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Creating a Provisional Record
For items with no OCLC copy or class sep dummy records, a provisional record should be created.
1.1 Creating the record
Click on ‘Title Maintenance’ Wizard and then on ‘Add Title Wizard’. Set the appropriate properties for the record you are creating and click on ‘Okay’
Property values to note: ‘FORMAT’
‘Add copy when creating title’ (box to be checked or left blank)
‘type’
‘home location’
FORMATS: Use MARC for monographs and monographic sets
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Use VM for videorecordings
Typically a provisional record will not require copy on the VOL/COPY screen and therefore the check-box should remain empty. If copy is desired for a particular item then note the default and set as appropriate for both ‘type’ and ‘home location’.
1.2 Editing the record
When FORMAT has been determined the bibliographic screen will appear with appropriate fixed fields, some of which will include default entries (e.g., ‘Lang’ = eng). The provisional bibliographic screen will also contain representative fields with descriptive labels appropriate to the selected FORMAT.
For example, the FORMAT ‘MARC’ will provide a screen with the following fields:
ISBN ISBN: 020 __ [blank field]
ISSN ISSN: : 022 __ [blank field]
Personal author: : 100 1_ [blank field]
Uniform title title: : 240 __ [blank field]
Title Title: : 245 __ [*required field*]
Publication info info: : 260 __ [blank field]
Physical description: 300 __ [blank field]
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Contents Note :505 __ [blank field]
As is obvious, only the ‘Title’ field is of absolute necessity when creating a provisional record, and in some instances a title will be all the information available.
However, in the interest of creating as reasonably complete a record as possible, and when additional information is available, completing the following fields is recommended:
Fixed Fields: Date 1
Lang
Descriptive Fields: 020 (ISBN)
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700 (editors or additional authors)
1.3 Non-print information
For videos, computer disks, microfilm, etc., add |h[GMD] immediately following the |a portion of title in the 245 field.
Example: 245 00 Notorious Welsh women|h[videorecording]
1.4 Status notes and control number
If the item for which the provisional record has been created is in hand, make a print-out of the record and note the date of the last OCLC search in the upper right-hand corner. If item is an approval title write the control number on the portion of the vendor slip which remains visible. Note that all provisional records, regardless of format, receive an automatic control number which begins with the small letter ‘a’.
Prepared by: Robert Estep
Updated on: 5/24/2007
Index Terms: Provisional record, record formats, fixed fields, descriptive fields, GMD