Table of Contents

Creating a New Catalogue Record

Log in to Alma and open the Metadata Editor. This is found in Resources in the main Alma menu. Open Metadata Editor is the first option listed under Cataloguing:

In the Metadata Editor go to thE File menu and highlight New from the dropdown list, and then select MARC21 Bibliographic from the second dropdown list:

A blank bibliographic record template will open:

The record can now be edited.

Editing Fixed-Length MARC Fields

Fixed-length MARC fields (e.g. LDR, 008) can either be edited directly (like a variable-length field) or by expanding the field out. However, it is strongly recommended to expand the field and make edits using the dropdown lists, because no help or validation is provided when editing the field directly.

Click on the tag (i.e. LDR, 008 etc.) and use Ctrl+F to expand it (or use the Metadata Editor menu: Editing Actions>Open Form Editor):

Most of the input boxes require you to select from a dropdown list, but there are some free-text boxes (e.g. Date) which require information to be entered directly.

When you have finished editing you can minimise the field either by using the Escape key or by clicking elsewhere in the MARC record.

Editing Variable-Length MARC Fields

To edit any of the variable-length MARC fields, first click anywhere on the field you wish to edit (i.e. on the tag, the indicators, or anywhere in the field contents), and the field is then converted to four boxes for editing: tag, first indicator, second indicator and field contents:

It is possible to type continuously across the four boxes or move across the boxes using the arrow keys or the tab key, but be aware that the cursor jumps to the end of the field contents. Alternatively, clicking anywhere in any of the boxes places the cursor there.

Within the field contents, subfields are prefixed by $$. Alma will normally add in a space before and after the subfield code automatically when entering data, unless it is the first subfield in a field:

Some basic editing actions

Adding a field

Click on the field immediately above where you want to add a new field.

Click on Editing Actions>Add Field (shortcut: F8).

A new empty field is created, with the cursor ready in the first box (i.e. the tag).

Deleting a field

Click on the field you want to delete.

Click on Editing Actions>Remove Field (shortcut: Ctrl+F6).

The field is deleted and the cursor moves to the end of the following field.

Adding a subfield

Click on the field in which you want to add a subfield, immediately before where you want the subfield.

Click on Editing Actions>Add Subfield (shortcut: F9) or simply type $$. (The first method is preferred for the sake of avoiding typos, especially a single $, which will corrupt data).

Type in the subfield name, e.g. simply a for subfield a, so that it now reads e.g. $$a

Deleting a subfield

There is no menu item or shortcut to delete a subfield.

Click on the subfield you want to delete.

Delete the $$ symbol, the subfield code and any text as needed.

N.B. As soon as $$ is reduced to $ the coding is reduced to text, so care is needed to make sure this is done accurately.

Entering special characters

There is no native way to enter these into Alma, but one of the following techniques can be used:

1. Copy and paste from a reliable source, such as:
   
   1. a website (e.g. Wikipedia generic unicode information page).
   2. bibliographic record 990030609290204761. This is a record that Paul has created, listing special characters used in a variety of languages commonly encountered at UCL.
   3. the Windows Character Map programme.
2. Use combining characters as described on the Harvard Wiki's Guide to Entering Combining Symbols in Alma.
3. Enter codes to produce characters:
   1. Enter the Windows alt-number, e.g. for an e acute (é), hold down the Alt key and enter 130 using the numeric keypad. If pressing the Alt key gives you menu options, then you will need to turn these off to make this method work: click on the profile icon, UI Preferences, Shortcuts customization, then deselect "Alt + number".
   2. Install a browser extension, such as the following which should work with Alma:

• • • Chrome: Character Input (version 4). Allows entering of Unicode and alt-key characters. Press Insert key, then enter a character code: aXXX for an Alt Code (e.g. a130 for é); XXXX for a Unicode code (e.g. 00e9 for é); a valid HTML entity (e.g. eacute for é); c for a copyright symbol ©. Note that a0169, 00a9, and copy also work. Where possible some fuller and alternative names for accents are permissable, e.g. ehacek and ecircumflex will work although the correct codes are ecaron and ecirc. Codes can be all lower case although capital letters need to be entered properly, e.g. Eacute for É. This is a revised version of the Unicode Input Chrome extension, which has been removed.
    • Firefox: Character Input (version 3). Allows entering of Unicode and alt-key characters. Press Insert key, then enter a character code: aXXX for an Alt Code (e.g. a130 for é); XXXX for a Unicode code (e.g. 00e9 for é); c for a copyright symbol ©. This is a revised version of the Unicode Input extension.

See also Other Methods on Harvard's Wiki.

Invalid/blank values

Invalid values in dropdown menus (fixed-length fields)

Alma seems to tolerate already incorrect values (e.g. en rather than enk as a place of publication) but will not allow you to enter these.

Blank values

Blanks are typically represented in Alma with the hash symbol: #.

Invalid values generally

Alma produces alerts of invalid values alongside any other errors in the Alerts box at the bottom of the screen:

Checking Name and Subject Headings

Press F3 to browse authority headings. (There does not seem to be an equivalent of F3 through the menus.)

You are then presented with a list of authorities derived from the Alma Community Zone.

Note the symbols on the left of the headings:

• A link symbol indicates an authorised heading to which the current heading is already linked
• A star symbol indicates an authorised heading.

• No symbol indicates a non-preferred term
  
  

Click on the "View" button on the right of the screen to view the MARC21 authority record. The editing window is then split with the list of headings on the left and the MARC21 authority record on the right.

You can click on the "Bibliographic Records (##)" tab to view a list of Alma bibliographic records which contain that heading. (The number in brackets is a count of records with that heading.):

Click on the Split Editor button  (or use F6) to close the authority record. (NB The F6 button does not seem to always work, and the circumstances when it does or does not need further investigation.)

It is possible to change the search in the list of headings. Click on and edit the field above the list of headings then press the search button. However, this also changes the heading in the record itself.

Click on the "Select" button next to a heading to select it. This can be done from either the list of authorities or from the list of unauthorised UCL headings. The heading is linked and editing is returned to the bibliographic record.

If you do not wish to select a heading, click on cancel and you will be returned to the bibliographic record. (Note that Alma will attempt to link the heading to an authority record when it saves anyway.)

