Resources
Links to a wide selection of freely available cataloguing and metadata resources curated by ALIA ACORD.
Practical help for new cataloguers
- OCLC WebJunction Alternative Basic Library Education (ABLE) Technical Services Sequence – free self-paced training modules from the Idaho Commission for Libraries, outlining the basics of catalogue records, MARC, LCSH and DDC
- MARC21 standards, Library of Congress
- Free LCSH files, including an introduction to LCSH and links to the Subject Headings Manual
- LC Linked Data Service, an easily-searchable database of LCSH and other LC thesauri
Cataloguing philosophies and ethics
- IFLA Library Reference Model (LRM)
- Cataloging Code of Ethics, co-produced by members of ALA, CILIP and CFLA
- Information Maintenance as a Practice of Care
- Reimagine Descriptive Workflows: A Community-informed Agenda for Reparative and Inclusive Descriptive Practice report from OCLC
Best practice documents
- Descriptive Cataloging of Rare Materials, RDA Edition – new RDA-compliant cataloguing manual for rare and special collections
- NLM MeSH Training Course – free self-paced modules from the US National Library of Medicine on selecting and applying Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) in catalogue records
- OLAC publications on best practice for cataloguing audiovisual materials – DVDs, streaming media, video games et cetera
- Best practices for music cataloguing from the Music OCLC Users Group (MOUG)
- Best Practices for Cataloging Comics and Graphic Novels Using RDA and MARC21 from the ALA Graphic Novels and Comics Round Table
- Best Practices for Cataloging Streaming Media from Online Audiovisual Catalogers Inc (OLAC)