[OPEN-ILS-GENERAL] SPAM: Some questons about Evergreen

[Frances McNamara]

We have put up the Gentoo image on VMware and are using it single user, 
via VNC.

I was able to go in and immediately Z39.50 to LC and OCLC (using our 
passwords) and to Import bib records.  I figured out how to Create some 
bib records.  I figured out how to create some items and check them in 
so they show up in the web catalog.  I figured out how to Edit a MARC 
record after it was added.  I added some books, sound recordings, 
scores, dvds and can see them in the pac.

I mostly did this without documentation, only using the help button in 
MARC Edit and create, so I have some questions about what I am seeing.  
If there is user doc I should look at, let me know.  I can see this 
works fine for some collections.  I purposely looked into some of the 
things important to a large academic like us.

1.  When I Import a MARC record there seems to be a capability to 
Overlay.  Is there any doc that describes how that works?  (actually a 
lot of our real work would require a loader for files of MARC records, 
but I would think that could be developed or the scripts to batchload 
initial loads could be adapted.  We do use such utilities a lot and they 
allow for some data modification during import including deleting or 
moving data and automatic creation of items.)

2.  When I Create a MARC record while typing in the 100 Author field it 
gave a message about how there was no authority record for that name.  
Are authority records used in this system?  If so, how do they get in 
there?  Can you Create MARC an Authority record as well as a bib 
record?  We actually send out bibs and load authority records.  Is that 
done in this system?  Are the cross references and see also references 
used in any way?  Seems like all the indexes are Keyword, so I'm not 
sure how references in authority records would be used.

3.  When I Create or Edit a MARC record, if I save it with empty 
variable fields they stay in the record.  That was disconcerting as most 
systems get rid of them on save.  Not a big deal, but you might want to 
fix.  I had a lot of difficulty editing the Fixed Field.  The 008 
displays as a labelled display at the top, and then as a plain field 
down in the variable fields.  When I did Ctrl/F8 as per Help it wouldn't 
let me edit in the labelled part.  It let me edit down in the 008 but I 
couldn't figure out how to edit it so it was correct.  I was unable to 
add Date1 and place of publication code to the 008 when I created a new 
bib.  Seemed like I should have been able to, so maybe I was doing it wrong.

4.  When I create a MARC record, is there somewhere that data about when 
that bib was created, or changed or who did it is kept?  Systems do this 
in various ways.  In my current system there is also a "bib_status" and 
a "staff_only" flag.  We use those because we add and display bibs that 
are on order or in process but then we don't send them to set holdings 
in OCLC until they reach a "full cataloging" type of status.  We also 
export records for various reasons based on such a status.  Is there 
anything like that in Evergreen?

5.  After creating a MARC record I went to "Holdings maintenance" to add 
what I would call an item record.  I could add item or items and save 
them.  It seems like there is the idea of a "location" in the sense of a 
"Branch" that I had to choose before Creating the items.  But there does 
not seem to be an idea of a "collection".  So if in that branch they 
have a separate "Reference Collection"  Where do you put that 
information so the user knows to go to a special place, not the regular 
stacks to get the piece?

6.  When I create a single item it nicely grabs the Dewey and LC call 
numbers from the MARC bib and lets me choose one and "Apply" it so I 
don't have to retype it.  It defaults to the Dewey number.  Can I assume 
I could default to the LC number if I wanted to?  Or not pick up the 
Dewey number?

7.  When I created an item, for a single piece it was OK except that we 
mark each book "c.1" on the spine even if we only ever get one copy.  
It's not clear where that should go.  It is obviously much more 
important when you get to multiple volumes.  I created a record for a 2 
volume set.  There is nowhere to put the volume numbers except in the 
call number field after the call number.  I input a more complicated 
example by putting in PC world, a magazine, and making numerous items.  
So they have call numbers like   QA76.8.I26P3 c.1 v.22 (2004: 
Jan-Jun).   I put all that in the call number fields for v. 20-23.  When 
I looked at this in the pac the items did not sort in correct order even 
though I had put them in in order, which seems odd.  Also when there are 
multiple volumes with the same call number you get a separate listing 
for every single volume or copy in the Browse call number list.

Is anyone having problems with putting copy and volume information into 
the call number field?  Are there any plans to have separate fields for 
that type of information?  It might be needed.

Also, in a lot of systems between the bib record and the item records 
there is a layer of "copy" records.  This becomes important with Serials 
where there might be one copy in the main library and another in the law 
library.  The items get grouped together by the "copy".  They also get 
summary holdings based on that copy because eventually listing all the 
items isn't useful and you want to say v.20-25 instead.  We tend to have 
separate copies for the bound volumes which shelve in the stacks, as 
opposed to the unbound issues that shelve in the "Current periodicals" 
section.  Is there any plan to put a copy record between the bibs and 
items?  Or does such a copy record actually exist in the background 
somewhere?

8.  When I create an item, the bib did not show up in the pac until I 
checked in that item.  We don't do that.  We have too much stuff going 
through, it just goes to the shelf, they cannot stop and check it in 
before doing that.  Is there an option to not have to check it in?  
Actually we have some items where we have a flag "staff only" so it 
won't display in the pac and we have some bibs with that sort of "staff 
only" flag too.  Is there anything besides the status of the item that 
controls that in Evergreen currently?

9.  When creating items there is an option to print spine labels.  I 
looked at that briefly.  It seemed like it did not work well with LC 
call numbers.  Is there somewhere that you set up a bit of code to break 
up LC call numbers?  Also, can you edit directly into the little box 
that displays how the label will look?  I wasn't sure if I could do that.

10.  Is it true that there are only Keyword indexes.  Do people think 
there is a need for the type of Browse indexes in current library 
catalogs?  Usually that is where the cross references and see also 
references in authority records have been used.

11.  One other thing.  Of course we would assume we would need to 
contribute to development if we were thinking of trying to use this, but 
do you think this software could work for a database of 5.2 million bibs 
and 7 million items?

I'm sure we'll have other questions but as I start to look at this, I 
just want to make sure I am not missing some documentation or 
misunderstanding any of the basic functions.  Thanks.

Frances McNamara
University of Chicago Library