If Alma has linked a heading to an authority record, a binoculars symbol will appear to the left of the heading in the Metadata Editor:

Copying, Pasting, Sorting etc Fields

Copying and pasting text within a single field

Text within a single field can be copied, cut and pasted using the standard Windows shortcuts:

Copy: Ctrl+C

Cut: Ctrl+X

Paste: Ctrl+V

These can no longer be used to applied to fields as a whole. Instead, use Ctrl+Shift+C, Ctrl+Shift+X, and Ctrl+Shift+V respectively.

Copying and pasting a single field

Click on the field to be copied

Click on Editing Actions>Copy Field (or Ctrl+Shift+C)

Click on the field before you want to paste (some fields appear to be sorted automatically; others are not)

Click on Editing Actions>Paste Field (or Ctrl+Shift+V). The field is pasted and the cursor moves to the new field.

Copying and pasting multiple fields

Click on the first field to be copied

Hold down Ctrl and click on all the other fields to be copied

Click on Editing Actions>Copy Field (or Ctrl+Shift+C)

Click on the field below where you want the pasted field to appear (some fields appear to be sorted automatically; others are not)

Click on Editing Actions>Paste Field (or Ctrl+Shift+V).

The fields are pasted and the cursor moves to the new field.

N.B. The automatic sorting means that the new fields may become interfiled with the old ones.

Deleting multiple fields

 Click on the first field to be deleted.

Hold down Ctrl and click on all the other fields to be deleted.

Click on Editing Actions>Remove Field (or Ctrl+F6).

Fields are deleted.

Sorting fields (and removing empty fields)

Click on Editing Actions>Enhance the Record (or Ctrl+Alt+E) -- A small window pops up.

 From the "Choose Normalization Type" dropdown menu, select "Marc21 Bib Re-sequence And Clear empty fields".

Click on "OK".

MARC fields are then sorted into order and empty fields are removed.

Saving and Releasing Records

Auto-save

Alma automatically saves a record that is being edited. This happens 30 seconds after any change is made. This is the same as the manual Save Draft (see below). Auto-Save should not be relied on as a standard way of saving a record.

There are various different ways of saving records in Alma:

• Save Draft
• Save Record
• Save and Release Record
• Release record

These options are all found in the File menu of the Metadata Editor:

Note on Releasing records. When you Release a record, two things happen:

1. The record is released for other cataloguers to edit. A record is automatically released for editing one hour after you last edited it anyway
2. The record is removed from your list of records. There is no easy way to see what you have recently edited, so make sure you are sure you want to release any records.

Save Draft

 Click on File>Save Draft (or: Ctrl+Alt+S). (This function is the same as auto-save.)

Does:

• Validate the record
• Save the record on user's account

Does not:

• Save the record on Alma for others to see
• Release the record for others to edit
• Make any changes visible on Primo

Save Record

 Click on File>Save (or: Ctrl+S)

OR

Click on the Save Record icon:

Does:

• Validate the record
• Save the record on user's account
• Save the record on Alma for others to see
• Make any changes visible on Primo

Does not:

• Release the record for others to edit

When you try to save a record, Alma will sometimes ask if you want to view matched records in the catalogue before saving. These matches are unlikely to be exact in many cases, so just click No.

Save and Release Record

 Click on File>Save and Release Record (or: Ctrl+Alt+R)

Does:

• Validate the record
• Save the record on user's account
• Save the record on Alma for others to see
• Release the record for others to edit
• Make any changes visible on Primo

Does not:

• N/A

Release Record

Click on File> Release Record (or: Alt+Shift+R)

Does:

• Release the record for others to edit

Does not:

• Validate the record
• Save the record on user's account
• Save the record on Alma for others to see
• Make any changes visible on Primo

It is more likely that you will want to release all the records that you have open in the Metadata Editor by clicking on MARC21 Bibliographic in the list of records, and clicking on Release All Records from the drop-down:

Adding Holdings and Items

Adding a Holdings Record

Click on the Add holdings button (or Ctrl+Alt+H):

Alma will enter split-screen mode, with the bibliographic record on the left and the holdings record on the right:

In the holdings record, edit the 852 field as follows:

• Enter the code for a specific classification scheme in the 852 first indicator, e.g. “L” for Library of Congress or “8” for Garside. This will be the same code as on Aleph except that you should not leave this blank: use “8” by default.
• Leave the 852 second indicator as blank or “#”.
• Enter the Library (Aleph Sublibrary) code in 852 $b, e.g. $b SCIEN.
• Enter the Location (Aleph Collection) code in 852 $c, e.g. $c SCIEN.
• Enter the Classmark (Aleph Call No) in the 852 $h, e.g. $h PHYSICS R 50 ACE
• Leave the $a and $i empty
• Click on Save Record (or: Ctrl+S)

Note that this field can also be edited by opening it up using Ctrl F and using the form editor (values for Sublibrary and Collection can then be selected from dropdown lists).

List of Holdings Library ($$b) and Location ($$c) Codes

Adding an item (after editing holdings record)

Click on Add Item (Alt+I):

The Physical Item Editor is  opened:

• In the Item Record
  Enter the Barcode
• Select a Material type from the drop-down list (e.g. "Book")
• Enter any other necessary information. See notes below for comparison with Aleph items.
• Click on Save.
• After saving, you can edit the item record to add notes.

Notes

• Library, Location, and Classmark should not be edited from the item record. Attempting to do so will attempt to move the item, which is best done explicitly by relinking (to be documented).
• Material type is a different list from that on Aleph, and is Alma's own fixed list. Some items, especially AV items, might not have been migrated to the most suitable  value.

• Enumeration A and B should be filled in much as in Aleph items Enum Levels were; similarly for the description, which should be entered manually.

• Alternative call number type, if used, should be "Other scheme" unless it clearly isn't. Alternative call number should only be used if strictly necessary for a specific library process.

• Notes can only be edited after the item record has been created. Click on the "Notes" tab

Adding a Portfolio

Click on the "Add Portfolio" button (or Alt+O).

Ignore any matched records, unless of course there is a good reason not to.

Fill out out the form as follows. Most of the fields can be left as they are:

Description

• Leave as it is, with "Use existing title" selected.

