innovativeusers dot org] On Behalf Of Angela Igo
> Sent: Thursday, July 21, 2011 3:39 PM
> To: 'IUG INNOPAC List'
> Subject: Re: [IUG] Modifying Monographic labels
> 
> Steve,
> For nonfiction we use the Dewey Decimal System, and there is only room
> for 8 characters on one line, so if the number past the decimal is
> longer than 7 digits we drop it down one line.  But we don't want to
> drop down just one digit, we normally drop down at least 3, and indent
> it one space.   With fiction, again since there is only room for 8
> characters, we would take a name like Patterson and break it between
> the "r" and the "s" and indent the second line one space.  My
> supervisor refers to these as "intellectual" breaks rather than
> "logical" breaks.  Our goal is to make this as easy as possible for the
> pages and clerks who print our labels.  Right now they can edit the
> label within the Modify Monographic Label dialogue box and hit print.
> If you have any suggestions, or if my explanation didn't make sense,
> please let me know.
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> 
> Angela Igo
> Associate Business Manager
> Weber County Library
> Information Technology
> 801-337-2682
> 
> 
> 
> >>> "McDonald, Stephen" <Steve dot McDonald at tufts dot edu> 7/20/2011 12:16 PM
> >>>
> Unfortunately, you cannot edit Print Template labels just before
> printing the way you could with the old label printing option.  Your
> only choices are:  1) Modify the Print Template itself to deal
> correctly with every situation so that you never need to edit the
> labels before printing.  2) Use several different Print Templates for
> different situations, making sure that each one works well enough that
> you never need to edit labels before printing.  3) Edit call numbers in
> the record before and after printing, the way you are doing now.  4)
> Get your Print Template(s) as good as you can, and resign yourself to
> typing up on a typewriter those few that still won't work.
> 
> Could you explain in more detail exactly what situations you currently
> need to edit the call numbers for?  It may be possible to edit the
> Print Template to cover these situations.  With careful use of various
> functions, it is possible to handle a surprising variety of call
> numbers.  I managed to write up a very complicated template that would
> correctly format more than 99.9% of all the call numbers we get,
> without editing.
> 
> Steve McDonald
> Steve dot mcdonald at tufts dot edu
> 
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: innopac-bounces at innovativeusers dot org [mailto:innopac-
> > bounces at innovativeusers dot org] On Behalf Of Angela Igo
> > Sent: Wednesday, July 20, 2011 1:14 PM
> > To: innopac at innovativeusers dot org
> > Subject: [IUG] Modifying Monographic labels
> >
> > We are trying to upgrade the computers in our Technical Services
> Dept.
> > to newer models with Windows 7. The new machines however do not
> support
> > a parallel connection. Which means our old faithful dot matrix
> printers
> > will no longer work for label printing. Right now, the staff uses the
> > Modify Monographic Label option in the Cataloging module, and ideally
> > we would like to continue doing that so that we don't have to spend a
> > lot of time retraining. I have been experimenting with print
> templates,
> > both for a laser printer and for a Zebra TLP2844, but in order to
> > format some labels correctly, I have to adjust either the
> Bibliographic
> > call number or the item call number, and then readjust it when I am
> > done queuing the labels. This seems like a really cumbersome process.
> > We really like to be able to modify the labels without impacting the
> > records in any way. Is anyone else printing to a USB printer this
> way?
> > For those using print templates, what is your process for modifying
> > your lab!
> >  els?
> > Thanks,
> >
> > Angela Igo
> > Associate Business Manager
> > Weber County Library
> > Information Technology
> > 801-337-2682
> >
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