Resources - Metadata Configuration Authority Control Authority Control Jobs   The WRLC Network Zone runs three different jobs in Alma for authority control every day. These jobs apply only to Network Zone-linked bibliographic records that have been added or updated since the last time the job was run, also to bibliographic records with subject headings linked to authority records that have been updated since the last job was run. Link BIB Headings job : links authority headings to an authority record Preferred Term Correction job : changes the heading from the non-preferred term to the preferred term. Handle Local Authority Record Updates job : updates $0 in the bibliographic record and performs relinking for local authority records.   More information can be found in the Alma Knowledge Center . Ex Libris runs a re-indexing job on all repository records twice a year (from November to January, and from May to July). This process applies both authority control jobs to all records in the repository; this is the only time that the jobs will run on old records as well as new ones. The WRLC did not have authority control jobs running in the Network Zone until 2022. In the Fall of 2021, the WRLC Metadata Committee reviewed authority control in Alma and came to the conclusion that, although the jobs are not perfect, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks. A detailed description of this review can be viewed in the Authority Control Testing Fall 2021 document created by the WRLC Authority Control Subgroup. The official WRLC Policy on Authority Control can be found in the WRLC Network Zone Bibliographic Record Policies document . Authority Control Rules   In addition, WRLC created several Authority Control rules to mitigate some of the mistakes commonly committed by the Link BIB Heading and Preferred Term Correction jobs. The jobs and rules mentioned above are configured in the Network Zone, and therefore only apply to records linked to the Network Zone. Below are are the current configurations in the WRLC Network Zone for authority control. Configuration > Resources > General > Authority Control Rules Link BIB Headings Tab Undifferentiated Personal Name : when the authority 008 control field, position 32 = "b", then do not link Exact subfield codes : Subdivision fields will NOT be disregarded by the Link BIB Heading job Configuration > Resources > General > Authority Control Rules Preferred Term Correction Tab Undifferentiated non-preferred personal name : Prevents preferred term correction for personal names in an X00 field to be linked to an authority record with an undifferentiated non-preferred personal name 655 LCSH Headings : If a term in a 655 field is from LCSH vocabulary, preferred term correction will not be applied Resources :  Working with Authority Records Authority Control Rules WRLC’s Authority Control Testing Fall 2021 Metadata Editor Warnings (MARC21 Bib Extensions) When a record is opened in Alma’s Metadata Editor, Alma checks the record for a variety of characteristics such as missing information, invalid information, duplicate records, and so forth. If an issue is found, it is presented as a warning at the bottom of the screen. These warnings are controlled in Alma configuration through extension packs, which are xml files that describe the use and function of each field in MARC21. In addition to the out-of-the-box extension packs, the WRLC Network Zone has both added and edited several extension packs in an effort to minimize the number of incorrect warnings in the Metadata Editor. The extension packs in the WRLC NZ that have been edited from the out-of-the-box configuration are for MARC fields 082 and 590; the new extension packs that have been added to the WRLC NZ are for MARC fields 012, 019, 029, and 891. Because this is configured in the Network Zone, it is only applicable to records linked to the Network Zone. If your institution would like to recreate these configurations for Institution Zone only records, the NZ settings would need to be recreated in your Institution Zone configuration. Institution Zone Instructions Use the following instructions below if you wish to recreate the NZ settings in your own IZ User Roles Needed : Catalog Administrator Instructions :  Go to Configuration > Resources > Cataloging > Metadata Configuration Choose the MARC21 Bibliographic active profile On the Profile Details page, click Shared Extensions Download each of the extension packs contributed by 01WRLC_NETWORK. For each, an xml file will be saved to your Downloads folder in your computer. Download the extension pack for MARC field 029 (contributed by 01CSCU_WCSU). An xml file will be saved to your Downloads folder in your computer. Return to the Profile Details page, and click Add Extensions (to Institution) Upload one of the newly downloaded xml files, then click Add Extensions Repeat the steps above for each extension Return to the Profile Details page, and click the blue Deploy button at the top right-hand corner of the screen Resources : WRLC Metadata Editor Warnings Submitted for Correction in Validation Profile WRLC NZ MARC21 Bib Extension packs Editing MARC-Based Profiles with Extension Packs Posted 03/14/2023 by Jackie Saavedra (WRLC Network Zone Manager) Merge Rules It is WRLC policy to use one of three specific merge rules when merging records; these rules were written so as to preserve local WRLC notes in the bib record. The decision to use specific WRLC merge rules was made by the WRLC Metadata Committee in July of 2018 . What are the three WRLC merge rules? All of the rules can be found in the Metadata Editor under the Rules > Merge > Shared folder 1. CONSORTIUM NZ / IZ Overlay all fields but local  DESCRIPTION : CONSORTIUM NZ / IZ Overlay all fields but local for Integration Profile, Import Profile, Combine and Merge Inventory There are two identical copies of this rule; one that is saved in the Network Zone (and is used on NZ records), and the other that is saved in the Institution Zone (and is used for IZ only records).  This rule is to be used for most merge cases, specifically for integration profiles import profiles combine and merge inventory function.  For both integration and import profiles, the primary record is the existing record in Alma; for the combine and merge function, the primary record is the record in the left pane of the Metadata Editor (the one that is opened first). For more information about primary and secondary records as they pertain to merging, please see the Knowledge Center page on  Primary Records . 2.  CONSORTIUM NZ / IZ Search external overlay all fields but local   DESCRIPTION : CONSORTIUM NZ / IZ Overlay all fields but local for Search External Resources There are two identical copies of this rule; one that is saved in the Network Zone (and is used on NZ records), and the other that is saved in the Institution Zone (and is used for IZ only records).  This rule is ONLY meant for merging a record using the “Copy & Merge” function in the “Search External Resources” page of the Metadata Editor. When copy cataloging using Search External Resources, the primary record is the record found via the external resource (NOT the existing record in Alma). For more information about primary and secondary records as they pertain to merging, please see the Knowledge Center page on  Primary Records . 3. CONSORTIUM NZ Add local fields There is only one copy of this rule, and it is saved in the Network Zone (because this rule is only used on NZ records). This rule is to be used when one wishes to import records directly to the Network Zone using an import profile. More information on the official WRLC Network Zone policy for this merge rule can be found here .  What do the WRLC merge rules do? CONSORTIUM NZ / IZ Overlay all fields but local for Integration Profile, Import Profile, Combine and Merge Inventory rule Completely replaces the primary record with the secondary record except for the following: Leave the 001 unchanged Retains the following fields in the primary record 246 only if they include $5 541, 561, 562, 563, 583, 584, 585 500, 501, 506, 526, and 540 only if they are institution- or copy-specific and include $5 655 fields only if they include $5 700, 710, 711, 730, and 740 only if they include $5 Retain the following fields in the primary record AND add them from the secondary record:  009 035 (other than OCoLC) 09X 59X 69X 9XX (other than 995) Replace the following fields in the primary record unless they don’t exist in the secondary record: 500, 505, 520 Replace the following field in the primary record with the value from the secondary record: 035 (OCoLC only), 995 CONSORTIUM NZ / IZ Overlay all fields but local for Search External Resources Keeps the primary record unchanged except for: Retain the following fields in the primary record and add them from the secondary record: 009 049 09X 246 only if they include $5 that contains a D, E, G, H, V, L, or A 541, 561, 562, 563, 583, 584, 585 500, 501, 506, 526, and 540 only if they include a $5 that contains a C, D, E, G, L, or V 59X 655 fields only if they include $5 that contains a D, E, G, H, V, L, or A 69X 700, 710, 711, 730, and 740 only if they include $5 that contains a D, E, G, H, V, L, or A 9XX Leave the 035 as is if it contains “OCoLC”, otherwise replace the 035s in the primary record with the 035s from the secondary (Alma) record (this would retain for example (ViFGM)4673997-gmudb ) If the following fields don’t exist in the primary record, add them from the secondary record: 500 505 520 The intention is to create a simple merge rule that will preserve all local field numbers (009, 09X, 59X, 69X, 9XX), regardless of whether or not they are actually coded as a local extension . CONSORTIUM NZ Add Local Fields  Adds only local fields from the imported record to the Network Zone record via an import profile. Please see the relevant Network Zone Policy for more information. Add the following fields from the secondary record (the record that is bein imported) to the primary record (the Network Zone record) 09X with $9 LOCAL 246 only if they contain a $5 with a C, D, E, G, L, or V 500, 501, 506, 524, 561, 562, 563, 583, 584, 585, 588 that contains a $5 with a  C, D, E, G, L, or V 59X with $9 LOCAL 600, 610, 611, 630, 647, 648, 650, 651, 655 that contains a $5 with a C, D, E, G, L, or V 69X with $9 LOCAL 700, 710, 711, 720, 730, 740, 758 that contains a $5 with a C, D, E, G, L, or V 77X with $9 LOCAL 78X with $9 LOCAL 9XX with $9 LOCAL When are merge rules used in Alma?  1. When copy cataloging using an external resource in the Alma Metadata Editor. In this scenario, you will want to configure the CONSORTIUM NZ / IZ Search external overlay all fields but local merge rule for your external resource. The merge rule used in this scenario is configured for that specific resource under the  Configuration Menu > Resources > Search Configuration > External Search Resources page.  2. When importing records using an import profile Under the Match Actions section of an import profile, you can choose which merge rules to use. In this scenario, you will want to use the CONSORTIUM NZ / IZ Overlay all fields but local merge rule when importing records into the Institution Zone. When importing records directly into the Network Zone, you must use the  CONSORTIUM NZ Add local fields rule. This is according to WRLC Network Zone policy (see below). Record load profile Policy Statement: Record load profiles should generally only import to the Institution Zone; the Use Network Zone setting for each institution’s import profile should be set to No. Import profiles can match to the Network Zone, but if a matching record is found the NZ record must be used (only local fields may be added), and if a matching record is not found the incoming record must be imported to the IZ only. To use this method, the following settings should be used: Use Network Zone: “Yes”, Upon Match: “Merge”, Merge method: “CONSORTIUM NZ AddLocalFields”, Upon No Match: “Import to IZ.” 3. When importing records from OCLC Connexion to the Institution Zone In this scenario, you will want to configure the CONSORTIUM NZ / IZ Overlay all fields but local merge rule for your IZ's OCLC Connexion Integration Profile. Alma uses an Integration Profile (to be found under the  Configuration Menu > General > External Systems > Integration Profiles ) to import records from OCLC to Alma. If the Integration profile is configured to not use the Network Zone (see image below)... ...then Alma will use the merge method configured under the Actions tab of the Integration Profile for merging. When Alma finds a match with an imported OCLC record and a pre-existing Institution Zone record (the system will use the criteria stipulated under the Serial match method and Non serial match method configured in the Integration Profile; for more information on match methods, see the WRLC NZ policy on  Bibliographic Utilities ), the two records will be merged using the merge method chosen in the Integration Profile. 4. When merging two already existing records in the Metadata Editor Each time you use the Merge Records & Combine Inventory function in the Metadata Editor, you choose which merge rule to use in the pup-up window. In this scenario, you will want to use the CONSORTIUM NZ / IZ Overlay all fields but local merge rule when the primary record is on the left-hand side of the Metadata Editor split screen (the one that is opened first). For more information about primary and secondary records as they pertain to merging, please see the Knowledge Center page on  Primary Records . Full instructions on how to merge two records can be found in the How to merge bibliographic records page of the WRLC Wiki. Keep in mind that you can merge two bibliographic records only when both records are Institution Zone records, or both are Network Zone records. You CANNOT merge an Institution Zone bib record with a Network Zone bib record When are merge rules NOT used in Alma? 1. When importing records from OCLC Connexion to the Network Zone Alma uses an Integration Profile (to be found under Configuration Menu > General > External Systems > Integration Profiles ) to import records from OCLC to Alma. If the Integration profile is configured to use the Network Zone (see image below)... ...then the Integration Profile IGNORES the merge method chosen under the Actions tab of the Integration Profile.  If a match with a Network Zone record is found, that Network Zone record is used, and the record will NOT merge with the OCLC record. 2. When linking an IZ record to a matching NZ record You can share an Institution-Zone record with the Network Zone in the Metadata Editor by choosing File > Share with Network . If Alma finds a match between the IZ record and an NZ record, you can preview the match or select from among multiple matches. Select Link beneath the matching record to link the Institution Zone record with the Network Zone record.  When an IZ record is linked with an NZ record, the NZ record metadata overlays the IZ record metadata; no merging occurs. The only metadata in the IZ record that merge into the NZ record are  local extensions . Extra Resources Ex Libris Alma Knowledge Center - Working with Merge Rules Match Profile in the Metadata Editor Match methods in Alma are primarily used in import profiles to determine whether an incoming record is considered a duplicate of an existing record.  