MARC Review Cataloging Checks

Brief Messages

Designing a brief message can be difficult, because only 32 characters are allowed here.

Always start with a three digit MARC tag, followed by a colon and a blank space. For example:

010:

For a fixed field, use the following format:

007/01:

Follow the tag + colon with a concise caption that will give just enough detail to categorize the problem. Remember that you do not have to describe the problem here. You basically want a phrase that will have enough information so that after you see it two or three times, and refer to the note, you will know exactly what to do in the record.

Notes

Here is where you can describe the problem you are checking in more detail. Take enough time to write a note that will be meaningful months or years down the road, to another cataloger, and so on. When writing a note for a cataloging check, it is a good idea to have a web browser open on LC's MARC documentation pages–we find the details available here to be invaluable when composing notes.