LIBRARY TECHNICAL SERVICES

1. Understanding Authority Control in Koha:

• Purpose:

  Authority control ensures that all records in your catalog use the same, consistent heading (e.g., "Shakespeare, William" instead of variations like "Shakespeare, Wm." or "Shakespear, W."). 

• MARC Standards:

  Koha authority control is based on the MARC21 standard, utilizing fields like 1XX, 4XX, 6XX, 7XX, and 8XX for various heading types. 

• Tools:

  Koha offers tools for creating, editing, deleting, and merging authority records, as well as for importing and exporting data. 

2. Key Processes for Cleaning Up Authorities:

• Identifying and Merging Duplicates:

  • Find authority records with the same or similar headings. 
  • Merge duplicate records into a single, preferred record. 
  • Ensure all bibliographic records linked to the merged records are updated with the preferred heading. 

• Deleting Unused Authority Records:

  • Identify authority records not linked to any bibliographic records. 
  • Delete these unused records to maintain a clean and efficient authority file. 

• Updating Bibliographic Records:

  • When an authority record is updated, ensure all linked bibliographic records are also updated. 
  • Koha provides tools and preferences to manage this process, including the ability to set a limit on the number of bibliographic records updated at once. 

• Using the update_authorities.pl Script:

  • Koha provides a Perl script (update_authorities.pl) for performing various authority-related maintenance tasks, including deleting, merging, and renumbering authority records. 
  • This script can be used to automate some of the cleanup processes. 

• Managing System Preferences:

  • Koha offers several system preferences related to authority control, such as AuthorityMergeLimit (which limits the number of bibliographic records updated when merging) and BiblioAddsAuthorities (which controls whether catalogers can manually enter terms in authority-controlled fields). 

3. Ongoing Maintenance:

• Regular Checks:

  It's important to regularly review and maintain your authority file to ensure its continued accuracy and consistency. 

• Training:

  Ensure catalogers are trained on best practices for authority control and the use of Koha's authority management tools. 

4. Example Scenario:

Let's say you have multiple authority records for "William Shakespeare" with slightly different spellings or variations. You would: 

1. Identify: Find the duplicate records.
2. Merge: Choose one as the preferred record and merge the others into it.
3. Update: Koha will automatically update all bibliographic records linked to the merged records to use the preferred "William Shakespeare" heading.