Here is the summary of minutes for the meeting of the Committee to Study
Serials Cataloging held at ALA in July.  This summary is being posted to two
lists, and appears in the ALCTS Network News.  We apologize for any
duplication.

Summary of the ALCTS/Serials Section/Committee to Study Serials Cataloging
Meeting, July 8, 1996.

The Committee heard reports about recent serials-related activities at LC
and NSDP; and reports of relevant business from the CC:DA and MARBI
meetings.  During the Committee's first discussion topic, the CONSER Task
Force proposal for cataloging conference proceedings, Jean Hirons (LC)
identified key points of the proposal, which is intended to reduce
recataloging while providing improved access for patrons to citable
elements.  Audience members indicated that libraries employ a variety of
practices to control and provide access to proceedings, including dual
treatment:  a serials record for check-in along with OCLC holdings on
monographic records.  R. Reynolds facilitated the second discussion, about a
proposed one-record policy for manifestations of electronic serials.  She
clarified that any proposal for a one-record treatment would only be an
option; there is no plan to change LC's practice of creating separate
records for different manifestations of a work.  The starting proposal is to
use a 530 and 856 (along with 006 or 007 as appropriate) to note the
e-serial on the print record.  Alternatives include the use of 533/856 or an
expanded 776.  R. Reynolds stated that in her view URLs in linking fields
offered the best solution, though this had not yet been authorized.  The
third discussion concerned issues or difficulties resulting from the
implementation of Phase 2 of USMARC Format Integration.  M. Mering presented
a summary of problems identified by Crystal Graham.  Audience members
generally indicated that format integration had little impact on serials
cataloging, except for those institutions which collected serials in
audiovisual formats.  The impact of format integration on the RLIN serials
file was discussed.  R. Reynolds noted that LC will distribute all
bibliographic records with a value of s in Bibliographic Level or 006 as
serials.  At the next meeting of the Committee, the scheduled discussion
topic is cataloging electronic serials.

Submitted by Carolynne Myall.
The full text of the minutes is available through the ALA Gopher
(gopher.ala.org) or through the ALA web page, http://www.ala.org.