Unlinked Item Records

Background

The NOTIS system allows for the creation of an online circulation record, called an unlinked item record, when the library needs to circulate a volume/piece that is not included in the database or has not been barcoded. Unlinked item records perform circulation functions just like linked item records, except that they are not linked to the online public catalog. Circulation data in unlinked item records, therefore, do not display in the online public catalog to inform users of availability status of the volumes checked out on unlinked item records.

The University of Florida Libraries began using the NOTIS circulation system in June 1986. By July 1990, the Libraries had created 71,919 unlinked item records. Although staff had been consistently working on reducing the number of unlinked items, their number remained over 71,000 through December 1996, peaking at 73,010 in October 1996.

A Breakthrough in FY96-97

A breakthrough came in the summer of 1996 when FCLA developed the capability of identifying unlinked item records by processing units. Until then, unlinked item records have been identified only by each institutional code as reported in the SUS OPAC Record Counts . Maggie Hogue of FCLA responded to our request for files of unlinked item records in the UF Processing Unit. The files have greatly helped us in reducing the number of unlinked item records in the UF Libraries.

Unlinked Items in the Dewey Classification

In August-September 1996 FCLA provided lists of 18,460 unlinked item records in the Dewey Classification. The distribution of the records in the Dewey 100 divisions is shown in Figure 1. More records were in the social sciences and the humanities than in the sciences. The highest numbers were in Dewey 300s (25.3% ); 800s (24.7%); and 900s (15.4%). Nine records that remain from circulation tests are not included in Figure 1.

Figure 1

Tim Hartigan and student assistants began to systematically work on the unlinked item records in October 1996. The results of their work were reflected in the FCLA OPAC Record Counts . For the first time, the number of unlinked item records in the UF Libraries began to steadily move downward as shown in Figure 2. At the end of FY96-97, the number reported by FCLA was 60,528.

Figure 2

FY97-98

The downward trend was short-lived. It lasted only one month into FY97-98. After reaching a record low of 58,578 on August 2, 1997 the number began to rise again. It stayed below the 70,000 mark however, and closer to 60,000. The use of unlinked item records for course reserves may be one reason for the rise. Work on the Dewey unlinked items was completed in January 1998. We moved on to the Library of Congress records. Again, Maggie Hogue provided help with lists from FCLA.

Unlinked Items in the Library of Congress Classification

There were 7,002 unlinked items in the Library of Congress call number in January 1998: 33.7 % were in class Q; 18.1 % in H; 9.7 % in T; 9.2% in P; and 7.3% in S. More LC unlinked items were in science subject areas than in the social sciences and the humanities. When grouped by locations, inclusive of the sublocations: 51.6% were "sci", 28.3 % were "main"; 9.4 % "lac"; 3.8 % "educ"; 3.3% each "afa" and "jud". Locations "jour", "mus", "spec" and "stor" each has less than one percent of the LC unlinked item records. Distributions for all LC classes are shown in Figure 3.

Figure 3

A Three-Pronged Strategy

We have used three approaches in reducing the number of unlinked item records: 1) Identifying/creating the corresponding copy/bibliographic record in LUIS and linking the unlinked item. 2) Adding a barcode to the existing linked item record created in the past with no barcode in LUIS; barcoding the physical volume. 3) Creating linked item records for the remainder of a set when some of its volumes have been checked out on unlinked item records; barcoding the physical volumes.

Figure 4

From July 1997 to May 1998, we linked 10,429 unlinked records, created 3,969 linked items, and added 4,442 barcodes to previously created "blank" linked items.

Where We Are

As hard as staff work on solving the problem, unlinked item records seem to be stubbornly resisting. New unlinked item records are being created faster than the old ones are removed. At the beginning of FY97-98 there were 60,528 unlinked item records in UF LUIS. Eleven months later, at the beginning of June 1998, there were 63,390, as shown in Figure 5, an increase of nearly 3,000.

Figure 5

The progress made by our work is evident, however, when looking more closely. FCLA reports of July 1997 (now off-line) and January 1998, the UF Processing Unit Call Number Range Statistics show that the number of unlinked records in the UF Processing Unit is shrinking, albeit slightly, while those in other processing units in the University Libraries are increasing. The Health Center (HC) unlinked items increased from 2 in July 1997 to 3253 in January 1998; the Law Library (LL) from 2171 to 2276; the Government Documents (UD) from 13944 to 15012; while in the UF Processing Unit the number decreased from 43088 to 38397. Figure 6 reflects this new development.

Figure 6

Looking within the UF Processing Unit itself, the January 1998 report shows that the number of Dewey unlinked items was 616. When compared to the 18,460 we had at the beginning of the project, there is much to rejoice. As shown in Figure 7, Dewey unlinks constituted 1.6 % of the total unlinked items in the UF Processing Unit; the LC 17.8 %; the "X-ceptions" category 80 % (30,730 records). The latter is what we will look into in the coming year after we've completed the LC.

Figure 7

Plans for FY98-99

Our goals are: to finish work on the Library of Congress unlinked items; to request lists of unlinked items in the "X-ceptions" classification category from FCLA, hopefully the lists will exclude unlinked records created for course reserves; and to begin working on the remaining unlinked records.

June 23, 1998
Lawan Orser, orserl@mail.uflib.ufl.edu
Tim Hartigan, timhart@mail.uflib.ufl.edu