Date: Wed, 15 Sep 1999 12:20:18 -0400
From: "Jean L. Hirons" <jhir@LOC.GOV>
Subject: Component parts of serials

Dear Victor and others,

Thanks for pointing out the discrepancies in CONSER documentation.  Field
773 instructions should have been corrected to say the 774 is a reciprocal
field that CAN be used with field 773.  However, I don't think that either
field was designed to necessitate reciprocal links, as we use with 780 and
785. Field 773 is currently being used in records created for titles in
aggregations as part of a PCC project to indicate the name of the
aggregator as a host.(I'll make a note of the reference in Module 14, CCM.
Unfortunately, I just sent off the next update so it may be a year before
it gets corrected.) Field 774 was requested for use with digitized
photograph collections and has not to my knowledge been used for
serials--yet!

I looked at the MARC 21 descriptions of the fields.  While it lists 773
and 774 as reciprocal fields in the introduction to the links (as does the
CEG), there is no mention of the other field in the description of these
two fields.  Thus, I think that in many cases they will be used alone.

I will have the CEG 773 page corrected in the fall update.  Questions
about CONSER documentation are best directed to me, rather than CONSER
participants, since I'm the one responsible and the only one who can take
the blame!

Jean Hirons
CONSER Coordinator
Library of Congress
jhir@loc.gov
202-707-5947
fax 202-707-6333

-------------- Original message --------------
Date:         Thu, 9 Sep 1999 13:23:42 -0400
From:         Victor Liu <vliu@ORCHARD.WASHTENAW.CC.MI.US>
Subject:      Serial component part included within serial

Subject:      Serials cataloging

In the Spring 1999 update of CONSER Editing Guide, the section on linking
entry fields mentions 773 (host item entry) and 774 (constituent unit
entry) as a pair. Yet, the chapter on 773 indicates that no other linking
field is paired with 773. Consequently, it seems as if a separate record
created for a component may use 773 to indicate the host, while the record
for the host may only use a title added entry, such as 740, to indicate
the component. Doesn't 774 even come into the picture? Furthermore, the
CONSER Cataloging Manual mentions that 773 itself is not presently used
(see footnote on Module 14, p. 6).

Can a CONSER library help clarify this confusion? How do you handle a
serial component part included within a serial?

  Victor Liu <vliu@ORCHARD.WASHTENAW.CC.MI.US>