General Information

• Select "Part of an electronic collection".
• Click on the "Select from list button" on the right of the Electronic Collection search box and look for the appropriate collection. For freely available ebooks this will "publisher (Various free e-books)"; for UCL Press ebooks this will be "UCL Press e-books". If in doubt, double check the exact collection name as they can sometimes be misleading, or there can be several similar collections.
• "Service" should be set to "Full Text"
• Set "Library" to "Electronic"

Coverage Information

• Leave as it is.

Inventory and Linking Information

• Change "Electronic Material Type" to "Book".
• Leave everything else as it is. Proxy should not be enabled.

Notes

• There should normally be no need to add anything here. However, you can use the "Public Note" for e.g. volume information for multi-volume works if necessary, although multiple records for such works is generally preferred.

Click on "Save and Done".

Searching External Databases and Downloading Records

There are two ways to open up the search screen for external resources:

1. From the main Alma menu, click on Resources>Search Resources. This will always open up the dedicated search screen:
   
   
   2. From the Metadata Editor menu, click on Search & Browse>Search Resources. If there are no records open in the Metadata Editor, this will open up the dedicated search screen. However, if there is already a record open, the screen will be split, with the bibliographic record on the left, and the search screen on the right filled in with details from that record:

Select which database to search by clicking on the drop-down list to the right of Search Cataloging Profile:

There are four options. For general searches of modern material, only Worldcat and Library Hub Cataloguing (NBK) need be considered:

• Worldcat (OCLC) is international in scope but will include a lot of UK HE libraries (public web version).
• Library Hub Cataloguing (NBK) is UK and Irish in scope (public web version).
• ESTC is the English Short Title Catalogue. It covers books published mainly in English and published in the British Isles or North America between 1473 and 1800 (public web version).
• ULI is the Israel Union Catalog or Union List of Israel (ULI), bringing together catalogues from a range of Israeli academic libraries (public web version).

Enter your search terms in the relevant boxes on the right. The list of fields is fixed by Alma, but can be combined in various ways, and should be sufficient for searching via z39.50:

• Any Field
• Title
• Creator
• Subjects
• ISBN
• ISSN
• Year of Publication
• System Number

Select whether each field is to be searched as a phrase or as independent keywords by clicking on Contains Phrase or Contains Keywords in the drop-down menu to the left of each search box.

The default is Contains Phrase.

Select the Boolean Logic to be applied between fields by clicking on AND or OR in the dropdown menu to the left of each field name.

The default is AND.

To clear all the search boxes, click on the Clear button. (Note that this does not reset any of the two sets of drop-down menus.)

To exit the Search Resources search screen, click on the X in the top right of the window.

To perform the search, click on the Search button or press Return. A page of search results is produced. The name of the database searched is shown with the number of results in brackets, e.g. RLUK research libraries UK(15).

The results are listed below with the option to View or Import:

You can amend the search from the form on the left, including changing the database if requred. 

View

To view one of the results, click on View next to the brief record OR click on the hyperlinked title. The record will be displayed in a version of the normal Metadata Editor view.

Click on Back to Results to return to the results list.

Choosing a Record

Whichever record is chosen, make sure it is for the correct book.

In general, choose the fullest record, preferably using English terminology, e.g. for pages and subjects. Some specific things to look for include:

• Records with more subject headings (fields starting with a 6, e.g. 650. If possible look out for ones followed by a 0, e.g. 650 #0 $$a Fishes.)
• Records with a 264 for publication information rather than a 260.
• Records with full publication information (260/264) and full physical description (300). So, “300 pages” is better than “p”; and, “26 cm” is better than “cm”.

Look out also for information suggesting the record is for an ebook. If you are downloading a record for a print book, avoid downloading an ebook record.

• An 006 or 007 field
• “[electronic resource]” in the title (245) field.
• A 533 field.
• Ebook ISBNs (020 field), although these can sometimes be found alongside print ISBNs.
• 856 fields (for URLs), although these can often be found in print records too.

Import

Click on Import next to the brief record to download the record. The record will be shown in the Metadata Editor and can be edited if required.

Edit and save the record as appropriate by clicking on the Save button.

Edit the record as little as possible. However, if you have an ebook record, delete the 856 field and any information, especially in notes fields (fields starting with a 5) that are local to a specific ebook supplier (which might be different to the one we use) or university (which will have its own access arrangements). Try if possible to make sure the desired ebook ISBN is in the first 020 in the record (which helps with ordering and activation).

The box at the bottom will show errors as normal.

If there are matches, you will be asked Matched record/s exist in the catalog, do you want to view them before saving? In general, select No. The matching algorithm is too fuzzy to be a reliable indicator of a duplicate. It is always best to check first to make sure there is not already a record on Alma.

Scratch Records

This is a brief general guide to creating records from scratch on Alma for ordering purposes. It is focussed on books. There are separate section below dealing with the differences for ebooks and DVDs.

Note on MARC Records

Each MARC record is made up fields, identified by a three-digit code, e.g. 100 for main author. There are then two numbers, called the first and second indicators, which give some more information about the record, and change depending on the field. For example, the first indicator 1 in a 100 field means the name of the author is entered surname first (e.g. Smith, John), which is almost always the case. These indicators are often blank. The content of the field is carried in subfields, signified by a double-dollar sign and a single letter. The meanings of the subfield codes change depending on the field. For example, the $$a in the 100 field contains the author's name but in the 245 field contains the title. Some parts of the record also need punctuation to be added.

Setting Up A Template

You first need to set up a template to use. You should only need to do this once. In the Metadata Editor (Resources > Open Metadata Editor).

Click on New>Templates display configuration.

You will see a big list of templates, most of them supplied by Ex Libris, some of them created by UCL. Some are marked MARC21 Bib and some Holdings. Only the MARC21 ones can be used.

Look for the template called "Books: Scratch Record Template", (circled in red below).

Click on the toggle for that template in the "Display in Menu" column so that it is selected. See blue circle above.

Click on Save at the top.

You can also create your own templates and make them appear in the New menu in the same way. See elsewhere in this document.

Creating a New Scratch Record

Click on New and then on the Books: Scratch Record Template under the MARC21 Bibliographic heading. The template has the most common fields you will need to create scratch records. You will not need all the fields or subfields although you might occasionally need to add some (Editing Actions>Add Field to add a field; subfields can be added by simply typing $$ followed by a letter). Any blank fields or subfields will be deleted.

Fill out the fields as follows:

The 040, 336, 337, and 338 fields are already filled-in and should be left as they are.

When finished, click on Save as you would for saving a downloaded record.

Scratch Records for Ebooks

As for books, except use the template "Ebooks: Scratch Record Template". The 006, 007, 008, 040, 300, 336, 337, and 338 fields are already filled-in and should be left as they are; some of these are additional or will be different than they are for print books. Note the following:

Scratch Records for DVDs

As for books, except use the template "DVDs: Scratch Record Template". The 040, 300, 336, 337, and 338 fields are already filled-in and should be left as they are; some of these  will be different than they are for books. Treat the director as you would the author of a book. Do not record any other crew or actors, unless critical. Such information could be included in 500 general note field. Note for following:

Templates

This section currently reflects the old Metadata Editor.

How to open a template

 Click on the Templates tab on the left. The records tab is then minimized, and three options are shown: Dublin Core, MARC21 Bibliographic and MARC21 Holdings:

Click on the + sign next to MARC21 Bibliographic to expand. Two or three options are shown: Shared, Community, and, if any have been created by the user, Private.

Shared templates are templates which have been created by or for UCL and shared appropriately.

Community templates are templates which have been created by anyone in the Alma community who has shared their templates.

Click on the desired template and select New from the menu.

A new record is created according to the template, ready to be edited.

How to create a template

At any point during the editing of a record, click on File>Save as Template.

A pop-up box appears where you can enter a name for the template, and, if needed, a description. Select Private or Shared as appropriate and click on Save. The new template will then appear in the Templates tab on the left.

How to edit a template

Note that this applies to Private templates only.

In the Templates tab on the left, click on the template you wish to edit.

From the menu, select Edit.

Click on File>Save as Template and the edited template will be saved.

How to delete a template

Note that this applies to Private templates only.

In the Templates tab on the left, click on the template you wish to delete.

From the menu, select Delete.

Suppressing Records

To suppress a record

To suppress a bibliographic or holdings record, open the record in the Metadata Editor, and then select Tools>Set Management Tags>Suppress from Discovery. The Suppress from Discovery option then becomes ticked in that menu:

If you then search for that record in Alma, it will be marked by a sinister crossed-out eye icon in the results list:

To unsuppress a record

To unsuppress a record, simply repeat the above so that the Suppress from Discovery option becomes unticked.

To suppress an item

Items cannot be suppressed individually, only at the holdings level.

Deleting Items and Records

To delete an item

In the Item list click on the ellipsis on the right and select Withdraw.

Alma will ask Are you sure you want to withdraw the item?

Click on Confirm.

If there are other items attached to the holdings record, the item will be deleted.

If there are no other items attached to the holdings record, Alma will offer four choices:

                Don’t change the holdings record

                Delete the holdings record

                Suppress the holdings record from discovery

                Delete bibliographic record

Click on the most logical option.

To delete multiple items

You can delete multiple items by clicking the tick boxes on the left and then choosing Withdraw items from the top menu:

Single items can also be deleted this way if you prefer.

To delete a holdings record

From editing a record in the Metadata Editor, go to the Holdings screen by clicking on View Inventory (or: Ctrl+I)

Click on the ellipsis to the right of the holdings record you want to delete and select Delete.

Alma will ask You are about to delete this Holdings. Are you sure?

Click Yes.

If there are items attached, Alma will warn that Holdings xxx cannot be deleted as it has resources.

If there are no items attached, Alma will delete the holdings record.

To delete multiple holdings records

From the Holdings List, you can delete multiple holdings records by clicking the tick boxes on the left and then choosing Delete Holdings from the top menu:

Single holdings records can also be deleted this way if you prefer.

If there are items attached, Alma will warn that Holdings are not empty and cannot be deleted.

Alternative method for deleting holdings

When editing a holdings record in the Metadata Editor, click on File>Delete Record (or: Ctrl+D):

Alma will warn You are about to delete this Holdings. Are you sure?

Click Yes.

If there are items attached, Alma will warn Holdings xxx canot be deleted as it has resources.

If there are no items attached, Alma will warn Delete bibliographic record (unless other holdings are present)?

Click No.

To delete bibliographic records

When editing a bibliographic record in the Metadata Editor, click on Record Actions>Delete Record (or: Ctrl+D).

If there is an inventory attached, Alma warns Bibliographic Title xxx cannot be deleted as it has x physical item(s) in process.

If there is no inventory attached, Alma warns You are about to delete the following bibliographic record. Title: xxx ID: yyy. Are you sure?

Click Yes.

Procedure for a Catalogued Book in Alma

This is the Alma procedure for what to do with a standard book once catalogued. It effectively replaces the Aleph procedure of going to the item record then changing the process status from the drop-down list. Both shelf-ready and non-shelf-ready both need to go for Physical Processing once catalogued, even if this only activating the RFID tag.

N.B. As it is now far more straightforward to change the process status of an item by scanning bulk than by accessing the item individually, it is more efficient to leave a number of items to one side to be scanned at once. However, for simplicity, the following procedure assumes just one book at a time.

You will need:

• An Alma account with MAIN Library Acquisitions set up as a location. This is the case no matter what site you are working at or where the material is destined for.
• A scanner. While barcodes can technically be typed in, it is not recommended for high volumes.

Procedure:

• Take the book from the appropriate shelf. There is no need to edit the Holdings Record or Item before cataloguing unless it needs to be classified.
• Either classify the item by editing the Holdings Record or leave the item to one side.
• Catalogue the book as normal
• Make sure your Location is set to MAIN Acquisitions Department. This is the case no matter what site you are working at or where the material is destined for.
• Go to Acquisitions>Scan In Item
• Set Status to Physical Processing.
• Leave Done at No unless the item will be going directly to the shelf when you have finished with it.
• Scan the barcode of the catalogued book. Continue scanning barcodes if you have a pile of them to be processed.

In addition, you can see what items are waiting in Copy Cataloging by going to Acquisitions>Receiving Department Items and filtering on Process Status Copy Cataloging. Check the other filters if the results look unexpected.

Moving Items and Holdings Records in Alma (Re-Linking)

Introduction

The following instructions outline methods for moving Alma Holdings and Items (Inventory) between physical records. This was done in Aleph from the Cataloging module and various admin elements had to dragged by the mouse across between records.

