> Date: Sat, 13 Jul 2002 13:14:46 -0400
> From: Steve Murden <stevemurden@mindspring.com>
> Subject: determining the title
>
> I'm in the middle of a volunteer project at an art museum's
> library.  I'm in the process of updating the information about
> their serials in their online catalog.  Currently, I'm searching
> First Search to determine whether or not their titles are linked
> to OCLC and if they are using the most accurate bib. record.
>
> In essence, the title page is the primary source of the title of
> a serial.  What I am finding, however, is that the cover title
> is what most people are really using to determine the title,
> especially as it relates to title changes.  For my project, in
> deciding which OCLC record is the best choice, I tend to
> prefer the one selected by the largest number of libraries.

What I'm wondering, Steve, is: what is the thing that you are looking at and
calling a title page? This isn't as easy a question as it looks, so I hope I
don't sound at all condescending. In my experience, many serials do not have
one; riffing through the stack on my desk, I find fewer than half have a
title page. What I used to call a title page, before my first mentors
finally dissuaded me, was in fact the table of contents page.

I think this scarcity of title pages may cause some people to *assume* (ah,
dangerous word) that the cover is the chief source for most, if not all
journals.
>
> I'd really like some expert guidance here.  TIA.
>
> Steve Murden
HTH, Steve. HAND.

Naomi Young
Naomi Kietzke Young ** Head, Serials Cataloging
Resource Services, University of Florida
PO Box 117007 Gainesville, FL 32611-7007
Phone: (352) 392-0355 ext. 234 ** Fax: (352) 392-7365
naomi@mail.uflib.ufl.edu