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Kate,

I agree that in this case judgment may be involved since there are a few usages of George Wolfgang Forell (though by my examination it isn't even close to majority usage), but I do note that the record was not labeled "preliminary", it was labeled "AACR2-compatible." It seems pretty clear that this form was so labeled precisely because of usage--there is no evidence of the usage of the spelled out middle name in the record before it was relabeled RDA--which meant that it didn't comply with AACR2, but it was thought under the "AACR2-compatible" rules to be "good enough". As John Hostage pointed out, code d for AACR2 compatible is a strong tip-off that the heading can't be accepted as is. Even when AACR2 was implemented it was recognized that this heading did not comply with AACR2, and since the usage rules haven't changed (the principle of choosing the most commonly found form remains), it probably doesn't comply with RDA either.

When RDA was implemented a conscious decision was made on the part of PCC (together with LC) that we would not recognize an "RDA-compatible" category, which in this case means, yes, we should indeed re-evaluate usage and change the authorized access point if appropriate. This applies to fullness; it also applies to other things that might seem even more inconsequential, such as if the person uses hyphens between parts of the name and the hyphen isn't reflected in the "AACR2-compatible" heading.

No doubt not everyone agrees with the decision not to recognize "RDA-compatible" authorized access points but that was the decision (I happen to agree with it), and if the result of the decision simply means we recode the record RDA and not change authorized access points that don't comply with principle-based rules about usage (because after all we can always put in a variant access point), then the decision is pretty meaningless.

By the way (I hope to say without sounding offensive), if the decision is to be changed, it isn't LC's Descriptive Cataloging meeting that will change it. It's a PCC decision.

Bob

Robert L. Maxwell
Ancient Languages and Special Collections Librarian
6728 Harold B. Lee Library
Brigham Young University
Provo, UT 84602
(801)422-5568 

"We should set an example for all the world, rather than confine ourselves to the course which has been heretofore pursued"--Eliza R. Snow, 1842.


-----Original Message-----
From: Program for Cooperative Cataloging [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Policy and Standards Division
Sent: Tuesday, December 13, 2016 2:19 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: error

Please do not change the NAR. I see no reason why the fuller form "Forell, George, Wolfgang" is considered incorrect when it appears as "George Wolfgang Forell" on several publications including these:

History of Christian ethics (1979)
Christian social teachings (1966)
Piety, politics, and ethics :  Reformation studies in honor of George Wolfgang Forell (1984) Confessing one faith (1982)

Yes, the person's name also appears on several publications as "George W. Forell."  This is why we have variant names.    The PCC Post RDA Test Guidelines say nothing about counting up the usage for various forms and using the one found on the most records in the 1XX nor about changing the 1XX to conform to the most current usage.  You are supposed to consider whether a form has usage, and this one does.  As we know, publications using a person's name in a statement of responsibility may appear long after a person's death.  Do we still need to reconsider whether "Kennedy, John F." is correct if a publisher decided reissue his complete works and use "J.F.K." on the title page?   Every time I catalog a book by or about John F. Kennedy" do I need to reassess whether the 1XX form still reflects the usage "most commonly found?"   The logical answer is "no."

If I were to follow RDA 9.2.2.5.3 strictly, and I had 3 different publications using these 3 different usages, I should be changing the NAR each time the next publication is received for cataloging:

Jackson-Bryant, John
Jackson-Bryant, John W.
Jackson-Bryant, J. W.

That strikes me as unnecessary bibliographic maintenance as well as not a good use of my time. It would make more sense to record the variant names and move on to the next book needing cataloging.  We used to have this in an LCRI, "If an established heading is already coded "AACR2" (including those labeled preliminary  -- 008 byte 33 = d) and subsequently received items show forms in the chief source that vary in fullness, generally do not change the established heading." Obviously, there were reasons to change the established heading (e.g., the heading was wrong or the person requested a change) so it wasn't an absolute.  However, it seemed like a good guiding principle of efficiency.  I'll ask as our next Descriptive Cataloging meeting why the idea of that policy wasn't brought into the LC-PCC PSs for headings already coded "rda."

Kate James
Policy and Standards Division
Library of Congress



-----Original Message-----
From: Program for Cooperative Cataloging [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Michael Borries
Sent: Tuesday, December 13, 2016 3:35 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [PCCLIST] error

I assume that, since there is a consensus that the heading "Forell, George Wolfgang" is not the correct RDA form, that no one will object if I change it to the correct form.  My question then becomes, what to do about the 670 OCLC usage note?  As it stands, it is misleading.  I am inclined to delete it and add a new one.  The other option would be to change the current note, but that seems to go against policy and also to muddy the waters.  Leaving it in the record unchanged also seems to imply that there was a massive change in usage between 2012 and 2016, after the author died, unless I also add 667 note explaining the situation.

What say ye?

Michael S. Borries
Cataloger, City University of New York
151 East 25th Street, 5th Floor
New York, NY  10010
Phone: (646) 312-1687
Email: [log in to unmask]


-----Original Message-----
From: Program for Cooperative Cataloging [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Robert Maxwell
Sent: Tuesday, December 13, 2016 3:14 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [PCCLIST] error

It was probably recoded programmatically and the program didn't pay attention to things like usage. However, it appears that a cataloger did formally do a usage check on December 9; the OCLC note implies that "George Wolfgang Forell" is the predominant usage. As you point out, this is incorrect. It appears that George W. Forell is by far the most common usage. The OCLC 670 usage note should always name the most common form first, otherwise it's misleading, as here.

This does show the necessity of being a bit skeptical of authorized access points, if you have reason to be (e.g., as you note, when the preferred name consists of the fullest form), even though the record has been recoded to RDA. With the vast recoding projects (including upcoming Phase III), a record coded "rda", unfortunately, doesn't necessarily mean it really does follow RDA. Most of them do, but not all.

Bob

Robert L. Maxwell
Ancient Languages and Special Collections Librarian
6728 Harold B. Lee Library
Brigham Young University
Provo, UT 84602
(801)422-5568 

"We should set an example for all the world, rather than confine ourselves to the course which has been heretofore pursued"--Eliza R. Snow, 1842.

-----Original Message-----
From: Program for Cooperative Cataloging [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Michael Borries
Sent: Tuesday, December 13, 2016 12:40 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: error

I have a question about this heading.  The current AAP, labelled RDA, has "Forell, George Wolfgang."  I usually am suspicious of full names like this, and when I sampled the usage found on the bib records in OCLC, I found that the author almost always used "George W. Forell," very rarely "George Wolfgang Forell."  So why was "Forell, George Wolfgang" allowed to remain as the AAP? 

Michael S. Borries
Cataloger, City University of New York
151 East 25th Street, 5th Floor
New York, NY  10010
Phone: (646) 312-1687
Email: [log in to unmask]

-----Original Message-----
From: AUTOCAT [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of gary oliver
Sent: Tuesday, December 13, 2016 12:33 PM
To: Michael Borries <[log in to unmask]>
Subject: error

Folks,

A faculty member here alerted me to an error in one of our bib records and seeing 59 other holdings in OCLC, thought I let y'all know in the event you have uncorrected holdings in your catalogs.. Both the statement of responsibility and the author (700) field have the last name of the author misspelled, Forrell. The correct spelling is Forell.  
The OCLC number is o25433679.  I have modified the OCLC record and controlled the author's name.

gary oliver
[log in to unmask]
Abilene Christian University

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