N.B. There may be other ways of doing this, but they should be approached with caution. In particular, it seems to be possible to change the Library/Location of a book from the item editing form, which will then create or amend Holdings records, but the full effects of this needs to be explored.

Moving Holdings

Moving Holdings without Items

• Note down the system number or other distinctive way to search for a bibliographic record you wish to link the Holdings record to.
• Open the Holdings record for editing in the Metadata Editor
• Tools>MARC21 Holdings>Relink to a different bibliographic record
• Search for the bibliographic record. The search form is essentially the same as that for searching external resources.
• Select the bibliographic record by clicking on “Relink”

Moving Holdings with Items

As for Moving Holdings Without Items

Moving Items

Moving an Item Between Holdings On The Same Record

• Open the List of Items screen
• Click on “Change Holdings”
• Select the Holdings record to move to
• Click on "Select"

Moving an Item Between Holdings on Different Records

• Note down the system number or other distinctive way to search for a bibliographic record you wish to link the Holdings record to.
• Open the List of Items screen (or can be done via Physical Item Editor)
• Click on “Relink to Another Bib”
• Click on the “Select from a list” drop-down next to “Select Bibliographic record”
• Search for the bibliographic record. The search form is essentially the standard Alma search form.
• Select the bibliographic record by clicking on it in the results list.
• Select the Holdings record to link from the list.
• Click on “Select”.
• If the item is the last item in a Holdings record, you may be given the option to delete the Holdings and possibly the bibliographic record too.

Linking Separately Published Works in a Volume (Alma) using 773 fields

About This Guide

This Alma document is based on the previous Aleph guide on Libnet. 

URLs

Aleph Libnet guide: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/libnet/procedures/collections/cataloguing/linking

• Ex Libris presentation on Bound Together Titles in Alma: https://slideplayer.com/slide/12833981/
• MARC Bibliographic 773 field: http://www.loc.gov/marc/bibliographic/bd773.html
• MARC Holdings 014 field: http://www.loc.gov/marc/holdings/hd014.html

Introduction

Where there is more than one separately published work in a volume, not only must each work have a separate bibliographic record (i.e. be catalogued separately), but all works must be linked together. This fulfils two objectives: firstly, it ensures that when the relevant volume is retrieved from the shelves it is clear from the title of the first work that the other works will also be located in the volume; and secondly, if a volume is loanable - or likely to become loanable in the future - it ensures that when it is issued to the reader every work in the volume will simultaneously be issued, and this will be clear on the catalogue to other readers requesting one of the works. The linking method is as follows. Note that only the first item in the volume has a Holdings record or an Item record; the remaining works are linked to it by means of 773 fields in the second and subsequent records.

First item

Bibliographic Record

In the Bibliographic Record for the first item, add the following fields.

[Note: The 501 is arguably more correct, although the 590 is long-standing practice at UCL. The Ex Libris guide has no mention of spine titles.]

Holdings Record

Add a Holdings Record as usual.

Item Record

Add an Item Record as usual.

Second and Subsequent Items

Bibliographic Record

In the Bibliographic Records for the second and subsequent items, add the following fields.

[Note: The 501 is arguably more correct, although the 590 is long-standing practice at UCL. The Ex Libris guide has no mention of spine titles.]

[Note: Only the $$w with the Alma system number is strictly required, but it seems sensible to add the $$t as well to make it easier to read what is going on by eye.]

Holdings Record

Do not create a Holdings record for second and subsequent items.

Item Record

Do not create a Holdings record for second and subsequent items.

Creating the Links

Alma creates the functional links overnight.

Made-Up Example

Holdings:

Item:

280123456X

Searching for Call Numbers on Alma

To search for call numbers on Alma you also need to search for call number types.

Call Number Types on Alma

On Aleph, call number types were entered into item records using a system of numbers and, later, letters. On Alma, these are entered as the first indicator of the Holdings record, not in the item. Alma expects the codes to match those laid out in the MARC21 Holdings standard, which might not always match those currently on the system. In the following example, the first indicator is "8".

This means "Other scheme", which is correct, as Garside is not one of the standard schemes listed by MARC. There is considerable mismatch between the old Aleph codes and what Alma expects and this can affect searching: you may have to search using the wrong code (by looking up what has been used on Alma against the MARC standard) or not be able to search at all (if the code is not used there at all, which is the case for anything that is a letter). Work is ongoing to correct this. All IOE, Bartlett, and SSEES books are now "8". The Bartlett uses "0" for Library of Congress Classification. If you are unsure which scheme to select, look at the first indicator of some of the holdings in your library and see what the code is listed at in this official list under Shelving Scheme.

How to Search by Call Number

• Select a Physical Item or Physical Title search. Sometime the correct search options will not appear if you start with a Physical Title search, in which case you can start with a Physical Item search and change back later.
• Click on Advanced Search.
• In the first row:
  • Select Holdings: Permanent call number type search index
  • Select Equals
  • From the drop-down list, select the appropriate scheme, e.g. Other scheme
• Click the small blue plus sign at the end of the row to select a new row. In this second row:
  • Select Holdings: Permanent call number search index
  • Select one of the options for searching, e.g. Contains Keywords or Starts With
  • Enter search terms in the search box.

For example, the following search will find call numbers starting with "ENGLISH". As ENGLISH is part of Garside, it should be entered as "Other scheme".

You can of course add in further search terms if necessary, such as Library, Location, or keywords.

How to Search by Retention Code

You can find items by retention code (583/995) by using the Action Note (Bib) index, which is only available in an advanced search. For instance, this search will find all items tagged "UCL-REVIEW":

To find retention-tagged items in a particular collection, combine the Search by Call Number with the retention code, e.g. to find items in the PSYCHOLOGY collection with the retention code "UCL-REVIEW", enter the following search:

For more information on the 583 and 995 fields or UCL's use of retention codes in general, see UCL's MARC21 Fields in Use page.

Managing Sets

Alma sets can be used in a variety of situations: managing your own work, passing sets of records to other people, saving complex searches, as well as more complicated actions such as deleting, amending, or exporting large numbers of records.

N.B. Although it is possible to edit other people’s sets, please never edit other people's sets without getting permission to do so!

Types of Set

There are two main types of set: logical sets and itemized sets. Logical sets are created from Alma searches and change when new records are added or removed. Itemized sets can be created in a number of ways but are fixed lists that are not dependent on conditions; you can however add or remove records from them explicitly.

Sets can also consist of almost any kind of Alma entity, e.g. bibliographic records and items, but you cannot create sets of holdings records. You cannot change the type of set once it is created. Itemized sets are of course not just limited to items.

This guide will focus mainly on logical sets of bibliographic records, but similar principles apply to other sets.

Creating a Logical Set from a Search

• Perform a search on Alma. This can be either a simple or advanced search.
• Click on the “Save Query” button to the right of the results list. You will then be prompted to specify details for a new logical set:
• Set name: This can be anything within reason but give it some thought as this is the main way of retrieving the set again. You might want to come up with a system, especially if you are likely to create lots of similar sets.
• Description and Note. Use these to add more explanation. This is particularly important if you will be sharing the set with others.
• Set Content Type and Set Type. These cannot be changed but confirm what types of set you have.
• If set to “Yes”, only you will see this set; change this to “No” if you need other people to see the set.
• Keep this as “Active”.
• Click on “Save”.

Creating an Itemized Set from an Excel File

An itemized set is one that is not based on a search so would be unaffected by changes to records. It can be created a number of ways, the most useful being from a spreadsheet. This guide will concentrate on either sets of bibliographic MARC records or physical items, although you can create other kinds of set.

Prepare the spreadsheet.

The spreadsheet can contain any other data (although extra columns can sometimes cause problems) but must at least contain a column for the matching identifier. The column must have a header labelled MMS ID for MARC records, or Barcode for items.

Older 302170 barcodes can cause problems as Excel will change their notation. These can be fixed by clicking on the cell, clicking on the formula bar at the top, and pressing Return.

Single quote marks at the beginning of data- e.g. '99002934642020471 - seem not to cause problems, but quote marks enclosing the number - e.g. '99002934642020471' - will not work, so you will need to remove them. UCL MMS IDs always end with the same sequence of numbers so a find and replace for the last few digits plus the quote mark can be used to remove them.

Create the Set on Alma

In Alma, click on Admin>Manage Sets.

Click on "Add Set" and select "Itemized" from the drop-down menu.

Fill in the form as follows. In the "General Information" section:

• Set name: Give the set a sensible and descriptive name
• Description/Note. Add extra information if necessary, especially if you intend to share the set with other people.
• Set content type: For bibliographic MARC records, select "All Titles"; for items, select "Physical Items".
• Private: Select "No" if you need to share the set with other people. Otherwise, leave it at "Yes" by default.

The other options can be left as they are: Status as "Active" and Content Origin as "Institution only".

In the "Add Contents from File to Set" section at the bottom, leave "From File" selected and find the spreadsheet prepared earlier.

Click on "Save". Alma will start a job to add the MARC records or items to the new set. For small files, this should be nearly immediate. You will be emailed when it's complete; you can also just search for the set name and see if it appears.

You can check it has worked by clicking on "Members" to see the number of records in the set. The email will also alert you if there are warnings: normally this will be because Alma couldn't find records to match the idenfiers in the file, perhaps because they have since been deleted or Excel has mangled the numbers or the formatting. You can find more details by going to Admin>Monitor Jobs and clicking on the History tab. Find the relevant "Add Members to Set" job, which should be near the top, and select "Report" from the three-dots drop-down on the right.

Retrieving a Set

• Click on Admin>Manage Sets. From here you can choose to select “My Sets” (the ones you’ve created), “Public Sets” that other UCL staff have shared (including your own), and “All Sets”. Enter a search term in the box and click on the magnifying glass.

You can see and edit technical details (Name, Description, etc) about a set by clicking on the name of the set, but this is not normally very helpful. To see a results list:

• Click on the three dots to the right of the set and select “Members”.

Combining Sets

You can combine existing sets. This is mostly necessary to overcome the limitations of Advanced Searches (which, for instance, cannot include NOT logic). However combining sets has its own limitations: it can be quite fiddly to combine a large number of sets; more significantly, all combined sets are itemized so that if, for instance, you combine two logical sets based on a search, any records added that match those logical sets will not be automatically added to the new combined set. Both sets need to be of the same type of thing (e.g. Physical title or Item), but one could be logical and the other itemized.

• Click on Admin>Manage Sets and find the first set.
• Click on the three dots to the right of the set and select “Combine sets”.
• Edit the Set name and other details of the new set to something more useful if desired.
• Scroll to the bottom and select the logic to be used: “And”, “Not”, or “Or”.
• Click on the “With” box and use the search screen to find the second set.
• Click on “Submit”. A confirmation screen will appear with information about the estimated size of set.
• Click on “Confirm”.
• A pop-up box will confirm that “A combine sets job … was submitted; an email will be sent upon completion” and bring you back to the Manage Sets page. Alma treats this is a job that it will complete when it has the time; however it usually only takes a few seconds.
• When you receive the email (or are impatient, whichever is earliest), you can retrieve and manage the set like any other.

Turning the Scanner Carriage Return Off and On for Alma

Introduction

By default, scanners used in the library read the barcode then send a carriage return, much as if one had typed in the barcode then pressed enter. In Alma, this is not always desirable, e.g. when creating a new item and scanning the barcode, which then saves and closes the form immediately.

The scanner can be configured to read the barcode only and not send a carriage return. This process can then be reversed. The following instructions are for simple Opticon scanners and cannot be guaranteed to work on all scanners, including those in use in the library. N.B. Changing the scanner setting affects all applications, not just Alma, and cannot be confined to particular functions of Alma.

Procedure

Print out the sets of barcodes on the following pages. Scan each set of barcodes in turn as desired. After the first or second barcode, the scanner will make a repetitive beep, which will stop after the last barcode.

The Start barcode tells the scanner expect a command, the next barcode(s) configures the scanner, and the End one tells the scanner there are no further commands.

N.B. Other Scanner Settings

Please be aware that these setting changes may interfere with other settings on your scanner that were set up by the Library’s Digital Libraries Team, e.g. settings to read ISBNs and old-style barcodes starting “30217 “. Interaction with those has not been rigorously tested but the scanner used to formulate these instructions was able to correctly read ISBNs OK but required the additional barcode to read “30217 “ barcodes with a gap, which is included below.

There is information on setting up scanners on Libnet: https://www.ucl.ac.uk/libnet/it-for-staff/digital-libraries-help

Turning Carriage Return OFF

1.      Start:

2.      Reset the scanner:

3.      Reinstate ability to read “30217 “ barcodes:

4.      Turn carriage return OFF:

5.      End:

Turning Carriage Return ON

1.      Start:

2. Turn carriage return ON:

3.      End:

Alma Shortcuts

File

Save Draft                               Ctrl+Alt+S

Save Record                            Ctrl+S

Save and Release Record        Ctrl+Alt+R

Release Record                       Alt+Shift+R

Delete Record                         Ctrl+D

Exit                                          Ctrl+Q

Edit

Add Field                                 F8

Remove Field                          Ctrl+F6

Add Subfield                            F9

Enhance the Record                Ctrl+Alt+E

Expand from Template           Ctrl+E

Split Editor                              F6

Full Screen                              F7

Open Form Editor                   Ctrl+F

Close Form Editor                   Esc

Cut                                           Ctrl+X

Copy                                        Ctrl+C

Paste                                       Ctrl+V

Tools

Validate                                   Ctrl+U

Browse Shelf Listing                Alt+C

MARC Bibliographic

Add holdings                           Ctrl+Alt+H

Find matches                           Ctrl+M

View Inventory                        Ctrl+I

Other

Add portfolio                           Alt+O

Full Screen                              F7

Notes on the New Metadata (MDE)

From Monday 6 September 2020 you will be able to use a new version of the Alma Metadata Editor. The navigation, menus, and some functions of the Metadata Editor (which is now referred to as the MDE) are different. Harvard Libraries have produced some excellent documentation on their wiki on the MDE, which I would encourage you to work through. However, below is a list of the main changes which you need to be aware of. Basic editing functions have not changed. There is a bit more room at the bottom of the screen as the Alerts pop up from the bottom instead of occupying their own frame, and the Records list can now be collapsed. You can switch to using it by clicking on the “New MDE” button on the right-hand of the screen or revert to the old Metadata Editor by clicking on the “Old Editor” button in the same place.

• The new MDE is effectively persistent so you can leave it and come back to it without losing where you were. This makes it a bit more like Aleph where you could keep a record open then go and consult another record or perform a search. To toggle between the MDE and other work, click on the pencil-in-a-circle icon at the top of the screen. There will be additional changes to the Alma layout in October (see below) and this will change to a book-with-an-M-on the cover icon:
• To move between Records, Templates, and Rules, there is a drop-down menu in the new MDE, instead of the old concertina arrangement.
• To move between Bib records and Holdings, use the tabs at the top of the new MDE, instead of the + signs in the left-hand concertina.
• Some menus and buttons have been moved around.
• The Records List on the left of the screen has been improved with some sorting and filtering options (including a basic search filter), and more details of the record when you hover over it.
• The subfield markers ($$) are now in a lurid blue so are easier to see.
• You can choose which templates appear in the New menu, so we can more freely create templates but be free of seeing those we don’t actually want to use.
• In split screen mode, the same functions should be available for both open records, although some actions may flip them round.
• You can push records from Search to the MDE without going straight to the MDE. This means you could spend time choosing a load of records to edit without having to go backwards and forwards. This might be useful for particular projects. Records that have been pushed are visible in your record list and are marked as “Pushed”.
• You can also select Catalog Set from a set’s page which opens in a dedicated section of the MDE alongside the Records list. This could be really useful for particular projects.

Some screenshots for comparison of the old Metadata Editor above and the new MDE below:

Some functionality will only be added to the new MDE over the coming months so you might want to continue using the old Metadata Editor if particular functions you need don’t work on the new one. I think it is an improvement overall and would encourage you to give it a go to get used to it when you can. The old Metadata Editor is due to be removed in March 2021.

Alma will also undergo a general but limited redesign on 18 October, with the menu moving to the left hand side of the screen, and the search bar moving to the top. Compare the old layout in blue and the new layout in brown below:

Amending Holdings for Former EAR/AOHL Materials at LASS/Cruciform

This is a brief guide to editing Alma Holdings records for any staff dealing with former EAR/AOHL materials moved to LASS. It assumes that all materials are going in the main LASS collection. It assumes that each item has been assigned a classmark and doesn't cover how to do that.

For Cruciform, the process is the same, except that all references to "DHCS" should changed to CRUCI. The 852 first indicator should be changed to 2 instead of "4".

• Do a Physical Titles (or All Titles) Keyword search for the barcode of the book. You should get one hit.
• At the bottom of the result, click on Physical (). There should be a number in the brackets. You should see a list of all Holdings records. One of the rows should have "STORE" in the Library column and either "LARYN" or "RNID" in the Location column.
• Click on the link in the Location column. This will show you the Holdings record.
• Click on the Edit button. You should now be in the Metadata Editor.
• In the holdings record, edit the 852 field as follows:
  • After the "852", there are two boxes (called indicators).:
    • Change the first indicator to 4.
    • Make sure the second indicator is a blank (i.e. a space).
  • The main box has subfields, prefixed by two dollar signs and a single letter (e.g. $$a is subfield a).
    • Change subfield $$b to DHCS
    • Change subfield $$c to DHCS
    • Change $$h to the new LASS classmark
    • Delete any $$x fields. You can do this by simply deleting the entire text including the $$x itself.
• The 852 field should look something like this: 852 4_ $$b DHCS $$c DHCS $$h 466.6 SMI
  
• Click on the disc icon to save the record (or File>Save, or Ctrl+S)

If there are duplicate holdings records that need to resolved, either follow the instructions earlier in this document, or email the system numbers to Tom.

• If the item needs to be edited (e.g. to change or check the item policy):
  • Click on the View Inventory button (next to the Save Record button and looks like a magnifying glass in front of a box, or Ctrl+I). This will bring a list of Holdings on the right.
  • Find the one marked "Library: Language and Speech Science Library Location: LaSS Collection" with the classmark you gave it.
  • Click on the three dots next to that Holdings record and click on View Items.
  • Find the item you want to edit. The barcode should match the book.
  • Click on the three dots next to the item and click on Edit.
  • Make any checks or changes you need. You can change the Item Policy by selecting from the drop-down list on the right-hand side. You should only choose the polices with an asterisk or- if the policy is a standard one (i.e. no policy)- a blank. If you need to select blank, it right at the bottom of the list

Selected Aleph Code Tables

These are a selection of Aleph codes: loan statuses, process statuses, and call number types. They might be useful but may not be totally exhaustive (e.g. in rare cases where the meaning of a loan status depended on the site) and reflect codes recorded shortly before migration to Alma.

