Wednesday, August 13, 2008

"A Ghost in the Catalog: The Gradual Obsolescence of the Main Entry" by David Conners

Conners asks if the main entry concept is still relevant for online library catalogs in this article. After supplying some historical background, he considers the arguments for retaining the main entry and for abandoning it. Conners sees RDA's terminology change to primary and secondary access points (rather than main and added entries) to be strictly cosmetic. He argues that in the age of online catalogs, the main entry is no longer needed to collocate works by a particular author and requires an unnecessary decision point for catalogers at a time when there is a push to make cataloging more cost-effective. The article is accompanied by an annotated bibliography. Even though is it published in the Serials Librarian, this article may be of interest to all catalogers, not just those focused on serials.

Published in the Serials Librarian, vol. 55, no. 1/2 (2008), pages 85-97.

No comments: