Page 73 - DLIS405_INFORMATION_STORAGE_AND_RETRIEVAL

Information Storage and Retrieval

Notes discovery of these materials. Remote access electronic resources are the next challenge to cataloguing
which require talented individuals orientated in the electronic area, able to identify the most valuable
resources for the on-line catalogue and to create collections of well organized information available
in digital form.
Development of new formats require modifications of the classification, bibliographic rules and
subjects headings. In the next few years we will have the new addition of the Dewey Decimal
classification. We can expect the expansion of class numbers for computer science, philology and
literature of languages not represented at present. LC Subject Headings are being frequently
reassessed and updated.
Of high importance are the news from the Joint Steering Committee which is preparing a new
addition of cataloguing rules for publication in early months of 2009. Recently the committee decided
that the new cataloguing code will be called “Resource Description and Access” or RDA.
The most notable changes between RDA and AACR2 will be a statement of cataloguing principles,
revised rules of the chapter on the electronic resources, addition of sections of bibliographic
relationships, and authority control, incorporating FRBR terminology and concepts. (FRBR =
Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records formulated by the International Federation of
Library Associations-IFLA, in 1998).
RDA will provide a set of guidelines and instructions on formulating descriptive data and access
point control data to support resource discovery. Being developed as a web based product RDA is
especially designed for description and access for digital resources. Where AACR2 is an arrangement
of rules based on the format of the item described, the focus of RDA is to be a standard for describing
content rather than a display standard. The terminology of AACR2 is being revised, but many of
the concepts are being retained. For example, instead of “heading,” RDA might use “access point.”
The concept of “main entry,” becomes “primary access point.” “Uniform title” will be retained as
“preferred title.”
To pursue global sharing of information resources RDA is being developed in line with a set of
objectives and principles which are based on the IME ICC (IFLA Meeting of Experts on an
International Cataloguing Code) draft Statement of International cataloguing principles.
There are three parts in the Resource Description and Access cataloguing rules. The first part will
relate to descriptive cataloguing, and will outline general rules for description of an item. This will
be followed by the supplementary rules for specific formats.
An important feature of RDA will be its independence from the presentation of data. It will provide
guidance on the recording of data, the content, and not on how it might be organized on the screen.
That means that RDA-based cataloguing can be readily accommodated in many other than MARC
encoding standards and metadata schema, thus intended to be independent of any cataloguing
code. As a result, the more user-friendly presentations of bibliographic data can be introduced.
Another difference is in the format of general material designations (GMD).

The RDA will allow, as for a proposal, for a two-part GMD which might be
called “type and form of resource”.

The first part will describe the content and the second part will describe the carrier or the physical
format. For example, a map or atlas on CD-ROM will be assigned the GMD of Music CD might have
GMD [music recording: CD audio], and videocassette –Part II will cover description of bibliographic
relationships, which will allow bibliographic records to express the relationships described in
Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records.

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