It is finished!!!

Well, this was fun, but I’m glad I don’t have to repeat it!!!  Now that I feel pretty comfortable with ISBD and MARC, we have to add more elements.  These last two sections were a little more difficult.  DDC really frustrated me.  I think I had expectations about Dewey which were not accurate.  I expected the process to be much simpler.  Meaning 500 would be broad, 550 a little more specific, and 555 more specific and so on.  I had no idea about all of the adding.  I we didn’t even get into some of the more difficult stuff! A friend of mine taking courses towards becoming an archivist, called me for help on an assignment.  I had not even seen the stuff he was doing J

I am glad I know how to do this, though.  Although I will not use it very often, it is good to know how create records accurately for when I need to create them.  The lady I work with is complaining because the course she took in cataloging was not as detailed, and she feels cheated. She did not know how to do half of what we learned throughout this class.  Her husband is the archivist student, and she really feels lost looking at his homework.  You might get to see her in your class one day, she says she wants to take it.

Kristy Boling

April 27^th, 2011

232 words

I Guess It Really Does Matter :)

Apparently this class has been a large focus of the conversations between me and the librarian I work with.  She is very interested in what I am learning, and enjoy discussing the class with someone who understands what I mean when I say 245.  However, I think the class has influenced her – as she has decided to use this year’s inventory to begin fixing her library records.  Specifically, we are fixing call numbers.  Right now, we are working on the fiction section changing all of the PB’s and F’s to FIC’s.  While doing this, I found several books which were severely outdated, worn, or had not been checked out in quite a while.  She allowed me to weed these books.  I like that I understand what I am doing and feel like I am actually contributing instead of just doing the paperwork! 



So glad I don't have to do it this way!!!



Now that we are almost finished, she informs me we are going to review the nonfiction section as well.  Some of the items could be classified more accurately or even moved to an entirely different spot on the shelf.  Since we are studying DDC right now, I hope I will be able to be as involved in this process as I was with the other.  It’s nice being able to see how what I’m learning in class actually applies.  I still don’t want to catalog full-time (it’s just too tedious for me) but I can understand why it is so important.

Kristy Boling

March 31, 2011

243 Words

Not Enough Money in th World $$$

You could not pay me enough to be a full-time cataloger! 

Thankfully, as a school librarian, this will only be a portion of my job.  I do feel much calmer this month after realizing each step builds on the last and once I find the basic information I only have to format it correctly.  However, the formatting in each step seems to be more and more tedious.  The formatting also switches between the different areas we are studying!  However, this is not a difficult subject.  It simply requires time and attention to detail. 

I’m waiting to get to subjects.  After looking through the catalog record I work with, I realized this is where the most discrepancies lies.  The information we have used so far is pretty straight forward.  I don’t have to decide what the author’s name is going to be, I just have to put in the right place using the right format.  I’m curious if subjects are much the same way, or if I have to decide.  Also, all the information we have used to this point, can be easily found without actually reading the book.  How does one decide subject matter without ever having read the book?

Basically, though I am feeling much better about the class now.  The librarian I work with has enjoyed looking over some of the lecture notes and discussions, as a lot of this information was not covered in her cataloging class!

Kristy Boling

February 28, 2011

240 Words

I've been doing this completely WRONG!

I currently work as an assistant in an elementary school library.  As the librarian spends much of her time teaching classes, pretty much every thing else falls to me.  This includes processing and cataloging new books.  The first year I worked, I only did copy and paste cataloging and only from two websites the librarian preferred.  However, after I became familiar with bibliographic records and MARC tags, she showed me other sites she uses and what items may need to be edited.  She also showed me how to create a record from scratch.  I do this every week and it is a very simple process. 

Now I am taking a cataloging class and looking over all the codes, acronyms, and abbreviations I have to learn how to use.  Not to mention the amount of detail involved in each record.  The librarian I work for does not do it this way.  She is primarily in charge of her library and not really accountable to anyone else, so she can basically do what she wants.  The more classes I take in LIBS the more I realize how much she really does her own way. 

I'm a little overwhelmed right now, but I decided to quit looking ahead and pace myself according the assignments.  I think if I become familiar with each new piece of information in a step by step process, I will understand everything just fine.

Kristy Boling
January 31, 2011
235 words