-------- Original Message --------
Subject: Creating 655s for old records
Date: Sat, 3 Sep 2011 06:36:49 -0500
From: Christopher Winters <[log in to unmask]>
To: [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]>


I'd be grateful to hear if any organization has put together a set of
straightforward instructions for adding lcgft headings (655s) to older
cartographic-materials records that it would be willing to share.
Weren't OCLC or LC at least thinking along these lines?  I'm imagining
something like:

if format = e or f
and
if 650 > Geology
add 655  7 Geological maps $2 lcgft

if format = e or f
and
if 651 $v = Maps, Topographic.
change 651 $v to Maps.
and
add 655  7 Topographic maps. $2 lcgft

and so on. Perhaps I've overlooked something, but I'm pretty sure that a
few dozen such rules could deal with 99% of the records.

Law librarians are apparently doing something like this--although lcgft
headings in law look to be much harder to derive mechanically from
elements in older records than is the case for cartographic-materials
records.

Thanks for any hints.

Best,

Chris Winters

Christopher Winters
Bibliographer for Geography, Anthropology, and Maps
University of Chicago Library