Cataloging Supplement

During the last year it became clear that we as a library community need to improve the cataloging records in the SILO Locator. Librarians who use the SILO Locator and Interlibrary Loan know some of the problems. These include the difficulty of retrieving and searching through duplicate records for the exact same item and not being able to request and receive a particular format for library customers. Improving the records in the Locator will save staff time and make it easier to accurately fill interlibrary loan requests for a particular format.

As of July 1, 2006, MARC records submitted to the SILO Locator must meet the Iowa Locator Minimum MARC Standards. The State Library wants to help librarians be successful in meeting these standards. Therefore, as announced this past July, a portion of this year's Library Infrastructure funds will be used for a Cataloging Supplement to provide $400 to each eligible public library that requests the funds to purchase high-quality cataloging records.

This one-time supplement is a demonstration project to give libraries an opportunity to experiment with high quality cataloging records. The $400 may not be used for any other purpose. Libraries that already purchase high quality cataloging records, such as OCLC and Cat Express, may use the funds to defray their ongoing cataloging costs.

The following resources are available to help answer your questions:

• Marie Harms, State Library
• Your Iowa Library Service Area