Gain the knowledge and skills needed to effectively categorize and organize resources in a library or information system. Explore the principles and techniques of subject analysis, including the application of standardized subject headings and thesauri. Learn how to create accurate and consistent subject descriptions, improving the discoverability of materials for library users. Attendees need to have an introductory understanding of classification and experience with cataloging materials.

While Graphic Novels have gained popularity among readers and have become increasingly common in library collections, producing accurate cataloging records for them presents distinct challenges. This session aims to address these challenges by focusing on the most important MARC fields for Graphic Novels cataloging and providing useful resources to assist catalogers.

Libraries are now circulating items beyond just books and movies. From cake pans to kayaks, circulating non-traditional items meets patrons’ needs in new and interesting ways. At the same time, these items can be particularly challenging to properly catalog. With this one-hour Know & Go, overcome familiar obstacles related to cataloging non-traditional objects and learn practical solutions to common problems.

From academic journals to popular magazines, serials make up a sizable and frequently used portion of libraries' collections. Understand the fundamental principles of serials cataloging, including defining the nature of serials and progress to copy cataloging serials, creating original serial records, and dealing with title changes.

OpenRefine, formerly known as Google Refine, is a powerful open-source tool for working with messy data. As the amount of data grows, so do the errors and inconsistencies, leading to more time required to manually correct these issues. This course will introduce and review OpenRefine, the software which allows users to quickly view, identify inconsistencies in, and enhance a variety of data.

Kits are a collection of materials, sometimes created by a library and sometimes by a publisher or vendor. It is important that kits be easily identified and distinguished from the individual included titles, both by patrons and catalogers. Because the variety of materials found in kits makes them non-traditional, kits can be challenging to catalog. This session will cover the common questions faced when cataloging kits and offer solutions.

Designed for those new to cataloging, this overview of the basics highlights the essential tools and techniques, including descriptive cataloging, subject cataloging, and Machine-Readable Cataloging (MARC). With clear instruction and an overview of available resources to consult, become empowered to catalog library materials and contribute to their discoverability.

Authority control, the process of ensuring consistent use of access points in bibliographic records, helps library users discover all relevant information within a library’s catalog. To be effective, authority requires record maintenance. This session will cover the basic principles of authority control and guide users on maintaining consistency in authority records.

Linked data is a method of representing and sharing data that connects information across different sources and domains. It can offer many benefits to libraries through improved data quality, enhanced discoverability of resources, and data sharing among institutions. This course covers the principles of linked data and demonstrates the use of semantically rich data in libraries.

Zines, or noncommercial magazines, are increasingly collected by libraries as primary source documents relating to particular communities. Because of variuus factors such as frequent title changes, inconsistent publishing schedules, and pseudonomous creators, zines can be particularly challenging to properly catalog. This session will cover many common challenges relating to cataloging zines and offer solutions to these problems.