Match methods are also used in the Metadata Editor, specifically when linking records from the Institution Zone to the Network Zone , and when using Search External Resources .  In both workflows, a list of record(s) is given if a match is found for the open record in the Metadata Editor. Match Profile Configuration for the Metadata Editor The matching records are determined by the match profile configured in Alma. This configuration can be found under the  Configuration Menu > Resources > General > Other Settings page.  It is WRLC policy to use the Fuzzy Match Method for both serials and non serials. You must choose the same match profile for both the Network Zone and the Institution Zone. The Share with Network functionality may fail if the configuration settings differ between the Network Zone and the Institution Zone. Non Serial Match Profile The parameter value for the non_serial_match_profile setting in the WRLC NZ and IZs should be as follows: com.exlibris.repository.mms.match.CDLMatchingProfile Serial Match Profile The parameter value for the serial_match_profile setting in the WRLC NZ and IZs should be as follows: com.exlibris.repository.mms.match.CDLSeMatchingProfile Fuzzy Match Algorithm Both the Fuzzy Non-Serial Match Method and the Fuzzy Serial Match Method use the following algorithm to find a match: Alma attempts to find records with, at least, one of the following matching IDs: ISSN ISBN LCCN CODEN OCLC unique number Other system number (035 field) If no matches are found through this attempt: If the incoming record has authors, Alma attempts to find records that have at least one matching combination of title + author. If the incoming record does not have authors, Alma attempts to find records that have at least one matching title. The following title and author fields are used for matching: MARC 21 Title: 245 a; 210 a; 246 a MARC 21 Author: 100 a-d,jq,u; 110 a-e,n,u; 111 a,c-e,n,q,u; 700 a-d,jq,u; 710 a-e,I,n,u; 711 a,c-e,I,j,n,q,u UNIMARC Title: 200 a,e,d,h,i; 531 a UNIMARC Author: 700 a-d,f,p; 701 a-d,f,p; 710 a-h,p; 711 a-h,p; 720 a,f; 721 a,f; 702 a-d,f,g; 712 a-h,p; 722 a,f Examples: When the 100/245 match and the 210 exists in the Alma record but is lacking in the incoming record, will there be a match? Yes. Once the records are matched by the 100/245, that is enough. There is no need to check the 210. When the 100/245 match and the 246 exists in the Alma record but is lacking in the incoming record, will there be a match? Yes. Once the records are matched by the 100/245, that is enough. There is no need to check the 246. When the 100/245 match and the 246 exists in the Alma record has one or more 700 fields but the incoming record is lacking all or some of the 700 fields, will there be a match? Yes. Once the records are matched by the 100/245, that is enough. There is no need to check the 700 field(s). If no matches are found in either attempt, Alma issues a message that no matches have been found.   Item Description Templates Alma allows for a template to be configured when generating an item description based on the enumeration/chronology fields in an item record. WRLC has 32 different item description templates configured in our Network Zone and pushed to all Institution Zones. These templates are only applied to item records with one of the following material types : Code Description BOOK Book ISSUE Issue ISSBD Bound Issue For a full list and description of these templates, please see the  Templates configured in the WRLC NZ section of the Item Record Description Policies and Templates page. To view the NZ template configurations in your own IZ, go to Configuration > Resources > General > Description Templates ; they will be listed under the Network Rules list section. The NZ templates are configured so that they have precedence over any templates configured in the individual Institution Zone. This means that NZ description templates are applied to item records first, and then IZ-only description templates are applied. This setting is configured in Configuration > Resources > General > Other Settings . The parameter network_description_templates_rules_precedence should be set to true in all WRLC Institution Zones. Bibliographic Record Deletion - Related Records Alma allows the ability to prevent the deletion of related records in the Network Zone. In the Bibliographic Record Deletion - Related Records page of Alma Configuration (which can be found under Configuration > Resources > Collection Retention ), you can specify which types of related records will result in a warning or a block if staff try to delete them. In the WRLC Network Zone, only the following relation types are enabled as a Block; this means that any records with a Contains (774 field) relationship or a  Part Of (773 field) relationship with another record will NOT be deleted by Alma. For more information, see the  Related Record Types section in the Alma Knowledge Base. This prevents the accidental deletion of boundwith records in the catalog that use the 773 or 774 fields for linking. For more information on creating boundwiths in Alma, see the Configuring Related Records for Physical Inventory in the Alma Knowledge Base. For more information about deleting NZ bibliographic records, please see the WRLC policy . WRLC Retention and WRLC Permanent designation in Alma Overview Within our consortium's Alma system, items that are designated for WRLC shared retention or permanent retention are identified directly in the Item Record using Alma’s retention commitment fields. These fields allow participating WRLC institutions to indicate materials that are committed to long-term retention as part of the consortium’s collection management strategy.   Designation Criteria Items are designated as WRLC Retention or WRLC Permanent by WRLC Headquarters (HQ) as part of consortium-level collection analysis and retention initiatives. Retention designations are applied only to Items NOT located in the Exclusion List for WRLC Retention Designation , and Within participating institutions. WRLC Retention Assigned to one copy of each specific edition of a monographic title. Matching of unique title editions is based on the Network ID number in Alma. WRLC Permanent Assigned to monographs published prior to 2005 . Titles qualified if there were ten or fewer copies in the United States listed in WorldCat at the time of the original collection analysis. This analysis was conducted as part of the WRLC Sustainable Collection Services (SCS) Project in 2014. For additional background, see the WRLC Sustainable Collection Services Project 2014 Final Report . Note: Some sections of the report regarding the number of retained copies and item tagging procedures have since been updated and replaced by current practices.   Shared Collections Facility Policy for WRLC Retention items To support long-term preservation while minimizing unnecessary duplication, the WRLC repository maintains one copy of each specific edition of a print monographic title in retention-eligible locations. No print monograph may be added to the repository if the same edition (i.e. if a WRLC Retention or Permanent item) is already stored in a retention-eligible location. These restrictions apply only to locations designated as eligible for WRLC retention participation (see the Exclusion List for WRLC Retention Designation ). Items stored in non-retention locations are not subject to this restriction . For example, an institution may retain multiple copies of a title in a Special Collections or Rare Books location at the Shared Collections Facility (SCF) if that location is not designated as retention-eligible. For more information, please see the Shared Collections Facilities Policies page of the WRLC Alma Wiki.   How Retention Is Indicated in Alma Items that are part of the WRLC retention program are marked in the Item Record with the following values: Committed to Retain: Yes Retention Reason: WRLC Retention WRLC Permanent The selected Retention Reason identifies the type of retention commitment for the item.   Where to Find This in the Item Editor In the  Alma Item Editor , the retention designation appears in the Retention Information section of the item record. Staff can view the following fields: Committed to Retain Retention Reason If an item has been designated as part of the WRLC retention program, Committed to Retain will be set to Yes , and the appropriate Retention Reason will be selected.   Retention Reason Configuration For each participating Institution Zone (IZ) , two retention reasons are configured in the Item Retention Reason Code Table , found in Configuration > Resources > Collection Retention > Item Retention Reason These configuration entries control the retention options available in the item record. Description Code WRLC Retention WRLCRetentionDONOTDELETE WRLC Permanent WRLCPermanentDONOTDELETE The  Description values appear in the Retention Reason dropdown within the Alma item editor. The Code values are the underlying system identifiers and should not be modified or deleted , as they support the WRLC retention workflow.   Participating Institution Zones The following Institution Zones participate in the WRLC retention project: American University Catholic University of America Gallaudet University George Washington University Georgetown University Howard University Marymount University University of the District of Columbia Please note that neither George Mason University nor any of the specialty libraries (Law and Health Sciences) participate in the WRLC retention program.   Important Notes for Catalogers and Staff Retention designations are assigned by WRLC HQ. Local staff should not manually assign or remove the WRLC Retention or WRLC Permanent designations unless directed by WRLC HQ. If an item that is marked WRLC Retention or WRLC Permanent becomes lost, damaged, or missing , please open a WRLC Service Desk ticket so that HQ can review and reassign the retention commitment if necessary. Email: servicedesk@wrlc.org Resources Shared Collection Print Monograph Retention Memorandum of Understanding (2024 Update) WRLC Sustainable Collection Services Project 2014 Final Report Shared Collections Facilities Policies Exclusion List for WRLC Retention Designation