Library Cataloging

LC Subject Headings

The latest issue of the Cataloging Service Bulletin has these major subject heading changes

Australian aborigines becomes Aboriginal Australians
The geographic qualifier Nfld. becomes N.L.

A change affecting many fewer records but most likely more libraries, is the change from Libraries and readers to Public services (Libraries) and from Library catalogs and readers to Library catalogs and users There is a change in meaning in these headings that I'm not sure I feel comfortable with. A reader is an active participant, a verb. A user has a bad undertone. Saying "She's just a user" isn't a compliment. This is a shift in meaning, not expression. Are we moving towards a business attitude rather than public service attitude? I hope not. The Public services (Libraries) heading seems not to have that attitude. Library catalogs and users, does.

- Parks And Forests
LC is seeking coments on Government-Designated Parks and Forests, Proposed Change in Policy.The Cataloging Policy and Support Office is considering changing the current practice so that headings of this type that are established in the subject authority...

- Cataloging Service Bulletin
I've received the latest edition of the Cataloging Service Bulletin.The subject heading Bildungsroman has been changed to the plural form. While they were at it, why not change to something users can understand and spell? Coming of age stories, for...

- Metasearching
The is a new service offered by the Texas State Library and Archives Commission that allows users to easily discover and retrieve desired information from multiple library catalogs, databases, and other knowledge collections. Texans no longer need to...

- Cross Training
The article The Renaissance Librarian: Catalogers Working in Public Services by Douglas King has been published at LISCareer.com He discusses the benefits of working the reference desk and issues to consider before taking the plunge.I've always found...

- Subject Access
"Why LC Subject Headings Are More Important Than Ever" by Thomas Mann, American Libraries, Oct. 2003, v. 34, no. 9 discusses not the importance of LC subject headings, the title is a bit misleading, but the importance of the ability of users to browse...

Library Cataloging