Please note that Alma has three levels for cataloguing:
1) Bibliographic record
2) Holdings record
3) Item record
To create a MARC record from scratch follow these steps below.
1) Open Alma.
2) Sign in to your normal workstation, DJP or WC-Circ Desk.
3) On the bottom left of the page, select "Show MDE".
4) Select "+ New"
5) A drop-down menu will appear. Underneath, "MARC21 Bibliographic", choose the template of the item type you are currently cataloguing.
Use a ready-made template created by OCLS!
1) Open Alma.
2) Sign in to your normal workstation, DJP or WC-Circ Desk.
3) On the bottom left of the page, select "Show MDE".
4) Select "+ New"
5) A drop-down menu will appear. Scroll down to the bottom where it says, "Templates display configuration".
6) A list will appear of multiple templates to turn on for quick access. The ones to pay attention to are with the name beginning (OCLS). To the far right, turn the switch on from grey to blue to ensure those templates are saved to your account.
7) It is important to press "Save" at the top right so your changes will be saved.
8) Go back "+New"
9) Scroll down to the very bottom of the menu to "Placement Options".
10) Ensure that "Local" is selected for both Placement Options. Press "Save".
Rather than creating a whole bibliographic record from scratch, use OCLC's database of records that can be accessed and imported in Alma.
1) Open Alma.
2) Sign in to your normal workstation, DJP or WC-Circ Desk.
3) Resources --> Cataloging --> Search Resources
4) On the new page that opens is the Meta Data Editor page. Under "Search Resources", then "Search Cataloging Profile" and from the drop down, select, "WorldCat (OCLC)".
5) You have several options to find an item record, Title, Creator and ISBN. If the ISBN is available, search the 10-13 code preferably.
6) Press "Search"
7) You will be presented with records that could be available already in the institution zone and network zone. If there are none, go for the OCLC results.
7) On the right there will be one or more bibliographic records to choose from. Click either the title or "view" to see the full bib record. Find one that contains information that copies exactly what is on your item in hand.
8) On the bottom right of that record, select "import". **For network records, select "create a copy".
9) You will be taken to the full record where you can edit any of the MARC fields.
10) Once you are finished editing the record, select "Save", then "Save and Release Record".
Tips to keep in mind when editing external records:
1) Everything has to be correct down to the punctuation in order to be up to OCLC standards. - RDA Standards
2) To edit fields, click, "Editing Actions".
3) 035 $a - You can ensure that the 035 matches with the ISBN of your item by searching on WorldCat's website itself. If the numbers do not match, copy the number from the website and replace it after the brackets = (OCLC) ######.
4) 040 MARC field requires $$b eng $$erda (the $$e must go before $$c) AND $$dN8G. Ensure these are added to the ones currently in that field.
5) 050 has to be there it is the LC number, if there isn't a 050 or 082 then a 090 is required (Local call number)
6) 260 is now 264 with the second numerical indicator as 1.
7) 264s must present as follows:
eg.
264 _1 $$aNew York ; $$bElsevier, $$c2006.
264 _4$$c©2005.
8) 650 - There needs to be at least 3 subject headings. You can link any subjects that you add by pressing F3 that can link the subjects to authority files stored in the Alma Community.
9) 700 - Keep this MARC field.
10) Delete fields 856 - 938
1) Search the title of the item in the persistent search bar at the top and select "Physical Titles".
2) From the results, select the 3-dot icon to the right of the item and select "Add Holdings"
3) The MDE (Metadata Editor) page will open.
4) The line of where 852, to the far-right, select the 3-dot icon. Select "Open Form Editor"
5) Ensure that the following boxes have information:
6) Press "Save and Release Record".
1) Search the title of the item in the persistent search bar at the top and select "Physical Titles".
2) From the results, select the arrows pointing down next to the letter "P" and "physical". The grey dot next to physical means there are no items attached to the holdings record.
3) To add an item select the three-dot icon on the far-right of the holdings record. Select "Add Item".
4) Ensure that the following boxes are filled in:
5) Once filled out, Press "Save" at the top right corner.
Alma has another way to add an item an item to a holding:
1) Open Alma
2) Resources --> Create Inventory --> Create Inventory --> Add Physical Item
3) Choose Holdings Type:
Choose Holdings Type = Existing
4) On the Quick Cataloging page:
