Updated January 2019 by Hank Young
Maintenance of Serial Records
The biggest difference between serials and other materials is this: Serial records need maintenance. Our agreement with CONSER requires us to "maintain CONSER records as [we] become aware of the need." Any record maintenance we perform -- locking and replacing an existing record on OCLC -- counts toward our 400-record committment.
What types of maintenance are we required to do on CONSER records?
- Correcting obvious errors
- Closing records of ceased serials (see the major change page for detailed directions)
- Adding a 246 field for a minor title change
- Giving a note for a change in the place of publication, if the record has a 130 with the place of publication
- Adding an associated series, or noting a change in series*
- Adding a new or changed 710 or 711 field; add a 550 note to explain the added entry*
- Adding or modifiying a 362 field, if we have the first or last issue, when the record did not have that information
- Adding or modifying subject headings or classification numbers
- Changing the description based on or last issue consulted note if we have an earlier or later issue, and have added other information taken from that issue.
- Changing frequency (recording previous frequencies is optional)
- Creating links to related titles (we can also put a link on a non-CONSER record without authenticating the record)
- Certain changes to pre-AACR records (see CONSER Editing Guide B.4.3; consult the Principal Serials Cataloger before changing pre-AACR records)
*Authority work must also be completed as needed.
The general principle to remember is that any change that affects access to the record or other serials functions (such as arriving, claiming, or binding) is worthwhile for maintenance. All authority work should be checked when performing other maintenance.
The information above is adapted from CONSER Editing Guide, B.4; please feel free to refer to it for details and examples.