Aleph Loan Statuses

How long an item can be loaned for. There were some minor variations to the list depending on the sublibrary, e.g. 02 for Stores was Store Theses Reference but otherwise was Electronic.

Aleph Item Process Statuses (as used in Technical Migration notes)

What is happening to an item. If any item was undergoing any of these during migration, the code is listed in Internal Note 3 of the Alma item in brackets, preceded by “Technical Migration”.

Aleph Call No Types

Alma uses and expects the official codes as specified in the MARC Holdings 852 standard: https://www.loc.gov/marc/holdings/hd852.html

Some of the more obvious matches/mismatches have been coloured in bold below.

N.B. A number of these have been changed since migration, e.g. IOE and SSEES are now 8, and Bartlett is now 0.

Checking for Holds in Copy Cataloguing

Make sure you have chosen to be in the Main Library - MAIN Acquistions Department.

From the Acquisitions menu, choose Post-Receiving Processing >Receiving Department Items. by default, this lists all Items that are "In Process", chiefly "Copy Cataloging" and "Physical Processing".

To restrict the list to the relevant items, select "Copy Cataloging" from the Process Status menu and "Patron Requests" from the Request Filter menu:

You can, if necessary, further restrict the list to items in a particular library.

All items should have "Copy Cataloging" in the Status column and "Patron request" in the Requests column (although might also mention Library requests). The date of accession can be found in the Date received for department column. This should usually be enough to find items arranged by arrival date. You might need to undertake further research into an item's history though in case anything unusual has happened with the item or order.

See also Procedure for a Catalogued Book in Alma above.

Cataloguing Gifts

This guide is concerned with cataloguing gifts, placing orders, and amending items. It doesn’t cover which gifts to catalogue, selection, etc, for which, for example, see the IOE Gift cataloguing strategy, which include extra instructions.

Scope

For the purposes of this guide, Gift means anything not acquired by purchase and doesn’t have to be a specific donation; it includes freebies, circulars, and exchange items. It will generally not already have an order. Depending on scale and circumstance it might not be appropriate for large donations and bequests, especially those which could fall under the category of retrospective cataloguing.

Gift Catalogue Records

Gifts should be catalogued as normal. Do not include 5xx donor notes or 7xx headings for donors, unless you are cataloguing special collections material or a particular project or collection requires it.

Gift Orders

For individual gifts, add a gift order to the record. Do not add inventory first as creating the order does this automatically. [These instructions are adapted from BM’s Alma manual on Libnet but considerably condensed and some bits not needed for gifts are omitted. Some non-vital but useful gift-specific notes are in square brackets].

• From the catalogue record in the Metadata Editor, click on the Trolley icon
• OR, from a search results screen, select Order from the three-dot drop-down menu

N.B. This will remove the bibliographic record from the record list in the MDE Editor.

You will now be on a screen called PO Line Owner and Type.

• From the PO line type menu, select Print book - One Time.
• From the PO line owner menu, select the library the book will be added to, e.g. SSEES Library or Science Library. If in doubt, use Main Library: the Holdings record can always be edited later anyway.

Using a template is not necessary, but might be helpful. If you have saved one, select one from the Load from template menu. Similarly, leave Generate barcode using sequence as default_institution and Assign inventory manually unticked.

• Click on Create PO line.

A confirmation message may appear if e.g. inventory or orders already exist.

• If you are sure it is OK to continue, click on Confirm:
• Make the following changes in the Summary tab:
  • If there is more than one copy, in the Ordered Items section,
    • Click on +Add Location
    • In Number of items to add, specify the number of extra items (i.e. excluding the one already part of the order, so if three copies have been donated, enter 2)
    • From Supported Libraries, choose the same library specified above, e.g. SSEES Library or Science Library.
    • [Ignore Item policy, but make sure item policies are correct when you edit the item itself]
  • In the Vendor information section:
    • Set Material supplier to GIFTS FOR THE LIBRARY/GIFT/Default Account - GIFT/GIFT (search for “gift” and select the correct value)
  • In the Pricing section:
    • Set List price to 0
  • [In the Funding section:
    • Don’t do anything]
  • in the PO Line Details section:
    • Set Acquisition method to Gift. This will also set Invoice status to No invoice.
    • Set Material type to Book.
  • In the Reporting Codes section:
    • Set 1st reporting code to Book.
  • Click on Save and Continue

Find the Inventory

Find the Holdings or Item again by searching for the book using the author/title, ISBN, or other means. Alternatively, a potentially quick route is

• In the top right of the screen after you have created an order, a notification window pops up.
• Click on the order number, and this takes you into the View Order screen.
• Again, in the top right, click on the title.
• This takes you to Record view, from where you can access the MDE and the holdings from the bib record.

Holdings for Gifts

• Edit the $$b, $$c, and $$h (if appropriate) as normal.

Items for Gifts

• Add the correct Barcode and, if necessary, Item policy.
• Set the Receiving date to today’s date.
• In Public Note, add a note “Donated by X” where X is the name of the donor as given on material supplied with the donor (e.g. a gift slip).
• In Internal Note 1, add a note “gift” in lower case (although it doesn’t really matter).

At this stage the record should be process status Acquisition and needs to be changed to Acquisitions technical services (Physical Processing). This needs to be done by scanning the item using Acquisitions/Scan in Items.

See

• Print Items When Catalogued: https://wiki.ucl.ac.uk/display/LibraryServices/SHH+Procedures#SHHProcedures-PrintItemsWhenCatalogued (needs login)
• Procedure for a Catalogued Book in Alma: https://wiki.ucl.ac.uk/display/LibraryServices/Alma+Cataloguing#AlmaCataloguing-ProcedureforaCataloguedBookinAlma

N.B.:

Scanning can also be done via Fulfilment rather than Acquisitions: it should work either way.

Sometimes- e.g. when editing the item- the “Acquisitions technical services (Physical Processing)” status only appears as “Acquisitions technical services”. You can check it by looking at the item in an item list.